Ziva & Nicole

I proposed a SupDog lesson to Nicole through our instagram, and it turned out to be a marvelous experience for Nicole, and her eighty pound Labrador Ziva. They clearly enjoy the beach but never tried experimenting with some boards! We decided that a Sunrise SUPDOG lesson in Kailua would be the perfect place to dive a little deeper into training for Ziva.

Friday morning we arrived with a slight onshore wind and light chop on the surface of the water. It didn’t seem too bad, so we decided to give it a try! I first introduced myself to Ziva by lowering myself to her level and raising the pitch of my voice. I also gave her a good pet and rub so she could tell that i’m friendly. I unloaded the boards and walked us over to the beach. I asked Nicole if Ziva likes chicken, which she acknowledged. I brought some slices of a rotisserie chicken and proceeded to start positive reinforcement commands with Ziva. She responded very well, for only be one year old Ziva is well on her way to becoming a SUPDOG.

We were able to properly execute “Sit, Stay, Down, and Shake”. I then put the life jacket on Ziva, and repeated commands while having her walk over the SUP board. With proper directional commands and chicken, Ziva was perfectly in tune. Next I ran down the beach with her to get her heart rate up. This is so when we enter the water she has good blood flow in case she needs to swim.

Because of the wind and texture, I wanted to put Ziva on the board by herself first. I picked up my 11’6 Rock Solid SUP in one hand, and Ziva in the other. I walked them both out to knee deep and then placed the board down, and set Ziva right in the middle. We pushed over two waves and then we’re in the clear. I allowed Ziva a moment to realize what was happening! First time on the ocean can be a moving experience. Ziva seemed a little timid but balanced.

I asked Ziva to sit a few times with no success. She preferred to stand. When first getting started, i’ts always good to get your center of gravity as low as possible so as to stay balanced. We waded in the water for a few minutes and then headed back in to see Nicole on shore. Mom loved the sight of her first adventure, and soon decided to join Ziva on the water. We repeated the same water entry process this time with Nicole close behind me. I placed Ziva on the SUP and asked Nicole to hop on. Once they both made it on the board, we talked about a few tips and tricks, practiced some basic commands with positive reinforcement, and watched the sunrise over the pacific.

We wrapped up with a cleansing shower, shampoo and towel.

Aside from the wind and small texture, Nicole and Ziva enjoyed a picture perfect sunrise supdog lesson.