Wait

"Wait" is probably the most common command I use with Maisie.  It comes in very handy when I'm about to take her for a walk but need to throw out the garbage first.  I know I can safely drop the leash while I toss the bag into the can and Maisie will sit right by my side. If I need to get something out of the trunk before we head inside, she will "wait" for me on the sidewalk next to the car while I grab it.  Or to use a recent example, I can leave the front door wide open while I salt the deck and Maisie will "wait" in the house for me.

But most often, I use "wait" at mealtimes.  I feed Maisie in her crate, and it's about the only time she doesn't mind being in there.

Once I finish preparing her food (more on that in a future post), I put the bowl down next to her and tell her to "wait."  And so Maisie waits...

And waits...

Once I went upstairs to start a load of laundry after putting Maisie's food down and forgot that she was still "waiting" to eat.  When I came back downstairs ten or fifteen minutes later, her food remained untouched.

As soon as I say "free," she devours the entire bowl in record time.

She always goes back for a few last licks of the empty bowl right before we head out for our morning walk, just to make sure she hasn't missed anything!