On a regular basis, we have a morning walk every weekday, and he and Cherokee take Mary and I to the dog park every Saturday and Sunday morning, where I am a dog park monitor, picking up poop other pet companions missed, filling gopher holes and places where dogs dug, keeping the Mutt-Mitt containers full, emptying garbage cans, and sweeping sidewalks.

He is very friendly, gets along very well with Cherokee and the three cats, and seems smart, although he has not shown much interest in playing ball, a personal favorite past-time for me with dogs. He will pick it up occasionally and chase it a few times, but his interest wanders quickly. We are playing ball several times a day in the backyard and making some progress. So far, despite having several dozen toys to choose from, including many new ones of all sorts, he is most interested in a toy ball that we stuff with treats and he pushes around with his nose while they fall out. Cherokee, who is totally toy-impaired, follows him as he noses the ball around and scores as often as she can. Dakota has also been quite interested in cat toys, which we assume is the hound dog's interest in odd smells.

Dakota is very good on the leash and has a few commands under control, such as "sit" and "stay" (for a short time) and "come" (although he needs works on this). He and Cherokee follow Shawnee into the study every morning and bug me until I get them treats that they know are in my bathrobe pockets. We are working on "down," "back" (as in "No! You cannot get in the front seat of the car while we are driving!"), "line" (as in "Don't you dare dash out the front door every time I open it."), and "off", a command needed because his previous owners let him get on the bed and furniture. Mary and I work with Dakota. He likes the attention and the treats that go with success (although he has not figured out that all he is getting is dog food dispersed two pieces at a time.).

The picture on the left shows Dakota when he still had kennel cough (with some obvious discharge) and was just discovering his backyard. His favorite outdoor activities include rolling around on the ground on his back and rubbing his nose in the grass. He likes to nuzzle, getting close to people, but he is not a licker. His name was Spartan when we adopted him, but we didn't think that fit. So we tried Choctaw, Chippewa, Creek, Spartan and Dakota to see which he responded to. He picked Dakota.