Squirrels, bowls of kibble, and regular walks became the high points of the sheepdog's days, which blended into an unchanging background with nothing ever happening to change the mind-dulling routine.
Something changed today. Mistress Cassie was running behind schedule and asked her new boyfriend to talk the dog for her, something which the new Jared was more than happy to do.
"Sit boy!"
The sheepdog obediently complied and the tall, athletic young man fastened a leash to the dog's collar. A grin over his handsome human features, the impostor stared for a long moment into the dull eyes placed on either side of the dog's snout.
He snapped his fingers. He loved such simple actions that had been an impossibility while a canine. He saw the sheepdog grow attentive after the snap, but the eyes focused for only a few seconds and the dog went back to being a shaggy, panting, drooling mess.
Somehow the docile and go-along nature of the sheepdog offended the new human. "I was never that dumb," he sniffed.
He tugged on the leash and made the sheepdog follow. Soon, the order reversed and the sheepdog took the lead and continually strained on the leash to dictate the direction of the walk.
"Heel!" Jared said sharply. He wasn't having any of the dog's stubborn resistance.
The dog kept tugging.
"Dammit, don't you know anything," the human said irritably. In his estimation, at least the fundamentals of good training should have transferred over with the real Jared when he took on sheepdog form.
"Apparently not," he said aloud and frowned. "Guess I will have to train you myself."