TheBanyanTree: More Puppy Tales

[Sharon Mack]

I LOVE Caesar Milan!!  Both of my dogs are rescue dogs.  The Pug is an angel
but the Pom is (was?) a zany dog.  He pulled on the leash, combated me for
Alpha position and even after it was definitely established; it seemed that
if I relaxed one second, he challenged me.  Just in small ways but he would
get gutsier and gutsier if I didn't 'nip' it.  Walking him was terrible if
another dog was in the vicinity, and people?  He jumped all over them if he
could get close enough to him.  He barked and was in general a wild thing!

 

I began to implement the techniques with both dogs (I figured it couldn't
hurt to include the Pug although he really didn't need it but it was good to
keep it consistent with both dogs.  

 

There hasn't been one technique that hasn't worked.  I don't even have to
lock the leash anymore, he stays behind me as we're walking the walk and his
nose does not go down until I decide it is time.  They do their thing and
then we form the pack and we're off for home.  No more jumping on people and
no more challenges to other dogs.  In fact, when another dog comes on the
scene, he doesn't even acknowledge them anymore.  I am so amazed!  It only
took a day or two for him to GET it. 

 

That guy is so amazing.  I have gotten techniques from vets and
trainers...we even went to classes and nothing ever worked.  But like Caesar
says, he rehabilitates the dog but TRAINS the owners!  What a great guy and
what a lot of wisdom.  I not only love my doggies, but enjoy them and
walking with them.  Their walks have increased now that it's no longer a
battle.

 

-----Original Message-----

From: thebanyantree-bounces at lists.remsset.com
[mailto:thebanyantree-bounces at lists.remsset.com] On Behalf Of Monique Young

Sent: Sunday, September 24, 2006 12:32 PM

To: 'TBT'

Subject: TheBanyanTree: More Puppy Tales

 

Yesterday I noticed Ash had something in his mouth. This is something that

occurs ten or twenty times a day, as Ash has quite the oral fixation. I dug

it out, and discovered a small green Monopoly house. This was quite

puzzling, as our Monopoly game hasn't been out in months (it's still sitting

securely on the shelf) and no Monopoly buildings have been seen for quite

some time. We assumed they were all in the box, where they belong.

 

                Yesterday Ash also discovered my new three drawer plastic

storage unit. He also discovered that by approaching it from the back, he

could push open the second drawer, thereby giving him access to the bottom

drawer, where he could then help himself to anything he desired. 

 

                And what Ash desires most is anything he can get in his

mouth.

 

                I'm not saying Ash has an oral fixation, but nothing is safe

where he's concerned. As people who are quite good at collecting clutter,

this poses a problem. This is why we watch Ash all the time and he's not

allowed to be alone, unless he's in his collapsible crate. 

 

                The other day I said, as I'm wont to do, "What's Ash eating

over there?" We peered around the chair to see Ash laying calmly on the

floor, munching happily on my kitchen shears. We do not keep the kitchen

shears on the floor. We should keep them in a drawer, but sometimes we leave

them out on the counter. This is one of the reasons we're teaching Ash to

stay out of the kitchen. The dog has long legs and is able to reach things

that no one suspects he'd ever try. I don't even trust the top of the

refrigerator these days.

 

                When my beloved looks at me these days he wants to fix me,

to align what is misaligned. My old glasses are askew on a permanent basis,

and thanks to Ash, it will be several weeks before I can get new ones. My

HMO can't even get me in until October 5th. My coworkers didn't believe the

old story about "my dog ate my glasses," so I took in the remains and showed

them. "Wow," they said, "He really did eat them!" As if I'm prone to making

these things up. I don't have to make things up.

 

                We watch the Dog Whisperer religiously these days. Andrew

has learned many new tricks and can now enjoy their walks. I, however, have

yet to master the walking technique, and when I walk the two dogs together

it's a frightening display of dogly enthusiasm and human incompetence, with

Ash insisting on having something in his mouth, whether it's a stick, his

leash, or Honey's leash. I must retrain myself, keep him on his short chain,

and be in control of the situation. Until then, we are quite useful for

giving passing motorists something to laugh at. We're thinking of taking our

comedy routine on the road.

 

                When I looked up the definition of energy in the dictionary

the other day there was a picture of Ash, with his trademark enthusiastic

grin. On Sundays, we go to the dog park, and we let them loose, and they run

until they're exhausted. It's the only thing that keeps us sane the rest of

the day. 

 

                But at night, when we tell Ash it's bedtime, he's a

different dog. He knows if he's good, he doesn't have to sleep in his

collapsible crate. (A feat of modern engineering! It can be folded into a

small rectangular lightweight shape, as thin as a magazine, but opened, it

keeps him securely in one place. The one place is not always the same place,

as he is quite capable of moving it, and has been known to get himself

trapped in odd corners and turns it upside down and on any of its sides, but

at all times he is INSIDE the thing and therefore not able to cause more

damage.) He doesn't mind the crate, and spends part of each day in it when

we're at work, but he prefers to sleep on the bed. He's not allowed to sleep

anywhere else. It's either on the bed, or in the crate. Off the bed, where

Honey sleeps, he could get into untold mischief in a variety of ways. On the

bed, he knows he has to be still and sleep, or it's into the crate for the

remainder of the night. He often sleeps right next to me, stretched out in

his doggy way, all arms and legs. When he gets hiccups in the middle of the

night, which he does now and then, he gets close to me so I can hold him and

massage his belly, and make it all better. The hiccups stop, and he falls

back asleep, and he doesn't move the rest of the night. When he's like this,

asleep and content, motionless in a way that he never is when awake, he's

not the demon dog that plagues us during the day. He's not quite an angel

either, but he's bearable. We're rather attached to him, oral fixation,

endless energy and boundless puppiness included.