I highly suggest that you not get one in winter!
Still working on getting into a routine here and I have to say that the weather is not helping. First a snowstorm, then 2 days of rain and mud and now after a beautiful weekend, freezing temps. And more snow expected tomorrow. Ah well. So it goes.
Some quick updates…
Ellie is overall adjusting well…still trying to figure out the sleeping thing and housebreaking thing. She ended up having some digestive track issues (probably due to stress and switching food (her owner never told me what brand of food they used)) so I cook her chicken and rice (those that know me will get a kick out of the fact that I am cooking for my dog!) and she is on medication to help with the inflammation. Hopefully she will be feeling better soon.
The cats and Ellie are coming to an agreement and they have been taking back the rest of the house. The first few days, they kept themselves pretty scarce. But now they can be in the same room without a problem and Ellie is learning not to chase them. Lapis has swatted her once and is starting to get really brave. They actually came nose to nose this afternoon.
Ellie is a real cutie…she has a tendency to prance especially when she runs and she is an incredible jumper. She likes to eat ice cubes. She has tons of energy and can run like the dickens outside, but she is also fairly calm inside. She loves to play monkey in the middle with the boys with her soft frisbee.
We went to our first obedience class…should be interesting as Ellie is not really big on treats…at least none that we have found yet. The boys are looking forward to it.
I will say that I am much more sleep deprived then I have been in awhile. Hopefully we will get adjusted to things soon!
~Stephanie
I feel your pain! It is finally getting warm enough by the afternoon here to take our puppies outside.
Has there been pictures of the new dog? I would love to see some.
Steph, my friend Norma cooks for her dog because he seems to have an allergy to corn (which is in all the prepared foods). She researched it really well and wrote a post about it once. search “vincent chicken” on her blog Now Norma Knits (in my blog roll with the knitters). The key thing is that she found some supplements to add to the chicken and rice so that he gets everything he needs.
Brings back memories of our “puppy” who is now almost 2! But, we did get her in the summer.
I feel your pain, as someone else said. Those puppy days were hard! But, obedience class worked wonders and she’s a wonderful, well-behaved dog now. Wishing you the best!
Dana
JoVE…luckily the cooking for Ellie is not a permanent thing! Just another couple of days.
Lara – you can see pics here:
http://throwingmarshmallows.homeschooljournal.net/2007/02/25/293/
http://throwingmarshmallows.homeschooljournal.net/2007/02/26/295/
Stephanie,
You could try using the frisbee as a reward in class. Rewards just have to be something the dog likes. A lot of police and search and rescue dogs use kongs or tennis balls. It doesn’t have to be the same thing in all circumstances either.
One of my dogs loves to run. While I can’t use that all the time, I used it to teach her to run to the back door if she gets loose. Running full tilt up the steps is her reward for heading to the door.
For a dog that likes to play tug of war, playing with a leash can be a great reward (as long as you have the right leash!).
My other dog loves to tug.Taking advantage of this as a reward means that I always have a reward with me when we leave the house.