The other day I was reading one of my e-mail lists (probably Clicktrain) and came across a post in which someone said something like if you find yourself in an adversarial relationship with your dog, you’re doing something wrong. This brought me up short. I know it to be a truth, but sometimes I guess I just need to be reminded.

As you have probably read, Tuck and I do not share the same views about where dogs should defecate. Unfortunately this often means that I am not very happy with him. I know all abut setting a dog up for success. I really do try to do so, but short of giving the darn guy an enema, there is only so much I can do. The compromise I had worked out was that I would take him out as soon as I got home and wait for him to potty. If nothing was forthcoming I would unemotionally carry him back to his crate and let him try again about every thirty minutes or after eating, whichever came first. Apparently my ‘unemotionally’ was not as good as it should have been because I noticed my sweet, loving little guy starting to avoid me. In my defense I will tell you that it’s cold out, it’s been raining, and I’ve been late for work almost every day for the past four weeks trying my best to give Tuck as many chances to succeed as humanly possible. That’s when I read the post and once again applied the rolled up newspaper to my forehead. (more…)

or How Your Dog Too Can Spend Three Days in a Crate.

So much for happy holidays for the short guy. We’re not doing too well in the potty training department. I think the major problem with trying to potty train an adult dog is that they have much better control over their eliminations. Puppies are pretty much pre-programmed. If their legs are moving they need to potty. If they eat, they need to defecate. Easy. All you have to do is take them out when they need to go, praise the heck out of them when they do and always set them up for success. Not quite so easy with an adult, particularly a male. I have found that Tuck can go more than 18 hours without urinating. I figured I must have just missed him going, after all he is rather low to the ground. So I relented and let him run around a bit. He peed on the carpet. I applied rolled up newspaper to my head and Tuck went back in the crate. What should have been a fun-filled holiday weekend has turned into a guilt fest in my corner and a crate fest in Tuck’s. Not so fun. I got back from my family Christmas a few hours ago and let the dogs out with no results from Tuck. So back in the crate he went. However, about an hour ago we went outside and he urinated AND defecated. Happy, happy, joy, joy. Never have you seen an adult woman so elated over a little dog pooping in the yard. My neighbors are convinced I’m certifiably insane, and I’m happy that Tuck can run and play in the house for a while. (more…)

As inferred earlier Tuck did not come without issues, and it only took me about a day and a half to find out what the biggest one was. That’s when he started resource guarding, and the biggest resource he was guarding was me. He decided that Libby was not to be allowed near me especially in the study. Needless to say that did not sit well with Libby nor I. I was angry and Libby was upset. It really bothered me to see Libby distressed even though I am a big proponent of letting dogs work out their own order in life. She wouldn’t come in the study with me even when Tuck was crated. At that point I was not sure that Tuck was the dog for me. I had gotten him as a companion for both Liblet and I, and neither one of us was sure that he was a good choice. In fact, I really thought about giving him back to the rescue.

I was raised with the belief that if you bring an animal into your home you should be prepared to care for it for 20 years. The idea of returning an adoptee was foreign to me, yet I really did think about it. I only have room in my life for two dogs. If Tuck wasn’t the right “other” dog there would not be a third. Also I knew he would be well cared for if he was returned. It’s not as if he would be slated for the gas chamber. (more…)

If there’s a Joon there must be a Benny, so I thought I’d start the Benny & Joon saga. I adopted Benny a week ago yesterday though I have to admit that it wasn’t until Monday or Tuesday of this week that I was convinced I’d keep him. I’m not as web/blog savvy as Averill, so bear with me.

Benny (new name Tuck, but that’s not nearly so fun as Benny & Joon) is an 18 mo. old Tibetan spaniel that I adopted from rescue. Apparently a breeder in the area had to get rid of her dogs due to ill health. What I know is that the person I got Benny/Tuck from had three more, and they all appeared happy and healthy. I love and have loved my shelties, (more…)