What a Fantastic Weekend!

Daddy's girls

Justin’s parents are on vacation this week, so we are returning the pet-sitting favor they did for us recently by house-sitting and watching their 16 year-old babies, a Boxer mix named Samantha and their beautiful, black kitty, Salem.  Sam and Margot are staying at the house with us, of course, and it kind of feels like we’re all on a sort of mini-vacation together.  I especially love it for our girls because they love spending time on the screened-in, wrap-around porch (as do I) and in Justin’s parents’ big, fenced-in back yard. 

This past Saturday was one of the nicest Saturday’s we’ve had in a LONG time.  It was the annual Chili Fest, held in downtown Huntington.  Lots of vendors line 3^rd Avenue serving various kinds of chili and other local fare (I hate my first funnel cake!), while musicians play in Pullman Square throughout the day.  Between musical performances, there are various contests held, concluding with the big chili contest winner announcement at the end of the evening.  Unfortunately, because I’ve been a wedding photographer for the past eight years, I have only been able to attend one or two Chili Fests because I usually had to shoot a wedding on that day.  So, this year, not only was I excited to be able to attend, but Justin and I decided to take Margot and make this her first big, “official” public outing!

Margot the socialite at Chili Fest.

Mind you, Margot is still not cleared to socialize with other dogs or in public parks for another two and a half weeks, but Chili Fest only comes once a year, and the entire event takes place on paved roads and sidewalks.  Plus, she HAS had the majority of her vaccinations at this point; therefore, we decided to let our guard down just a bit for this one, special occasion (although, even as I’m typing this, I’m cringing at the fact that we took that risk).  Thankfully, Margot hasn’t shown any signs of Parvo or any other health concerns since the Chili Fest, so I think it’s safe to say that she’s going to be fine.  (whew!)

My "kiddos" at Chili Fest!  (Ashley and Margot)

Anyway, I cannot even begin to tell you how wonderful Margot was at the Chili Fest.  I let Justin have the honor of walking her because I knew she’d probably receive a ton of attention, and I wanted Justin to be able to enjoy that attention, as well.  And boy, was Margot ever a hit at the Chili Fest!  Justin, Ashley, and I couldn’t walk more than a few feet before someone would stop us and ask if they could pet Margot.  At one point, Justin and Margot literally became surrounded in the middle of the street as we were trying to cross, and I said to Ashley as we stood there waiting, “We should have just set up a booth for Margot!”  I loved watching Justin and Margot receive so much attention, though.  I could tell that Justin enjoyed telling people about her (what breed she is, her age, explaining why her ears aren’t cropped, etc.), and Margot was very impressive in the way she handled all of the attention from so many strangers.  At first, I was afraid that the large crowd might intimidate her and make her a little nervous, but she was calm, curious, and even downright polite to every stranger she met!  Anytime someone extended their hand to pet her, whether it was an adult or a child, Margot simply sat and gladly welcomed their affection.   Justin was especially pleased with how well she behaved with children.  She never got too excited or overly playful, not even with the handful of other dogs she encountered (although, because I was still trying to be at least a little bit cautious, I wouldn’t let Margot do more than just briefly sniff other dogs).  In fact, Margot was so well behaved that several people mistakenly thought she was an adult Miniature Pinscher, and they were shocked to learn that she was only a 13 week-old Doberman puppy.   Yes, I hate to be one of “those mothers,” but I have to say that Margot truly was a perfect little angel that day.  Justin and I are so proud of her. 



The best family midday nap EVER!

When we returned from the Chili Fest, we were all pretty exhausted, and Justin, Sam, Margot, and I all fell asleep on the outdoor porch furniture that afternoon.  It was probably one of the most pleasant, relaxing midday naps I’ve ever had in my life.  The weather was sunny and beautiful, in the mid- to high-70’s, and I loved hearing the leaves rustling on the trees in the back yard whenever a nice, cool breeze blew through.  In fact, napping on the screened-in porch is probably going to be a daily activity for me until Justin’s parents come home, as Sam, Margot, and I enjoyed yet another outdoor midday nap yesterday afternoon, as well. 



Believe it or not, this is a very good thing!

Overall, I honestly can’t remember the last time we enjoyed such a nice weekend.  Sam and Margot both seem very happy, and they have even spent at least several minutes playing together every single day since that first time they played together last week!  Plus, ever since Sam decided to engage in a little daily playtime with Margot, Margot has been much less annoying and demanding of Sam’s attention.  I have jokingly said that Sam has probably just decided that if she can’t beat her, she might as well join her, like, “Okay, little one.  Let’s get this playtime over with so you’ll leave me alone for the rest of the night….”  Of course, I’d rather believe that Margot has successfully managed to bring out Sam’s “inner child” and that Sam actually enjoys their playtime as much as Margot, and I honestly think she does.  You should see the smile on my face whenever those two are playing, too.  To say that it makes me very happy would be quite an understatement.  :)



13-Week Progress Report

Margot turned 13 weeks-old yesterday, and I didn’t even realize it!  I guess that means it’s time for a progress report, but first I wanted to share the good news that Kristy’s cat, Posey, returned home last night!  After posting flyers all over our neighborhood yesterday evening, Kristy’s neighbor from across the street knocked on her door to tell her that he thought he saw Posey run and hide underneath a car that was parked in front of Kristy’s apartment building.  She looked under the car and, sure enough, it was Posey!   I’m so happy that they found her!

That’s not all the good news I have from last night, though.  You’re not going to believe this, but Sam and Margot played together for a really long time again last night, AND Sam even initiated one of their games!  I was seriously about to die from happiness while I was shooting this video:

It was so much fun to watch them because Sam was putting Margot’s entire head inside her mouth, and Margot had a big grin on her face the whole time!  Also, I’m no Cesar Millan, but I think that Sam exhibited some other dominant-type behaviors with Margot last night, as I saw Margot assume a submissive, belly-up position a few times.  Of course, I could be completely wrong about that, but I can tell you this:  When I was home during my lunch break today, Margot didn’t even try to pick on Sam.  Not even a little bit!  Justin and I wonder if Sam finally earned Margot’s respect last night by proving that she could obviously whoop Margot’s little puppy butt if she really wanted to.   I’m really anxious to see if they’ll play again this evening and if Margot will pester Sam as much. 

As for Margot’s 13-week progress report, I’m bummed to report that she’s still not asking to be let outside or even indicating when she has to use the bathroom.   If we happen to catch her squatting to pee, she WILL stop urinating as soon as we yell, “No!” and then finish peeing once we let her outside, which I guess is a slight improvement (she used to just finish peeing, even after we yelled); however, that’s just not good enough for me.  Ashley gave me some bells that she used while she was trying to housebreak her puppy, Banksy, last year.  You’re supposed to hang the bells from the doorknob and train the puppy to hit them whenever she wants to go outside.  I guess it’s worth a shot, so we’ll probably start trying that tonight. 

As far as improvements go, Margot is getting better at performing “lay down” on command, although it’s not exactly graceful or 100% consistent yet, but she definitely understands the command.  Her play-biting is almost non-existent now, unless you’re really rough-housing with her.  Occasionally, she will mouth your arm, but her bite is very inhibited, and she will stop as soon as you tell her to.   Margot is able to climb and sometimes jump onto the couch all by herself now, which I’m sure some of you do not approve of, but I’ve always allowed my girls to lay on the sofas with us.  (What can I say?  I love to cuddle.)  Margot also conquered her fear of going up and down the tall fire escape-type staircase that leads to Zach and Kristy’s back door this past weekend, and I’d love to add the fact that Margot has stopped pestering Sam to this progress report, but I guess it’s still too soon for me to declare that with certainty.   

I suppose the biggest thing I’d like to note is the fact that I can see a little more maturity developing in Margot now, and I’m very pleased with what a good, sweet, young dog she’s becoming.  Up until now, if she wasn’t sleeping, she was playing at full-speed, or vice versa, and there really wasn’t much more to her personality than that.  Recently, however, she has been able to take her energy level down a notch, and it’s during those down-times that we’ve been able to notice new little personality traits starting to surface, like how she really seems to enjoy watching television, and how she makes sure to give Justin and me equal cuddling time by periodically alternating laps if we’re both sitting on the couch with her.  In fact, she has become noticeably more cuddly and affectionate lately, which, of course, I LOVE.  I especially love how she takes a few minutes to cuddle in my lap every morning before she fully wakes up and we have our morning playtime.  (Have I mentioned how sad I’m going to be when the day finally comes that she’s too big to fit in my lap?)