Time to Catch Up!

I’ve never been good at giving a Cliff’s Notes version of anything, but since so much has happened since the last time I blogged, I’m going to try my best to summarize:

·         Margot and Luke continued to have random incidents of aggression at the dog park, so a couple of months ago I put my foot down and decided that I wasn’t taking them back until I had taken at least a couple of obedience classes with Margot.

·         Zach and Kristy’s downstairs neighbor, who is quite old and who is also the only tenant in their apartment building who doesn’t own a dog, complained to their landlord about Frank barking “non-stop.”  Zach and Kristy were afraid that they were going to be asked to get rid of their puppy, so I volunteered to crate-train him at my house.  I slept on a futon mattress beside his crate for a couple of nights, just like I did when Margot was a baby, and then Kristy started sleeping over at my house so that she could correct him during the night instead of me.  After a week of this, Frank was much, MUCH better in his crate at night, and he started sleeping back over at his own house again.   Despite the fact that Frank’s toleration of his crate at night had improved by about 95%, he did develop a potty schedule where he’d wake up at 4:00 am, bark, and then Kristy would immediately let him out to take him outside to pee.  Then, to keep Frank quiet, she’d put him in the bed for the rest of the night/morning.   Unfortunately, the downstairs neighbor wasn’t very tolerant of Frank’s one time per night, 4:00 am barking, and she decided to complain to the landlord again.  As a result, after all of mine and Kristy’s sleepless nights trying to get Frank used to his crate over at my house, Zach and Kristy have decided that they have no other choice than to allow Frank to sleep in their bed at night.   We have also become Frank’s doggy daycare, as they crate him over at our house during the day.  It’s the only way to keep their crotchety, old neighbor (and the landlord) off their backs.   Subsequently, they have amped up their search for a house.

·         Luke has been a terror over the last month.  It’s funny, because whenever you look at him, your heart just melts because he looks like such a sweet, innocent dog.  You can’t imagine that this dog would ever misbehave, but, oh, does he ever!  In the past month, Luke has chewed and destroyed not one, not two, but three TV remote controls!  I just keep the replacement remote on my Amazon wish list now so that I can pull it up quickly and order a new one whenever we find one destroyed.  Justin and I are trying to remember to put the remote up on the mantle whenever Luke is in the living room by himself, but the other day I went upstairs to take a shower and forgot.  I was seriously only upstairs for about ten minutes, but when I came back down, I found another destroyed remote. 

Perhaps even worse than the destroyed remotes, however, is the fact that we came home last week to find that Luke had peed on our BRAND NEW sofa!  I mean, what dog just pees on a sofa?!?!?  Um, that would be our sweet, innocent-looking, little Luke.   Needless to say, Luke is now being crated just about every time we leave the room for more than a few minutes.  He hasn’t had any problems with staying in the crate, though, which is a relief.  He and Frank even share the crate during the day when we all go to work. 

Okay, that just about brings us up to date.  The main thing I wanted to talk about is the fact that Margot has now enrolled in obedience training at Petco!  FINALLY!  It turns out that the dog trainer, Claire, had fallen ill suddenly with some gallbladder issues, which is why it took her so long to get the classes started.   After she told me that, I felt bad for being so frustrated about her not calling me, but Claire is doing fine now, and classes started three weeks ago.

There are two other dogs in Margot’s class, Sully and Zoe, who are both around Margot’s age.  Sully is a beautiful, white, rambunctious, male Pit mix who is FULL of energy!  Zoe is a cute Boxer female, who is probably one of the more mellow Boxers I’ve ever met.  Margot was a bit anxious during her first class, as was I, because Sully kept trying to initiate playtime with Margot, and Margot would have been happy to oblige, but of course we wouldn’t allow that to happen during class.  So, as a result, Margot would let out these loud barks and moans/growls, which Justin and I recognized as just sounds of frustration for her, but to everyone else, I was afraid that everyone else was mistaking Margot’s behavior as being a form of aggression towards Sully.  We kept explaining to Sully’s parents and to Claire that Margot isn’t used to meeting new dogs while on her leash.  She’s used to being set free at the dog park and being allowed to do the usual doggy greeting ritual of sniff-sniff-PLAY!  They all seemed pretty understanding, and Claire even gave Margot, Sully, and Zoe an opportunity to interact a little more towards the end of class that day.   At the following week’s class, Claire even allowed the pups to have a play break and made all of the owners leave the training area to give them room to romp and wrestle.  Ironically, as soon as all of the owners left, our puppies became so concerned that they no longer wanted to play together.  They just wanted us to come back! 

As for the classes themselves and what we have been learning, so far I am pleased.  The first class was very basic.  Claire just wanted to get the dogs used to the fact that we will reward them with treats whenever they do something that pleases us.  She also wanted to get started on teaching them one of the most important commands, “Come.”   She introduced us to The Name Game, which is when one person has the dog’s attention, and the other person then says the dog’s name.  If the dog turns his/her head towards the person who said his/her name, then that behavior is rewarded with a treat and praise.  If the dog doesn’t look right away when his/her name is called, the other person is NOT allowed to repeat the dog’s name, which actually takes some practice because you naturally want to call the dog’s name again if he/she doesn’t respond the first time.  However, instead of repeating the dog’s name, the other person is supposed to just make noise until the dog finally looks at them, and then that gets rewarded with another treat and praise.   Justin and I will practice this exercise at night while we’re watching TV, especially if Justin is sharing his apple or some popcorn with the dogs.  While Margot is staring at Justin’s snack, I will say her name, and then we reward her with a bite of Justin’s snack whenever she looks at me. 

As for teaching Margot the “come” command, all Claire has us do is show Margot that we have a treat in our hand, then say, “Margot, come!” before running down the aisle at Petco.  If Margot runs after us, we “jackpot” her, which is when you reward her with five treats, but given to her one at a time.  We’ve practiced this command at all three classes, and during our last class Claire extended the distance in which we ran from Margot to see if Margot would follow us the whole way.  When Margot did, indeed, follow us the entire length of the aisle, Claire seemed very impressed and kept praising Margot for being so smart.  However, all this time, Justin and I have thought this exercise was kind of silly.  I mean, after showing Margot a handful of treats and then running away from her, of course she is going to chase after us!  We couldn’t believe it when Claire said that a lot of puppies in her classes haven’t been following their owners all the way to the end of the aisle the same way Margot did.  However, when I went over to Zach and Kristy’s that evening to practice with Frank what we learned in class that day, Frank did not chase after me when I practiced the “come” command with him.  So, I guess Claire was right.  Not all dogs are as eager to chase their owners for a handful of treats as Margot is.  That being said, I’m still not convinced that Margot is actually learning the “come” command.  I still think that she’s just chasing us for treats.  Unfortunately, this is the one command that Justin and I haven’t been able to practice with Margot much at home.  It’s just too difficult with Sam and Luke in the house because all they do is interrupt our training exercise by trying to get a treat for themselves. 

During our second training class, Claire taught us how to train our puppies to “sit” and “lie down” by luring their noses with treats.  Margot, Sully, and Zoe all knew the “sit” command already, but none of them had learned it the way Claire taught us that day, which is to hold the treat in front of their noses, and then slowly raise your hand up and over the top of the dog’s head.  As the dog raises their head to follow the treat, they will naturally sit.  She told us that the reason it is important to train them with this method is because, eventually, they learn to respond to the non-verbal command of simply raising your hand, even if you don’t have a treat.  The same thing is true for “lie down.”  To get them to perform this command, Claire had us hold the treat in front of their noses, and then we slowly lowered our hands to the ground until the dogs finally laid down to receive their treats. 

At last week’s class, Claire proved to us that our dogs were already learning non-verbal commands when she held up her hand to Zoe, and Zoe immediately sat.  Justin then held his hand up to Margot, and she immediately sat, too.  Then, Justin made the “down” gesture, and Margot laid down!  We also learned the “stand” command that day, and by the end of class, Margot was even standing with a non-verbal hand gesture!  I was so proud, I could’ve burst!  Margot also did really well with the other exercise we did last week, which was sitting by our side on command while walking.  We would walk a few steps, then stop, and tell Margot to sit.  If she sat by our side facing the same direction in which we were walking, she received a reward.  However, she did not receive a reward if she circled around to face us first before sitting, but Margot only did that a couple of times. 

At last week’s class, before class got started, I also mentioned to Claire that Margot’s behavior at the dog park lately has been really disappointing me because she’s been showing some aggression towards other dogs and I can’t figure out why.  In fact, I had to leave the dog park early two days in a row last week because Margot and Luke were picking on this one certain beagle, who didn’t seem to be provoking either of them.   Claire asked if Margot was very socialized as a young puppy, and I told her that she was, very much in fact.  I then mentioned that this behavior seemed to start around the same time we got Luke, and I asked if that could have anything to do with it.  After all, Luke wasn’t raised by us as a young pup, he’s a male, and he definitely seems to have more of a desire to assert dominance than Margot does.  Claire said that it is possible that Margot could be picking up some of Luke’s behaviors, and she suggested that we try taking them to the dog park separately to see if they still behave this way. 

Later during class, Claire had given Zoe and Margot a bunch of toys to play with while she spoke to us about what we were going to learn that day (Sully was absent last week).   Suddenly, while Margot and Zoe were kind of milling around the toys together, Margot kind of growled at Zoe.  We immediately pulled her away from Zoe, but then I looked at Claire and said, “See?  What was that?”  Claire replied, “That was aggression.  It was probably due to these toys, and you had told me that Margot had some incidents with toy aggression, so I shouldn’t have even given them toys.  That was my fault.”  Then, as Claire was gathering all the toys and putting them away, I asked her what I should do whenever Margot behaves that way towards another dog.  I asked if I should just write that off as one single incident, or does this mean that Margot and Zoe simply do not get along?   Claire told me that, first of all, it was an isolated incident, and just because Margot showed some aggression towards Zoe over a toy doesn’t meant that Margot and Zoe are never going to get along.  After all, Claire pointed out that they had never had any trouble interacting at any of the previous classes.  Secondly, Claire told me that it is very important that I remain calm whenever an incident like that occurs and simply remove Margot from the situation.  She said that if I freak out and start yelling, Margot will feed off my energy and intensify her own behavior.   Thankfully, after the toys were put away, Margot did not show anymore aggression towards Zoe.

I decided to take Claire’s advice, and we took Margot to the dog park without Luke this past Sunday.  Upon entering the dog park, Margot seemed a little more anxious than usual.  She was growling at the other dogs who had come to greet her at the gate, and her fur was standing up on her back and neck.  I didn’t yell at her, though, and I simply let her enter the dog park off her leash.   I kept a close eye on her, and after a few minutes of non-aggressive butt-sniffing, her fur settled down on her back and she seemed to relax.  Everything was going pretty well, until a Luke look-alike entered the dog park.  For whatever reason, shortly after greeting each other, Margot started growling and wrestling a little too aggressively with the Golden Retriever, named Scout.  I remembered to stay calm, and I simply pulled Margot away from Scout by her collar.  Then, Scout’s owner ran over to Scout all worried and was saying things like, “Awww!  Scout, are you okay, baby?”  As much as I understand why Scout’s owner might have been a little concerned, I also knew that the incident was NOT that bad, and there was no reason to be THAT concerned.    Furthermore, I am a firm believer that you should never baby your dog like that unless something MAJOR happens, like if blood is drawn.  Babying your dog is like rewarding your dog for being weak, which is especially not a good thing if you are bringing your dog to a dog park. 

Anyway, I took Margot towards the bottom of the hill to find a ball as a way to distract her from Scout.  As we were looking for a ball, though, Scout came down the hill, and the same behavior started up again between the two.  It was like Scout was curious  and kind of wanted to play with Margot, but Margot was obviously playing much rougher than Scout had anticipated, which then frightened Scout and made Margot even more aggressive. 

After pulling Margot away from Scout the second time, and especially after the way Scout’s owner had reacted the first time, I then became a little worried that Scout’s owner might become angry at Margot and, subsequently, me and Justin.   In fact, that’s my biggest fear whenever these incidents occur at the dog park.  I’m actually more worried about what the other dog owners think of me than I am about Margot.  Anyway, I decided the best thing I could do was try to keep Margot as far away from Scout as possible.  So, I started throwing tennis balls for Margot at the bottom of the hill while Scout, thankfully, stayed at the top of the hill.  While Margot and I were playing ball, I started practicing her “sit-down-stand” hand signals, and I rewarded her by throwing the ball.  For the first time ever at the dog park, Margot seemed completely focused on me the whole time we were playing.  Even when other dogs would approach and/or run around us, she never took her attention off of me.  Justin and I also noted that Margot had responded much better to both of us whenever we called her name. 

After a while, Scout’s owner actually approached me and commented about how well Margot was doing with performing those commands.  I was beyond relieved that she didn’t seem upset at all about Margot behaving aggressively towards Scout earlier, and I was very flattered by her compliment on Margot’s training.  As we talked, I told her how glad I was that she seemed so understanding about those two prior incidents between Margot and Scout, and she assured me that those types of incidents happen at the dog park all the time.  Not only that, but she said that Margot’s not the only dog who has ever gotten aggressive towards Scout.  She even kind of blamed Scout for “egging dogs on sometimes, “ like when she followed me and Margot down the hill earlier.  Again, words cannot even express how relieved I was to hear these words coming from this woman that day.

I went home that night feeling very positive, not only about our visit to the dog park, but about Margot’s training in general.   Seeing Margot respond better when we called her name, and especially seeing how attentive she was to me while we were playing ball, despite all of the distractions at the dog park, proved to me that these obedience classes are going to be worth the time and money when it’s all said and done.  Also, thanks in large part to my conversation with Scout’s owner, I learned that day that I can stay calm, diffuse an incident of aggression with Margot, and I shouldn’t waste any time worrying about what the other dog owner’s think about me or my dog.  After all, by removing Margot and distracting her in order to prevent any further incidents, I am being a good, pro-active dog owner, and hopefully the other dog owners will recognize that.  In the meantime, I’m feeling pretty confident that Margot will continue to do well in her obedience classes, and these types of incidents will occur much less frequently in the future.

Margot's Afraid of Santa...and Rain

Screen shot from my phone of the newpaper photo of Margot and me.

Margot and I made it into the newspaper last weekend!  I took her up to the dog park last Saturday, Dec. 1, because PetSafe was hosting a celebration to mark the end of Phase I of the dog park construction and the beginning of Phase II.  “Santa Paws” was there taking pictures with all the dogs, so of course I couldn’t pass up that opportunity.  Margot definitely didn’t like the looks of Santa at first, but once he started giving her treats, she decided that he was okay after all.  

When I look at the photo from the paper, I really cannot believe how big she is now!  She’s almost as tall as Elsea (my friend, Brett’s, 2 year-old, red Dobe), although Margot’s body is still obvious that of a puppy.  She hasn’t really developed her big, barrel Dobe chest yet, and she still has a little bit of awkwardness to her gait when she runs and romps around.   In addition, Margot still isn’t barking very much, except for occasionally when she plays at the dog park.  She also barked at Justin’s parents’ cat a little bit during our visit on Thanksgiving (in a playful way), but overall, she really isn’t very vocal.  She actually chirps more than she barks.  Yes, I said “chirps.”  She makes this funny little, high-pitched sound whenever she’s really excited or while she’s playing with Sam at home.  It’s hilarious and weird, but of course I think it’s adorable.

Margot playing with Buddy at the dog park.

The biggest milestone I have to report is that Justin and I have started transitioning Margot out of her crate.  We have left her out on several occasions for various amounts of time, ranging from a quick run to the store to an entire night while we slept upstairs, and so far she has done incredibly well!  We haven’t come home or woken up to any major disasters or accidents, which is a relief.  Mostly, I think she just curls up on the couch with Sam whenever she realizes that we’re not going to be back for a while, because that’s where we usually find her when we return.   We haven’t tried leaving her out during the day while we’re at work yet, but we’ll get there eventually.  She IS still a puppy, so we don’t fully trust her not to get bored and chew through some cords or destroy something else while we’re gone, and she’s still not 100% housebroken yet.  So, we’ll probably just continue to leave her out on random occasions in the evenings and on weekends to see how she does until we feel comfortable enough to try leaving her out during a work day.  Justin always comes home for lunch, so at least if he comes home to find a mess he’ll be able to crate her for the rest of that day.  Like I said, though, it will probably be at least another week or two before we do that.

My dog's cooler than your dog.  :P

As for the dreaded housebreaking report, Margot only seems to have accidents now whenever it’s raining and she doesn’t want to go outside, or if she absolutely cannot hold it during the night.  I do feel sorry for the girls whenever I make them go outside in the rain, but Margot is simply going to have to suck it up and get used to it the same way Sam has.  This morning, it was POURING when I opened the back door to let them out.  Sam walked hesitantly out onto the deck, but Margot put on the breaks the minute she saw the rain.  She tried to run back into the house, but I literally shoved her out the door and closed the door behind her.  I then proceeded to put some clothes into the dryer and fill the girls’ food and water bowls, thinking that both Margot and Sam would probably hurry and go pee so that they could come back inside as soon as they were done.  Well, Sam was soaking wet when I let her back in.  Margot?  Not quite as wet.  She had obviously NOT gone out into the yard with Sam and just stayed huddled by the door, but I didn’t have time to take her back out.  As I was putting dishes in the dishwasher, though, Margot came in and peed right at the kitchen door!  I immediately yelled, “NO!  Margot, go pee!” and opened the back door to let her out again.  This time, she quickly ran outside because she knew she was in trouble, but I seriously doubt she used the bathroom anymore while she was out there.  Again, she probably just waited right by the door until I let her back in.  I wish there was some way I could get her used to going out in the rain by herself, because she’ll go if Justin or I stand out in the rain with her while she pees, but we’re not always able to do that (nor do we want to).  So, the housebreaking saga continues…

The Dog Park Police

I had to go into the office an hour early yesterday, so I was able to leave an hour earlier than usual and take Margot to the dog park while it was still sunny outside.  Yay!  The poor little thing was feeling rather pent up from not being able to go to the dog park for two whole days.  I decided we would walk to the dog park rather than drive because I’m trying to burn some calories these days.  I took the long way around the perimeter of Ritter Park, which is a route Margot isn’t familiar with, so she mostly kept her head down, sniffing at the ground as we walked.  As soon as we started up the hill beside the tennis courts, though, which Margot has walked several times on our way up to the dog park, it was obvious that she knew were we were headed.  She would actually turn around and look at me periodically with this funny little open-mouth smile that she does when she gets really excited, as if to say, “Do you mean it?  Are we really going to the dog park?!?”  She even picked up her pace and started letting out excited little yelps as soon as the dog park came into view.  I couldn’t help but grin.  I just love how much she loves that place.

As much as Margot and I love going to the dog park, though, I’d like to take a minute to vent about a trend that I’ve been noticing lately that bothers me.  It seems that some dog owners have been taking it upon themselves to act as the Dog Park Police whenever they come to the dog park, and it isn’t just one certain dog owner who always acts like an expert on dog behavior and training, either (although, I will admit that Dog Park Police is the nickname I have given one particular dog park patron).   I have witnessed a few incidents when certain owners have scolded or physically handled other people’s dogs or had words with other dog owners about their dog’s behavior.   

Now, in the Dog Park Police’s defense, I will say that there are some people who bring their poorly behaved and/or aggressive dogs into the dog park who do not always step in to control their dog’s behavior when necessary, and I believe that those people deserve to be scolded, especially if their dog hurts another dog or person.   I don’t have a problem with that.  What bothers me is when the Dog Park Police monitor all of the dogs, including the dogs that aren’t theirs, make comments about how each dog is behaving, and then take it upon themselves to step in whenever they feel that “a problem” MIGHT be developing, or if they simply do not like a certain dog’s behavior. 

Here is a prime example for you:  A few weeks ago, Justin and I were at the dog park, sitting at the top of the hill.  A couple was sitting on the bench close to us, watching their Australian Sheppard mix play with a group of dogs at the bottom of the hill.   A couple of Dog Park Policemen were also standing at the bottom of the hill watching the dogs play.  The Aussie mix was barking a lot at a Great Dane, to the point that her owners started calling her name from the top of the hill and telling her to settle down.   Mind you, the dog wasn’t being aggressive in any way;  she was merely barking and running around the Great Dane.  After a few minutes, we heard the Dog Park Police call this couple’s Aussie mix by name, telling her to calm down. 

When the dog continued to bark, one of the policemen actually took this couple’s dog by the collar and started walking her up the hill toward her owners, saying something like, “Your dog seems to be having some trouble.”   

The owners, who were obviously offended, replied, “Could you please let go of our dog?”

From the bottom of the hill, one of the other policemen yelled, “She’s giving the Great Dane some trouble,” and the policeman who had taken the Aussie mix by the collar added, “She keeps barking in my ear.”   (Note:  the Great Dane did not even belong to these policemen.)

The male owner of the Aussie mix replied, “She’s a herding breed.  She thinks the Great Dane is a horse.  She’s doing what she’s supposed to do.”

At that point, the one policeman let go of the Aussie’s collar and re-joined her fellow policeman at the bottom of the hill, but a minute later her partner yelled up to the owners, “It’s not the barking that concerned us.  It was the growling.” 

The female owner then repeated, “She’s a herding dog.  She is not aggressive.” 

The whole incident was, of course, witnessed by everyone else who happened to be at the dog park that day, and the tension became palpable after that exchange.   You could hear the other dog owners whispering about whom they felt was “right” in the situation, and the offended owners of the Aussie mix even made sarcastic comments about their dog’s “aggressive behavior” the rest of the time they were there.  It was just extremely uncomfortable and ruined what could have been a very pleasant afternoon watching Margot play with her dog park buddies. 

Another example:  Just this week, I watched as an aggressive dog made it difficult for one owner and her dog to even enter the gate of the dog park, and then proceeded to harass several other dogs by growling, humping, and barking.  The owner of the aggressive dog did nothing to control her dog’s behavior, but finally decided to leave when it became clear that the other dog owners were getting upset.   She put her dog on his leash, left the fenced-in dog park, and was walking down the street towards home when one of the offended owners decided to yell after her, “Way to watch your dog!  Yeah, that’s some great dog handling there!” 

Now, as I mentioned above, I have no problem with someone scolding another dog owner for not controlling their dog’s aggressive behavior.   The problem I had in this particular situation was the fact that this guy chose to wait until the owner of the aggressive dog was practically out of earshot before passive-aggressively yelling at her.  It was extremely immature and, once again, made everyone a little uncomfortable.   

Those are just a couple of several examples I could give, but I think you get the picture.  It’s just such a same that certain dog owners have managed to ruin what could be fun dog park experiences for me and possibly others.   Now, even if the owners aren’t fighting with each other, I’m still uncomfortable listening to the Dog Park Police analyze everyone else’s dogs’ behavior, as if they think they’re Cesar Milan. 

“Oh, that wasn’t an ‘I’m playing’ growl; that was an ‘I mean business’ growl.  We should probably take the stick away from that dog before he causes trouble.” 

Yesterday, the Dog Park Police decided that Margot was starting to upset a smaller dog she had been playing with because they felt she was playing a little too rough with the smaller dog.  Even though the smaller dog never showed any indication of becoming upset with Margot, and the dog’s actual owner had assured me that Margot was not playing too rough when I asked her earlier if it was okay, I decided to just bite my tongue and move Margot to another area anyway, mostly to get her away from the Dog Park Police.   Thankfully, they never really say too much about Margot’s behavior, or else I would probably turn into one of those crazy, screaming, offended dog park owners, too.   In a heartbeat.

Vote for Suvi! (Plus, an Overdue Update)

I apologize for neglecting to post any updates about Margot lately, but I have been insanely super busy over the last month or so.  On top of my regular busy schedule with trying to juggle a full-time job and also manage my photography business, I’ve recently made a pretty big decision in terms of my photography business in general, which requires a LOT of planning and preparation.  Not only am I currently redesigning my photography website from scratch, but I’m also trying to get a ton of other things ready in time for the big Bridal Expo, which is taking place at the Big Sandy Superstore Arena in Huntington, WV on January 27, 2012. 

Vote for Suvi!

Before I give you an update about Margot, however, I’d actually like to ask a favor.  If you followed by previous blog about Lexie last summer, you may recall that her second eye surgery was almost completely paid for by the generous donations that we received through my blog and also through a blog that Chad Dressen so kindly posted on his own famous dogs’ website, www.ramseyandpablo.com.   Chad’s adorable Doberman and Chihuahua, Ramsey and Pablo, have drawn a nationwide following over the years, and recently a beautiful Pit Bull, named Suvi, joined their little family via Chad’s girlfriend, Brandy.  Suvi is currently in the running to become a Pit Bull Super Hero Breed Ambassador and help the Minnesota Pit Bull Rescue, but she needs your help!  Voting is taking place on the American Dog Magazine’s Facebook page until November 30, so please click here and vote for Suvi!  She, Chad, Brandy, Ramsey and Pablo are already super heroes in my book, so helping Suvi become an ambassador for her breed is the very least I can do for them.  Again, please spread the word and vote for Suvi as often as possible!

Ava and Margot on Thanksgiving

As for Miss Margot, she is getting so big!  I’m not sure how much she weighs right now, but she’s about as tall as Sam, and her crate is looking smaller and smaller.  She’s such a good girl, too.  On Thanksgiving, we took her to Justin’s parents’ house where they were hosting a small family gathering.   Justin’s second cousin, Ava, who is only 19 months-old, was fascinated by Margot.  After watching her for a while, Ava decided that she wanted to pet Margot.  I’ve seen Margot interact with children at the dog park, and she’s always been great with them, but Ava was much smaller than any other child that Margot has ever encountered.  So, I will admit I was a tad nervous at first, simply because I didn’t know if Margot would become too excited and accidentally knock Ava down by trying to smother her with kisses or something; however, Margot couldn’t have been better behaved.  She did surprise Ava with a kiss on the face once or twice, which sent Ava running back to her father’s lap for safety, but after a minute or two, Ava wanted to go pet the doggy again. 

Granted, Margot ignored Ava for the most part because she was so distracted by all the wonderful Thanksgiving food, but Margot was even a good girl in terms of begging.  She didn’t whine.  She didn’t paw at anyone.  She didn’t jump up onto anyone’s lap or even try to lay her head in anyone’s lap while they ate.  She would simply lie down at one corner of the table and watch everyone eat for a few minutes, and if no one offered her any scraps, she’d try her luck at another corner of the table. 

Margot is also still very well behaved whenever we take her to the dog park, which we are still trying to do as much as possible.  She absolutely LOVES to socialize with all of the different dogs and, of course, their owners.  I’m very proud of the way she manages to stay out of fights, too, as there are often little “spats” between some of the dogs.  Whenever trouble starts, though, Margot always high-tails it out of there!  Sometimes, if a fight starts happening in another area of the dog park, Margot will become curious and run towards the commotion, but she always stops as soon as she sees what’s going on and never tries to take part in it. 

The only time I really have to keep an eye on Margot is when an owner brings a smaller dog into the big dog area because Margot tends to obsess over little dogs.  She’s very curious about them and wants to sniff them incessantly.  Sometimes, this worries the little dog owners, so I will try to step in and redirect Margot’s attention towards a stick or something else.   There have also been times when a little dog that Margot is interested in will actually try to play with her a little bit, and despite Margot’s best efforts to play more gently with the little dog, sometimes she just can’t reel in her excitement enough, and so I’ll have to step in again.  Thankfully, it isn’t difficult to redirect Margot’s attention, which I can tell the little dog owners appreciate. 

Big girl teeth!

For the most part, Margot will spend several minutes socializing with as many dogs as possible, but inevitably she will always end up with one or two BFF’s, whom she will wrestle and play with until it’s time to go home.   She’s made BFF’s with all shapes and sizes, too, from a giant Mastiff/Labrador mix to a little Bassett Hound.  As long as they’re willing to wrestle with her, all dogs are friend-worthy in Margot’s book.

The one thing that Justin and I would both really like to see improve is Margot’s willingness to come when she is called.  I’m actually disappointed in myself for not keeping up with her obedience training very well, but the reason I’ve slacked off with her training at home is because I still fully intend to sign her up for some professional obedience classes after she gets spayed, which will hopefully be during Christmas break next month.  (I’m still waiting to hear back from the vet about how much the medications will cost to treat her for Von Willebrand disease both before and during the surgery.) 

After-bath swaddle.

All in all, Justin and I really couldn’t be more proud of our little Margot.  She’s such a joy to have around.  My favorite moments are when she’s sitting on the couch, lying half-way in my lap, and just calmly watching TV with me.   (We refer to this as her “zen puppy” state.)  It’s so funny to watch her actually watching television.  She’ll stare at the TV for a while, yawn, look at me with those soulful, almond-shaped eyes, give me a quick kiss on the face, and then turn her head and go right back to watching TV.   It cracks me up. 

Sam is Margot's favorite pillow.

I also LOVE finding Margot and Sam all snuggled up together on the sofa.  It’s so sweet the way Sam has finally adopted Margot, the same way she eventually adopted Lexie when she was a puppy.  It seems like only yesterday that we were actually considering letting Sam move in with Justin’s parents because she was so annoyed by Margot, and now Sam will let Margot do just about anything to her that she wants.  If Margot wants to wrestle, Sam wrestles.  If Margot wants to play tug, Sam will play tug with her.  If Margot wants to nap, Sam will patiently lie still while Margot climbs all over her until she’s found a comfortable position (usually right on top of her).  Sam has even been known to leave food in her bowl during the day and wait until Margot has been let out of her crate so that they can eat together.  

They’re both such sweethearts.  I’ve definitely been blessed with some of the best dogs anyone could have ever asked for, including Lexie and Jocie, whom I miss very much and still think about every single day.  Hug your puppies tight, folks.  :)

I am a human mattress.

20-Week (5 Months?) Progress Report

"Helping" me edit.

So, I have a question.  Margot is 20 weeks-old today, so technically that means she’s 5 months-old, right (assuming four weeks per month)?  However, she was born on June 13, so shouldn’t I say that her 5-month birthday is on November 13?!?!? 

Well, in any event, I’m happy to report that there has been more progress in the housebreaking department!  Margot seems to FINALLY be grasping the concept of telling us when she needs to go outside!   I’ve heard her whine on a couple of occasions, which prompted me to ask her if she needed to go out, and she’s also started giving us “The Look.”    I wish I could say that there have been minimal to no accidents in the house since Margot has started indicating her need to go out, but unfortunately I cannot, thanks to this horrible Hurricane Sandy-induced weather we’ve been having.  However, with that said, over the last two days Margot has actually made some progress in that department, as well, as she seems to be getting used to going out in the rain to use the bathroom. 

Speaking of the horrible weather we’ve been having, Margot got to experience her first snow yesterday morning.  As much as she hates the cold and rain, though, I wasn’t expecting her to like snow very much, and my assumption proved to be right.  As soon as I opened the back door and she saw the small amount of snow that was covering our deck, she put on the breaks and even tried to run back into the kitchen.  I stopped her, though, and basically shoved her little butt out the back door.  She sniffed at the snow for a few seconds, just trying to figure out what it was, while I encouraged her to go pee.  Finally, she reluctantly went out into the slushy yard and found a spot, but she turned her head and GLARED at me the whole time she peed.  When she was finished, instead of running back into the house and jumping on the couch like she usually does, she made a beeline up the stairs to our bedroom, jumped into the bed with Justin, and burrowed herself under the covers with him!  I couldn’t stop laughing.  What a little wimp!

In other news, Margot has been a wild child in the evenings since we haven’t been able to take her to the dog park.  However, this isn’t necessarily a totally bad thing because it means she’s spending more quality time with me and Justin again.  My only complaint about taking her to the dog park so often was that I felt like she was becoming a little bit disconnected from us, if that makes sense?  For example, Justin and I both felt like Margot wasn’t minding us as well as she had been before we started taking her to the dog park.  I actually wondered if it was possible that being around so many dogs all the time was kind of putting her in a “wild pack animal” mindset rather than keeping her in the “obedient family pet” mindset.   (To be clear, it’s not that she was being “bad” whenever we’d take her to the dog park, but she definitely didn’t listen to us very well whenever we’d call for her.)   For that reason, I’m actually kind of glad that the dog park has been put on hiatus for the winter, especially with her only being 5 months-old.  She’s going to do a lot of growing up, both physically and mentally, from now until spring, including some formal obedience training, and she is going to be spending the majority of that time at home with me and Justin.  Therefore, by the time Margot starts going back to the dog park on a regular basis, she’ll probably be much more strongly bonded to us, more mature, and hopefully more obedient when we give her a command. 

I am Sam and Margot's human mattress.

In fact, I can already tell that she’s started bonding more closely to me and Justin, especially since the weather has been so cold, because she LOVES to snuggle.   Last Sunday, I was in snuggle Heaven because that’s pretty much all that Margot and I did ALL day.  At one point, Ashley and I were watching “Moonrise Kingdom” on Blu-Ray and I was sitting in the floor in front of the fireplace while Margot played with her toys.  Little by little, I noticed that Margot was actually migrating over to where I sat, until finally she was actually playing sort of half-on my lap.  Then, when she finally wore herself out from wrestling with her new stuffed monkey and chasing after her tennis ball, she didn’t climb onto the big, soft couch and snuggle up with Sam.  Oh no!  Instead, my “little” 40-pound Doberman puppy chose to make herself fit into my lap by curling up as tightly as possible  and resting her chin on my arm as I cradled her.   It meant so much to me that she insisted on napping in my lap that I almost cried.  It was just so sweet.

After dinner that same night, I became a human mattress when both Margot and Sam decided to nap on top of me while Justin watched football, and later, when I went upstairs to watch one of my trashy Bravo network TV shows, Margot followed me upstairs and cuddled with me in my bed.  I know I’ve mentioned this before, but my favorite thing about Margot cuddling with me is watching her fight off sleep.  She does this thing where her chin slowly sinks down farther and farther, but she keeps looking forward with her eyes (“puppy dog eyes”).  Then, her eyelids get heavier and heavier, until finally she can’t fight it anymore and she rests her head on my leg, arm, chest, etc. and falls asleep.  It just kills me. 

I swear, if this dog gets any more lovable I think my heart may actually explode.  :)

Margot wearing Lexie's old Yoda costume!

19-Week Progress Report (But Who's Counting?)

I feel like I haven’t been keeping up with this blog very well lately, but I assure you I have a legitimate reason.  The last couple of weeks have been super busy with a To-Do list for my photography business a mile long.  Then, to make matters worse, last week there was a fire in the building where my studio is located, which set off the sprinkler system, but only in MY studio!  So, the firemen and building staff had to take EVERYTHING out of my studio in order to vacuum the water from the carpet and set up industrial fans for a few days to dry everything out.  Luckily, my studio lights and equipment were not destroyed, and the damage to my backdrops, props, and furniture appears to be minimal.  However, I am now left with one hellacious mess to clean up, the electrical system in my studio and hallway are messed up, and I have a wedding consultation scheduled at my studio tomorrow after I get off work!  

My disasterous photography studio

Anyway, enough about my ongoing saga of terrible luck; allow me to update you about Margot instead!  She turned 19 weeks-old yesterday, although I swore I would stop counting the weeks now that she’s past that 16-week milestone.  Haha!  I do have several things to report today, though:

Margot has unfortunately tested positive for von Willebrand disease.  For those of you who don’t know, Dobermans are prone to this blood disease, which inhibits their clotting ability.  When we found out that Margot was old enough to be spayed, I requested she have a von Willebrand Factor test performed first, because the reason why Lexie almost died during her enucleation procedure this past summer was due to the fact that the vets couldn’t stop the bleeding.   Margot’s vWD test ended up costing me $160, which was kind of a shock, but now that we know for sure that Margot has this blood disorder, I know that it was money well spent.

So, what does this mean for poor Margot?  Well, first and foremost, she’s OKAY.  Dogs with vWD lead perfectly normal lives, and their condition only becomes an issue whenever they require any type of surgery or have some type of injury with moderate to severe bleeding.  For example, Margot received her first wound when she was around 8 or 9 weeks-old, which was a small scrape to her nose that bled just enough to create a little scab.  Obviously, having vWD was not an issue in that case.  However, now that we know that Margot has this clotting disorder, before she is spayed she will need to be pre-treated with a certain drug prior to her surgery that will build up her clotting factors, and there is another medication that the Dr. Ellis will order to have on-hand during Margot’s surgery that will help stop the bleeding if it becomes an issue.   Had I not had Margot tested for von Willebrand prior to getting her spayed, we probably would have found out the hard way, and perhaps even too late, that she had this disease.  

19 weeks-old!

Unfortunately, because of this news, Justin and I have decided to postpone Margot’s spaying procedure, which was previously scheduled to take place tomorrow.   It was going to be difficult enough for us to be able to afford the surgery, and now, with the addition of also needing pre-treatment drugs and yet another type of medication to have on-hand during the procedure, I have a feeling that it will probably end up costing an extra couple hundred dollars, which we simply cannot afford right now.  Mind you, I didn’t ask Dr. Ellis how much the vWD medications will cost, but I’d be willing to bet that my guess of a couple hundred dollars is pretty accurate.   I’m a little disappointed about postponing Margot’s spaying procedure, but at least it’s not CRUCIAL that she be spayed right away.  As long as she has the procedure done within the next year, I’ll be happy, and I’m sure we’ll be able to better afford it at some point within that amount of time. 

In other news, I’m very happy to report that Margot has only had one accident in the house over the past week or so!  Not only that, but I also think she’s starting to understand the concept of telling us when she has to use the bathroom so that we can let her out.  On more than one occasion, I’ve gotten up to check on her after she’s gone into the kitchen, and I’ve found her just standing by the kitchen door waiting for me.  In the past, she would have just peed as soon as she saw that the kitchen door was shut, so this is definitely a great improvement!   She’s also had fewer accidents in her crate, although that still happens more frequently than I would like.  I tend to blame myself and Justin, though, whenever she uses the bathroom in her crate because usually it only happens if she ate/drank a little later than usual the night before and/or we forgot to let her outside before putting her to bed.   BAD pet owners!  BAD!



Margot, Lilly (airborne), and Archer



As far as developmental milestones go, I actually have a new one to report.  I have officially heard Margot’s “grown up bark” on more than one occasion, but only when she’s playing at the dog park.  She has yet to bark when she’s at home, but I’m not exactly complaining.  I’ve heard that once a Dobe discovers his/her bark, it can be a little annoying for a while.  So, as far as I’m concerned, Margot can just save all those barks for the dog park.

Speaking of the dog park, I cannot even begin to tell you what a wonderful experience it has been for Margot, me, and Justin.  Almost every day that it’s been nice outside, I’ve taken Margot to the dog park after I’ve gotten home from work, then Justin has driven straight there after he has gotten off work, and we’ve stayed until dark just watching Margot and all of the other dogs play.  It’s been so much fun getting to know all of the other dogs and their owners.  So far, Margot’s BFF’s are a couple of boy dogs named Cody and Archer, but she’s also good friends with Lilly and Miko.  Margot, Archer, Cody, and Miko are all about the same age, and it’s been so cute watching them grow so fond of each other.  I think that they’re really going to miss each other during the winter.