Speed Bumps and Learning Curves

Well, not only did the shelter initially get Luke’s sex wrong, but their prediction that he was approximately 3 years-old turned out to be way off, too.  According to Dr. Ellis at Animal Care Clinic, Luke is actually only around 11 months-old!  Yes, ladies and gentleman, it appears that Justin and I have ourselves another puppy (not that we’re complaining).  The vet said that he’s very healthy, and he’s scheduled to receive more vaccinations, as well as be neutered, in about three weeks. 

While Luke’s lack of appetite worried me for the first few days, we’re learning that he just doesn’t like to inhale his entire bowl of food in one sitting like his sisters.  He prefers to eat his food a little bit at a time, although we do have to make sure that Margot doesn’t sneak and finish off his bowl of food in between sittings.   I’m just happy that he is finally eating better, and I’m sure he’s going to fatten up a little in no time. 

Overall, Luke is a very good boy, although there are a couple of issues that we’re trying to address with him.  The first issue is the fact that he jumps up to greet people.  Chad, who is a vet tech at the Animal Care Clinic and also teaches obedience training there, told us during Luke’s check-up that the best thing to do for that is raise our knee and hold up our hands whenever Luke jumps, and of course reward him if he sits instead of jumping.  We’ve been doing that, but our little Luke just doesn’t seem to be getting it.  He is definitely a smart dog, but he does seem to be a little bit slower to pick up on things than we’re used to.  So, Justin and I are just going to have to be a little more patient when trying to train him, that’s all.

In fact, his inability to “get it” is the other issue we’re having with Luke.  No many how many times I give him a quick touch to try to correct him, he immediately comes right back and repeats his bad behavior again.  The worst is when he tries to run out onto the porch as soon as we open the front door.  Despite his short stature, Luke is a pretty powerful little dog and will just keep trying to barrel through our attempts to keep him back and away from the door.  He will even lower himself all the way to the floor and stick a paw or his nose in the doorway so that we can’t shut it.  I know that sounds kind of funny, and I do at least have enough of a sense of humor to appreciate Luke’s sneaky tactics, but it’s also very dangerous for Luke and quite annoying for us when we’re trying to leave. 

This morning, I decided to practice more of Cesar Millan’s methods by trying to wait until Luke achieved a fully calm-submissive state before I even opened the front door.  Unfortunately, I can tell that it will take quite a long time for Luke to achieve that state of mind, and I only had a few minutes before I had to be at work.  Regardless, instead of just opening the door and fighting Luke off so that I could shut it behind me, I first walked to the front door and just put my hand on the doorknob.  As soon as Luke came into my space, I turned around, gave him a quick touch, and told him, “No.”  When he immediately moved forward again, I repeated the correction.  After I did this several times, he did finally stop moving forward.  So, I took a step toward him to further claim my space around the front door.  He looked me right in the eyes and backed up a step, which was good.  Then, I stood there and waited, and Luke finally sat.  However, his attention was still clearly focused on the door.  If I had had more time this morning, I would have continued standing there and claiming my space (not allowing him to move closer to the front door) until he finally laid down and relaxed.  Then, it would have been okay for me to walk out the front door. 

However, due to lack of time, after Luke sat and I stood there for a moment, I decided to go ahead and reach back for the door knob.  As soon as I did, Luke lunged forward towards the door again.  I was able to correct him enough so that I was able to get out the front door, but in order to shut the door I had to physically push Luke away with my foot, which made me feel awful.   So, I’m definitely going to work on this problem with Luke more when I have plenty of time to practice patience with him, as well.

While I’m on the subject of behaviors that need correcting, Miss Margot has developed a new behavior that is very disappointing.  She’s begun pulling on her leash during walks, which she never used to do before, and this has only developed over this past winter.  (Luke is a dream to walk on his leash, by the way.  He stays right by your side, and if he starts to pull even a little bit, he corrects himself.)  I’ve tried correcting Margot by giving her leash a quick jerk and making the “anh!” sound, but all she does is spin around for a brief second, and then continue to pull.  I’ve also tried stopping dead in my tracks as soon as she pulls and making her stand there with me for a few seconds before walking again.  The problem is that, even though we’ve stopped walking, she is still in a very high-alert state of mind.  Justin and I have both attempted to snap her out of it by trying to get Margot to look us in the eye and even sit during these pauses on our walks, but she absolutely will not pay attention to us.  In fact, she acts like we’re just in her way if we try to look her in the eye, and she’ll keep moving her head around to see what’s behind us.  I’ve also tried doing that thing that Cesar does, where he kind of taps the dog on their hindquarters with his foot while they’re walking to surprise the dog and snap her out of their anxious state of mind, but when I do this with Margot, it just ends up looking like I’m kicking my dog, and it doesn’t even work anyway.   So, now I’m considering buying one of those leashes that Cesar recommends that fits right up under the dog’s chin.   Something has got to work because it’s getting to the point where I don’t even want to walk Margot, even though I know I have to.  So, it’s starting to feel more like a chore to take her for a walk rather than an enjoyable experience for both of us, and I don’t want that.

Justin and I decided to take all three dogs out for a couple of walks this past weekend, which went fairly well.  The first walk was better than the second walk, though, and I cut the second walk short out of frustration.  During their first walk together, I started out walking both Sam and Margot and let Justin walk Luke because Sam and Margot are the two “pullers,” and I feel like they respect me as an authority figure more than they do Justin (no offense to Justin, but he’s just too tender-hearted and gentle to really demand their respect the way that I do).  However, Sam was actually being very well behaved and not pulling on her leash at all, and because Margot was turning into quite the handful, Justin offered to walk Sam with Luke.  That turned out to be a much better arrangement, because Luke and Sam were excellent walkers together.

So, yesterday, when we decided to walk all three of them again, Justin took Sam and Luke and I took Margot.  I want to preface this by adding that I had just come back from a four-hour photo shoot, which was fun, but a bit nerve-racking for various reasons.  So, my nerves were already a bit frazzled when we decided to go for a walk, which probably didn’t help make Sam and Margot feel any more relaxed.   However, the main problem was that there were a lot more people and dogs out at the park yesterday, so Margot and Sam were both at higher states of excitement and energy than the day before.  (Notice I’m not mentioning Luke because he remained a calm, happy dog during both pack walks.)   I tried to pause several times during the walk, taking deep breaths each time to try to release my own anxious energy, but as soon as we’d start walking again, it would come right back.   

Sam’s energy was more of a nervous/scared/anxious energy, which is very typical for her, whereas Margot seemed to have more of a high level of alertness and excitement in general, as in, “What’s that?  Who’s that over there?  Where is he going?  Why is she running?  What are those people doing?”  Whenever Sam and Margot would come close to another dog, however, they would both lunge and pull to get to the dog, but for different very reasons.  I believe that Margot is truly just very excited and simply wants to meet the other dog to see if he/she is friendly and wants to play, but Sam barks out of fear and actually wants to make the dog go away.   So, the owners of the dog in question don’t really know what to think or how to react to our dogs, and the whole time Justin and I are trying to yell over all the barking to explain to the other owners that Margot really is just trying to be friendly, and Sam really isn’t being aggressive towards their dog; she’s just nervous and barking because she’s scared.   In other words, every time Sam and Margot encounter an unfamiliar dog, it always ends up being just this huge, loud, chaotic, embarrassing mess, and it always ends with Justin and me having to pull Sam and Margot away from the other dog in order to restore the peace.  It really bothers me because not only is it physically exhausting and embarrassing, but I feel like it makes Sam and Margot look like they’re both aggressive towards other dogs, which couldn’t be farther from the truth. 

The thing is, Justin and I both feel that if Sam and Margot were to encounter an unfamiliar dog by themselves, without her sister there, those two encounters would be much different.  Margot would still get excited and want to meet the other dog, but without Sam constantly barking behind her and making the other dog nervous and unsure about what’s going on, that other dog would probably just let Margot sniff him/her and reciprocate.  In turn, if Sam were to encounter another dog without Margot there being all excited and anxious to meet the other dog, Sam would probably just keep her mouth shut and go out of her way to avoid the dog all together.   

So, unfortunately, it seems like the solution is pretty clear:  Margot and Sam shouldn’t go on walks together; at least, not in heavily dog-populated areas, like the park.   However, if we decide to walk Sam and Margot at separate times, I do think that it might be a good idea to still include Luke on both of those walks because I think he sets a good example for both girls.  Luke’s main focus during walks is following me and/or Justin.  He truly sees us as his leaders, and he behaves accordingly.  As I said before, he walks right by our sides, and we’re able to keep his leash loose and relaxed the whole time.  Occasionally, Luke will walk ahead a little bit, especially if he’s trying to keep up with his sisters, but as soon as he feels tension on his leash, he automatically slows his pace and/or returns to our side.  Justin and I both suspect that Luke would probably be able to walk with us without a leash, but it’s definitely too soon to test that theory.  I wouldn’t want to try walking him without a leash until he’s undergone some formal training and I feel confident that he’ll come when he’s called.

Anyway, despite everything that I just mentioned above, which are all correctable behaviors, Justin and I are really happy that we decided to adopt Luke.  Not only do he and Margot get along very well, but Sam has finally relaxed around him and doesn’t get as upset anymore whenever Luke and Margot start rough-housing.  Also, just as I had hoped, Margot now prefers to pick on Luke instead of Sam because she knows that Luke will be happy to play with her.  Besides wrestling, Luke and Margot’s favorite games are Keep-Away and Tug-O-War. 

My favorite is when they start chasing each other around the living room, kitchen, and dining room, which are all open and connected rooms, so it’s kind of like they’re running around a track.  They’ll run in that circle a few times, and then one of them will stop and wait for the other one to catch up.  However, if Luke hears Margot stop, for example, then he’ll stop, too, and then they will both slowly sneak around and peek into the next room, hoping to catch the other by surprise.  When one of them finally does surprise the other, then they get all excited and start chasing each other again.  It’s really fun and heartwarming to watch, because that’s the type of high-energy playing that I know Sam just can’t (and doesn’t want to) do anymore. 

So, overall, I believe that everyone is much happier now that Luke has joined the family.  Sure, we’ve got a few wrinkles to iron out, but that was to be expected, and honestly, it could have been a lot worse!

Surprise! It's a Boy!

Well, ladies and gentleman, it looks like the girl who SWORE she’d never own a male dog is now the proud owner of a very happy, loving, and incredibly sweet boy.  Yes, it turns out that the pretty “girl” dog that Justin and I fell in love with at the shelter actually has boy parts, which are difficult to see because of the long fur on his belly.   The employees at the shelter even thought he was a girl!  We didn’t realize it until we took him outside to meet Sam and Margot last night at the shelter, and he immediately hiked his leg to pee on a sign. 

For a brief moment, I actually thought, “Well, crap!  I really kind of wanted to adopt this dog,” but then that thought was immediately replaced with, “But how can I say no to that face?!?!?”  He was so happy to see me and Justin.  He kept looking up at us with his big, goofy grin, wagging his tail like crazy, and he also kept hopping up and wanting us to cuddle him (which is a behavior that I immediately began discouraging, although I did think it was very sweet). 

So, I went ahead and got Sam and Margot out of the car to introduce them, just to see how it would go.  Both dogs basically ignored him, although Sam did let him sniff her butt, and he immediately acted like he wanted to play with Margot, which were both good signs in my book. 

After we put Sam and Margot back in the car, Justin and I took a few minutes to talk it over.  Finally, after weighing all the pros and cons of adopting this boy dog, I just looked at him and said, “I really don’t know whom I think I’m trying to kid by pretending like I can actually leave this dog here.” 

And, with that, Luke became the newest member of our little family.  I asked Justin to name him because I’ve named all the other dogs in my life, and because I also kind of wanted our next dog to be more of “Justin’s dog.”  (Actually, one of the biggest “pros” I took into consideration while briefly trying to decide if we should adopt Luke was the fact that he seemed to prefer Justin a little bit more than me, which melted my heart.)  Justin was having a hard time coming up with a name for the new dog on his own, though, so I started throwing out some suggestions.  Finally, since Justin is such a Star Wars fan, I suggested Luke, and Justin immediately approved.     

Sam and Margot continued to pretty much ignore Luke during the ride home, but as soon as we walked inside the house, Sam started barking.  I guess she felt the need to let Luke know that this is HER house and HER family.  Margot, of course, didn’t feel like she needed Sam’s protection from Luke at all.  As soon as I let them out into the back yard, after some preliminary butt-sniffing and territory-marking on Luke’s part, Margot and Luke took off chasing each other around the yard.  That’s when Justin and I could really see the Border Collie in Luke because he’s so fast and agile!  We can’t wait until we can let him loose in the dog park to really see him run.  I’ll bet it’s amazing. 

Anyway, I hate that Sam seemed so uncomfortable with Luke last night, but it was really no different from when we first brought Margot home.  If you’ll recall, Sam seemed so upset by Margot’s presence that we actually considered letting Sam live with Justin’s parents.  Thankfully, Sam eventually did warm up to Margot, and now they are the biggest cuddle buddies.  I’m just hoping it doesn’t take Sam quite as long to warm up to Luke.   Hopefully, once she realizes that Margot isn’t bugging her half as much because now she has Luke to play with, Sam will finally just relax and enjoy her lazy time alone on the couch.

As for Mr. Luke, he’s only been with us for less than 24 hours at this point, but so far so good.  He hasn’t had any accidents in the house, and we left him and Margot out last night without any problems.  My only concerns right now are clearing up his kennel cough and the fact that he didn’t really seem to want to eat this morning.  He ate just a little bit last night, but we weren’t concerned about it because we figured he probably ate at the shelter.  This morning, though, when I put food in all three dog bowls, he was more interested in loving on me than he was in devouring his food like his hungry sisters.  A little bit later, after Sam and Margot had both eaten and Luke and Margot had played for a while, I put the food bowl back in front of him and encouraged him to eat.  He only took a couple of nibbles, though, and that was it.  I’m hoping that he was just excited about waking up in his new house with his new family this morning, but I asked Justin to crate Margot this morning when he left for work and leave the food bowl out for Luke.  I’m hoping that when Justin goes home at lunch, Luke will have eaten his food. 

I’ve already made Luke his first vet appointment for Saturday morning, and I plan to have him neutered as soon as possible (the costs for both of these services were included in his adoption fee).  So, I’m sure Dr. Ellis will help get his kennel cough cleared up, and if Luke still isn’t eating very much by then, I will definitely discuss that with her, as well.  While I’m there, I may go ahead and sign Margot up for obedience training.  I wonder if Luke should take the classes with her, or if that will just be too difficult?  I’ve already started working with him because of his bad habit of jumping up on people, and I also started teaching him “sit” this morning, although only very briefly.   I guess I’ll just ask the trainer at the vet on Saturday if it would be a good idea for Luke and Margot to take obedience classes together.  In a way, that seems like it might be a good bonding experience for them.  :)

Training, Worrying, and Possibly Adopting

I’ve definitely let too much time go by since I last posted an update because I feel like I have a TON to talk about in this post!  First of all, Margot turned 8 months-old on February 13^th and is still dabbling in some “Doberteens” behavior.  For the most part, she hasn’t been too bad.  There have been a few bathroom accidents here and there, but nothing major.  The worst thing she does is chew on non-toy items whenever she’s alone in the house or we’re in bed.  We haven’t suffered any major losses since Justin and I replaced our dress shoes, though, so knock on wood that was the worst of it.

I have recently decided to put my endless hours of watching The Dog Whisperer to the test by trying some new obedience training with Margot.  We haven’t done any new training exercises since she learned “lie down,” so I wasn’t sure how well she’d do, but I have been quite pleased!  We’ve been working on playing fetch because Margot has never really played fetch correctly.  She used to bring you the ball, but instead of releasing it on command so you could throw it again, she would just sort of touch you with the ball or rub it on your hand or your lap, as if enticing you to take it from her.  Once you would try to take the ball out of her mouth, though, she would either run away or initiate a little game of tug.  This was very frustrating, not only for the fact that the game can’t continue if you aren’t “allowed” to have the ball back, but also because Margot would repeat her little enticement routine until you basically had to pry the ball from her teeth. 

So, the other night when Margot brought me the ball, after I was able to take it from her, I simply sat it on my lap instead of throwing it.  As soon as she moved forward to take the ball from my lap, I did what I’ve seen Cesar Millan do a million times on his show, and I gave Margot a quick tap on the chest while making the sound, “Anh!”  (Cesar usually makes more of a “tsssht!” sound, but I have been making the “anh” sound since she was a little puppy, so I stuck with that since she already knows that it means “no.”)  As soon as I did this, Margot backed up one step and looked at me.  Success!  Then, when she tried to take it again, I answered her with another quick touch and, “Anh!”  Again, she backed up a step, but this time continued to stare at the ball.  I remembered from watching Cesar’s show that you have to be patient and wait for the dog to reach a completely calm-submissive state before you allow him/her to have the object that they desire.  This communicates to your dog, without words, what type of behavior you expect. 

In this case, even though Margot had backed up a couple of steps, the fact that she was still staring at the ball on my lap told me that she was still in that, “LET ME HAVE IT!” state of mind.  So, I simply sat there and waited.  If she moved forward towards the ball, she received the same reaction from me as before.  Finally, after a couple of minutes, Margot sat, which was a positive sign.  I wondered if I should reward her by throwing the ball at that point, but I knew she wasn’t in her FULL calm-submissive state yet.  So, I continued to wait and, to my surprise and delight, Margot eventually laid down on the floor, stopped staring at the ball, and looked directly into my eyes!   I held that eye contact with her for a moment before I finally said, “Good girl!” and tossed the ball.  After just another one or two repeats of this exercise, Margot not only seemed to understand what is expected of her when she retrieves the ball, but now she even seems to enjoy performing this exercise with me and Justin. 

In other news, last weekend I made a vet appointment for Sam.  She has a history of developing benign lumps (fatty deposits) all over her body.  They aren’t cancerous or anything, but they will continue to grow if you ignore them.  I actually had five such fatty deposits removed from Sam’s body in a single surgery a couple of years ago, but I swear she was never the same after that.  To be fair, I can’t say for certain that it was due to the surgery, but all I can tell you is that she definitely had a more difficult time getting around after that.  For that reason, and especially after losing Lexie and Jocie within a month of each other last summer, I decided I probably wouldn’t put Sam through any more of those types of surgeries, unless her life was in danger or if she was in pain.

Lately, though, a large lump that has been on Sam’s right ribcage for quite a while has gotten so large that I feel like I can’t keep ignoring it.  She does not seem to be in any pain and has been acting completely normal, but the lump is about the size of a baseball now and is very noticeable.  Not only that, but a new growth has developed on the outside of her skin near her collar, which is different from all the other growths she’s had in the past.   Therefore, I feel that a vet appointment is now in order.  It just upsets me because it feels like this will be Sam’s “moment of truth.”  We’ll either find out that the lumps are cancerous, or we’ll find out they are benign, but then have to decide whether or not she should have them surgically removed.  I originally made the appointment for last Monday because Justin doesn’t work on Mondays, but it just so happened that he had to go into work for scheduling on that particular day.  So, I cancelled the appointment and told the vet’s office that I would reschedule Sam’s appointment after Justin’s new work schedule goes into effect, because ideally I’d like for us to be able to take her together.

And finally, I’ve got some pretty big news.   Justin and I went to the pound this past Saturday, and we may be adopting a pretty Golden Retriever mix today.  Maybe! 

Now, whenever Justin or I have mentioned to our friends that we will eventually be adopting a third dog, which has always been our plan, we’ve received a variety of reactions, most of which aren’t exactly 100% positive.  There seems to be some concern that Justin and I may not realize what we’re getting ourselves into financially, or we don’t understand how much of a handful three dogs can be.  While I understand and appreciate my friends’ concerns, it kind of surprises me considering the fact that I have owned three dogs for the last nine years, and all of my current friends met me while Jocie, Sam, and Lexie were all living with me.  So, obviously, I fully understand how much owning three dogs can cost and what living with three dogs is like.  However, I just try to keep in mind that my friends are only trying to look out for me.  After all, they recently had to witness the heartache that Justin and I experienced over losing Lexie and Jocie, so maybe they just don’t want to have to see us go through that again.  Or, perhaps they’re worried that Justin and I will keep adding dogs to our family as a way of filling some kind of void or “replacing” Lexie and Jocie, which is actually an understandable concern considering the fact that Margot is a Doberman and this dog that we’re interested in at the pound reminds me a lot of Jocie. 

However, just to be perfectly clear, Justin and I do not want to adopt another dog just for the sake of owning three dogs again or to fill any voids.  We actually have several valid reasons, but, with that said, the #1 most important thing that I will be considering is whether or not this new dog will get along with Sam and Margot (especially Sam).  If we introduce this pound puppy to the girls this evening and there is any friction whatsoever, it will be a bummer, but I will not adopt her. 

The main reason we want to adopt another dog is because we want Margot to have a playmate.  Sam and Margot still play together, but it’s mostly just Sam lying on the couch and Margot trying to wrestle with her.  We think Margot and Sam would both be a lot happier if Margot had a sister who shared the same energy level as her.  In fact, I’m actually hoping that by giving Margot a more energetic playmate, it will help take some of that burden off of Sam.  I hate to use the word “burden,” but Sam’s old, and I know that she would probably rather not have to constantly entertain Margot.  I would love for Sam to be able to just chill out and watch the other two dogs play, and of course join in if she feels like it.

The last big reason why I want another dog is sad, but it’s because I know that Sam probably won’t be around for much longer than a few more years (if we’re lucky), and I worry about how Margot will handle that.  Sam has been the only other dog that Margot has lived with, and she obviously looks up to Sam as a leader.  I’m hoping that if Margot has a new sister, especially if she can take on more of a leadership role with the new dog, then maybe it won’t be so hard on Margot when Sam passes away.   

Okay now, enough of that Debbie Downer stuff.  Let me tell you more about this potential new family member!  The name they gave her at the shelter is Lindsey, but Justin and I both agreed that we’d change that if we adopt her.  She is a Golden Retriever mix who looks to be around 2 to 4 years-old, and as cheesy as this sounds, as soon as I saw her, I just knew she could be The One.  I could see it on Justin’s face, too, especially when the dog started licking his fingers through her cage.  Still trying to stay objective, I said, “Well, that doesn’t really prove anything because you did just eat hot wings for lunch.”  Then, Justin bent down closer to the dog’s face and said, “Do you give kisses?” and she immediately licked his nose, which is Justin’s favorite thing in the world.  At that point, I knew she had won him over. So, I walked up to her kennel just to see how she’d react to me, and she immediately jumped up onto the cage to greet me with her tail wagging like crazy.  She is obviously used to being around people and seems like she’ll be a very loving lap dog, but I was still trying not to fall head over heels just yet.  I suggested that we continue to look at all of the other dogs at the shelter, but as soon as we started to walk away, I heard the dog start to whimper, and that’s pretty much when I knew that she had to at least meet Sam and Margot.   

I asked the woman at the front desk if the dog had been chosen for adoption by anyone else yet.  She said no and that the dog had only recently been brought into the shelter as a stray.  The woman also added, “She’s such a sweet girl.”   So, we told the lady that we would probably be back on Tuesday (they were closed Monday) with our other two dogs so that we can see how they’ll all get along.  However, I really won’t be surprised if someone else adopts that pretty pup before we get there this evening.   I’ll be a little sad if that happens, but at the same time, at least I’ll know that she didn’t have to stay in the shelter for very long.

See, believe it or not, I’m not dead set on adopting a third dog right this minute.  Our original plan was to wait until spring when the weather is nicer so that Margot and the new pup can be more active together outdoors, and I still like that idea.  So, if this adoption doesn’t happen today, I’ll be a little bummed, but I won’t be completely heartbroken.   It’s going to happen eventually, and I’m happy to wait for the right pup to come to us at the right time.

Margot the Destroyer Strikes Again....and Again....



Why the long face, Margot?



After the incident that I wrote about last time of waking up to find that Margot had chewed up shoes, a table leg, etc., things thankfully settled down for a while, and she went back to chewing on her own toys.   She was pretty good for a couple of weeks, but then last week I woke up to find that she had chewed up my glasses case, an emery board, and even the handle of a knife that I had used the night before to slice cheese!  So, I started making sure that nothing tempting was left on the coffee table at night before we went to bed. 

Margot then discovered that if she got up on the back of the loveseat, she could reach everything that was left on the sofa table that rests against the back of the sofa.  So, I come home one day to find several piles of shredded mail, and one of my favorite bracelets that I wear to work was destroyed.  I was in a rush that day and only had time to change clothes before heading over to my photography studio, but I was at least able to clean up the mess before heading out again.  I knew Justin would be home from work in about twenty minutes, so I did not put Margot in her crate.  Well, that turned out to be a mistake, because when Justin came home from work, he found more piles of shredded mail (I had cleaned up the mess, but forgot to put up the rest of the mail that was still on the sofa table), and Margot had completely destroyed one of his favorite ball caps. 

What's left of my black flats.

So, we no longer keep anything that we don’t want destroyed on the coffee table OR sofa table, but that still hasn’t stopped Margot the Destroyer.  Tuesday morning, I woke up to find that she had completely destroyed my pair of black flats that I wear to work at least 3-4 days a week.  Luckily, I own the same exact pair of shoes in brown, so I’m wearing those today, and I plan to run up to the mall after work to buy a new pair of black shoes.  Yes, I was extremely irritated when I discovered my chewed up shoes this morning, but I have actually been wanting to buy a new pair of black flats for a while now because the lining of those had come loose and were starting to be uncomfortable to wear.  Not that this makes it “okay” for Margot to put my shoes out of their misery, I’m just saying that it wasn’t the end of the world.

The thing is, every time I’ve found a pile of something that Margot has destroyed, I’m more angry at myself than at Margot because I’m the one who should have prevented it from happening.  I know better than to leave anything of value on the coffee table at night, and yet when I see Margot sound asleep as I’m getting ready to go to bed, I think, “Oh, she’s so zonked out that she’ll probably sleep through the rest of the night.  It’ll be fine if I wait until tomorrow to put these things away.”  Wrong!  I also recently purchased a shoe organizer for my foyer so that Justin and I would stop kicking off our shoes and creating a big pile of temptation for Margot by the front door, and we’ve both been very diligent about putting our shoes into their little “lockers” every evening.  However, yesterday I was pretty worn out from a long day at work, followed by a two-hour meeting with my photography partner at the studio, and I simply forgot to put my shoes away after I kicked them off.  So, when I woke up this morning to find that my shoes had become Margot’s latest victim, I really blamed myself more than Margot.

Of course, I am obviously still holding Margot accountable for her actions, and I’m very disappointed that her destructive behavior seems to be getting worse.   I also HATE that we’re going to start crating her again, but we really have no choice at this point.  My biggest fear is that she’s going to start destroying her crate, which doesn’t even belong to us.  Justin and I borrowed it from our friend, Brett, when we first brought Margot home, and I was hoping to be able to return it to him soon.  Unfortunately, it looks like we may need to keep it for a little while longer.  Even though I’ve read some things online about this “Doberteens” phase and was sort of prepared for Margot to start misbehaving, I still can’t help but feel like we’re taking a big step back by having to crate her at night again, especially since we haven’t crated her for several months.  I guess you just do what you’ve got to do, though.  I’d rather go back to crating her at night than keep waking up to piles of carnage each morning.

While reading about what to expect during a dog’s puberty stage, I have also read a few stories from Doberman owners who said that their dogs seemed to regress with their housebreaking at this stage, as well.  Margot still has a few accidents here and there, but lately it’s always been whenever Justin and I weren’t home to let her out.  I felt that this was normal and didn’t really consider it to be “Doberteens” behavior.  A few nights ago, however, Margot was playing in the living room while Justin and I were both sitting on the sofa with our laptops.  Suddenly, I thought I heard water hitting the carpet, so I looked up and found Margot peeing right in front of us on the living room rug!  I was so shocked that I yelled, “Margot’s peeing!” which startled her and made her stop.  I immediately got up and yelled, “No!” and then lead her towards the back door while saying, “Margot, go pee!”  She was very confused by my angry tone, which she really doesn’t hear very often, so she was reluctant to follow me to the back door.  Justin, who was also using a rarely-heard angry tone, nudged her from behind until she finally went outside.  We closed the door behind her, and Justin kept an eye on her through the window while I cleaned up her mess.



She's sorry.



We were both so disappointed and also confused about why Margot hadn’t given any indication that she needed to go out before she decided to just pee on the rug, but when Justin reported that Margot had just finished doing #2 in the yard, I told him that we HAD to praise her when we let her back inside, despite how angry we were at the moment.   I wanted Margot to understand that peeing in the house resulted in an angry reaction from her parents, but using the bathroom outside makes Mom and Dad VERY happy.  So, we praised her like crazy, saying, “Good girl!  Margot go pee!  Good girl!” and even gave her a treat when she came back inside.  Even though we didn’t yell at her anymore after that for peeing on the carpet, and despite the fact that we had just praised her for using the bathroom outside, Margot seemed a little shaken up by the whole experience.  I know that sounds kind of silly, but I swear it’s true.  Usually, whenever Justin and I praise her, she gets really excited and wound up, but this time all she wanted to do was cuddle.  She even sat next to Justin on the couch, bowed her head, rested it against his, and stayed like that for a very long time.  Of course, I HAD to take a picture of this moment because it was just so pitiful.  I mean, seriously, how can you stay mad at a puppy when they’re so obviously sorry for what they’ve done?

Anyway, I plan to start doing more to help Margot release some of her crazy puppy energy, which I know will really help curb her bad behaviors.  This puppy needs EXERCISE, and, let’s be honest, so do her parents.  It’s been bitterly cold here for the last week or so, but for the past couple of mornings it has been much nicer.  So, I think I’m going to start checking the weather each night before I go to bed and try to set my alarm accordingly.  I think that a brisk, 30-minute walk each morning might help keep her calm during the day, and then hopefully another walk after I get home from work in the evening will make her sleep better through the night.  The problem is that my schedule is a little all over the place, and I almost always have a bunch of editing and photography work to do when I get home in the evenings.  So, I’m not always going to have time to walk her after work, and Justin doesn’t get home until almost 7:00 p.m. after the sun has already gone down.   This is why Justin and I are both counting down the days until daylight savings time begins again in March, because then I can start taking Margot back to the dog park after work (schedule permitting) and she’ll be able to run and play for HOURS before the sun goes down.   Oh, how we miss those days!

Margot’s aunt, Kristy, has been very anxious to make Margot her new running partner on the weekends, which I wrote about in my last blog; however, Kristy recently did some research about running with Dobermans and discovered that it’s actually not recommended until after the Doberman is around 18 months-old.  The reason is because constant running on hard surfaces, like sidewalks, at a young age could have a long-term effect on the dog’s skeletal development and cause joint problems.   Therefore, Kristy has decided that she may start taking Margot for long walks, instead, as part of Kristy’s warm-up before a long run.  Then, after Margot’s a little older and her growth plates are fully developed, they will start running together.

In the meantime, another thing I plan to do in the very near future is sign Margot up for obedience classes.  I know I’ve been saying that for a looooong time, but I haven’t had extra money lately because I’ve been purchasing things for my photography business.  Now that I’m at the point where I don’t think I need to buy much else for my business for a while, I’ve still got to wait until after I’ve shot a few photo sessions before I’ll be able to afford the obedience classes.  The classes aren’t THAT expensive, though, so I doubt I’ll have to wait much longer.  The reason why I’m so anxious for Margot to start obedience training is because it’s just as important to exercise a puppy’s mind as it is to exercise his/her body.   It’s like Cesar Millan always says, first exercise, then discipline, and THEN affection.  That is apparently the key to a happy, well-behaved pup.  We’ve definitely got the affection part down, so now we just need to work on the exercise and discipline, and then put it all in the correct order. 

Caution: Now Entering "The Doberteens"

So, it appears that Margot’s now entering the wonderful world of puberty, or as I’ve seen it been called on various Doberman websites, “the dreaded Doberteens.”  This phase of development takes place around 6-7 months of age, and Margot turned 7 months-old two days ago.  Besides the fact that she is now taller than Sam, which I still can’t believe, Margot has been showing other signs of being in the Doberteens phase recently.  The following are a list of behaviors that are apparently typical of this phase:

1.       Barks a lot more – While Margot still doesn’t bark very much, she has become more vocal lately.  She will bark at other dogs outside of the house (in a playful way), but she still won’t fully bark at Sam.  I’m not sure if it’s out of respect for her elder or what, but instead of barking at Sam when they’re playing, Margot lets out these high-pitched, little sounds, almost like she’s trying to sing at times.   

Bad, Margot!

2.       More destructive – I can definitely put a checkmark beside this one!  I’ve bragged and bragged about how my puppy has only chewed through one cord and not destroyed ANYTHING else in the house, other than her own toys, for six months, and then last week I came downstairs one morning to find that she had chewed up one of Justin’s dress shoes, a glove, and a table leg sometime while we had been asleep!  Now, to be fair, she also ate a whole pack of Starbursts, which I had carelessly left out within her reach (bad owner!), so I’ve jokingly taken the blame for her actions, saying that she was probably on some kind of psychotic sugar high and went on a rampage.   That might very well be true, but I have a feeling she was just being a normal puppy and finally decided to see what shoes and table legs tasted like.  I was upset, of course, when I first found the carnage, and I thought at that moment that we had been giving her too much freedom by not putting her in her crate at night (she’s even been staying out for the majority of the day, too).  I crated her that day for a whole six hours or so (I really know how to stick to my guns), but she’s been staying outside of the crate ever since then, and so far she’s done fine.   Justin and I are definitely paying more attention to her level of energy before we need to leave her alone and trying to make better judgments about whether or not to crate her at that time.  If she’s been playing for a while and we know she’s probably getting ready to wind down, we’ll leave her out because we know she’ll just sleep the whole time we’re gone.  However, if she’s been asleep for a long time BEFORE it’s time for us to leave, or if she’s just woken up and started playing, we’re more likely to crate her.

3.       Becomes stubborn/disobedient/”forgets” all training – I can’t really say that this has been an issue with Margot thus far.  The only change in her behavior, as far as obedience and training go,  is the fact that she now jumps a little bit when greeting us, which we’ve taught her is a no-no since Day 1.  As soon as she gives a little hop, though, we tell her, “No!” and give her “the look,” at which point she immediately sits and sometimes even lies down.  I will say that she’s not very good at coming when she’s called, but that’s nothing new.   In fact, writing all of this has reminded me that I need to get Margot enrolled in obedience classes.  I’ll probably do that in the next month or so.

4.       “Gooses” guests – I’m not really sure why this behavior is related specifically to puberty in dogs, but apparently it is, and Margot definitely likes to greet people by sticking her nose right in everyone’s butts.  

Most of the other behaviors I’ve read about are related more to male dogs, like humping, aggression, and marking territory, so I’m thankful that at least I don’t have to deal with those sorts of behaviors.  Out of everything listed above, I’m the most concerned about Margot being destructive while she’s home alone and not in her crate.  I’ve considered buying another can of that Off! Spray that I used to spray on everything when she was just a baby because it really did work.   For now, though, I guess we’re just going to continue to watch her and use discretion when deciding whether or not to crate her. 

Other than the puberty stuff, though, Margot is still just as sweet and loving as ever, and still just as hyper!  Last weekend, her Aunt Kristy took Margot for her first official run to help burn off some of that energy, which is something that Kristy and Lexie used to do together all the time before Lexie started having problems with her eyes.  Kristy has been talking about wanting to take Margot for runs ever since the day we brought her home, and now Margot is finally old enough!  You can read all about Margot’s first running experience here on Kristy’s blog. 

After their four-mile run together, Margot had the BIGGEST grin on her face when she got home!  It made me so happy to see her so excited.  However, she wasn’t the least bit worn out from all that exercise.  Quite the opposite, in fact!  She literally ran about ten laps around the coffee table, then insisted I play “through the legs” with her for a while (she runs through my legs, I turn around, she runs back through my legs, I turn around again, and so on), and then she made me throw the ball for her about a million times before she FINALLY wore herself out.   I hope that running becomes a regular routine with Kristy and Margot.  Not only is it fantastic exercise and obviously makes Margot very happy, but I know that Kristy has really missed having Lexie as her running partner since she passed away, and I loved that bond that she and Lexie developed through running together.  Margot already loves her Aunty Kristy, but she’ll definitely grow more attached when she starts associating her with being able to go out for a run. 

Post-Surgical Bliss

Feeling a little dopey.

My heart is bursting with how happy I am about Margot’s recent surgery and recovery.  As you may recall, I took her to the vet to be spayed first thing in the morning, the day after Christmas.   I was nervous about the surgery because of her Von Willebrand factor, but Dr. Ellis said that she “did fine” during the surgery and had no real bleeding issues.  WHEW! 

The reason I scheduled Margot’s surgery on Dec. 26th was because I was off from work that entire week, and I wanted to be able to keep an eye on her.  I was really dreading her having to wear that awful cone around her neck because I knew Margot would probably just try to take it off the whole time, but when I went to the vet to pick her up, they actually gave me an alternative to the cone.  It’s called a Medical Pet Shirt, but really it’s just a “onsie” for dogs.  Haha!  It’s brilliant, though!  It’s made out of some kind of compression-type material that gives her a gentle squeeze around her midsection, and then it closes in the back with snaps and Velcro, leaving a hole for her tail.  Her entire belly and stitches are completely covered, and the shirt’s closures are in a place that’s pretty hard for her to reach.  Honestly, though, Margot hasn’t tried to take the shirt off at all, and, in fact, I think she kind of likes wearing it. 

When I brought Margot home, she was pretty doped up and just wanted to fall asleep, but her surgical site was still fresh, and it hurt her to sit or lie down.  Therefore, she actually kept falling asleep while standing up.  It was kind of funny at first, but after about an hour of making sure she didn’t fall and hurt herself and also not being able to get her to lie down, I started feeling really sorry for Margot.  I was afraid it might hurt her to sit or lie down for several days, but thank goodness that wasn’t the case. 

First night of recovery.  FINALLY lying down.

The very next morning, Margot grabbed her Christmas rawhide (a present from her Aunt Kristy), laid on the floor without any sign of discomfort, which was a huge relief, and she chewed on her rawhide until there was nothing left.  I tried my best to keep her from jumping onto the couch, but she snuck up there a couple times when I wasn’t looking.  It didn’t seem to bother her, though, except one time when she tried to jump down, which caused her to give a little yelp.  By the third day of Margot’s recovery, she was obviously feeling a lot better and even kept bringing me the ball, but I refused to play with her.  I hated that because I could tell she was really bored and didn’t understand why I wouldn’t throw the ball or wrestle with her, but I also knew that it was for the best. 

Margot's Frankenbelly.

By the fourth day of her recovery, I had completely stopped giving Margot her pain medication because she was getting on and off the couch without any problems, and she was running around a bit, playing on her own.  So, at that point, I decided to start playing with her again.  I took it easy, only rolling the ball a few feet away so that she wouldn’t take off in a sprint to chase it, but she didn’t seem to mind.  I think she just appreciated the fact that I was no longer ignoring her when she brought me the ball.  By Day 5, Margot was completely back to her old Tasmanian Devil self, and we’ve been playing our usual games ever since.

The only time Margot ever tried to lick her stitches was the first time I took the Medical Pet Shirt off to throw it in the wash.  I immediately put a different sweater on her, hoping that it would deter from messing with the stitches, but it just wasn’t as effective.  So, while her medical shirt was in the dryer, I took Margot with me to the studio because I was supposed to meet with my new partner, Mark, and I didn’t trust her to leave her stitches alone while I was gone.  That proved to be a smart move on my part because not only was Margot distracted by exploring the studio, but Mark also took a couple of test shots of me and Margot that day, which I love! 

  

Impromptu modeling at my studio!

Cuddling Daddy in her Medical Shirt.

I actually really missed Margot when I went back to work this past Wednesday.  I spent most of my Christmas break sitting on the couch and working on my laptop, re-designing my photography website and preparing for the upcoming Bridal Expo.  While I was working, Margot would entertain herself by chewing on a toy or ripping apart her Wubba for a while (she’s still in Margot the Destroyer mode).  After she got tired, she’d curl up beside me on the couch and sleep for a few hours.  Sometimes, she’d get tired of me being on the computer and would try to climb into my lap, despite my laptop and the fact that she no longer actually fits in my lap, at which point I would usually put the computer a way and cuddle her for a while.  She was such great company, though, as always.  I really couldn’t have asked for a sweeter puppy.

Anyway, I’m taking Margot back to the Animal Care Clinic tomorrow morning to have her stitches removed, and, as I said before, I am just so pleased with how well she handled both the surgery and her recovery.  I give a LOT of credit to that wonderful little Medical Pet Shirt, and I HIGHLY recommend it to anyone whose pet has had or needs to have surgery.  It is a genius alternative to that awful Elizabethan collar (aka The Cone).