My dog cracks me up. She smiles endlessly... even when she's being reprimanded. She cannot resist pulling things out of any available trash can and she loves to steal dirty laundry from the hamper and entice me into a chase. She's a smart girl. When she came to live with us she was a ten pound sweetheart (with razor sharp teeth) and when we first put her in her crate, it looked like a castle next to her tiny body. Attached to her crate is her exercise pen, which was meant to provide her with an area to wander around while she was still a puppy. Once she reached six months, we considered … [Read more...]
Shake It Off! (Letting Go of the Little Things)
Sometimes I enjoy just sitting back and watching my dog, Ramsey, and my husband, Eric, play together. Eric likes to roughhouse with her, which she loves, but in the process she gets her ears flipped up, fur matted down, and tail tucked in a number of ways. When she's ready to stop playing, she jumps down, shakes herself off (flipping her ears down and getting her fur back in place) and moves on to the next activity. Sometimes we playfully agitate her to get a reaction (e.g., she always jerks her head when we blow on her face). Afterwards, she gets up, and shakes herself off. Once again, she … [Read more...]
Overcoming the Power of the Whine, Part 2
Remember that whining puppy I mentioned previously? Well, she was at it again this morning. She had eaten. She had been taken outside to relieve herself and she was surrounded by a number of toys. She was whining for attention. She just wanted to be near her family. We were around the house doing various thing to get ready to start the day. She gets plenty of play time with the family, but that doesn't stop her from wanting play time with us all the time. After all, she is just a puppy. She doesn't understand that she can't have us to herself at all times. This morning I told Eric that I felt … [Read more...]
Overcoming the Power of the Whine
Each morning my husband and I lie in bed and listen to the sound of our three month old puppy whine her guts out. First, she whines because she needs to go out, so we take her out. Then she whines because she's hungry, so we feed her. After that, she simply whines because she wants our undivided attention, which can be difficult to give her first thing in the morning while preparing for the day. The first day or so, it was kind of cute. Our cute little puppy was whining like a little baby. After a few days, it wasn't cute anymore. In fact, it began to work on every last nerve in my body. Sound … [Read more...]
Our Furry, Four-Legged Friends (Talking about Pets)
Pets can be a wonderful asset to your life and... can also be an aggravation to your life if you are not in a position to take care of them. This issue can be a point of contention. Some people grow up with pets and cannot imagine a home without them. Others are not raised with pets and can't imagine a home with them. It could be that you never had a dog and you always wanted one, while your spouse-to-be had dogs growing up and hated the shedding and constant work. Either way, having pets is an issue which needs to be completely be agreed upon in order to avoid blame, anger, and/or resentment … [Read more...]