Dog to English Translator

[secundem_artem]

Artem pup finished his beginners class for obedience training.  He is currently shredding his Certificate of Completion.

[AmLitHist]

Artem pup finished his beginners class for obedience training.  He is currently shredding his Certificate of Completion.

Certificate?  We don't need no stinkin' certificate!

[apl68]

This morning a staff member brought in her little dog.  We are next door to a vet's office, and she wanted to be on the spot when the vet opened.  The little fellow got bitten or stung by something yesterday.  Now his neck is grotesquely swollen.  He looks bizarre.  He's awake and alert, and doesn't seem sensitive to the touch this morning.  So hopefully he'll be okay.

[AmLitHist]

We are puppy-sitting for a few days.  Kid #1 got home from work after an overnight shift and found a puppy running around her farmhouse. Her landlord agreed somebody probably dumped him (pretty common in that isolated rural area).  We'll take him to the humane society/vet this week to see if he's chipped, and she'll check with the farm neighbors. If nobody claims him, either she or we will keep him.

He's a little Brittany, maybe 4 months old (as a guess).  Pretty little guy, and gorgeous markings. He's really tame and has settled in. We'd love to keep him if he's not somebody's, though I'm not sure if/how practical that is:  ALHS has had his hands full with "Rigby" already this morning (just routine things like getting him outside, etc.).  We'll see.  I'm trying not to get too attached. He's sweet as can be, and a little couch potato.

[apl68]

Not sure which thread to put this in.  This morning I passed somebody walking a black dog.  There was a smaller black dog not on a leash walking along beside the first dog.  Then I drew closer and got a better look, and realized that the smaller animal was a black cat.  That's what poor distance vision will do for you, especially on a dark, overcast morning!  The dog and cat evidently knew each other.  They seemed comfortable in each others' presence.

[apl68]

On Monday I noticed that the fire chief's swimming pool had been filled and readied for the summer season.  As I passed by their yard this morning, I saw their dalmatian lounging on one of the poolside lounge chairs.  Not for long--when she saw me, she jumped up and started barking at me.  I guess after I passed by she resumed lazing by the pool.

[apl68]

Near the fire chief's house is another house where I have for years encountered a dog I call Patch, for the patch of different-colored fur on part of his face.  He lives with a quieter, non-dominant dog that I call Patch's Shadow.  Patch always barks at me very loudly whenever I walk by, and acts like he'd devour me if he could ever get outside his fence.  Patch's Shadow just watches.  Unless he happens to see me first.  Then he barks to let Patch know that I'm coming.

Months ago--I'm pretty sure it was before the end of this past year--I stopped seeing Patch and Patch's Shadow.  There were no longer any cars at the house.  I supposed at first that everybody was on vacation.  Then I decided that the household must have moved.  It was nice to no longer have to listen to Patch protesting my approach each morning.

This morning I saw a car sitting at the house.  Then I saw, and heard, Patch.  He was, unfortunately, the same old Patch I remembered.  Where have they all been for these past months?  Anyway, it looks like they're back.  And here I thought I'd seen, and heard, the last of Patch.  No such luck.

[AmLitHist]

Puppy update!

The little boy Brittany mix Rigby (see April 23 post) is actually a girl Springer/Basset mix, and she's ours! (She was just too much for Kid #1, with her also having her GSD support dog.) Vet said she's about 7 months old by now--a ball of energy, with teen angst mixed in (a phase they all go through, apparently--neither of our other dogs ever did).

She's a prodigious chewer, so I got her a Goughnut stick and ring (no teeth marks on them yet). Otherwise, no real problems:  she's crate trained and sleeps through the night after playing out around 8 every evening. She likes to try to sneak and carry things to me--socks, towels, etc.--but isn't destructive.  We're working on better leash control; as a bird dog/hunter, she wants to pull like mad. A gentle leader head collar wasn't a hit; I'm awaiting an Easy Walk No Pull Harness from Amazon. Til then, a chain collar is working OK for now. 

So far, a laser pointer has been great (she loves chasing the red dot til she nearly drops!), as has a beep/vibrate (no shock) collar for getting her attention to redirect when she's doing something she shouldn't.

The vet wants her to go through heat before spaying (oh joy.  We've never had girl dogs, so here we go.)

It's not an ideal time for a new puppy:  ALHS had one knee replaced in mid-July, with the other planned for October; and I'll be off on intermittent FMLA again all fall (broken foot still not healing). Still, we're managing, and I'm glad we have her. She's as sweet as can be, when she's not being batshit crazy and all wound up.  :-) She doesn't have a mean bone in her though and is very lovey.

[nebo113]

Henri the canine was having exuberant playdates with Sharona the canine.  Both about 20 pounds.  All went quite well for about three months.  Then Sharona said NO MORE.  Ran from Henri.  Hid under furniture.  Jumped into her owner's arms.

Everyone is puzzled, because it's as if Sharona just flipped a switch to off, but just with Henri; she still plays with other dogs.

Any suggestions as to what might be going on here?

[clean]

Any suggestions as to what might be going on here?

"Bitches be crazy"  perhaps?

(so few places this can be said, so I had to take advantage of the opportunity)

[apl68]

In the past on this thread I've mentioned a dog I nicknamed Patch.  He always strongly objected to my passing by his house, which I did quite regularly.  Whenever he saw me he'd act like he would devour me whole if only he could figure how to get out from behind that fence.  His deafening bark and tendency to set off all the other dogs nearby made him annoying.

I went most of last year without seeing Patch.  Can't say as I missed him.  The cars also disappeared from the house.  Evidently the family had moved.  The house appeared vacant.  More recently, the cars have been back intermittently.  And so has Patch!  He was in fine form when he last saw me a couple of days ago.  He's got to be at least nine years old now, but you wouldn't know it from the manic way he continues to threaten to eat any passers-by.

His companion, the quiet, brown Beta dog I called Patch's Shadow, has not been back.  What's happened to him?  And why do the people keep coming back to that house only once in a while?  I have a sinking feeling that there has been a divorce, and one partner has gotten custody of the house and Patch.

[apl68]

Speak of the Devil!  This morning I saw Patch again.  And this time Patch's Shadow was there with him.  First time I've seen the other dog in the yard in probably a year or so.  Where has he been all this time?  As usual, he just kept quiet and tried to ignore the racket Patch was making as I walked by.

[apl68]

The mystery of Patch's family has been solved!  I learned from an acquaintance who lives on the same street that they do some kind of construction work that often takes them out of state.  Apparently they keep the house here to serve as a kind of home base.  There was a vehicle there this morning, but Patch wasn't in the yard.  Which made for a quieter and more peaceful walk.

[nebo113]

Picked up a dog out of  busy street in area with lot of homeless folks.  Leash tied around neck but no collar. Friendly and clean.   I can't keep her nor any of my canine loving friends.  After becoming completely and illogically hysterical about her, friends are taking her to see if she's chipped (probably not) and then to Humane Society.  There are too damn many lost critters in this country!!!  Damn people!

[apl68]

In recent months I've been encountering a friendly, wandering dog that I've taken to calling Rover.  Not sure what breed he is.  He may be at least part Catahoula.  He's obviously not homeless, but evidently has freedom to wander pretty often.  Maybe he's an escape artist. 

Anyway, I usually meet him along a certain section of street.  I assume he lives near there.  He has followed me for long distances on several occasions.  He doesn't bark or cause trouble, and seems to be street-smart enough to stay safe from cars.  So I let him tag along when he wants to.

This morning I didn't go anywhere near the street where I usually see him, but he happened across me anyway near the start of my morning walk.  It was an overcast morning with rain in the air.  Energetic spring days tend to wind dogs up, and Rover was in a fine mood.  He darted everywhere.  He probably covered three times as much ground as I did.

He followed me all the way to the city park.  Before we'd gone very far into the park, he took off toward the edge of the park and some nearby houses.  I suspect he had some acquaintances over that way that he wanted to look up.  That was the last I saw of him.  Half an hour or so later, we had rain and gusty winds.  I wonder where Rover was at that point?  Did he find someplace to go to ground, or did he not let it bother him?  I suspect that the wind may have had him wishing he was back home.