Bad start to the morning

Background:
Marley is STILL a puppy.  He's not quite 9 months old, and still learning how to behave.  Marley really likes to be up about 7am and one of us (nearly always me) needs to be up with him.  If he whines for us (me) to be up with him and we tell him "go to bed", he'll whine again.  If we think we've gotten him to settle so we can sleep a bit longer ... think again.  That's when he selects something to destroy.

So far ... half of one sheepskin slipper, part of the heel of one of Tom's daily wear shoes, a ball point pen, my mammogram results notice, a battery operated flashing rubber ducky (he killed the devil & ate a batter, (we had to sacrifice the angel to know how many batteries had been in the devil) and so on ...  In the past he's also "eaten" sticks and cans - eaten as in swallow (or try to swallow) pieces.

So, this morning we were up at 6am for a potty break, then (I thought) back to bed.  Around 7:30am he whined his little "get up with me" whine and I got up.  From the bathroom I looked to my left and ... Damn it!  There was a shadow too big to be one of his toys.  (At 7:30am this time of year we barely have any natural light yet, since sunrise is around 8:30.)

Sure enough, it was one of Tom's shoes. He'd eaten part of the heel area a while back.  He'd nibbled a bit more a week or two later.   He'd replaced the shoes, but was still wearing the old ones.  Not anymore.  They were hikers, but the left heel area is now floppy in back and along one side.  Now, he's going to have to wear the new ones.

This time I really let Marley know how unhappy I was.  Not only did he get a scolding as soon as I found it, but I didn't stop there.  I didn't let him have his usual morning treat (a Kong ball with slots around it that I "stuff" with flavored "paste".  That keeps him busy for a few minutes while I start coffee and otherwise prepare to get ready to face the day ...   A bit later, I picked up the shoe and went near him to ask "what did you do?!" in a very negative voice.  Wow!  He cringed under the dining table, then slunk to the bedroom and crawled under the bed (not as easy as it used to be).  He stayed there more than a half hour.  He didn't come back out until after Tom had gotten up.

After a bit, it was clear he wasn't going to "make up" until a peace offering was proffered.  I set up his ball with liver flavored paste (new flavor) and gave it to him without making him work for it at all; not even finding the ball and bringing it to me.  Not long after he finished all the liver goo, he came and wanted lots of loving, petting, leaning, etc.   I hope we don't have to do this too many times in the future.

What a morning.  At least it didn't require a visit to the vet.

Puzzle

We bought Marley a puzzle.  It's a "level 2" puzzle  It has 2 sliding discs that cover 3 cavities for treats, 2 tower plugs to pull out (the description says they have to be pulled straight up, can't be knocked over, but they knock over at a light touch) and 2 flip levers to open 2 more cavities.

You're supposed to start by putting treats in the slider compartments & closing them halfway, while the dog watches.  Then you show the dog how they slide to reveal the treats.  You practice with just the sliders until the dog understands there are treats under the sliders.  Then you do the cones or flippers.  You do each type of obstacle separately until the dog know how to work them.

Oops!

I jumped right in with Marley.  I let him see me fill all 3 types of compartments.  I showed him how they worked.  Within 20 minutes he had the puzzle empty.  Twice.  Oh well.  The flipper that moves toward him is his biggest challenge.

Yesterday & today I just filled it and put it down for him.  He looks forward to finding all the treats.  The next step is to only put treats in some of the holes.  At least it's a bit of a challenge for him.

He's also showing more and more that he's air scenting for his greenie & his charcoal biscuit.  He'll stick his nose up in the air and once he gets a whiff he'll circle and close in on his treat.  It will be interesting to play "search" come summer.

Barrier-Free car ride -- FAIL!

We tried out riding with Marley with no barrier to see if he's settled into the idea that he belongs in the back and we belong in the front.  What a potential disaster!

Background:
Marley loves being really close to us.  In the car, as a little puppy, he'd curl up with Tom's feet in the passenger seat floorboards  We tried to get him to stay in the back, but he wasn't buying it.  Nor could we convince him to stay in the front or back.  He'd suddenly leap from front floorboards to back cargo area or cargo to front with no warning.  He'd bump the driver every time.  On dry pavement, with light traffic, it's a potential hazard.  On icy pavement, and/or in heavy traffic it's a potential major pile-up.

 June 2016

January 2017

So, we got a metal barrier for the car; it had become a life & death decision..  After a lot of fussing & finessing and cussing & stressing we (99% Tom; 1% me) got it installed in the Subaru.  There were a couple of low gaps Marley could squeeze partway through, so we ordered an extension panel.  These barriers are intended for use behind the back seat, not between the front & back seats.  We've always thought the behind the back seat space was too small for most mid & full-size dogs in most cars, so we allow the full back cargo area for the dog, except when we carry passengers.  We want to meet up with someone who will need a ride, so we're exploring current options.

After a bit we transferred the barrier to the Honda, the car we prefer to drive.  In addition to the extension panel, we added an old "pet vent" to close the last little gap that puppy Marley was squeezing his head through.  Since we have the barrier physically attached to the front seat headrest supports and to the back seat structure, nobody can use the back seat, not even half of it.  So, we needed to make the test.

In the 5 miles from here to the Post Office he was up in the front at least twice, with a couple of other attempts.  As we were pulling into the PO his butt was up near Tom's knee, while his head & shoulders were on the floor.  He just doesn't understand how that comfy hole could now be too small for him.  He never did understand how deadly his leaping front to rear or rear to front could be.  One of his leaps he got hung up on my arm and we were all in a tangle while rolling along at 35MPH!

We have a net barrier on order; it should be here by next Monday or Tuesday.  Since it attaches only to the front seats we should be able to use the back seat(s) as needed, without losing too much visibility.  Luckily, this barrier is less than $20, so if it doesn't work, we get a real one for the Subaru.  We also would have to consider restricting him to the back of the bus, so to speak, if we wanted to be able to use the back seats.

Adaptable & versatile

It finally dawned on me ... Marley has learned to play hard with the big rough puppies at the Sunday Puppy Play sessions, to play a bit more gently with the not-so-rough puppies and to play like a cat when he plays with Charlotte.

When he plays with the puppies, he gets in and is as rough as they want to be, without anybody getting hurt.  He learns to respect any dog request to back off, well up to a point anyway.  Each week his play style is a little different.  He often will lay on his side, as if exhausted, just waiting for one of the pups to make advances.

For once I was just watching Charlotte & Marley play.  Not thinking or adding any notions to what I was seeing. And I realized he would stand & square off with her in that semi-sideways posture that cats get, each one trying to look bigger & fiercer than the other, until one of them would lunge and the wrestling would begin.  And it dawned on me, they've been playing that way for a while.  Charlotte plays and incites and teases the way a cat does.  Marley responds by playing the way she has taught him.

Smart little guy, isn't he?  And Charlotte is doing a good job of training him to play like a kitty so she has a companion she can trust not to hurt her. 

Still learning

Sometimes, moving on to a new "trick" or "behavior" needs a little bit of a jump start. 

We have a folding two step stool that we had bought for Max to be able to more easily get in & out of the car.  He never accepted it.  When he needed it, after his spleen was removed and he was recovering from major abdominal surgery and was very weak, he would jump over it or around it rather than use it.  So, we thought it would be good to teach Marley to use it now so it's old hat when he gets old (or for any other reason) needs to use it.  It can also be built on to do other things later.

I mentioned it to Rebecca in our class.  I told her it was not going well.  He'd do anything to avoid stepping on it.  He'd press forward as far as he could, go around, whine, bark, etc.  She said she'd taught her dog "Target" plus another one, "Touch" so she could shape other behaviors.   We'd already used "Touch" to mean touch-your-nose-to-my-open-hand-to-get-the-food-in-my-closed-hand  I didn't want to confuse him.  That involved touching with his nose; I wanted to build on touching with a paw.  Hmmm. 

Ah-HAH!  Build on "High 5" (touch-your-paw-to-my-held-up-hand).  I got out a foam craft circle.  Since we'd built from Touch to Target when Rebecca introduced "Target" in class, I had him "target" a couple of times, then had him High 5.  Then I held the foam circle against my raised hand and told him to High 5.  I moved it close to the stool.  Then I put the circle on the bottom step of the stool.  Bingo!  I quit telling him to High 5.  He was getting the idea and I would be able to switch him to a new word as the new behavior solidified.  He got pretty good about slapping a paw on that circle. 

On the second day I introduced the word Step and moved the circle to various places on the floor and both steps of the stool.  Success!

Sometimes the hardest part of starting a new behavior is going to be finding the small thing to start with so we can build on it.

Turn about ...

After months of Marley whining, barking or otherwise fussing when Charlotte wanted to come back in the house, last night Charlotte kept meowing at us to let Marley back in the house.

We'd been trying to put him off until a commercial break, but she was face to face with him at the sliding glass door, then turning to us and meowing.   So, we let him in.

No matter how much they "wrestle" and no matter how many times she's complained when he got too rough, it seems they really do like each other.

And a little exercise for the humans, too

We got an inexpensive treadmill so Tom & I can get some walking done, safely.  The yard is buried in a couple feet of snow of varying textures.  Post-holing isn't any fun and puts unusual strain on muscles and joints.  The area between the fenced yard and the garage is mostly cleared, but again, it's got snow and could be slippery.  I find I get more and more afraid of falling.  We've both reached break-a-hip age.  So the treadmill is about the safest way to get in some walking during the winter.  Especially a winter like this crazy one.

Our work introducing Marley to as many new experiences as possible is paying off.  Yesterday when the new treadmill was fired up the first time, he started out in the kitchen ... about as far from it as he could get but still keep an eye on it.  Every couple of minutes he'd come a little closer.  We didn't try to reassure him it was OK - that would feed the "there's something to be worried about" feeling.  Today he came up and sniffed it and stood quite close while I took my first turn on it. 

Eventually, we may see if he'll walk on it.

Ah hah!

It's not the snow.  It's the catching.  We picked up a couple more "prickly" balls that fit in the Chuck-It that I can toss out into the snow and not be too unhappy if they disappear until spring.  He doesn't always bring back balls from the yard.  I'm not going out in 2 feet of snow and digging them out, either.

I started tossing one in the living room for him, playing the "Trade" game.  I give him a treat when he brings the ball back to me.  Pretty soon he was trying to catch them in the air.  Then he was leaping to catch them in the air.  And if I was slow tossing it, just like the snow, he'd bark at me.  All I need to do is get him to figure out it will be more fun if he's further away.

At some point, I think we'll try him on a Frisbee, too.  I think the leaping and twisting in the air is what he really likes.

The devil was in Marley this morning ... had to sacrifice an angel

Nothing like starting your morning by sacrificing an angel. Really. Cutting her wide open.

When our puppy Marley demanded I get up around 7am (as he does every morning) I told him to "go back to bed" (as I do some mornings) and as he does when I try to get a few more winks ... he went and found something to destroy. This time the cat contributed to the problem - she tossed around one of the little rubber duckies (an angel & devil pair) we had on the inner ledge of the tub to a place he could reach it. When I did get up (only about 5 minutes after 7) there was part of the devil duck on the carpet just outside the bathroom. Worse ... there were a few pieces of red plastic and a couple of button batteries on the living room carpet. Oh, crap! How may batteries did the devil duck start with?

So, I had to sacrifice the angel to know how many batteries ... there were THREE. So, a quick research on the internet, followed by a call to the vet. Followed by setting up the bathroom and giving him an appropriate dose of hydrogen peroxide and recovering the battery. Since it was dead, it was unlikely it could have "zapped" his intestine (killing spots), but it could still potentially corrode enough on the way through to burn or poison him. 

 

 

Sacrificed angel and destroyed devil and all 3 batteries (after the peroxide)  and angel looking intact to show they were cute little floaters.

It IS possible to wear him out

Today was an epic day for snow moving.  Marley did his flying dog snow catching for the whole back deck.  I was shoveling normal fell-from-the-sky snow, the fluffy stuff.  Then he did about a half hour of chasing snowballs and looking for them buried in the 2 feet or so of snow on the ground.

After lunch, half the back roof snow had come crashing down onto the deck so Tom & I went out and shoveled the deck again.  Again Marley did the flying, leaping, twisting to catch the shovelfuls of snow.  After I cleared the car we went to the post office and when we got back more of the roof snow had come down onto the deck and I had to dig a path to the house - I just didn't feel like shoveling the whole deck again.  At first Marley whined for the snow, but after a couple he just watched me closely without whining or barking.  By golly, he does have an energy limit!

Adding a twist to a skill

Marley has been searching for his Greenie & charcoal biscuits each morning for many weeks.  It's good practice for him to sniff out things for us.  We tell him "find it" and off he goes.  He has to "sit" or "down" and "stay" while we show him the treats, then go hide them.  He can't go find them until he is released with the word "free".

Some days is takes only seconds for him to find them and they might be in any of the rooms other than the guest room (door is semi blocked to give the cat a safe haven).  Dining room, kitchen, living room, master bedroom, hall or bathroom are all possibilities.  We've started moving the treats from the floor to on handles, rails, tub edge, between things, partially under things to make it a bit more of a challenge.

Yesterday I added another level of difficulty.  I put the greenie (most aromatic, therefore easier to find by smell) under a small plastic basket.  The basket has plenty of large openings so he can see it and smell it.  He is easily frustrated by complications so he whined for help at first.  So, I moved it so a tiny bit of the greenie stuck out under the edge.  Bingo!

Today I put it under the basket.  He bumped the basket a couple of times until the edge lifted enough to expose a bit of the greenie and success!  We'll move on in a few days to more difficult things, like a small cardboard box or other item he can easily move.

I had tried a small steel mixing bowl, but that was too difficult too soon.  There's no good way for him to flip it, so I won't use it again.  But there are so many things we can use.

Role model for his class

Yesterday afternoon Marley started Level 2 Adult Dog training.  There are 3 dogs in his class, but one won't start until next week.  Both the other dogs are on the timid side.  The gal who came with Lucy seemed to have little clue what was going on since her husband had brought Lucy for the Level 1 class.  That helped reinforce that we're doing the right thing with both of us coming to all the classes, taking turns working with him in & out of class.

Because he readily accepts training, likes training, LOVES any and all treats, is comfortable around people and other dogs, he will be the role model to help the others learn.  Not only will they all do the various exercises, but the other 2 will also learn from seeing how Marley interacts with us and with Rebecca.

Early in our session Marley tried to interact with Lucy and she told him she wanted him to give her some more distance (a short low growl).  The rest of the session he gave her a little extra space when Rebecca or we would walk him past her.  That's something he learned in the Puppy Play sessions.

As he matures and has we work with him he gets better at the easy stuff and the harder stuff gets a little closer to working.

Cute "wrap"

Marley was napping while we were watching an Eric Clapton concert video.

Snow Monster & Little Lady

I'm not sure what we'll do come summer.  I expect to make snow cone snow (shave ice) for Marley at least once in a while.  Now, every time Tom puts on outdoor gear (rain & wind pants over his jeans, heavy boots, and so on) Marley goes nuts, just knowing he's going to get shovel fulls of snow in his face.  Or at least snowballs chucked out into the yard.  He is a snow fanatic.  He leaps up to catch it.  He lets it hit him and disintegrate.  He sniffs & digs for the lost snowballs.

The down side to making "snow" for him will be that once we do it the first time he'll expect us to do it again the same time the next day.  And the next ... and the next ... and ...

Looks like Charlotte has decided to do what it takes to keep living with us.  This morning I found 3 pee lumps and a poo lump in the box.  We're checking & scooping the box just about every time we go into the bathroom.  We're feeding her most any time she asks but each time she gets less than half of a scoop instead of a whole scoop (scoop being 1/4 cup).  We figure if we try to keep her happy she'll keep using the box.