August 18, 2007
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The Baron’s first night away from his siblings….and his first true day with a new *pack*
Yesterday was a whole new experience for Baron, our puppy Doberman. First he was separated from his siblings, then we discovered to our dismay that he hadn’t really been on grass, wouldn’t walk on carpeting, had never had a collar or leash on before and had no idea how to *walk*. We knew it wasn’t going to be a picnic for us to have him not only experience all these new things but to accept them.
We had purchased a crate/kennel for him to use as sleeping quarters along with a nice, comfortable bed that fit inside it. The crate is lightweight and easily breaks down so you can use it when you travel. It was set up and ready when we got home from the breeders, the door was open and we did NOT try pushing him into it. We figured we would introduce him to it with a treat so that he would learn he could go in and out on his own. Good thinking…..NOT.
First of all, you should find out if any of the treats you have are liked enough to entice him. The Beast has this image in his mind of a powerful dog, not a puppy with puppy teeth so he hadn’t bought anything that was even of a soft enough texture for the pup to enjoy without an hour of chewing…..or more. That couldn’t be corrected until today. We now have some good liver bites that he just loves and we will use it to reward him when we are training him to do the simple things like *come*, *sit* (although he does that pretty well already without treats) and getting him into the crate with a command. You know the kind of things you kind of take for granted but require training.So, last night…….was not as bad as we had imagined it might be. When we were ready for bed (the beast went to bed before I did), the dog had been introduced to the bed and crate once or twice but had chosen to fall asleep under our kitchen table. He had spent almost as much time sleeping as awake during the day but seemed to be sleeping so soundly, the Beast let him lay there.
When I went to bed a half hour later, I turned off all the lights except the one over the stove in the kitchen (a mere 15 watt that’s more like a night light than anything) and I left our bedroom door open so we could hear the pup. About 3:30 am, the Beast heard the dog’s toenails clicking on the tile towards the water dish in the kitchen and it suddenly struck him just WHY you want your dog to spend it’s first night in it’s sleeping crate. All he could think about was the new leather furniture being chewed by those sharp baby teeth. So, up he gets and heads out to the pup. I hear him talking to the pup and then suddenly, I could tell the pup did NOT want to get into the crate. It became a battle of wills with the Beast winning in the end and shutting the dog into it. No open door policy on this night. The Beast crawled back into bed and then it started. Howl…..howl….howl. Whimper, bark, bark, whimper…..howl. I was ready to strangle the beast because I didn’t believe the pup would have chewed anything that first night anyway. It was all too new to him. But….to our total surprise, the howling, barking and whimpering stopped. And I mean just stopped dead! I could hear the pup turning around and then the sounds of him settling in for the night. After that, not a peep out of him. It was amazing. I slept until 8 am
Of course, the Beast got up at 6:30 so I could afford to sleep in a bit because I knew the first thing he would do would be to take the dog outside on the deck at least. He told me the first thing the pup did after he opened the door was to head for his food dish. He had a few bites to eat, peed on the newspaper that was down for just that reason and then he took his first real *dump* when the Beast took him outside. It was, unfortunately, in the corner of the wooden deck but better there than on my kitchen floor or the rug or any other place in the house.
The interesting thing, as the Beast put it, was that the dog almost seemed like a different dog. He looked at the Beast for direction when he went to the door and let the Beast preceed him before he went out. No fighting for supremacy, he was *respectful* of his *pack leader* He laid down under the beast’s chair on the deck with his head between the Beast’s feet and promptly went to sleep with one paw touching the Beast’s feet.
Later on, when I joined them, Baron came over for a scratch and some loving, threw himself down on his back and wanted his belly scratched, then went under MY chair to sleep and with his head on my foot and one paw wrapped around my ankle. I was glad I had a full cup of coffee because I was reluctant to disturb the little guy. He looked so peaceful and adorable.
When he woke up a bit later, the Beast took him into the yard and got him to take a walk around the property. We have almost an acre of land with lots and lots of nice grass on it. The dog not only walked but he jumped and pranced. He reminded me of one of those springbok antelope babies when they are first learning to get around in the world. I kid you not. It was hysterical to watch.
He does, however, have a problem getting up and down the stairs. We will bring him down (although he’s heavy) but we let him make his own way UP. He does real well after only two or three tries. The first time, he slid DOWN two or three stairs which seemed to make him a bit mad and determined. Whatever it takes, he made it up and has been better each time since. We will wait a couple days before we start attempting the downward journey.
The Beast was right about him seeming different though. He takes a little enticing to walk on the leash but at least he is not digging his heels in and refusing to walk. Just a gentle tug or two and off he will go, as nice as you please. He will also come over to you to let you put the leash on his collar, which the Dog Whisperer says is a must and is also a sign of respect for the pack leaders.
My niece, Tara, came over because the Beast was picking up her new couch and some end tables with her today. Baron was asleep when they left because her youngest boy had played a peek-a-boo-can’t-catch-me-round-the-table game with Baron. It tired them both out…..LOL I took the opportunity to grab a granny nap on the couch myself. I wasn’t asleep yet when I heard Baron get up and drink some water. He then saw me laying down on the couch, came over (on the rug, mind you
) and lay down on the rug next to me. I looked down at him at the same time he looked up at me and the we both relaxed and went to sleep. That is how the Beast found us when he got home from dropping off Tara’s furniture. He had stopped at Pets Mart to pick up a puppy training book since it has been so many years since we trained a dog and he wanted to refresh his memory on a few things, like housebreaking.I came into my office to work on my weblog and see which of my sisters might be online while the Beast took him outside for a walk and some fresh air. It’s almost 100 degrees out there so they both came in afterwards and the dog headed for his crate to sleep for a while. He was in there a few minutes ago when I finished making some sweet tea for the Beast.
For now, all is well and peaceful in our household. I am sure this will be subject to change as the dog gets older. My sister sent me a link for a newsletter entitled Dogs & Cats on Arcamax. I read what he had to say about the Doberman breed and decided he had his act together so I subscribed. I also looked up a site he recommended that actually has personality tests for your pet. What is funny is that the Beast found the same site via a different route and we both called to each other to come see at about the same time
Well, it’s time for me to go outside (it’s cooled down to 95 now but we have lots of shade now because the trees out back are so tall. The hummingbirds will be feeding now and I love to watch them. We have five regular visitors and they have really been eating up the nectar, let me tell you! The feeder holds almost two cups of it and they are draining one a week.
Have a great evening and a wonderful day tomorrow. Live life and put a little laughter in it. It’s good for your heart, body and your soul.
Love ya !
