Remember these two tots? The Brother’s Grin, complete with halos, just 12 weeks old
Archive for August, 2008
BB’s Big Adventure…by Auntie Lisa
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BB playing with a blankie!
BB playing with a blankie!
I’m going nuts without my camera. I hope it’s back and working soon. Wouldn’t ya know when I don’t have it, a thousand good pic possibilities appear! This shot was back at 5 months old, though today he is 8 1/2 months (34 wks). BB’s always been photogenic, but this week he’s more so and I can’t show you. Bummer.
Mom has been taking BB out to play every morning! Kudos and Snickers Bars to her, I say. He’s less undomesticated after a run, the little buddy. Despite the limits his goobered up hindquarters put on him, he has more puppy energy than his healthy and vigorous brother.
So one run a day from Mom is a great step forward. Once my brother is gone in October, she might just find the energy to take him out for another run in the evenings. That should settle his wanderlust even more. Hopefully it will keep him from getting in trouble for being too rambunctious so much.
When BB gets wound up, he is a gen-u-ine burr under your saddle, sweet as he is. He’ll run around you, bumping and lumping, swatting and nipping (oh, no you don’t) to get you to play. He tangles up your feet, too. I scold him, Mom scolds him, his brother lays waste to him for it.
So we have to keep a watchful eye on how much BB bugs the far bigger and more dignified Kenai! Nips on Kenai have resulted in BB being sat on, bashed with a Sasquatch paw, knocked over, shaken by the scruff, and tackled like a linebacker. You would think the beatings BB gets from big brother might get across the idea of being polite about wanting to play with his brother! Hasn’t.
Beebs is behind in learning his puppy manners, from the hospital stays. I get really irritated with my brother’s nasty attitude about BB’s nip and swat, and barking when scared or excited. Mike complains and even threatens him. What irritates me the most, is Mike fusses about BB’s bad behavior without considering how awful his own daughter can be. It’s cute when Emily screams, or persists in a habit he doesn’t like? Not.
Puppies and children have to go through the phases. They have to learn how to behave, they have to learn self-control, they have to learn when to be scared and when not to be. And we have to go through the phases with them. If the learning window is interfered with, it will take longer and need more effort. Just a fact of life!
The other day, when I’d had enough of my brother’s bitching about it, I laid it out for him: if Mike had spent 1/3 of his childhood in a hospital, away from the people he loves, and everyone that came to see him caused him pain, he’d have a little friction between wanting attention and feeling defensive too. Get over it.
There’s a saying in the Bible Proverbs: “A man’s wisdom gives him patience”. BB takes wisdom and patience. He is as he is. Wisdom understands why he’s insecure, and how to change it. Patience comes in because it takes what it takes to rehabilitate the little guy. Inconvenience be go to heck, and “I can’t stand that” go with it.
Ya know, I’ve been called names for cropping Kenai’s ears. I’ve been accused of cruelty and torture for it. But let me define what cruelty really is: Cruelty is when we approach living creatures, human or otherwise, with a belief of what they “should” be, and think they deserve punishment or rejection if they don’t measure up to that idea.
I don’t understand how my brother could have spent his childhood on the recieving end of such merciless judgement from his father, knowing the pain it causes, and still have adopted the same behavior. He has carried that attitude into every relationship, and ruined them all. The sins of the father live on…
♣
On a happier note, BB had a big adventure Tuesday, taking a long ride in the car with me, Mom, and Kenai. The longer we drive the more subdued he gets, thinking he’s going to the vet in Columbia Missouri. So this was a happy surprise! We went to Branson MO, since I needed some special bloodwork done. While Kenai and I were inside the lab, Beebs got himself a nice long wander.
He romped awhile in the grass, and walked awhile with Mom, then romped in some more grass. That’s all good for a boy! While they were walking by a construction area, BB got his puppy self scared by the noise and laid down. When the skill saw stopped, Mom got him back on his feet and showed him where the noise came from.
With lots of encouragement, he decided this was another form of the “look at that” game! So no more scardy pup, he watched and watched all the moving about and machines. Atta boy, little buddy! And way to go Mom! Not getting frustrated is what works with the baby bottoms.
When we met up back at the car, he danced all around me and tried to get me to go watch the men working with him. Run to the end of the leash and back to me, end of the leash, back to me. What the heck, why not? The boy just wanted to show me what he found. So off I go with him, leaving Kenai in the car with the AC and Mom.
Beebers likes to walk with me, mostly because I walk faster than Mom. He can hurry along with Auntie Lisa, and usually get a few treats. (I’m the old bag with the goodie bag, you see). He galloped as fast as his flippity flop gait would take him, then skidded to a happy halt where he’d stood before. He’s got the agility concept of targeting down! He leaps to his spot!
We watched all the activity, and when I would say “did ya hear the saw”, he would wag his tail. I gave him a word for the forklift, and he wagged some more. He hopped over here and over there, seeing all that a boy could see, and got a pat on the head from a construction worker. Then we went back to the car. He was a satisfied little adventurer.
The four hour exploration trip was long enough for all of us, so home we went, and took a long, cool nap. BB woke up with plenty of play in him, and a penchant for yet more fun. He had himself a good day, which he more than deserves! He’s a good boy.
BB the Belligerent…by Auntie Lisa
BB running about with his stick, back when he was 6 months old. Just a silly boy having fun!
BB has hit the ignore-you phase. His brother hit it (then hit me with it) a couple weeks ago, and next thing ya know, Bananna butt can’t go outside without a leash anymore. He won’t come back. Not even for me. He’s added backtalking, defiance, selective deafness, and general snottiness to his puppy repetoire.
Part of it is a lack of exercise. Part of it is stress. All of it is NOT NICE. He’s no where near as severely afflicted with hormones as his brother, but Baby Bottoms needs an attitude adjustment. It’s a phase, where older pups start vying with their owners to be king of the pack. Knowing what it is and that it will pass if the rules are still enforced, doesn’t it make it any less un-cute!
Still, Beebers’ life isn’t much fun right now. His world has shrunk to just trying not to lose his puppy mind around my 2 year old neice Emily, and being dropped in the pool. Mom just doesn’t get him out to play more than occationally, and Emily is here for 3 day stretches at a time, even when Mom isn’t home with him while Mike’s unemployed.
I’m sorry Baby Buddy, I just don’t have the strength to take you running AND do your PT. I am just as worn out and frazzled as you are with the Emily days. It ain’t over yet. Friday morning, there was only 5 more weeks until Mike’s negative energy is gone and Emily with him. Mom’s now saying 7-8 weeks, and there’s little certainty she won’t postpone it yet again.
So BB takes his opportunity to run, even if it isn’t offered. If he’s not on a leash, he will take off into the field, and he doesn’t come back. I must confess to getting really ticked off at him yesterday, deciding to let him run a little before going in the pool. He ran alot and wouldn’t come. When I did get ahold of him, I was angry. So he got taken to the scary old pool with angry energy.
He didn’t need that, nor deserve it. I shouldn’t have been so rough and frustrated with him. It’s just frightening when I can’t find him, since our not-so-responsible neighbors let their dogs run loose. Some of them are on the aggressive side, killing cats and such. Beebs would be an easy target.
So Beebster land isn’t a grand place at the moment. I hope and pray his situation improves. If you’re the praying kind, here’s the requests: 1) Mom gives him regular excercise, 2) No more Emily during the week when his Mom is gone, 3) my brother leaves ASAP.
One good thing, BB’s water aerobics is fabulous PT! He is bearing more weight on the repaired leg, he uses the hind legs independently much more, and his rump is getting taller! Taller is better: that means the muscles have more stretch. Muscles that have more stretch, have more function!! Yay!!
Good for you lumpy boy! You get all strong and straight now, ya’ hear!
BB Does the Splish Splash…by Auntie Lisa
How it all started, the love affair with our BB boy
Sorry there’s not any new pics: the repairs could take 2-3 weeks, so we have to make do, huh? This pic was of our first meeting, a baby brat of 9 weeks old and his new “mom”. It’s their best pic together!
BB went for another splish splash Monday, being carried with towels the last 20 feet of deck to the pool. He’s outgrown his vest, and pops the latches if he’s picked up with it. It holds in the water, but not with any real weight on it. So I’ve got to find a Dane sized life jacket for him. Personally, I think he’s hoping we forget where the pool is…
Beebs didn’t seem as strong this time, tiring out pretty fast, and not paddling as hard. He can swim like a fish when the stairs are in sight! But he has bad days like I have bad days, so we tough it together, me and him. He loved the drying off part as usual: shiney up the puppy is fun when you can play nip and swat with the edges of the big towels. He gets a rest in the sun with a people person, and often a favorite bone or toy as a reward. Then it’s in the house, up the footstool, on the couch, and SNORE.
Tuesday morning Mom actually took him out to run around in the yard. She’s no morning person, so that was spectacular. Or a spectacle if you don’t like seeing grandmothers in mumus and slippers on your way to work! Either perspective you have, Mom quit too soon, because she only managed to wake him up and energize him. OY! By the time the four of us were ready to head out in the car, I was considering Velcro to stick him to something immovable!
We got all four of us in one car, so there was no tolerance for the bite me games over the seat back. I wasn’t about to crawl around putting up the barrier: they’re old enough to stop with the snippy snappy and fussing. Only one getting out and laying down the law was needed, with a couple reminders. And I made sure to open a back window some, because they don’t want the strong wind in their faces… use whatever tools are at hand, right?
Beebs waited with Mom in the car while his brother got weighed at the vet, then it was off to a puppy store. This one they don’t get to go off leash, and have to behave. His plow ox habits on leash got curtailed by a gentle leader. Tools are good things. He got plenty of attention, being so obviously damaged in the back end, and he soaked it up.
The real test came when two small toddlers came in. Worst possible timing too, because Mom was writing the check and I had both boys to content with. He heard them the same time I did, and darn it, I had forgotten to bring any treats for “look at that”. He barked, twice. Darn it. I had Kenai getting riled up from BB’s reaction, and Mom wouldn’t stop writing the darn check and help me, either.
I told her about it too—when I need her help, I need her help. The cashier could wait a minute or two. She’s there for 8 hours regardless of how fast the customers move! Mom doesn’t get the idea of responding BEFORE the dog is out of control. Timing is everything when your goal is to prevent the freak out when it’s still in the uncomfortable stage.
Anyway, I couldn’t break BB’s fixated stare without physically moving his head and turning his body. I swear somebody swapped his spinal bones with rubber because he twisted around to look over his own back! He really needs more work in public, and without his brother there. That way I can concentrate solely on him. I’m not one of those remarkable people who can train more than one dog at a time.
I have no delusions that Mom will work with her own puppy. BB might just have to wait until I have Kenai reliable enough in his public service dog work not to need so many outings of his own. Three to five times a week I’m out with Kenai, and it’s all I can manage, so the funny Beebers will have to wait for the intensive practice his brother gets. It’s not ideal, but it’s how things are I’m afraid. He responds quickly to me, so I hope he’ll snap out of his fearfulness fairly fast when we get the chance to work on it in public.
He gets yet another reprieve from the 2 year old niece this weekend, by a happy chance of fate: she is going to the lake to see her other grandparents! Yay! That will be a 15 day vacation for BB (and us). I don’t feel sorry for my brother not seeing his daughter because he’s been unemployed for two full weeks now, and could have gone to take her out for a picnic, to a sand box at the park, or some structured kiddie events anytime he had wanted.
Her mother isn’t the least bit stingy about that, understandably glad for a little relief from the grind of a single mom: work, school, and 3 kids day and night, one of whom is in the throes of the terrible twos. Shannon would send her off with him most any time he wanted, but unless he can hole up with Emily in our house, he won’t go see his own daughter. That’s his choice, so I don’t feel sorry for him.
Today is Wednesday, so Mom has PT this afternoon and Beebs has to pine for her in the living room with Kenai and I. I think we could all use a quiet day at home, myself especially. I had 2 hard falls last week, from muscle weakness and tremors, so resting is no longer just an optional nap each day. My health is in a free-fall, and I need to turn it around. A few good laughs at the Beebster’s antics are always welcome medicine.
He’s such a goofy gus, there’s no end to the funnies. When I get my camera back, I’m thinking about taking some pictures of him in costumes, just for laughs. Like having a doily over his long, thin head and calling it “BB auditioning for the big bad wolf”. Or putting a t-shirt on him and sunglasses. His skinny Minnie body, and silly personality naturally lends itself to poking fun…
How it all started, the love affair with our BB boy
Lumps, Bumps, and Wiggles…by Auntie Lisa
BB being BB, 24 wks old
You’re going to be stuck seeing older pics of the BB boy, since dummy me let the digital camera drop in the pool. Not my brightest move. Still, it’s fun to go back through the Banana Butt’s younger days! This pic is the quintessential BB: bright eyed, looking up at you, and not the least bit concerned with his dignity. That’s the Beebs: all lumps, bumps, and wiggles.
He seems to have recovered from the Emily invasion Tuesday and Wednesday, not to mention being dropped in the pool with the camera Friday. The remainder of his day, once dried off and away from the large body of water anyhow, Beebs is full of puppy energy. Maybe it’s just a “that was icky” energy, but he seems to really feel better after a swim.
So Friday he got a wander in the yard, and led his grand self to the field without his Mom. She didn’t follow, so he didn’t stay long. He drove us crazy wanting to play all day! His beloved squeaky mat squawked and his new talking tuggie toy made noise without stopping. At one point, his brother Kenai was so tired of the commotion that he got up and took the tuggie away. It was left in a corner on Kenai’s side of the barrier!
At times like that, dogs almost talk: “Enough of the toy, man!”, or “One more sound and I’m taking it away!”. Brothers…what can ya do? Of course, BB got his toy back, compliments of the house, and Kenai flopped on the couch with a huge sigh. Nothing he can do besides sigh and moan if the people persons give something back.
Saturday BB got to watch his living room get taken apart for a half-hearted cleaning. His bed got put outside to air out, and he hopped about behind his Mom while she cleaned. The room still smells, a very strong aroma of the Brother’s grin in need of mouthwash. But we’ll take it apart again during the week for a serious cleaning. Right now, most of the hair is swept up and the sheets are clean.
That’s one thing I don’t like about BB and Kenai: they have a stout body odor. That stuff lingers in upholstery and carpets. We have those bags of volcanic rock, supposed to remove odors in the air, but they have yet to work well. So we’ve switched our main attack weapon to a doggie deoderant. We really need to have the couch steam cleaned, and get the throw rug scrubbed.
Anyway, BB is making good use of the wonderfully cool morning air. August feels like fall at the moment, and we’re loving it! It was chilly enough this morning that I wished I’d had a light jacket–almost down to the 50’s F. We’ve been gipped on autumn for several years now, drought dropping the leaves with no color to speak of, and going from intense heat straight to ice storms.
I’m hoping this fall, the boys get to have a real autumn, for the first time in their lives. I already know BB will have a total blast chasing leaves coming off the trees. Can already see it: chase down this leaf, look over there another, and POUNCE. His penchant for carrying stuff will be satisfied too.
BB is a carrying fool. When he’s done with his potty, if you don’t give him a stick, he’ll grab and carry his leash back to the door. He’ll carry a toy around behind you for hours, pausing only long enough to play with it a little. Last spring I taught him to carry sticks to a spot and drop them. So raking up leaves and sticks will be his bestest game all year. And when big brother demolishes the pile, BB will set to work like a busy little ant putting it back together again! Boy heaven… You wreck, I fix.
Oh, and snow: the first snowfall big enough for snowballs will send him into puppy rapture. “I chase, I pounce” will be the game of the day for our happy little game boy. He’ll have a hand-me-down coat from Taj, a lost love that came before. Nothing like a nice fleece coat to extend the snow games.
There’s lots to look forward to, as you can tell, and I’ve no doubt that BB will find some sort of fun while we wait.
Buckets of Joy to Spill…by Auntie Lisa
The boys getting settled at Melba’s
BB got to go romp with Chloe again Tuesday, having every sort of satisfying puppy fun, until he got tipped over and cried. He was hurting, that’s for sure. So there were gentle massages of liniment, soft voice soothing, and a pain pill waiting for him when he came home. Poor baby, he was so tired, so sore, and the pain pill had to wait, since it lowers bite inhibition: Beebers had to deal with my niece being in the house again from Tuesday until Wednesday night.
He didn’t do well with that, having only a 2 day break, especially after the antics of last Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. I managed to salvage some of the contact with Emily as rewarding experiences for him. At least Beebs won’t have that stressor again for 9 days. This coming weekend our house is an Emily-free zone.
Considering just some 6 or 7 weekends ago he was snapping at every child that got close, his improvement has been absolutely supersonic. He can walk up to Em, lay down beside Emily’s chair at the table, and sometimes even play with her without any distress. Warp speed!
So we’ve gotten him mostly past the “experiential reactivity”, which is changing his experiences about something which in turn changes his reaction. He’s let go of the times she terrified him and even caused him pain back when my brother refused to supervise his daughter and she chased all of us around.
Now what’s left to recondition is the “instinctual reactivity”, or the fear reactions BB has when run at or feeling trapped in his pen. Those are based on instinct, and it takes much longer to change the reaction. Anytime you have to overcome a defensive instinct, you have to repetitively alter his reaction until the response you want is so deeply ingrained that it too becomes instinctive. That takes time.
I’ve become even more vigilant now, in keeping the puppies from being alone with Mike. His attitude is getting increasingly sour towards BB in particular. He’s wanting to take his resentment out on Beebs, saying how tired he is of “that dog”, and ”what’s wrong with that damn dog” when he barks at my niece.
He’s less virulent with Kenai, but I have no doubt Mike would punch or slap either of them if he felt like it and nobody was there. His idea of puppy training is to beat it into submission or kill it if that doesn’t work. Mike can be horrible if he doesn’t get his way.
Ya know, if you wouldn’t slap a child in the face for crying when startled, or protesting when being tormented, why would you do it to a puppy? Why would you hurt them at all? Not only is it counterproductive, it’s absolutely vile. BB has yet to meet a person he didn’t charm the pants off of, with one glaring, screwed up exception.
So with my brother turning ill-tempered, I won’t allow the pups to be alone with him for even a second. He’ll get much, much worse when he’s given the date to be gone by. Just last night when we walked past from the kitchen, BB sat up and did his yawning hello, Mike’s reply was “F—you” and kept going. That’s my brother… a joy isn’t he? Even Mom is actually looking forward to him being out of our house.
In the long run, there’s a lesson in maintaining healthy boundaries for Mom to benefit from. It breaks a life long habit of suffering silently at the mercy of whatever someone else does to her. We aren’t and shouldn’t be at the mercy of others, because few people have any mercy.
It’s a selfish world, full of selfish people, unconcerned about the harm they cause to get what they want. Mike is one of them. Once in a while you come across a marvelous person who is kind and considerate, but they are few and far between. You’ve got to be willing to take up the welcome mat when there are foot prints on your back.
So Wednesday BB had multiple car rides until Emily was gone. He went to Mom’s PT, but his favorite stop was the bestest ever there was puppy store in all the world. He LOVES that store! He can go off leash, romp about, get his quota of love and just be happy. Hurting or not, he has to go have puppy fun: if we wait for his pain to stop he won’t ever get out of the house.
So off he goes, sideways scampering, floppy gaited, Marmaduke clumsy, bunny hopping BB, with a huge grin on his face and buckets of joy to spill on everyone. Spill some on me, baby boy.
More than BB could handle… by Auntie Lisa
BB taking a break from the puppy games at Melba’s, 31 wks
BB had a really tough few days, starting Thursday. That’s Mom’s errand running day, and he was stressed by her absence. Most dogs are stressed by being left by their owners. He had Auntie Lisa and Big Brother with him, though, so he was handling his lonesome okay. Then without warning, my 2 year old niece appeared. My brother had decided with his ex he would take her for 3 or 4 days, without so much as telling Mom, let alone asking.
My nieces’ presence changes our plans, since we have to keep a close eye on the Brothers Grin. Kenai is usually very good for a puppy, taking her noise and running about in stride. But BB is still quite reactive to small children. For a timid pup, stressed by children, having a 2 year old in the house is like stuffing a clausterphobic person in an elevator for a few days. So we try to limit the time he has to deal with Emily, or he’s an absolute wreck.
Needless to say, already stressed BB came unglued Thursday morning. If I wasn’t fast enough at getting his attention, he would spin around barking, lunge at Emily yipping when she came close to the expen, shake and curl up while she had her fits… The look at that game we learned from the “Control Unleashed” book prevented most of his barking and panic, but I had two puppies to handle and Kenai was in a heightened state just because his brother was.
It took my brother an hour and a half to get the idea that I meant it when I said he absolutely had to take Emily out of the room and keep her out. Beebs was just shy of going wild, and Kenai was getting bent out of shape too. I was losing control of both of them, and together they have a combined weight of just over 180 pounds. He didn’t leave with his daughter until Mom came home and let him know how ticked off she was about the circus he caused.
Thursday was hell on earth. Emily literally screamed, whined, demanded, and pitched hissy fits all day long. Up and down the stairs, charging into the living room, ignoring when she was told not to do something… BB was so freaked out by evening that he started peeing. The rugs, his bed, his spot on the couch next to Mom all got soaked. If you touched him, he jumped.
So Friday it was decided that we would take both pups to Melba’s house. BB loves going there, getting to play with their lab Chloe, having attention, and generally making his puppy self tired out. Good for him, hard on me. Keeping the excited boys from picking fights and causing trouble requires just as much vigilance from me as keeping BB under control around Emily does.
I could only handle 3 hours before I had to bring Kenai home. But BB got the run of Melba’s place when we were gone and came home completely exhausted. He was too pooped to do more than sit up in his pen with Em in the room. He was tired, but not relaxed. His muscles were taught as piano wires.
Saturday was not quite as horrid as Thursday had been, and Mike was on notice to lay down the law to his daughter and make it stick. Had she been allowed to carry on Saturday the way she did Thursday, Mom was going to send her home. I guess my brother got the idea he had crossed a line, and Emily went home Saturday night. He was fairly cautious Sunday, and didn’t even appear upstairs more than to get some food and return to the basement.
Today is Monday, and BB is still wound up, in desperate need of run time outside to detox the last of that extended weekend out of his system. It’s already been declared than next weekend our house is an Emily-free zone. Mike can go to see her, but she doesn’t come through that door. Nobody cares if he likes it.
Beebs is getting lots of massage and relaxation work, but it’s not going to help until he has some exercise. He’s hurting and a little wobbly, but his mind needs the outdoor time to play. As much as dogs loving being in the house with their human pack members, we still must remember that they are creatures of the natural world. Our artifical world isn’t enough to satisfy their need to explore and run.
I’ve got a big day with Kenai, but I will try with all my will to get Banana Butt out to the field. The CFIDS makes my muscles go weak and trembling, sometimes they quit working altogether. But Mom isn’t getting him out to play, so I will try to push through the weakness and migraine pain.
He’s such a fun and loving little boy, he deserves to have his needs met, his limits respected. BB would do anything for us, and I see no reason not to reciprocate! So if you pray, send a wish or two up on his behalf? And mine, so I can have the strength to help him.
The indomitable banana butt…by Auntie Lisa
BB after his dip, 31 wks old
Mr. BB had his splendid self a dip in the pool Tuesday! Oh the shaking and resistance when the life vest went on… I tore the handle trying to pick him up with the vest, so it was back to the old fashioned lift and shove to the edge, followed by an unceremonious lift and splash. He did the four legged puppy paddle for about 10 minutes, with rests on the stairs between bouts of swimming.
Hopefully today we can get him back in the pool. I have a tracking harness that I believe will be big enough to go over the life vest, and provide a truly sturdy handle for picking him up with. It’s easier to cart him around than it is to fight the mule, so to speak. Thank God BB isn’t as strong as his brother! When he is too strong for me, then he earns the right not to splish splash! Poor little poops, the indignidities…
Bless his sweet heart, it is so traumatic for him when he knows he’s going in the drink. But for physical therapy, nothing beats the pool. He uses all four legs in it, and uses the repaired leg more afterwards. He’s far from having a four leg gait, but that is from lack of effort on Mom’s part. She wasn’t doing his PT before the bowel obstruction, and she wasn’t doing it afterwards, either, so he had gone back to curling up and carrying around his leg. That makes the dip in the big bath unavoidable for our bent bottom boy. I’m sorry baby!
But you can see from the photo, the after-bath treatment isn’t so bad! Some shiney up the puppy rubs and resting in the sunshine with his Mom makes it all better. There’s kissey fests, and back-talking galore, too. The water also seemed to get rid of his belly rash, and helped considerably with his smell. The boy just has a strong body odor, smelly again only a couple days after a bath. I’m guessing the food and stress is the culprit. Nothing I can do to reduce BB’s stress, and I won’t change the food since he is doing so well on Eagle Pack again.
The indomitable banana butt has also mastered his footstool!! He gets up on the couch with Mom all by himself now, carefully placing his feet and using all his legs to do it. All his legs! It might be a small thing to get up on the couch for another dog, but it is a mighty victory for Beebs. He gets praise from everyone and sometimes a treat, then settles in for a satisfying cuddle, which is the best treat to be found.
Lift the Rump and Shove the Mule…by Auntie Lisa
BABY PICTURES!! This was the Beebster at a decrepit 11 weeks old. Awww…
I got into the boy’s baby pics this morning for a smile. What a tiny fart he was! There BB is at 11 wks old, wearing the collar he would later eat and obstruct his bowels with goofus. The ears were as big as his head! He was a heart stealer from the start!
The Beebs found himself going to Melba’s house with Mom last Friday, to have a play with their lab, Chloe. She’s alot gentler than his brother, Kenai, though he did get knocked down a couple times. The tripod isn’t as stable. He thoroughly wore his puppy bottoms out, too! Flip and nip, swat and sneeze, flop and nap… all the best puppy games were played.
He came home, ate a bowl of food, and crashed, snoring away for 4 solid hours. He wasn’t a nippy pest to his brother at all the rest of the day, either. He was too tired for that. Guess he got his quota of games!
BB is a real pain to get in the car now–he lays down and you have to coax him to the back seat. Then it’s lift the rump and shove the mule: he sticks out his front feet and tries to move back out of the car! Silly boy, you don’t always go to the vet! I know he’d prefer the hatch he has always ridden in, but he doesn’t fit anymore. So it’s the back seat from now on.
BB then got his furry self a bath Sunday, and what should I find but a couple fleas… must have picked them up out of Melba’s yard. So Monday morning Kenai and I brought home a tube of Frontline for the funny game-boy, and sprayed the house again. I hate doing that because the chemicals make me sick, but then, who wants fleas? Ick.
The original reason for the bath is Beebs seems to be one of those dogs that has a continually strong body odor. The day after his bath, he was a bit smelly again. Stress? The food? He’s always just had a stronger smell than most dogs, more even than his brother. Not sure why. So he gets bathed more often, and we use a natural deodorant spray on the soft furnishings. The Febreeze type stuff makes us all itch, though we can get away with it on drapes and things that won’t be in contact with our skin.
Little boy also came home from Melba’s with an ugly rash on his belly—probably a reaction to fertilizer or something. A bit of cream should keep him from licking himself raw because of the itching. Dogs are apt to do that, like a kid with chicken pox or chigger bites: even if they know they shouldn’t, they can’t help it. BB’s pretty good at leaving parts of himself alone if you’re there to tell him to—guess all the practice with his multiple suture lines. He’s quite the collection of scar tissue, our happy-anyway banana butt.
To keep banana butt (and his big bro) happy, I’m looking on the internet for a place to get the big bully sticks in bulk. We’ve got to buy longer chews because the knuckle heads try to swallow them when they get small. So a 30” bully gets tossed when it’s chomped down to 8-10”. Sort of a waste, but better than making them throw up the remnants. A stash of bully sticks should keep the boys grinning, and occupied in the evenings!
BB the Bouncy Bottoms…by Auntie Lisa
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- BB telling me how fun his playtime was, 30 wks old
BB got a real, honest to goodness, gobs of fun boy play Wednesday, complete with stick carrying, Auntie chasing, and tall grass exploring! Poor kiddo was so bored being stuck in his pen all morning while Mom and I were out that I wouldn’t have been surprised if he exploded into bits of puppy popcorn. So before sittng down to cool off, I opened the door and said “let’s go!”.
OUT into the field we went, Beebs pausing only long enough for a piddle. He pounced and chased and had oodles of puppy play for at least as long as his brother does. Wow. He still wasn’t worn out, but he has satisfied. I should have cut it short though, happy boy or not, since he was awfully sore later on. How could I, seeing what a good time he was having? He doesn’t get field wanders with me too very often–it’s a big treat when he does.
In this pic, he’s ‘talking’, which is a hysterical conversation. When Beebers talks, he mimics our syllables, and does this Scooby Doo ‘ro, ro, rrrooo” sort of sound. I tell him I don’t believe him and he talks louder, I tell him what a silly boy he is and he wiggles, I tell him I know how hard it is to be a little boy and he moves his head around… told ya it was hysterical!
BB yesterday had his first outing since his latest bout with the surgeons. He didn’t get out of the car, but it was a nice long ride. My niece, Emily, and her brothers were coming to swim that evening. Mom and I were just not feeling up to handling the absolute chaos of a 2 year old, a teenager with severe but no longer medicated ADHD, and a preteen with emotional problems. Especially since it gets the pups in a great uproar, adding to the noise, wildness, and confusion. Nor did we want to tell them they couldn’t come.
So we went out for awhile. The boys have finally reached a size that they won’t both fit in one car anymore, so we had a puppy caravan. It was down to the diner for a leisurely supper, then up to Walgreens for a few necessaries. Being so hot, we leave the cars running with the AC going for the puppies. Hurts the gas milage, but better that than have Beebs overheat. A boy has to get out in the world, hot or not, right?
We came home and Emily was still there. My brother decided he would keep her since he isn’t working now (grrrr), so BB has to work on his reactivity from Thursday night through Sunday morning… weekend number 17 came early, whether I’m up to it or not. Hhhhhh. He’s doing much better, but it’s a tremendous amount of work and vigilance.
I don’t have any help with it, either. If I’m not there when Emily comes into the room, nobody does the “look at that” game with him, and Beebs gets riled up. Then I start over with his re-conditioning. When it comes to training dogs, it can’t be just one member of the “pack” doing all the work, or the progress is either slow or non-existant. Everyone has to do the same things, the same way, with consistancy. That’s not what’s happening here, so the progress is slow.
But BB has a sweet personality, which is a plus! He doesn’t want to bark and fuss at Emily, she just scares him running around and making so much noise. He’s able now to not react if he sees or hears her, and is friendly if he can walk up to her. It’s when she comes at him that he doesn’t do so well. Em’s learning not to run around him, kudos to her.
I guess we’ll see how the weekend goes. Hopefully Mom will help me keep her puppy exercised so he’s got less energy to react with. That’d be better. Keep your fingers crossed and a prayer in the pipeline!
