Kenai giving me the eyes. “I didn’t like that bath stuff. Can we have some ice cream?” 23 wks
Well it’s finally happened: Kenai had an honest to goodness bath. I used a bucket of warm water, some puppy shampoo, and a washcloth on the deck, since he really doesn’t like the sound of a shower head. A bucket was easier to manage than a very unwilling Dane! Just a baby, but pushing 90 pounds.
He didn’t like the sound of the sopping washcloth coming to get him wet, but he mostly stood still. I figured that’d be more pleasant than dumping the bucket over him. Less likely to cause a sprint towards the woods, too. The lather up wasn’t so bad for him, since he’s used to being rubbed and massaged all over his puppy parts. But the rinse… Darned old washcloth!
I’ve always had a drying off game called “shiney up the puppy”. Great Danes don’t typically like getting wet, so anything that makes it “funner” is helpful for getting them to tolerate their bath time. It’s not like I could ever get them out from under the bed when they hear the word “bath” and take off! Crawled under and got stuck is what would happen. Eyes peering out at you. Blink, blink.
So “Shiney up the puppy” it is! It involves large towels they can play with while I dry them off. I let them nip and pull the corners of it, and generally enjoy themselves while I rub and buff the little buff beauties. They can do the goofy dance, the flamingo step, the slide, the mashed potato, and any other funny little wiggle they want, so long as they stay in the general area. No running off allowed, but the moonwalk is fine. And playtime follows bath time, to burn off the that-was-icky puppy energy.
Other than bath time, Sunday was a mostly good day, having an outing to the ice cream store, where I got a shake and the boys got some puppy frozen yogurt at the puppy store. I get chocolate, they get peanut butter bannana. Kenai gobbled his down. He’s become the big gobbler of the house.
Kenai’s tummy stuff is starting to worry me—he can’t seem to go more than four hours before he is absolutely starving. Sometimes he acts like he’s got stomach pain. It’s not bloat, because I check. We’re going to have to talk to the vet, when he goes in for his 6 month old rabies shot this week. Lord, don’t let him have a long term problem with colitis. Those pills we got last time added up to some $4 a day and didn’t do a darn thing.
And no I won’t buy him the crappy canned food they keep saying to because he won’t touch it. No matter how hungry he is. It must be made of asphalt and sheet rock if Kenai won’t eat it. He eats critter poop and other disgusting stuff, for crying out loud, but not the vet’s stuff. Won’t even get up if he sees the can, and he can tell the difference in the cans.
Heck, Kenai probably would eat asphalt and sheet rock, the gufus…but not the vet’s food. Not even peanut butter in the stuff got him to eat it. I much prefer to feed a natural holistic food, so I don’t mind a bit. I don’t think it’s the food, because BB is just fine. He eats the same things, the same probiotics and stuff, drinks the same water. Let’s hope the metronidazole clears up whatever the problem is and it doesn’t come back!
Working on the boys’ misbehaviors when together, I had asked on a Yahoo group for advice from the author of the book “Control Unleashed”. She had some really helpful advice, and I’m going to give it a try. It may exhaust me, but better me be tired than them be dunderheads, right?
The first is exercise and full tummies: I run Kenai around outside a lot, but I’ve been slacking in the evening runs. I just get so wiped out by supper time, nap or not. So it’s suck it up and do it. Getting Mom to exercise BB is a whole different battle. I may have to just work with him all wound up. And if Kenai is hungry (poor guy) as he has been, he’s much more belligerent. Full tummies and tired tushies is the first step.
The second line of attack is taking turns. The toys are not left out. One gets to play, the other waits. One gets massage, the other waits. One does his puppy school skills, the other waits. I’ve been doing this, but they take alot of energy to control, so I haven’t put alot of time into it. I need to be able to crate one or both so I can rest or watch TV for awhile too.
I’ve also neglected to have a cue to start and a cue to end their turns. It is supposed to counter condition the boys that when one gets attention, the other one will too if they wait. That’s easy enough, saying “Kenai’s turn/Kenai’s turn done”.
Part of taking turns is a sort of “on/off” switch. Getting BB to wait could be really tough since his self control is limited. But if I need to, I can put him in his expen. Kenai is pretty good about staying on the couch while I mess with BB, so the groundwork is at least there.
I’m going to have to bite the bullet and clean up the really big crate in the garage. Using a crate should never be a “punishment”: ie, I’m mad at you so get out of my sight kind of thing. A crate is best used as down-time, a place to chill and enjoy the favorite bones, and a safe place to rest without being disturbed.
So the big crate needs to come in. I’ll be teaching Kenai to “crate up”, and when he comes out, he needs to re-orient to me: eyes on, sits, downs, and stuff before being given a cue to go see his brother. BB has his expen, but has never had to earn being released. He’s very good at paying attention to people, though. Much better at the watch me stuff than Kenai. Advantage for us!
The last skill advised is not so simple. Teaching Kenai the targeting, which is to go across the room and touch something or fetch something, will be harder. He’s not the sort of high energy dog that are typically found in agility type settings. He doesn’t run there, and run back. He’s a super calm natured dog.
I’m hoping the group obedience class can spark up a little more enthusiasm for such things. In the mean time, I really have to perfect Kenai’s reorienting to me. He’s not the “look at me” kind of dog, either. He’s subtle, and I have to get better at recognizing when his attention is on me even if his eyes aren’t.
Oh, Lord, I can see a ton of work here. There’s enough to feel overwhelmed. So time to break it up into steps: exercise/food is easy enough. Taking turns may be my initial focus, with the on/off cues and their crates. The thing is, I’m pretty much training both boys myself, which I didn’t want to do. I don’t really have the energy. So this could take awhile…
I wish Mom would do something about her depression. It’s so much easier to work with the two boys when she isn’t there. It’s not a cake walk, but still easier. That energy she gives off, the sound in her voice…sometimes I want to cringe, so I bet BB does too. It’s just destabilizing. The three of them can seriously wear me down.
It can be so perplexing, having two pups that are easy to deal with when seperated, but go ga-ga when together. Kenai is such a good boy overall, with only a few little difficulties. He’s gotten so good about my neice that I trusted him to sit on the couch next to her, while I was not sitting next to him.
He’s being soooo good! Kenai 23 wks
I am so amazed at the obedience trial teams and rally dogs and such. The control that people can have and the dogs can have too is unbelievable. The focus it takes, and the huge amounts of training that go into it, make is seem impossible for me sometimes.
I don’t need Kenai to be able to run an agility course, but to have that sort of control of him off leash would be fantastic. It seems so far off, I have to just put it aside, like a picture on the wall, and work on one thing at a time. Just one thing at a time…
