Let's Play

When Emme asks to play, she does what is referred to as a "play bow." She lowers her chest and sticks her little butt up in the air. This is not a unique Emme posture; I understand that all, or most, dogs do it. Rudy does it sometimes, but Emme does it often.

When she and I are going down the steps from the second floor to the first floor and Emme has to stop on the landing to chat, she often will stick her butt up in the air and want to wrestle as we chat. After Ken and I finish eating a meal, she will often come up to Ken's chair and do a play bow to ask for his attention. In the evening, when she is tired of playing alone and she wants to engage us in her play, she will do the play bow. She is a puppy who is not shy asking for what she needs. She knows how to say, "Let's play!"

A Chewie for Me. A Fluffie for You.

Emme and Rudy couldn't be more different, right down to the toy they choose to play with first thing in the morning. Emme always gets a chewie, usually one of the marrow bones, and lies down on the rug for a long chew. Rudy always gets a fluffie: usually the really big bear and settles down to mouth it. Later in the day, usually in the evening when we are trying to watch TV, Rudy gets a bone and chews long and LOUD. But in the morning, it is always a lovie first.

The differences between the two dogs begin as they sleep at night. Emme is her crate and Rudy sleeps on the rug near our bed. Then in the morning, Rudy gets up with Ken about 6 o'clock and Emme, even if she is awake, waits for me to get up about 6:30. She watches Ken and Rudy leave the bedroom but she never makes a sound until I turn on the bedside lamp and get out of bed. That is her signal that she is getting up. They are different when they go outside first thing in the morning. Emme always does a "two-fer" and gets rid of everything she has been saving all night. Rudy goes outside and empties his bladder but waits for the rest until after he has had breakfast.

When they are first up, Rudy is consumed by the desire for breakfast, now. Emme could care less. She is into playing. When breakfast is served, they eat differently. Rudy gulps down his food in record time and never leaves a kibble. Emme eats leisurely and doesn't always finish her portion. She will eat a few pieces of kibble, wander around the kitchen, lie on the rug, come back for a few more pieces, get a drink of water and finish her breakfast slowly.

When we are done with breakfast, a long leisurely time (remember, the humans are retired), Emme comes upstairs with me as I check email, take a shower, get dressed and make the bed. Rudy stays in the kitchen with Ken as he cleans up from breakfast. Later, I go back down stairs with Emme to put dishes away and Rudy comes upstairs with Ken as he showers and gets dressed.

As soon as Ken is dressed, he takes both dogs outside to play. Rudy is the champion fetcher and Emme just doesn't get the concept of the game. Nevertheless, she loves to go outside with Ken and whines all the time that he is playing with Rudy, as she waits for her turn.

These dogs couldn't be more different, or more fun.

The Groomer is Leaving Town

I took Emme to the groomer yesterday morning and got some unexpected news. Emme's groomer has lost her lease on the Wooster shop and will no longer be in town. She has another location in Seville which she says is 22 minutes from here. I know that I have gone through the town but I am not entirely sure where it is. I have a decision to make. I have to start taking Emme to Seville or I have to find another groomer in town.

I find the whole groomer business a little daunting. She not only trims Emme, but also cuts her nails and pulls the hair from her ears. I did a great deal of research to choose this one and I just now feel that we are communicating and understanding one another. It takes such faith to leave Emme with a groomer who will be working on her in my absence. This is the only groomer Emme has known. I hate to switch to another groomer and start over again, both for me and for Emme. Ken is suggesting that I go at least once to Seville and check out the ride and see if I want to continue to stay with the same groomer. Decisions, decisions.

Just to Make Rudy Crazy

Emme loves to make Rudy crazy by tugging on any lovie he is playing with. Then Rudy has to growl to warn her away from the toy. This doesn't do anything but incite Emme who now has Rudy's attention and part of his lovie.

This morning at breakfast Rudy, as usual, was lying quietly under the table with the really big bear. He was being quiet and content, just mouthing that bear. Emme came over and, just to make Rudy crazy, started pulling on one of the bear's ears. It didn't matter that there were three other bears, a moose and a fluffy red dog on the rug. The only toy that would do was the really big lovie that Rudy had. Figures. When I tell Emme to "Leave it" she does but not long after she will be back to tug on the lovie again. She doesn't want the bear; she only wants Rudy's attention. And it works.

Back from Puppy Camp

Emme and Rudy were at Doggy Sleep-Away Camp for a long weekend while we were in DC visiting Eric and Katherine. We visited the Botanical Gardens and the National Museum of the American Indian as well as going to a movie, Hot Fuzz, going to a bowling birthday party (!), visiting a bead store, playing Wii, and eating out.

We had a wonderful visit and the dogs survived camp with few problems. I think it may be easier on the dogs than on us. Many times over the weekend, I would think of Emme and wonder what she was doing. Then I reminded myself that I was a person, doing what a person should be doing, and Emme was a dog, doing what a dog should be doing. It still makes it hard to leave them.

When we picked them up, both dogs were hyper-excited. Emme even left a little puddle of joy on the kennel floor, she was so happy to see us. As we drove home, Rudy began to get more excited. He knew where he was when we were passing Buehlers and he began to sing the home song. Emme picked up on it when we got on Greensview. By the time we had opened the garage door, both were singing and excited to get home. As soon as we got home, both dogs needed to go outside to take care of business. They played outside for awhile and then needed to get reacquainted with their house and toys. Both dogs seemed to miss chewing because they are both busy with their bones and chew toys. They didn't seem to forget a thing and settled right back into their regular routines.

Cuddle Me

Sometimes Emme is Ms. Alpha Dog and will not roll over on her back for love or money. Other times, she wants to be held and cuddled. Then she wraps her little paws around our wrist as we rub her belly. Slowly her eyes close to slits and in no time she is asleep. It is always on her terms. Cuddle me when I want to be cuddled.

Doggy Push-ups

Emme likes to play clicker. We are practicing "sit" and "down" with the clicker and Emme loves to play. We take a few small pieces of chicken hot dogs and alternate sit, down, sit, down, sit, down, sit, down. One of the web sites called this "Doggy Push-ups."

She seems to be getting the hang of things. Because Rudy is all over us when we are training with any kind of food, I practice when Rudy is not with us, when he is in Ken's office or outside with him. And then when we are done, I go get Rudy and click a few times for him so he doesn't feel left out and can get a few treats.

Yesterday morning after practicing in my sewing room with Emme, I was returning the clicker to its spot by the refrigerator while Ken and Rudy remained upstairs in our bedroom. Emme came down to the kitchen with me and seemed to want to play again, so gave her the hand signal for down. Emme went down and I clicked. Suddenly I could hear Rudy thundering down the stairs. He had heard the clicker and was coming to cash in on the rewards. I was holding a piece of lamb and rice kibble out for Emme and she sniffed it and looked up at me like "What's this? Where is the chicken hot dog?" They are both learning from this training game.

White Tornado

Years ago, there was a commercial for some cleaning product that was called the "White Tornado." This is often an apt description for Emme. She is often a burst of energy. When we wake up in the morning, Emme waits with me (semi-patiently) while I wash my face and brush my teeth. Then I open the bedroom door and she flies downstairs like a White Tornado to find Ken and Rudy. Often when she returns from outside after doing her business, she dashes around the house to celebrate her success. Sometimes she runs for the sheer joy of running. We call it the "blitz" as she dashes around the house from room to room, over Rudy, under furniture, on top of the couch, around our legs, and over toys. Emme is our "White Tornado."

More Lessons

Last night Emme had her first lesson from her new dog trainer. I was looking for a class to take Emme to for basic obedience classes. We have previously completed a puppy class and now I think Emme is ready for the next step. On the advice of my next door neighbor, who is into dog rescue and who is very knowledgeable about dogs, I contacted a local woman who does one-on-one training in the home. She came last night for the first time and I was very pleased with the one hour lesson. She brought with her some boiled chicken for treats and I was amazed at how small the pieces of chicken were that she used for rewards. She took a small cube of chicken and tore it into about a dozen pieces, each about 1/8 inch square.

She also brought clickers. I have read about clickers but never used one with Emme. The clicker simply replaces the word "Yes" or "Good" when the puppy does something right and is followed immediately with a food reward. She worked with Emme to get over her shyness with strangers and on the postures for "Sit" and "Down." Emme already knows sit, but she hasn't yet figured out down. She did very well last night with the clicker and the chicken.

The trainer suggested using a soda can with a few pennies in it when Emme barks at people walking by the house. When Emme barks, shake the can. Usually that startles the puppy and they stop barking and you say "Quiet" and immediate reward them for being quiet. I haven't tried that yet but will fill a 7-up can today. She also recommended some techniques for stopping Emme from jumping on people and for walking on the leash. I was pleased with the trainer last night and we have another session scheduled for May 3.

We've Been Lucky

We've been really lucky. Neither of our dogs has been a destructive chewer. I hope I am not shooting myself in the foot by writing this. I hope this doesn't cause a reversal of dog behaviors tomorrow as punishment for this blog entry. When I was volunteering at People to People this week, the woman I was working with told me about her son's dog who is a big chewer and who once ate a sock and later threw it up. On the television show, Dog Whisperer, we have seen stories of dogs who ate door frames and couches. We read about a dog that knocked over a refrigerator and chewed on it. We have never had to deal with anything like that.

We got Rudy when he was three years old and well past his puppy chewing. We did puppy proof the house, however, and moved out of reach anything that a dog might find interesting to chew on. Rudy came to live with us and has never chewed on anything inappropriate except tissues, new or used. Any tissue Rudy see is his and he chews and swallows it. But he has never chewed on a furniture leg, a shoe, an article of clothing, a book, kitchen appliances, the garbage, nothing. He has never chewed a quilt, a stuffed bear, jewelry, knitting, the toilet paper, or a pocketbook. We have been lucky.

When we were anticipating Emme's arrival, we again were aware that we could be dealing with a great deal of chewing. This time, we were getting a puppy that would soon be teething. So again we checked over the house and put tempting things out of reach. Right now at nine months old, Emme should be through teething and so far she has been great. Although she drives us crazy pulling the fur off fluffies and chewing the eyes off her bears, she has done very little other inappropriate chewing. She tried chewing on the handle of one of the Lazy Boy chairs, but we bought some Bitter Apple and sprayed it on the handle. She left it alone. She did chew through a speaker cord wire in the dining room and sometimes tries to chew on the electrical cord to the light in the book case. A command of "Leave it" and a spray of Bitter Apple is all that it has taken to make her leave these things alone. She loves laundry, but it is mostly for smelling and lying on top of. She hasn't been perfect; but she has been really, really good. No chewed up clothing, slippers, computers, magazines, kitchen cabinets, or pillows. No chewed up photographs, DVD's, library books, or briefcases. She, like Rudy, has not chewed on items she shouldn't. Emme and Rudy have marrow bones and chewie toys that they chew vigorously, but they have left our house and possessions alone. We have been very lucky.

I Don't Want No Stinkin' Baby Food

Emmy has expressed a strong dislike for puppy food and a preference for adult food. On the recommendation of our breeder, we have been feeding Emme a puppy food, Hunchen Flocken, made by the Solid Gold company. Its claim to fame is it is composed of all natural ingredients, with no artificial dyes or other chemicals. We have been very pleased with the recommendation. Emme is healthy and strong and obviously thriving on this food.

We continue to struggle with Rudy's allergies and although we feed him Purina One Lamb and Rice, we began to wonder if there was a better food on the market. We researched dog food on the web http://www.dogfoodanalysis.com/dog_food_reviews/ and came to the conclusion that the adult food made by Solid Gold, Hund Flocken, might be better for Rudy. Although we had a HUGE bag of the Purina left, we purchased a bag of Solid Gold adult food and began to mix it with Rudy's food. He loved it, although he loves anything edible.

We also started putting a few pieces of the kibble on top of Emme's food. It was love at first bite. Emme loves the adult food. It was like why eat farina when you can have lasagna? When she leaves food in her dish, she leaves only puppy food, never the adult kibble. We have continued to mix the two foods and now Emme has put her foot, or is it paw, down. She doesn't want any stinkin' puppy food. Although we have a third of a bag of puppy food left, we may just make the final switch to adult food. Emme seldom eats the puppy food in her dish. She picks out the adult food and leaves the rest. Ken says, under his breath, that she is a stubborn woman who is going to do things her own way, just like her owner. I say she is a strong woman who knows her own mind.

Buddy System

Emme has this housebreaking system down. Whenever she needs to go outside, she whines at the kitchen door. She is consistent and reliable with no accidents for a long, long time. But recently she has developed a new twist to the system: whenever Rudy needs to go outside, she needs to go outside with him. Not before him. Not after him. With him. It doesn't matter if she has just gone out 20 minutes before, she needs to go out with him. So I put the big red retractable lead on Rudy and the little blue retractable lead on Emme and we all three go outside. I manage to get down the porch stairs without tripping over either of them and they each head for just the right spot of grass. They each do their business and we go back inside. They both go into the kitchen and stand by the treat jar with an expectant look. If I am not quick getting there, they just sit nicely and point their noses up to the jar. I pull out a few pieces of lamb and rice kibble and give to each of them and they are both happy. Until the next time Rudy has to go outside...

The Death of the Hedgehog

The hedgehog used to be one of Emme's favorite toys. It was lightweight and had an usual squeak, almost a squawk. Emme loved to play with it and was often carrying it around the house. The problem is that Emme is a hard player on stuffed toys. She is very different from Rudy. Rudy will carry the toy around, squeak it, love it up, lay on top of it, but he is never destructive. Emme on the other hand chews, pulls the hair off, bites out the eyes, unpacks the stuffing, tears the fur and essentially slowly destroys fluffies. If we notice the hard play with a toy, we will tell her to leave it, which works for a while. We give her a bone or other chew toy to play with. Later she is back again slowly dismantling the stuffed toy. Last weekend she killed the hedgehog while we were distracted eating dinner. Many times I repair a stuffed toy by sewing shut an empty eye socket or mending a torn seam. The hedgehog was beyond repair with bits of fur and stuffing all over the floor and was sent to the fluffie graveyard in the sky. I hope Emme grows out of this.

Happy Easter

Happy Easter from Emme, Rudy, Ken and Mary Lou.

Don't Tread on Me

Emme is very smart and seems to easily recognize the size difference between her and Rudy. Emme weighs about 10 pounds and Rudy is 80 pounds. She knows that if she isn't careful, she can be in harm's way. I don't think Rudy would ever do anything to intentionally hurt Emme, but he could run over her in his enthusiasm and hurt her.

When it is time for bed, Rudy is so excited he can hardly stand it. After we have taken both Emme and Rudy outside for one last hurry up, Rudy begins dashing around the downstairs in a circle from the kitchen to the front hall to the living room to the dining room and back to the kitchen. If we take too long, he will do another run through. Anything in his way is in danger of being flattened. Emme is smart enough to step aside and just let Rudy run. Then as we go upstairs, Ken takes down the baby gate to the second floor and Rudy dashes up the stairs. Emme waits at the bottom of the stairs until Rudy gets all the way up. Then she goes up as far as the landing and waits again until Ken is all the way up the stairs and Rudy is in the bedroom. Only when Rudy is in a nice stationary sit position, waiting for his bedtime biscuit treat, does she go into the bedroom. While Rudy is sitting, Emme runs into her crate to wait for her biscuit.

I don't think Rudy would ever intentionally hurt Emme. She steals his toys while he is chewing on them, crawls all over him, sits on his head, and eats out of his food dish while he is trying to eat a meal. He never hurts her at these times. I think, however, in his big clumsy, enthusiastic running, he could step on her and hurt her Emme she is smart enough to figure this out and stay out of his way. Smart puppy.

A Quilt is for Napping

Emme has never met a quilt that she doesn't want to sit on. If we get out a quilt to cover ourselves, we have to quickly unfold it and wrap it around ourselves. If it hits the floor first, a puppy jumps on top of it. Emme is no dummy. She knows that a quilt is for napping.

Sit, Stay

Ken is usually the one who fills the dog's dishes before meals. He is teaching Emme and Rudy to Sit and Stay in the laundry room when he is filling the bowls out in the garage. Rudy is pretty good at Sit and Stay, but Emme is not too reliable. She will sit, but then usually quickly gets up to walk around to see what is happening. Yesterday afternoon for the first time, she sat with Rudy and stayed until the dishes were filled. Hooray!

Still on Guard

We have new neighbors next door and the first thing they noticed about our house is the presence of a little white dog in our living room window. Emme loves to hop up on the back of the couch and see what is happening in the neighborhood. She seems to think that one of her jobs is guard dog. She really doesn't have a concept of "her yard" because she barks at anything that she can see: anyone who moves on the sidewalk, in the street, in a neighbor's yard or on the golf course is a target. Our new neighbors say that every time they drive into their new home, they look for Emme in our window and she is usually there. Emme takes her job seriously and doesn't miss much.

Outside

With our warm sunny days, Emme loves to go outside with me. She and I walk around the garden every day to see what is growing. Every day we find something new. I want to see what daffodils are blooming, which perennials are coming up and which hostas have broken ground. Emme loves to smell around the garden. It may be that she is smelling a whole winter's worth of squirrel comings and goings and is not nearly as interested in the plants and flowers. To each her own.

Garden Girl

This weekend, Emme spent time "helping" me garden at the lake house. At Wooster, I can put Emme and Rudy on the screen porch and then go into the garden and work. They can see me and I can monitor them when I work outside in the back yard.

It is different at the lake house. If I leave the dogs in the house, the dogs cannot see me when I am outside in the garden and I can't see them and what they are doing. We have a metal tie out stake that I use for Rudy and he is fine as long as he can see me and can find some shade to lie down in. I bought a long cotton training leash, maybe 25 feet long, for Emme when I am in the garden. This weekend, I hooked Emme onto the leash and took her outside with me. I worked in the garden and she sniffed, played in dry leaves, chased bugs, carried sticks, and got extremely dirty. Except for getting wrapped up in the hydrangea bush and getting tangled around the legs of the stone bench, she did pretty well. She played in the garden when I was gathering up winter debris. She walked with me to the compost pile. She laid down in the garden and rested or played for almost an hour. When we were done, except for getting pretty dirty, she was none the worse for wear.