My Fault

I set Emme up for failure this morning. The morning began slowly and quietly. Emme and I slept in until almost 7 AM. After we fed the dogs, Ken and I had a leisurely breakfast: many cups of coffee, two newspapers, and lots of conversation. After breakfast we decided to go outside, Ken to mow, me to pull the never-ending weeds. As I always do, I opened the door from the kitchen to the porch so the dogs could see us as we worked.

Both Emme and Rudy came out onto the porch to watch us. We really got busy working hard outside and I completely lost track of the time. Suddenly I heard a bark of alarm from the porch. I looked at my watch and I realized that it had been a long time since I had taken the puppy outside to do her business and she must have needed to go. By the time I put down my tools and got back to the porch, Emme had made a puddle right in front of the door. This is the first time in months that has happened.

This incident reinforces that training a puppy is really training the owner. I set her up for failure by not taking her outside in a timely manner. When she needs to go outside she whines by the door and I am sure that I could not have heard it from the garden. Oh, well, we will do better next time.