Tuesday, October 5, 2010

Gasthof and Me

I wasn't sure if this day would come....but last night we let Gasthof sleep on the floor of our bedroom. To many of you, especially those with pets, this may not seem like a big deal. But for me...I have never had pets before and this is all new to me. I was skeptical about letting him sleep in the bedroom. I was worried he would constantly try to get up on the bed, that he would make noise, that he would get into things/chew on furniture when I was sleeping.  But after reading the dog books and giving it more thought, I decided we could give it a try.
 
We bought him a small bed at Fleet Farm the other day, and my mom brought him a big comforter/blanket she got at Goodwill (see photo of Gasthof napping). This weekend we gave him a chance, but he would not stop jumping on the bed, so we brought him back to his kennel in the kitchen. Yesterday morning he got to nap with me on the bed for an hour when Nick went to work earlier than me. So we were working up toward it....and then he [accidentally] had most of the house to himself yesterday afternoon after he escaped from his kennel. Nick forgot to mention in the previous post that Gasthof gave himself a number of cuts/scrapes on his underside and legs from the kennel door. A good thing that came out of yesterday's incident was that we realized he is not very destructive (remember the movie "Marley & Me"? He's energetic like Marley but less destructive!)  Most of the mess was because he likes food and paper/kleenex (which we already knew!)...but he didn't ruin furniture, break anything, or have any accidents, nor did he get into any closets or cupboards or scratch any doors. I am glad that this happened yesterday rather than a week ago...because over the last few weeks we have done our best to consistently correct misbehavior immediately and redirect him--like giving him a bone he can chew on or his own food he can eat, or show him a good behavior--like getting him to sit/lay down and then praising him for that. So I was pleasantly surprised when he didn't chew on any furniture, the couch, or tear up the pillows. I know the day may come, as Nick says, when Gasthof will ruin something special of mine...but I'm trying to do my best to prevent that from happening.

***If interested, Nick posted a video yesterday of what he came home to yesterday when Gasthof got loose...***And I forgot to mention this, but when I got home from work yesterday, I saw Nick on the couch eating dinner...I asked him "Where's Gasthof?" Nick said "In the kennel. I needed some time to eat in peace". I could tell that something was wrong. Honestly, I thought he lost his job or something! (he looked abnormally tired/defeated). I was glad that it was "just" Gasthof getting loose and making a mess...it could have been a lot worse!
 
Although it probably goes without saying, having a dog changes my routine, my schedule, my priorities...but it has also helped me read more! I have really enjoyed reading about dogs, especially about bringing a new dog into a home and about dog behavior. One of my favorite books I have been reading and I highly recommend, especially to those dog owners who rescued their dog, is called Adoptable Dog: teaching your adopted pet to obey, trust, and love you by John Ross and Barbara McKinney. The authors give a lot of good examples and address many issues that dogs can face. It helped me understand what to do--and what not to do--and why. For example, I didn't know that you shouldn't pet a dog when he's scared because it reinforces the fear response.  The book also helped me realize even more how lucky we are--that Gasthof hasn't demonstrated many of the problem behaviors described in the book (such as food aggression). He pulls on the leash too much and likes to jump up on people...but those behaviors can be fixed with proper training. He's only been to two obedience classes and has only been with us for just over two weeks, and I can already tell that he is a smart, sweet dog who seems to love everyone he meets.

Reading Adoptable Dog on a sunny Sunday morning


When he wants to go outside, he walks over to the sliding door and waits patiently. Even when he's hungry and it's meal time, he still wants to follow me if I leave the room. He wants to be where the action is, and he wants to be loved. Nick and I both love him already--and it seems like he's been with us for longer than two weeks!

The hardest thing right now is that because of his leg injury last week, the vet says we can't let him run, we have to keep him on the leash in the backyard, and we can only take him for a 5 to 10 minute controlled walk every day. The week prior we would run with him in the backyard and play fetch, we would take him on two walks every day.......for a puppy, this is rough! (And it's hard on us too!) Gasthof isn't limping and seems to want to run around...it's almost impossible to keep him from running up the stairs at home, or running when playing with a toy. We have a follow up appointment with the vet on Thursday...I really hope he can run soon because it breaks my heart to take him out to the backyard and not let him run around and play!

Done with lunch and back to work! Hope everyone is enjoying this beautiful fall weather. I would love it if we had more months like this...highs in the 60s, lows in the 40s. It is jeans and a t-shirt or sweatshirt weather, just the right temperature for walking or running, and no need for air conditioning. PERFECT! :)

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