Smelling of puppy breath
Last night it was my turn to take over the night shift with Coco, which means I had to sleep in the spare bedroom next to her crate and be available to take her outside when she needed to go to the bathroom. We know she is capable of going several hours without needing to go out, she did it the first night she was with us, slept nine straight hours and woke up refreshed and chipper and so incomprehensibly sweet that I gained five pounds just by looking at her face. But that was just a trick. A lie! An EVIL UNTRUTH. Because the second night she was here she woke up every single hour and cried until we took her out. And I had a hard time not calling her names and making crass jokes about her mother behind her back.
She's down to two times a night now, and we're trying to break her of one of those times, but she's not having it, and last night I only got two hours and 24 minutes of sleep. But that's okay because tonight it's Jon's turn with Miniature Satan, and I get to sleep in our king-sized bed alone after a brief affair with a large dose of Nyquil. I plan to kiss it with tongue.
Remarkably, I'm not feeling panicked about living with a puppy like I did when Chuck was this age, and that's due to a number of reasons. One, we're not living in an apartment where every thirty minutes I have to run down a long hall, down one flight of stairs, across 20 yards of concrete to the one patch of grass on the block. Here she has a huge yard to roam, and all I do is open the back door and point outside. Chuck reluctantly accompanies her and, following his lead, they both begin sniffing and circling the yard going, no, not there, not there either, maybe here? No, not here, wait, not yet, I think I'm getting closer, here? YES. HERE. THIS IS THE SPOT I WAS LOOKING FOR. Because that spot of yard is so very different from the THOUSANDS OF OTHER SPOTS IN THE YARD. DOGS ARE SO WEIRD.
It's also quite nice to have an extra set of hands around, and knowing that Jon can take over watching her when I'm needed elsewhere has made it so that I'm not at all anxious even though I haven't slept more than a total of 10 hours in the last week. And maybe it's because Chuck was such a frat boy when he was a puppy and Coco is more of a scientist, but it's just so much easier this time because her level of shitness is so much more manageable than his level of shitness. She doesn't bite us or hide under the bed where we cannot reach her, she doesn't steal toilet paper off the roll and leave it in saliva-soaked piles along a path from the bathroom to a mound of poop in the middle of the kitchen. Chuck was such a turd, and I remember one of those long nights that I stayed up with Leta when she was just a few months old thinking, yeah, this is hard, but at least she's not chewing on my underwear.
Also, she's just so adorable that having her around makes me feel like my veins have been injected with glitter. It's impossible to focus on the sleepless nights when you walk from one room to another and she's so excited to see you that her tiny docked tail starts wagging so hard that it makes her whole body tip over, like HI! IT'S YOU AGAIN! I HAVEN'T SEEN YOU IN AT LEAST TEN SECONDS!
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Heather talks about public tantrums (from kids) on today's Momversation.
- Bedtime, Leta lingering defiantly in the hallway. Jon: "If you want fart stories, you better get in bed RIGHT NOW."
- RIP Louis Mortimer Armstrong: http://bit.ly/1R4tv6
- Hugs and kisses to you, too! RT: @Monkey_Tree: @dooce he probably committed suicide because he was tired of LISTENING TO YOU WHINE.
308. jess said:
we have a new puppy, too, but we got her at 6 months old, so we didn't have to start from scratch. she's a shih tzu and boy does she ever live up to her name. she can totally hold her pee, but occasionally and randomly chooses not to.
she's learned how to unroll an entire roll of toilet paper and she has behavior that is completely different from our other dog, which is a boxer.
there's nothing like finding yesterday's panties underneath the coffee table when GUESTS COME OVER.
laundry baskets with lids have become essential in our home. and that little shiht can still get socks and panties out if she wants to, while unrolling the TP at the same time.
oh...and coco is absolutely adorable. what a face!
309. Almost Vegetarian said:
If you are interested in getting a puppy of your own, we just got a wee puppy - Sophie - so I just wrote a post about it: http://almostvegetarian.blogspot.com/2008/01/everything-you-need-to-know....
As far as crate training goes, Sophie goes in and out of there at will - she takes her favorite toys in there and all her treats (especially carrots - she loves carrots). So she loves it. And, yes, I say this even after she went through crate training and was locked in there for hours at a time (but no more than three hours at a time because her puppy bladder could not hold out longer).
Hope that helps.
Cheers!
310. Kate said:
ARE YOU GOING TO TEACH HER TO BALANCE THINGS ON HER HEAD?!?!?!
311. stephanie said:
i know the general consensus is already likely that tracy is in the minority here but i still feel compelled to say -
after i went through the "puppy experience" i knew my next dog would be an older rescue, so that is exactly what we did. he is partially blind, and 8 years old now, but he is truly awesome and loves just hanging out watching tv or going for a walk.
but when we first got him, he did have some marking issues. our place was already animal proof thanks to three kittens and a puppy, and he cannot jump on furniture anyway so that wasn't really an issue. but when i left he would pee everywhere and/or throw up after pacing around and getting himself worked up beyond belief. i instead tried putting him in my bedroom with a baby gate up, same thing. the bathroom, same thing, and scratch marks and nose prints all along the bottom of the gate with him trying to get out.
he is a small guy at about 20 pounds and our crates now that the dogs are trained are for 100+ pound dogs, they have plenty of room. i put big p in the crate during the day and also started feeding him in there and presto. no more marking, no more separation anxiety. if i come home early he doesn't even hear me come in, he is snoring away in his crate.
some HUMANS cannot tolerate crating their dogs and you know what? that's totally fine. not every method is for every person and if the human treats the crate as a "locked cage" or "jail" then the dog can sense that and will not like it. but there are plenty of us out there that know for a fact it works and for me in particular it has saved one of my dogs from serious mental anxiety while i am away, and now we both can rest easy while i'm at work.
so please do not make sweeping generalizations when you simply have not experienced the good things a crate can do for dogs.
312. Peppermint said:
Coco is so adorable, I love the phrase "having her around makes me feel like my veins have been injected with glitter". I'm not even a dog person (I KNOW!) but I vicariously enjoy Chuck and Coco every day through the site. You know ... where I don't have to let them outside, or feed them, or wipe their muddy paws. ;)
313. Greet said:
Oh my god, I saw the video and I CANNOT BELIEVE that her TAIL IS CUT OFF. It's a truly barbarian habit and I now hate you for it. It doesn't matter that you weren't the one holding the scissors. I thought you loved dogs as much as I do, but I was clearly wrong.
314. Hula said:
Aw, that's cute! I predict that Chuck will be a happier dog (whether or not he can express it...) because he has another canine in the family. We had one dog for 2 years and thought, Hey, One can't be THAT much harder. And now our 2 dogs make out all the time and are pretty much inseparable. So that makes me happy for Chuck.
315. Nicole said:
"I plan to kiss it with tongue"--Was that an Eddie Izzard reference? He's hysterical, but I do love my more frequent doses of Dooce.
316. lisa said:
she's going to be so gorgeous when she's grown up...
watching these pictures i'm even more jealous of you and jon being able to stay home to experience every moment with your daugther and two wonderful dogs. i just couldn't get me a puppy because of work.
317. murphy said:
Coco's markings look like she's wearing a tiny little black bolero jacket on her head, with gold buttons just where you'd expect them to be. So stylish!
318. Molly said:
Tracybeth,
So what method has worked best for you in training your own dogs?
319. Sandra said:
You'd think that it wouldn't be possible to pass on your Crazy to your pets, but when I see Chuck I have to wonder. Coco on the other hand, gets her sensibilities from Jon. (don't get me wrong...I LOVE Chuck. Coco I'm still warming up to...)
320. Erin said:
You got a mini!! I have one too- Cash is one and a half years old and the most amazing dog. They need a TON of exercise, so put your running shoes on girl :) Good luck with her- they are incredibly smart and willing to please as long as you give them the training and exercise they need. Cash has over twenty tricks in his bag and can learn anything I think up to teach him; its so much fun. Kisses to Coco- xxxx
321. Jodie Z said:
Coco is a cutie! But remembering about puppyhood, reminds me that I vowed to only adopt adult animals in the future. And my JRT is now 18 yrs old. He's lost all his house training so he sleeps in the bathroom on towel most nights. Keep up the great work with the blog. It's one of my 'rest every day' blogs.
322. Mary Jo said:
Oh she is so adorable!! I love hearing about her relationship or lack there of with Leta.
Oh the hate mail you will receive though for the mere mention of a docked tail. I hope it does not get too bad!!
323. mish said:
she is very cute, but would be cuter w/ her original tail. Brave for you to write that - could open a can of evil worms (which all my animals just went to the vet for yesterday.)
324. me-nikk said:
I see that I'm not the only one...
But... this line!!! This particular combination of words so eloquently place together... "that having her around makes me feel like my veins have been injected with glitter."
BRILLIANT!!!
I felt it there for just a second. I need to go and get me some more of that!!! That glitter in the veins stuff!
But after three times, I'm done with puppy training for now. She's adorable though and like a woman in heat grabbing at her womb, I feel that particular puppy urge.
(I’ve been banned from the pet store AND the Humane Society for now. My husband gave them a poster of me. Go figure.)
325. Catherine said:
There is nothing else in the world that can compare to falling in love with a puppy! Well, except falling in love with a dreamy man, having a precious little baby, kitten love.....
326. mish said:
i was too nice. tail docking should be illegal as well as declawing.
327. Jamie said:
I am so jealous! My husband and I have been talking about adopting a second dog for months and seeing the adorable Coco may be the final push we needed. Congrats on your new addition to the family.
328. Suzanne said:
We have a full-sized Aussie and I've been told that they are called "wiggle butts" because they shake their fannies like there's no tomorrow when they see you. Makes me feel better just to see it.
329. Eater's Regret said:
Greet I would hope you were being sarcastic with that comment. The whole docking tail thing is usually out of the new owner's control completely.
Our first dog a springer spaniel was a pedigree and we bought him from a breeder. As he was intended to be a show dog his tail was not docked.(No we did not 'show' him either - the only showing he did was a blatant disregard for my barbie doll's heads) Note: it was fifteen years ago and we would never buy a dog again - there are enough dogs out there needing to be rescued. When he died, we got another springer from an old couple who did not want him, his tail was slightly docked. We found our next dog - he was lost- coincidentally a springer too, tail was docked as well - shorter than the first. Our third (a springer too - they look like triplets)was gotten from a family who didn't want him - unfortunately his tail was docked very short - it's almost a nub. It's sad I suppose, but he wags it so ferociously that it doesn't matter to him at all that it isn't longer.
I really don't think it is fair to criticise Heather or anyone for this, if it has been done before they got the puppy. I would be upset if someone saw me with my three and made a comment like that. Yes the docking thing is wrong but this website is not the forum for those types of comments - go onto breeders websites and say those things.
330. Christy said:
To Tracybeth (post #305). It seems to me you have not done a lot of research on the subject. Millions of breeders and puppy experts crate train their dogs to give them a safe place to go to. While it may seem to you to be cruel, my puppy (as well as some other puppies I know) go into their crate when things in the home get hectic. They like a space that is all their own. If being "locked" in a place one cannot get out of is cruel, then I suppose you would disagree with putting children in cribs? Another "safe" place....Just a thought. Your line, "silently suffering" also cracked me up. My dog sleeps in his crate (as most dogs do). They curl up and get cozy. If that is "silently suffering" then may we all silently suffer like that. In fact I feel like I need to go silently suffer right now....Hahaha!!!!! I think Heather and Jon are doing a great job with ALL of their babies. Shame on you for judging!
331. llkelly said:
You said: "She doesn't bite us or hide under the bed where we cannot reach her, she doesn't steal toilet paper off the roll and leave it in saliva-soaked piles along a path from the bathroom to a mound of poop in the middle of the kitchen"
There is always tomorrow. The element of puppy surprise. :)
She is adorable...crate or no crate...tail or no tail. Looking forward to more pictures of your new baby.
332. Amber said:
hey there heather...regarding your "daily style" section, i work at a boutique in minneapolis called patina, and we sell a round version of the recycled magazine coasters:
http://www.patinastores.com/Products/Round_Recycled_Coaster_069047.cfm
a girl's gotta have options.
amber c.
333. tracybeth said:
Molly, What I have done that has worked wonders to potty train is to put bells on the door. The first time you take the puppy out to pee, just kick the bells so she associates it with going out for that reason. I’ve heard of others putting peanut butter on them too to help. Then she will paw at the bells when she needs to go out.
There are also about a zillion different varieties of puppy pads out there that work well at night especially. They go on the floor, are made of material similar to diapers, and they usually have an attractant in them that motivates a dog to pee there if they must pee in the house. It helps too to gradually move them closer and closer to the door.
Puppies need to go out often and it’s important to really let them do that. Accidents are going to happen and we have to expect them just like we do for our kids.
As for chewing, puppies aren’t hard to tire out, so spending plenty of time playing with them, not really allowing them to get bored, and giving them lots of chew toys goes a long way. Puppy proofing the house, i.e. making sure the things you don’t want to be chewed (cords, clothing, etc.) are inaccessible by making sure they’re in laundry baskets, closets or otherwise behind closed doors, is important. For furniture and anything else that can’t be locked away out of reach, there are sprays like Bitter Apple and other brands that can be applied directly to those items to deter dogs of any age from chewing.
I don't mean to judge anyone by the way. I just feel strongly about this and felt I should share my thoughts because there are two sides to this issue. My point is that I and many others raise puppies without having to put them in crates. It amazes me that someone ever even came up with the idea of locking a puppy in a cage because they aren't housebroken or because they chew when there are other ways to handle it. It takes time and patience to train a puppy, but in my opinion, its the right thing to do.
334. Holly said:
You have SO MANY comments. You are so popular.
Here's my unoriginal one:
OMG, CUUTE. And I don't even like dogs. At all.
335. Anonymous said:
Tracybeth... do you also let your children roam about without supervision, rules and security? Because everybody knows that human beings are able to act logically and appropriately at all times and all ages. We are never a danger from our surroundings, behavior, or others. And to impose such rules, supervision and security is just cruel.
336. ColleenP said:
What a cute leetle snack treat she is. Tell Leta stop being a Miss Grumpy Pants and join in the puppy lovins....
337. Lauren said:
We have a mini Aussie as well - she is the best dog! We started potty training her with jingle bells tied to the door - ring the bells everytime you take her out and then use the cue word as she's peeing. It worked great - the jingle bells are long gone, but Sadie will still tap at the door if she wants to go out - much nicer than whining!
They are really really smart and obedient dogs - she's also trained to walk without a leash when you take her on walks and to stop at the corner of every street until you tell her it's ok to go on.
It seems like the training opportunities are endless with this breed!
338. tracybeth said:
I am not suggesting we allow our pups to run around without supervision, rules, and security. Quite the contrary, I think we need to pay MORE attention to them and work harder to help them learn rather than crating them.
I have watched people crate their pups and they cry and cry until they give up. We wouldn't let our babies do that in a crib and I don't think we should let our pups do that either.
339. Kristine said:
Good lord that dog is adorable. TOO adorable, she is up to something, I wouldn't trust her with your jewels or account numbers.
Did you guys get her from the breeder in Morgan? We had a mini-aussie from her a few years ago who was so dern cute it hurt my teeth, but he was very timid and started fear biting kids, it was no good. I know you will have better luck and you will look back on these puppy years and smile.
And crates? My dogs love them and actually go into them all the time on their own. If having a crate helps you train your dog into someone that fits happily in your house, you do what works for you. They are a useful tool just like a leash, a ball, a collar or any other "unnatural" tool we use.
340. dori said:
We have a female Aussie who looks so much like her. They are such awesome dogs. I empathize with you though...those first few weeks the nights are hellish. Good luck. She'll get through it and it won't stay that way for long. They're so smart. Anyway, love your posts about her (well, about anything) but those pics are just ADORABLE. I could stare at them forever. But I do have other things to do, ya know. So you have to stop. Just kidding. Don't you dare stop.
341. Dionne said:
What about the senior dog!! Call me crazy but I'm feeling for the feelings of Sir Chuck!
This doggie is no Chuck!!
342. Bipolarlawyercook said:
She's cute and all, but is that one o' they fancy gel mats that people have in kitchens so's their backs don't get all cranky, even when they wear clogs all day? And is that white lizard skin print? Ooooh. I want!
343. Maeven said:
Ok. This has to stop.
The cuteness factor, it is over the top.
Leta is so damn cute my ovaries are screaming at me to MAKE BABIES! NOW DAMMIT!
I could am barely resisting the urge to get a dog, what with the Daily Chuck pics...and now Coco! OMG! I only have so much willpower woman!
I am going to report you for using WMC..Weapons of Mass Cuteness!
344. Lisa said:
Dude, I want your puppy. Ship this way? :) Awesome pictures of Leta on your last newsletter.
345. Mel said:
TB-Then I've officially raised a freak of nature dog because like it or not he loves his crate. We don't even "put" him in it anymore he just goes in at bedtime because he's tired and that IS his bedroom, door and all. I love him equally as much as my niece and nephew (though in a different sort of way) and would NEVER do anything to hurt him. Crate training does not mean that you lock the dog up in a crate all the time. They get plenty of romp time (see pictures and video's posted here) and every time we crated my dog when he was a pup he usually just slept. To agree with you on one point, there are people who use crates negatively and to excess. That isn't what crate training is about.
I guess putting babies in crates OOPS I mean CRIBS is cruel and unusual punishment as well. They can't go anywhere and sometimes they cry because they don't want to sleep.....Honestly I laugh at even making that comparison because dogs AREN'T babies but if I were a dog I'd hope I got as much love and wonderful treatment as a baby, cribs crates and all. I'll be done flaming but I hope at least one person who misunderstood crate training realizes that it isn't bad when you do it right. Just as I think your opinion is hilarious I don't really think you'll ever agree with mine....even though I'm right ;)
346. Anonymous said:
@Mei: I couldn't have said it better myself! Kudos to you for stating your mind!
I have two dogs both of which were crate trained. Both LOVE their crates and find it their sanctuary. I have trained dogs both ways (with and without a crate) and I highly recommend the crate method.
Both my dogs are well adjusted and loving animals. So much that the older one is being considered to being trained to be a therapy dog. Both are obedient, happy and healthy animals. In fact, the second is still a puppy (6 months old this month) and is 99% potty trained. She is active, well adjusted and friendly. She slept through the night on her 2nd day after bringing her home. She actually will go in her crate if she feels she needs down time for herself. This to me does not sound like something a dog would do if they thought it to be cruel.
Instead of worrying about whether or not crates work or not, shouldn't we instead be worrying about all those abused and homeless animals? I would rather spend my efforts and energy saving those animals than worrying about "to crate or not to crate."
@tracybeth - let's starting putting things into perspective and look into the REAL issues that exist.
347. Mel said:
TB: Just to clear up one little detail.....when crate training you aren't FORCING them NOT to pee. You still have to get up multiple times in the night for the first little while and take them out all throughout the day. They are puppies they can't hold it all night long.
My crate trained dog also does the bell trick :) It's wonderful. I didn't realize we had moved onto a second page of comments and missed everything on the second page when I made my last comment.
348. mish said:
isn't it a bit meaner to cut off a tail, than to spend time in a crate, that would otherwise be spent destroying the house? People are pissed over a proven method of dog training, but no one gives a shit that someone cut the dogs tail off? That dog was born with a perfectly cute tail and as cute as it is now, the tail should not have been chopped. IMO BTW - I am in no way implying that Jon or Heather were responsible for said chopping. We can thank the AKC for prevalent animal mutilation, so that perfectly born dogs can be altered to meet AKC "standards". I once adopted a dog with a docked tail and the little nub was cute, but every so often I would get really sad that someone cut off his tail, his very expressive tail. I love you Papo.
349. Marisa said:
Coco is absolutely adorable!!!
350. Cathryn NY said:
Cute puppy! I'm a "cat person" myself... whenever I describe the perfect dog for me, I end up describing all cat characteristics. Oh well.
351. Tater's Mom said:
The name "Coco" is remarkably cuter on her than on Courtney Cox & David Arquette's little girl. I'd take your Coco over theirs any day!
352. Amina Melody Pryor said:
I have an eight week old chocolate lab who came to live with us on Dec 27th. She's the most adorable, sweetest thing ever - or she was until last night when she turned into the beast from hell. She barked and whined the ENTIRE night. THANK YOU for your delightful post on smelling of puppy breath - the laughter restored about 80% of my sanity!
353. debra said:
I love puppy breath! It's hard to remember that our t little toy poodle who loves to snack on deer scat once had sweet breath like that!
354. tracybeth said:
Thanks Mel. I do realize that more responsible people don't leave the pup in the crate without letting them out often (though I must say that I believe most leave them in all night without getting up and even all day while at work to keep them from chewing), but I guess I just don't understand why one would use the crate when there are more humane ways? Of course the pup feels safe in the crate after being closed in for long periods of time over weeks or months, but that's not an excuse for doing it. Our goal shouldn't be giving them a safe place. If given a choice to train a pup without a crate, why not use it? I realize pups aren't people, but it seems horribly unfair to lock them in a tiny space where they can't move freely for any length of time.
355. Wacky Mommy said:
Is she signed on with an agency yet? Cuz she's a little photogenic.
356. Karah said:
I succumbed to the lure of the second pup, too. I adore her - I adore them both! They are complete shits, and little sherlocks about dirty underwear. I have no regrets even when it's time for the poop sweep of the backyard, and I emerge, shaken, with two bags full of crap. TWO! All from one day! \
WFT?!?
And I still occasionally can recall vague, warm, gentle times when I was able to grow grass in the backyard...yeah, that second dog pretty much takes care of that.
Sigh.
SHIT! It's worth every fucking minute.
357. Janet said:
Okay. When I get a dog, I now know what kind of dog I want.
358. amber said:
Oh my god, Coco is SO DAMN CUTE. I see what you mean about the glitter.
359. AnnB said:
No, no, no I will not be sucked into this puppy magic... even though glitter in my veins sounds really nice. But no, really, no.