Under the weather

Brian and I think Tailor was a little sick yesterday. On Friday he got shots from the vet and yesterday he was sleeping a lot and being very calm. However, today he's back to his hyper self.

I really liked him yesterday.

Puppy Kindergarten 2

I was so embarrassed. He peed on the floor in class. I didn't think I'd be embarrassed since we're surrounded by misbehaving dogs, but I was. One of the other lab owners was sweet so he leaned over and said, "Don't worry. My lab had an accident last week." And not even 5 minutes after Tailor peed, the dog to our left made a mistake.

Today we learned to lay down and heel:
Lay down - Once in the sit position, I slowly lowered a treat to the floor right in front of his nose. He kept standing up to lower his head and I would calmly return him to sit and try again. The trainer commented that with some dogs you want to lower and push the treat towards their body while other dogs respond better if you lower the treat and pull away a little. Neither worked with Tailor. I kept trying then finally he got it, got the treat and tons of praise from me! Boy was I excited. From that point on he knew how to get the treat and would lay down like a pro. He even started flopping to the ground instead of lowering himself b/c he knew he'd get the treat faster.

Heel - I trust their teaching style since they've been doing it for so many years, but I'm not sure about this one. Basically I just keep a treat in front of him just to the left of my knee. If he's on the wrong side, I coax him around with the treat until we're in position then I walk forward with the treat still in hand while saying, "Tailor Heel." He spends his time licking the treat and walking until I hand it to him. I always started with about 4 treats in hand so I could take a few steps then give him a treat and immediately have the next one ready so we wouldn't have to stop. I don't know if he's hearing me. I think he's just grabbing for the treat. However, I'll try this and hope that he learns.

Misbehaving

He's only a puppy once and someday we'll look back and laugh. For those two reasons I laugh a lot now. Tailor tries to be a good puppy, but of course he's still learning. I won't pretend to be the perfect puppy parent, so I'll admit that while most of the time I practice positive reinforcement, sometimes he get the stern, "Tailor No!" This is what we're working on:

I quickly learned to follow the path of least resistance. For example, if it's time to go for a walk and he's uber hyper and not behaving on the leash at all, I don't try to calm him down or start barking commands at him. Instead I take him off the leash and let him run around or fetch a stick in the backyard. Once he calms down a little, I put the leash on him and we go for a high spirited nice walk. Usually his misbehaving is due to his high level of puppy energy.

I also had problems with him peeing frequently (about every 10 minutes) after mealtime. So now we eat, go outside to pee then go for a walk. If I can't take him on a walk immediately, I let him pee then put him in the crate so doesn't pee freely. Since he's now 12 weeks he can hold it, so now it's just a matter of teaching him to save it for the great outdoors. The crate is definitely helping with that.

He also whines when he thinks I'm not home. I hope I'm doing the right thing here: sometimes he's in the crate when I need to run errands and sometimes I'm just in another room of the house. I typically start by giving him a frozen toy* to keep him busy while I leave. Sometimes he thinks I'm not in the house so he starts howling. At that point I can just yell, "Tailor No!" from the room that I'm in. It surprises him and he immediately quiets. His howling has become more and more infrequent and I think it's just b/c he doesn't know if I'm home or not.


*Note: The frozen toy has peanut butter inside. Every night I put a little peanut butter inside two toys (such as a puppy Kong) and place them in the freezer so they're ready for the next day. Freezing makes it take longer to get the peanut butter out, and is also supposed to feel better for teething.

Puppy Kindergarten

Today was Tailor's first day of class!
He napped in the car on the way over so he had more than enough energy when meeting the dogs for the first time. It even included barking at one dog (b/c he wanted to play) which I couldn't get him to stop doing. Lessons today included the following:

• Automatic check-in - Relationship building, occasional check-in and focus exercise. Basically he gets a treat whenever he looks me in the eye. This was just a warmup since it's leftover from last week's homework.
  
• Market word - This was review from last week as well. As soon as the dog does the command you want them to, you say your marker word (in our case it's, "good"). Then you give him the treat. Since dog's minds move so fast, there's too much time b/w doing the command and giving them the treat. The marker word signifies that they did the right thing and a reward is coming. The marker word is the equivalent to clicking in clicker training.
  
• Name recognition - Walked around with him on leash. Occasionally called his name and when he looked, he got a treat. I thought he'd struggle with this since I'm convinced he thinks his name is, "Tailor No" but he did really well.
  
• Sit - Hold a treat in front of him then move it back behind his head. Let him follow it with his eyes and he'll naturally sit down. Tailor and I have already been practicing this, so he was very good at this exercise.
• Nipping - We learned that if our dog nips at us we're supposed to yell, "ouch!" and turn away for a few seconds. Dogs are sensitive to hurting others, so this should cause them to stop. We were instructed not to push them off since they may view that as play.
  
• Staying down - Use the same command (such as "off" or "down") if he jumps on you, on furniture or anything else he shouldn't jump on.
  
• Play time - Got to play with the other puppies. This was the only time they were allowed off the leash. He was so funny and checked out all the dogs, but soon it was the 3 labs sticking together. It's like they knew they were cousins. Anyway, towards the end of play we each practiced name recognition by calling their name in the middle of play.
  

Kailey and Tailor

Today Kailey established the ground rules with Tailor. Whenever he got close she started her low growl and if he tried to jump up to her level, she would hiss and swat at him. At least he now know that the cats can defend themselves.

Of course, his interest in the cats continue and the cats are continually intrigued by him. Let's hope that keeps the window open for them to become friends some day.

Sniffer

His sniffer started working overtime in the last few days. Now he sniffs the ground when we take walks, sniffs the frontyard, sniffs his room (after we go potty so I know he's not trying to make a mess), sniffs the cats (if he can get close enough) and everything else. Today I left the car window open a few inches and he discovered the joys of sniffing the outdoors.

Exhausted

I'm so tired. Brian was amazing this weekend and helped with Tailor whenever he could; even if that meant getting up a few times in the middle of the night to take him out. However, Sunday evening Brian flew out of town for work and now it's just me again. Last night Tailor decided he needed to go potty every TWO HOURS. The good news is that at least he's telling me!

This just in: Dad walks dog

No, it's not really news. I just think it's cute when Brian walks Tailor:

Adjusting to his new home

You'll be happy to know that he is adjusting well to his new home and is having no problem sleeping whenever, and however, he wants:

On his favorite bed

Backseat of the car with his toys


On a towel

Motorcycle Puppy

Having completed the motorcycle safety course, Daddy is now ready to take Tailor on a bike ride! Hmm, we'll have to think about how to do it.

New Name: Tailor Pilot Smith

Thank you to everyone who suggested names for "Puppy Red"! We saw funny, cute, unique, boring and even scary name recommendations.

His new name is:
Tailor Pilot Smith

He's healthy

I can love him now. The vet says he's a healthy lab boy and all the assistants fell in love with him. We talked about house training him over the next couple of weeks then he gave me some things to read and sent us home.

Fireplaces are critical

Before Puppy Red arrived, the cats loved laying by the fireplace. They would stretch out and stay there for as long as the fire was on. Now the fireplace room is the puppy room. I considered turning on the other fireplace to give the cats their own space. Instead I decided to take a gamble and use this fireplace as a tool to get everyone to coincide and eventually bond. I realize this could go horribly wrong...the cats could resent the dog for taking their favorite warm space and never forgive me for allowing it to happen. However, I'm thinking I know my four-legged children a little better than that.

Apparently I was right; Cat Leo hasn't given up on his warm time. The following takes place between 9:00 and 10:00 am:

• From the other side of the child fence, Leo waited for Puppy Red to fall asleep.
• Once asleep, Leo snuck over to the fire while watching Red. Soon he layed down and enjoyed the heat while Red napped.
• Leo was obviously tired and wanted to nap, but had to keep an eye on Red.
  
• When Red woke up, he got up and took a curious step towards Leo. Leo gave a low growl and slight hiss to let Red know not to come too close and Red obliged.
  
• Red continued to watch Leo out of curiosity, but Leo decided he could close his eyes for a bit. However, he was still very alert. Even something simple, like turning my camera on, caused Leo's ears to perk up.

• Red kept shifting a little. He was itching to say hello to Leo. Leo kept watching/listening but continued to hold his ground and relax.
• Finally Red couldn't stand it anymore. He stood up with tail wagging and gave a little, "woof!" Leo jumped up and ran away.

I'm so proud of both of them. Red's learning that to make friends with a cat, he can't run at them like he could with his siblings. Leo's learning that Red isn't so scary and they can possibly coexist. I'm sure Kitty Kailey will soon conduct a few tests of her own.

But I was only gone a minute!

This is why, A) you don't leave things within reach of a puppy, and B) you don't leave a puppy alone.

Puppy Red and I had breakfast, took a walk then came back and played in his room for a bit. After all of that, he typically takes a long nap. I took advantage of that time by hopping in the shower. When I came downstairs to check on him, I had to laugh.

You see, last night I moved a table and "temporarily" put the paper towels and a couple other things near the floor. Completely forgot about those things this morning.

He didn't even pretend to look sorry while I picked all of it up. Even my boyfriend knows when to act sorry.

Walking

We took three walks today and saw great improvements. When we stepped out for the first walk he didn't want to budge. By the 3rd walk of the day he was trotting along side me.

• So he could get used to his leash, I put it on the floor early in the morning so he had a chance to familiarize himself with it.
• Some women on another site reminded me that I should add a note about puppy safety:
  
• I'm only walking Puppy Red around a short block (about 6 houses). We don't want to push it too much since he's so young and his bones, joints, etc. are just forming.
• We need to be careful about walking in certain areas until he has had his shots. When talking to a vet in my neighborhood the other day he noted that it is okay to walk my puppy outdoors in our neighborhood.
• If we approach another dog we need to remember that a puppy cannot defend himself against a full grown dog. Ask the owner if their dog is good with puppies then use your own good judgment to determine if the two dogs should actually meet. You also don't want your puppy around dogs who aren't up to date on their shots.
  
• Once outside, whenever he didn't want to move, I tried different things to get his legs rolling voluntarily. Note that tugging on the leash when the dog refuses to move doesn't help. It's better to find something that makes him want to walk.
• For some dogs it's a treat.
  
• For Puppy Red it was me taking a couple quick steps in place...my energetic movement seemed to spark his movement.
• Once he started walking, he wanted to switch sides and would often bump into my legs/feet.
• During the 1st two walks I didn't worry about him heeling. I just wanted him to get used to the collar and leash, the neighborhood and walking with me.
  
• By the 3rd walk it felt like he was starting to understand our route and the purpose a little. Because of that, it felt like he was ready to start practicing heeling. I kept the leash on one side and held it loosely straight above his head and about a foot to the side of me. If I felt him leaning towards me to cross my path, I would hold the leash steady. He would feel that it didn't slacken for him to change paths and would continue in his correct path straight forward. At no point did I jerk the leash or yell at him, but most of the walks included plenty of praise when doing the right thing.
  
• The pace also increased on each walk. The 1st walk included several stops since he wasn't sure if he enjoyed taking the walk. The 3rd walk was intentionally more brisk so he focused on the walk and heeling more than anything else.

And now for a cute puppy pic:

Play time

Well, he's kept me busy, but not nearly as busy as I thought I would be. He loves all of his toys so far. This has really helped to occupy his waking hours and distract him when he's chewing on something he shouldn't.

I realize the video isn't exactly amazing. At this point I'm just testing the ability to load video onto the blog.



Puppy is playing with:
Squeaky Alphabet Blocks - $12

Crap!

Or should I say, "Pee!" Puppy Red just woke up from his nap. I ran to grab his leash to take him outside but didn't get back in time. He not only started peeing, but he did it on the blanket that has his family's smell on it, so now I have to wash it. Totally my fault for leaving the leash in another part of the house.

Cats in the dog room

The cats decided to do a little more investigative work this morning. Besides staring at Puppy Red from the stool, they thought they could walk around his room a little. Puppy Red thought this meant play time, so he chased after them in a puppy playful way (like he would do with his siblings). They ran out of the room hissing the whole way!

I've since taught them that the couch in the puppy room is safe territory since the puppy isn't allowed on the couch. Now they spend all their time perched on the stool or on the couch and he spends much of his time sleeping.

Pictured: Forest and Bone Dog Bed - $130

Bedtime!

Our 1st bedtime was important since it establishes our nightly rituals:

• I brought Puppy Red's new crate upstairs for him to sleep in.
  
• It was facing my side of the bed so he can see that I'm near.
• I also included 2 of his toys (one was his favorite froggy) to occupy and comfort him.
  
• I talked to Puppy Red and pet the cats while getting ready for bed.
• Typically the cats sleep at the foot of the bed with me. Tonight they didn't, but I expected it since there was something new in the bedroom. Whenever I woke up, I saw a cat quietly creeping towards the crate and inspecting it. They didn't disturb Puppy Red and just went to explore out of curiosity.
• Puppy Red woke up and cried a few times. This was to be expected since he just lost his family and was in a completely new home. I kept the lights off but started talking about random things (for example, the fun future he's going to have) in a calm voice and he would typically calm down and go to sleep.
• To simulate this in the daytime when leaving home, you can turn on a radio or TV so he can still hear voices.
• I took him out to go potty at midnight, 3am and 6am. It was hard getting up at these times, but he's young and doesn't have full bladder control yet, so it's important to take him outside.
• Whenever he went potty I gave him a lot of praise. However, I waited until he had just FINISHED going. If you give him praise while going, it may excite him to the point of not completing the job. Then he may finish going potty a few minutes later in the house.
  
• We will not always go potty so often. This is only for now while he is so young.
  

1st Cat Interaction

The cats weren't exactly excited to see that we have a new family member. However, I think they handled it pretty well. This is what we've done to help with the cat/dog process:

Before Puppy Red's arrival:

• About a week ago, we puppy proofed one room in the house and planned to give him access to only this room, so the cats still own the rest of the house. Once he arrives, this will keep the cats from feeling as though he's taking over their turf.
• The puppy-proofed room was also setup with his new crate, new bed, food and water dishes, all his new toys, and the childproof door (about waist tall) that locks puppy in that room. This gave the cats a week to get used to all the new stuff and practice jumping over the door in case they ever need to escape from the puppy room.
• To help train the cats to jump over the door, I placed a tall stool next to the door on the outside of the room. This helped them practice jumping in and out of the room. It also gives them a high spot to watch the dog once he arrives.

Puppy Red's 1st day home:

• About a mile from home I let Puppy Red out to go potty. That way I could put him back in the crate and there would be no concerns about bringing him into the house in the crate and keeping him in there for a bit.
  
• Once home I carried his crate into the puppy proofed room and left him there for a bit (he wasn't ready to come out of his crate yet anyway). This allowed the cats to walk around the crate and get a good sniff. They stayed low, all fur was poofed out and they started 3 feet away from the crate.
• Note that I placed the crate facing away from the cat's vantage point. This kept Puppy Red from seeing the cats and therefore he didn't have to worry about them yet (he already had enough new stuff to be concerned about).
• During this time I didn't talk too much so the cats weren't too distracted from exploring. However, I talked a little to try and comfort Puppy Red.
  
• After about 20 minutes I encouraged the cats onto the stool then opened the crate. He still wasn't ready to come out of the crate (NEVER pull your dog out of the crate at this point...they need to come out when they're ready) so he stayed inside a little longer. After a few minutes my girl cat, Kailey, was standing quietly on top of the crate sniffing it. My boy cat, Leo, was still on the stool observing. Puppy Red didn't even know the cats were there.
  
• Once Puppy Red came out, I talked to him in an excited voice and thanked him for coming out. Once he started exploring the room, I got on the other side of the fence to pet the cats who were on the stool. I didn't force attention on the cats; I put my hand out and they signaled to me that I can give them attention. This deliberate attention time was done to keep them from feeling jealous of Puppy Red. After all, we don't want the cats thinking that they're being replaced!
• After a little attention, I also gave them a treat to help make this a positive experience. The treat was welcomed.
• Monica, my breeder, gave me a blankie with Puppy Red's family's scent on it so I put that in his new dog crate with the crate door wide open. He was unsure when first coming out of the old car crate, but once he smelled the blankie in the new crate, he instantly perked up. As a matter of fact, he started herding all of his new toys into his new crate and spent most of his time playing in there.
• We only had about an hour before bedtime, so I spent the rest of the time playing with and talking to Puppy Red for a few minutes then walking over and petting the cats (who remained on the stool) for a few. Everyone seemed pretty content with this arrangement.

Bringing Puppy Red Home

This evening, I brought puppy Red (we don't have a name for him yet) home from the breeder, Monica Pritchett in NH. Monica's kids were pretty good about it. One got a little upset for just a minute, but overall they were pretty cute about the whole thing and even helped me carry my puppy goods to the car.

When we drove away, puppy Red cried a little since he was very unsure of what was happening. I pulled over, put the crate in the passenger seat (it was previously in the backseat facing towards me) and talked to him for a bit. The discussion calmed him, so he decided it was time for a nap (he had also burned a lot of energy before I got to Monica's house, so he was ready for the nap).

He really took to his stuffed frog. During our discussion I squeaked it a few times and he perked up. Soon he learned that it was his to chew on and it quickly became his security toy.

I'm picking up our puppy tomorrow!