It’s been one week
since you left her here. And she’s doing pretty fabulous.
Dutchess is slowly learning what she can and cannot do. Some things she’s lightening quick to catch on, some things you just look at her and go WHAAAA? and then she does something stupid that cancels out the yaydog! moment you had when she caught on to something. She’s walking on the leash like a champ, she is learning to sit and wait when someone has to do something before we can move on. Like when I open the door to go out to the yard, she has to wait before going out, no more door rushing. When we leave the yard, she sits and waits as I open the gate all the way, and then doesn’t move till I tell her “come”. As well, she sits before we cross the street so that I have her attention while waiting for traffic to clear. When someone walks by us, she has to sit and wait, no more jumping around when people show up. Here in the house she is learning that jumping up at any time is unacceptable, be it when someone comes over, or at the counter or at the couch. Last night however, I don’t know WHAT her issue was, but boy oh boy was she full of it. We’ve been switching her food over to something a bit nicer than Purina. All natural stuffs, no by products. The changes we hope to see with her on this food are healthier coat, better appetite, less stinky ass, and less poop that looks like a frozen yogurt cone. So far the poop and less stinky ass is the improvement, though not great(there you go Jay and JC.. a poop post on this blog).
We’re supposed to be going down to Upper Canada tomorrow again for some camping with Kev’s dad and his GF. Should be fun, however we have no dog crate for the monster yet for in the car. I was looking at a couple of different things. The soul owning dynamic is shifting. It will no longer be Home Depot and Rona that torture us. They’re leasing our souls out to PetSmart. Walking down the isles of that store really makes me wish Dutch played with toys. She’s happiest chewing a stick.. we have no sticks.
July 1st, 2005 at 7:49 pm
Get down with the poopness!
Make sure when you transition over to new food that you do it gradually; 1/4 new to 3/4 old for a week, 1/2 new to 1/2 old for another week, etc. Switch straight across will only increase the Wendy’s Frosty-like poo-poo. Dutchess will thank you in the long run.
If you are open to a few other helpful pet suggestions…
I’m a huge fan of Science Diet doggie food, based on the recommendations of two different vets and our breeder. Sure it is more expensive, but if you register at PetCo for the PetcoPals club, they mail you coupons in addition to having regular discounts every month or so on Science Diet products.
Greenies… I can’t say enough about these things. They are green (duh) and shaped like toothbrushes. When a dog chews on them they polish and clean the teeth, leave a fresh breath, *AND* in my humble opinion, they help add a little bit of solid material at the exit point.
Lastly… (and most grossly)… anal glands. If Miss Dutchess has a stink ass, it could quite possibly that she needs her glands squeezed. I only wish I was making this up, but sadly, I am not. I can’t verify this, but I believe only short-haired dogs of all sizes have these glands that need a release. Next time you get her in the tub, squeeze around her exit with your thumbs in the same manner you would squeeze for a zit. I recommend not being in the line of fire for obvious reasons. Jake and Daisy get baths twice a month and they get the squeeze once a month. In reality, they could get the squeeze every 2-3 months, but 4-6 weeks is more of a precautionary measure.
July 1st, 2005 at 10:52 pm
her ass was recently squeezed so that’s taken care of.. her stankass is more gas than anything else.
and she’s being slowly transitioned into her new food. she really digs the stuff. the nutro is #1 here in canada, and is what my fahjah in law feeds his mangy crew.
i don’t know if she’s had greenies yet, but I plan on picking up some for her tomorrow.