Bed Hunter

The great hunting dogs of yore have brought down mammoths and tigers. Emily attacks her new beddy:



What you don't see here: 10 minutes later, she christened it with pee. She's a classified hunter/pee-er.

[ETA] 5 hours after she'd peed in her new beddy, Emily got it back, freshly washed, then dried fluffy on the radiator. She enjoyed it for 5 minutes, after which she prompty peed in it again.

Mommy: OI!

Hair

[Maltese Halo, Redux]

Now it's more than just eyeliner. More like Panda eyes. tee hee.

Woke up a little late today (9:10) to find that Emily did a massive poo in her pen. And rubbed it all over her butt. So, had to trim it off.

It's been a while since I trimmed her hairy bum. It's tempting to pick up an electric trimmer over at zooplus. Even though I know I go scissor-happy and trim too much. Lately, her face fur's been growing back from the last bad haircut I gave her, and Emily's been startling me with da SuperCute Fuzz Face!~

[I slept on my side, drat]

Poo on a Plastic Fork

Emily's new specialty is pooing at the edge of the garden so her poo drops under the fence and rolls into our neighbor's patio (see here). H. has to pick it out with a plastic fork.

Puppy:4 - Human:0

So, M. brought home 4 more bricks and covered up the slot.

[Din't Do Nothing]

Yesterday's walk was mad+crazy+hangdog, but last night, despite a head cold, H. finished Cesar Milan's Cesar's Way. We were already fans of The Dog Whisperer, and the "calm assertive energy" bit about pack mentality. So, today's walk was no-nonsense and in-charge.

Mommy's greatest puppy ambition is to be a wandering homeless person with Emily. Yeah, according to Cesar Milan, they have the best behaved & happiest dogs.
--
Have the Korean film version of Antique Bakery to watch. The manga was so-so (grows on you though), but the movie-trailer from last November was cute. It might be worth it for 김재욱 (from Coffee Prince), 'cause 주지훈 just looks like a rat to me.
--
Last word of the day is brought to you by Eva Jinek: Boobies!

Open Letter to the White Wookie

[Eats Forests, Really Tall]

Dear Emily,

Mommy and Daddy are really thrilled you're not constipated any more. After a day of nothing in nothing out, the poo machine is back!

Mommy doesn't mind (so much) picking up your poo and washing your butt 4 times a day (and letting you out to pee another 6 times).

She doesn't mind scooping out the crusty upper layer of old stinky dirt in our little garden because you've peed there so often it's an open latrine.

But remember our little garden?
It's kind of little, and you've just about killed Mo the chrysanthemum, but it's still big enough to poo in for a little wookie like you.

So why'd you have to pick that impossible spot between the metal fence and the wood border to drop your poos in? Mommy's hand can't reach in there.
It was embarrassing the first time when Mommy went next door and asked our neighbor if Mommy could pick up your poo from the other side of the fence.

So the second time, Mommy decided poking it out with a plastic fork was better than the shame.

Next time, could you be a honey, and poo where Mommy can get to it? Thx.

secret liver-smeared kissies,

H&M

[My poos are frankincense and myrrh]

Dirty Things

I caught Emily mid-poo today, and rushed her outside. She was pooing in the air as I clipped the leash on, and dropped a piece before we got out the door. Thankfully, she did the rest of the gooey sticky yuckier part outside. Small favors.

["This way I don't get into trouble."]

The saddest accident so far was when, in her excitement during play, she peed twice in her smelly big white blanket and, having already cut many holes out of it, we had to throw it away. Goodbye, Snow Garden.

H&M got 30 square bricks and laid them over 4 meters of disgusting garden gutter, so she won't go eating snails and worms and rotten leaves, and other yucky things when she goes out to potty. We're suckers for the puppy, we know.

[Before]

dried snails, slugs, worms, caterpillars, bird droppings, old rot, new rot, construction messes, three-year old cigarette butts, centipedes, spiders, gutter mud, stench.

[After]

Nine days of Puppy chaos/24 hours, and sneaking in a few pages a day, I finished, with great regret that it was over, Nancy Mitford's Love in a Cold Climate, in my wee 짬시간. It was utterly lovely, enjoyable fun.

Pee and Tears

Emily and H. had quite a stressful morning, all because H. wanted to catch 2-3 hours of sleep. Over 3 hours, 4 "accidents" in the house, before 10 am.

H. smacked herself on the head with a rolled-up newspaper for letting Emily down. H. really needs 4 arms to get things done, though.

So, we're on stricter Crate Training Schedule. Emily does not like it much, as it means being woken up every 2 hours to go out and do her business. And the first time we locked her up, the yowling. Cheese helped her through hard times.

Routine, routine, routine![Dirty but Pretty]

ps. No smell sensors for the Internet! Emily looks so fluffy and cute in the photos. What it doesn't tell you: she's so stinky! That's what you get for walking through the garden gutters 6 times a day. Pee Yew! Bath tonight!

Image, Reality, Truth

M. came up with the brilliant plan of providing Emily with burrow space. Romping fosters excitement and mania; burrowing induces calm. Our theory.

Hee hee hee, and it's a lot of safe fun. During the day, Emily plays best alone when hanging out in her snow garden. [Can you find the puppy?]

Now, can you see her?And, yes, that's Captain Keropi, a prezzie from Aunt Freda, and now Emily's favorite toy. We take it away from her when she's about to go Cujo.

Emily is pretty good for an 8 week+1day old puppy. Downtime in her crate is good for her.

[ Or maybe there's no good reason
Why i'm locked up inside
Just cause they wanna hide me
The moon goes bright

The darker they make my night ]

Of course, she romped right in there on her own. And the door's swinging wide open.

[What it looks like from the outside]

All natural melodrama: brought to you by Emily Puppy

A Perfect Day

Perfect Manners Puppy comes with a price.

Going out to Potty: 11 times. (and three #2s too!)
Must watch Emily's every twitch, and predict when she needs to go.
- including three times in the rain. She always picks the most disgusting part of the yard. Once I peeled an earthworm off her leg. She always steps back on her puddle of #1, and stepped on #2 once too. Must wipe her bum, clean her paws, and praise her with cuddling and warming, while picking up her messes, and cleaning up the yard with hot water and broom.

Meals: 4, soaked in warm water, and hand fed one kibble at a time, while practicing "come!" and "sit."

Averting Cujo Hours: 4 times, around 1 hour each of careful interaction and ignoring the bratty behavior, cutting short barking and tantrums before they escalate, and taking away the wrong toys and giving her calming chew toys.

Then, there's the other 7 post-nap playing that must not become Cujo Hours.

Include 30 minute cuddle-walk, greeting strangers for socialization, and you have Emily's 24 hours.

Result: One Perfect Day.
Puppy Parents: Exhausted.

[ETA] That was Sunday. Monday morning, Emily has forgotten everything. Oi.

Post Trauma

At 5 am Emily had done Potty#1 in front of her crate, before I woke up at 5:20, but that was OK. She's new to the play area, and we only introduced the night tray yesterday. I cleaned up and put the tray over her #1 spot.

We got up again at 7, then at 8, and went out for Potty, which she did. Good girl!

Instead of letting her clamber on my lap, I had her sit at my toes, and she we practiced "Sit" while I hand fed her kibble.

Perfect Manners Puppy.

When Mommy's not being confusing, that is. I've learned my lesson.

Day 3 Trauma Part 2

She slept in her crate, but woke up while we were having dinner, and cried her heart out, cranky. We let her cry because Ian Dunbar and Brian Kilcommons and Cesar Milan say not to comfort her in the middle of bad behavior. That just reinforces it.

We took her out when she calmed down.

Then came evening potty, during which she decided she hated the leash A LOT. Instead of Potty, she pulled and balked and fought it. Then ran straight under the fence to the neighbors. Good thing the leash was on. She CRIED. In the YARD. Like we were MURDERING HER.

So, I had to ignore her after that. M. hand fed her dinner. She was good then.

Bad Mommy taught her some silly rules the first 2 days. Now we have to undo them before it's too late.

Day 3 Trauma Part 1

As with all things, it began with Potty. She made a mess in front of her crate before I woke up, but that wasn't her fault. It was outside her crate, and her playgym blankie touched both #1&#2. Had to cut those parts out.

Later in the day, she did a beautiful Potty outside, both. So I was taken off guard when, after I'd stood up to clean something, she ran to jump on my red cushion. Then prompty peed on it. Trauma! Said my first "No! Bad Puppy!" in the act. *heartbreak*

After that she clambered for my lap again, and I realized I'd started a bad habit. So, more heartbreak, as I kept telling her "No," and keeping her from climbing. Lap time, only when invited is the New House Rule.

Spoiled Puppy

Emily's favorite thing is to find a warm person nook and snuggle.
When I let her on the floor, she scrambles back for my lap, feet, anything. She likes to hang out under my butt.
She slept all day yesterday, and woke up at midnight. Upon which, she proceeded to PLAY, all night long. Keeping me awake, playing and snuggling the puppy. Yes, H. spoiled the puppy on her first day. This morning, she had one pee and one poo accident. It's all my fault!
So, we're back to Dr. Ian Dunbar's hardcore crate training:
She woke up in the crate, and cried for about 20 minutes, but we fed her 1/4 her lunch in there, and she cried a bit more, and fell asleep. Potty time scheduled in 30min.

Maybe it would be easier to train her if she were ugly.