O.K. – So I promise I won’t write every day…and I have no Catholic inclinations to confess all sins – BUT …wow – talk about ‘slap me upside the head’ with “would you listen to Sue about his behaviour and stop humanizing him!!”

Let me preface this with all is beautiful…we are in the honeymoon – but did I ever F/U big time yesterday:

Rockie is glued to me with this umbilicalling – to the point where (cause the house is so small) I trip over him. His has little separation issues I think…I’m definately his person. Anyway – Off I go to do two massages in the treatment room – and put him in his crate…where his is generally well behaved with only a little whine
here n’ there. I show him to my last client who will sometimes come over to take him out in the future and we go to the back yard for a little stretch n’ pee. All’s well. Then I have to rush off to a meeting and thinking “oh, poor Rockie has been in his crate so long and he’s sooo good…I’ll just leave him in the mud room where his crate
is…and crack the window an inch or two (it’s over a stairway so rather awkward to get to)…and what can go wrong. I’m sure you know.

I got back to my neighbour saying ….my “what a little escape artiste you have!”…I thought I’d poop myself on the spot!!! (Visions of $100/hr dog behaviourist searches dancing in my head….OMG WHERE CAN HE BE???) and Katie says – “oh, no…I figured you were with a clientsto I
just put the window back down and put him back in the house.” So – with his opposable thumbs (that’d be his nose) – he nudged up the window and leaped through the screen and then had a little visit with the neighbour
and promptly sat down on the front porch at the door to wait for me.

Funnier…my tax guy came to drop off the quote for the yearly damages…and Rockie just let him in n’ out….then the neighbour called out to him and he followed her right back into our house. So there he was. All happy. EGAD! Anyway – lesson has been profoundly driven home for someone who needs “repetition for the reluctant mind”. I get it….give him a rope and he’ll hang me! (Or drive the car into a post).

Anyway – from there on…with a little thought about behaviour guiding us at all times…he’s been a dream. Great walks. Beginning to listen far more to commands. Snoozing happily while I type away here. He’s
off to the crate while I work. I did do the bang pots/throw one yesterday…and sleep was dreamy last night.

We found a fenced double tennis court and took him out for ball throwing this a.m. It’s wonderful…

But I get it. Lessons come …. but slowly and I won’t give in to the heart…rather use the head. What is it….”exercise/discipline then love”. In that order for safety.

So off again. Maybe I can get through the next week without having sins to confess and just happy learning time.

Cheers
Have a good one
Elaine