Budde the Puppy is 13 Weeks Old

Proof, He Sits!

Three months and one week.

This makes Budde our new live in buddy for six weeks now and times been flying past. Budde is officially, if he wasn't already, part of the family. My dad is in love with him. It was a slower start then some people with puppies, because my dad missed his beloved late dog Poncho. Budde had some big paws to fill. My dad is seeing now that he is smart and very trainable. I think he's finally realizing on his own, since he wouldn't listen to me, that a dog is how you raise them. Sure sometimes there are other factors, I can train Blind Louie all I want but I cannot train him to see. I can however, train Louie how to be a very high functioning blind dog, as I have and then we really don't even notice anymore that he is different from the rest of us.







Everyday it's a little easier to pet Budde with out getting your hand chewed on. I ask him to sit for petting. If he gets up before I start to touch him we start over. As soon as his mouth touches my hand I yelp and move away. We start over again. Someday he'll get a really good massage without biting and having to stop and he'll realize what he's been missing all along. He's getting there.

Budde is getting big. He's eating more and having less in door accidents. The moments of quiet cuddle time with Louie are getting more frequent. Budde knows very well that he's not allowed to eat out of the dishes of the big dogs while they are eating. He happily bounds over but puts on the breaks a foot or so behind them and sits. He watches them eat. He waits. When they are done devouring their meal he scours their bowls for them, making sure they are nice and clean for their next meal. What a good boy he is doing the dishes.

Budde truly is a bundle of energy, but also a bundle of joy. So much love and devotion in a small package. He is clearly still learning. He's still learning where we draw the line, how to hold himself, how to ask for help and how to play nice with others. It takes constant attention and gentle correction for him to understand. We cannot give up, we cannot leave him home and head out. Budde needs us around all the time, just like a baby. If we don't teach him now, he will not know how to act. Then soon enough he will be a big dog with bad manners and that is much harder to accept or ignore than it is in a puppy. So all day everyday, someone is with him. We take turns. He comes over and plays with us in the evening when my husband and I are home from work. My dad as him all day when we are gone. Dad also looks after Snorp and Louie so Budde has the big dogs for baby sitter's too.

Budde is lucky, we are lucky that we are in a position to give him so much attention. We know that is what it takes to make a great dog, and then he will pay us back in love and obedience ten fold. We thought ahead, what would it be like to get a puppy? We planned. We decided we had time, money, resources enough to take care of one and we had more than enough love. Then we adopted. I hope everyone who is thinking about getting a puppy takes this first part seriously. There are plenty of older, calmer, partially trained dogs that are up for adoption. They need loving homes too. So if the full time job of puppy rearing isn't for you, consider a more mature mate and adopt and adult dog. There is no shame in that at all, knowing your limits. We all know you can fall in love just the same.

Budde is taking his cues from the big dogs. When I ask Louie to sit, Budde looks over to Louie, watches him and copies him. He stays seated looking at Louie to wait for what's next. Louie doesn't know he's being watched, he doesn't know he's setting a good example. He can't see! He's just a darn good dog. Budde has some great teachers.

Snorp is the more patient and tolerant teacher. He will let Budde wrestle with him where Louie will not. Snorp doesn't mind letting Budde think he's winning for a while before he decides to quickly pin him to the ground. Good boy Snorp.

The three amigos! Snorp, Budde and Blind Louie

Writer's Block?

Louie's favorite sleeping chair.

Writer's Block.
I thought writer's block would be a small, cube shaped desk ornament that held your pens and pencils or something. I didn't understand how someone could not write. You just put your hands on the keyboard, thoughts pop into your head and you move your fingers accordingly. Then it happened to me.

I've been writing the Life with Blind Louie blog for about six months now. When I first started, I thought I would never, could never, run out of stories to tell. Louie and I have been together for six and a half years and counting. I met him for the first time when he was only a few weeks old, He hadn't even opened those eyes that would end up giving him so much trouble in the future. The playing field was still totally level with him and his litter-mates.

Sorry, is my story boring you?

We've been through a lot. I've learned a ton and I have so much to share. I've told a lot of Louie stories a lot of times. To friends, to coworkers, to our vet, to my family and sometimes, I'm guilty, even to strangers. Am I that 'weird dog lady'? Maybe? We no longer have eye problems. I do not think of Louie's blindness as a problem. I think of it the same as: I have two legs, he has four. I can talk, he can only bark and whine, I have thumbs, he has paws, I can see, Louie cannot. So there are no active eye problems currently, after so long. We have no scheduled upcoming surgery, no eye drops and no constant pain or worry of pressure spikes. Louie has gotten so good at navigating his way around without sight that we deal with far fewer accidents and missteps. It's been smooth sailing for a while now.

Extra! Extra!
We took the CGC course and test and passed with flying colors. I started work on the Life with Blind Louie book, spending hours typing away feverishly late into the night after long days of work. I've got a good feeling about this book, even if no one ever sees it but me. The future looks bright for Lanni and Louie and our wonderful family. So why the sudden writers block? No more classes? A new puppy next door? Wintertime blues? Can't get the cat off the laptop? Maybe. Or maybe it's just because there's a bigger story brewing, something off in the horizon. Something that's not quite newsworthy yet. So I'm holding back, sure I could write about everyday Louie but there's something more. Something that involves all of us and I'm just not ready to tell the story yet.

Blind Louie and his best cat friend, Halford

So there will be Budde the Puppy weekly updates, as he is growing and changing faster than ever. There will be adorable pictures of Louie looking sleepy as I forcibly wake him up and make him go potty outside in the rain. There may be some fun springtime pig, cat, dog and chicken interaction coming up soon when the weather takes a turn for the better. I will try to share Louie with cats photos, because those are really some of my favorites. When I wake up in the middle of the night to ask Louie to scoot off my bed as I try to regain the feeling in my legs, it makes it just that much hader to kick him out when I find him spooning with our cat Halford.

Just wait for it, there's more soon to come!
But first! Budde the Puppy is 13 Weeks Old.
Thanks for reading! -Lanni

Budde the Puppy is 12 Weeks Old

A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words

Finally! It's been six weeks since we adopted Budde, and finally I have a relaxed photo of him and Louie to share. Unfortunately, I cannot take photographic credit. Louie and Snorp were over visiting my parents house when it occurred. After spending a few hours at my house wrestling around like crazy with three dogs, I finally gave up on trying to take any decent pictures and sent them over to stay with my folks at Budde's house for a while so I could have a break.

Ten minutes went by and I got this picture text message from my mom showing Louie and Budde snuggled on the dog bed together. I grabbed my camera and headed over. I was careful to step lightly on the porch as I approached and I tried to walk in quietly. It did not work, Louie sounded the alarm as soon as the door opened and all dogs and cats were at the door to greet me. Sigh, you cannot sneak up on a blind dog. One might think it would be easy, he can't even see you! Just walk right up to him, but no, he can hear you, smell you, feel you. Louie knows, and he will tell you about it and get all the other dogs up too. I call him an investigative reporter. He will listen and when he hears something, he's going to bark about it.

So that, my friends, is why you have two blurry pictures of Louie and Budde on the dog bed. They were taken by my mother's cell phone. Even through the blur, it is still quite adorable.

No doubt Budde is growing. Like a weed in fact. Everyday is an adventure in the world of Budde. Everyday he can jump a little higher, run a little faster and bark a little louder. Snorp and Budde are the best of friends. Snorp makes a great teacher. If I tell Snorp to sit, he sits and Budde sits. If I tell Snorp to come, he comes and Budde comes. Easy. He's taking a lot of the work out of it for me by showing Budde what to do when he hears those words. My dad now calls him Uncle Snorp.

Budde is cute. That is a fact. It is also incredibly hard to take a still photo of him so I have included one where I have my husband holding him down. Budde is tolerating being held on his back and having his paws touched. Very nice.

These last three pictures are of the Louie, Snorp and Budde wrestle fest that was going on at in my living room before the adorable sleeping moment. This wore them all out. Snorp is quick to get down to Budde's level and play. He'll roll over onto his back, exposing his belly and mouth at him. They're noisy and drooly and adorable. Louie, however, doesn't lay down. He's always a little on guard with his escape route planned. It's understandable as he can't see and is never exactly sure what the next move will be. That Budde is known to nip at Louie's face, and Louie is not a fan of that at all.








Louie does like to get in on the wrestling in his own way if he can. He'll sit close and listen. He especially likes it if there is a human friend there to referee. In these photos, my husband Paul is sitting on the ground with them. Louie by his side, Paul sits with his arm around Louie firmly on his chest. Louie has a clear point of reference and it's much more fun to play. He makes sounds and mouths the puppy and Snorp. Sometimes he even gets the toy, but it's mostly by accident. Sometimes, I think Snorp passes it to him on purpose, just to be nice.

We have a very nice pack of boys here: Snorp, Louie, Budde and Paul. :)

Budde the Puppy is Eleven Weeks Old

Budde the Puppy is Eleven Weeks Old

Not much has changed since last week it seems, but if you look closer, everything has changed. We still have a rambunctious puppy. He is still crazy and energetic and unruly. He still chews everything, chases the cats and sometimes pees on the floor. One difference is that peeing on the floor is way less often and he is starting to sit by the back door to ask to go outside.





More than anything... I can now tell that Budde is, in fact, a dog! There is all the signs and symptoms. He responds to a whistle, he comes when you call his name, he sits almost every time I ask him and he loves to play with other dogs. The biggest deal this week is that playing with other dogs finally includes Blind Louie! There was an epic game of tug-a-war going on yesterday on Budde's eleven week birthday and it came about unprovoked with no referee. Louie did great. He didn't growl or get scared and Budde even played nice too. Louie could have pulled with all his might and shook his head and sent the tiny Budde sailing! But he didn't he pulled gently and evenly and seemed to be having a ton of fun.

Snorp is by far the best play mate for Budde. He is so gentle. He lays on the ground and play fights with him. Lots of play growling and honking. If Louie gets in on it too, it sounds like a honking flock of geese flying overhead.

Optical Illusion

Photo on the left shows Budde, bigger than Snorp!

and on the right, Budde floating in midair!

Budde the Puppy is Ten Weeks Old

Follow the blind leader. Budde still just does. Louie leads Budde into things and Budde still follows, he's not old enough yet to know that he needs to lead Louie, not follow. He can follow Snorp, so does Louie, but soon enough it will be Snorp followed by Budde with Louie a few steps behind. As it should be.

Everything is a chew toy, everything is a game and everything is to chase. Look at the leaf hanging out of Budde's mouth. Louie 'watches' close behind, but at a safe distance from the busy puppy.

Always on the move. Budde is learning to walk and run much better. He is sticking the landings on most of his jumps now. The past three weeks I've seen a lot of crash and burns from Budde, but he is small and bounces back quickly.

Here is is jogging around a turn, go Budde!

Look at that face! I only had to make him run for a half hour to get him to sit still like that for five seconds so I could take his picture. Puppy photography is hard work!

Louie again, carefully staying a safe distance from the puppy.

But just look at this face!!!

It's all worth while. Another fun filled week with Budde the Puppy goes by quickly. This makes it three full weeks since my dad brought him home. It went my fast but it's hard to remember what is was like without him here.

TGIF

Tomorrow is the first Saturday without a dog training class in six weeks. Saturday, we have no plans. How will I fill my time? What will I do?

Well it is a Budde day, It's the Budde the puppy is ten weeks old day! So I'll need to take some pictures and video. The photos that I post are cute but it is really tough getting them. I never had a true understanding of how difficult photography could be until I tried to take a picture of a eight week old puppy. Whoa Nelly, they move a lot. And they are quick too! So... I think I'll break out my old camera and see if I can get some better action shots this week. Fun times!

I also hope it is dry enough to take some video of Louie playing. I want to try to show you Louie playing fetch with a tennis ball

So here is a photo from last weekend of Budde on the move.

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Here is a video from a few weeks ago of Louie's cool pretzel trick.

 

We hope everyone is having a happy Friday!