Sunday, March 24, 2013

We Made Sausage, and Louie 'Helped'

We made sausage and Budde the Puppy is 17 Weeks Old.
We, however, did not make sausage out of Budde the puppy. Phew, good thing because we like having him around. Today we made sausage with the lovely pigs that gave their lives to be food for many families. They lived happy, healthy, simple lives. I love  making sausage with my husband Paul, he is a pro for sure. After losing a small part for our little cast iron sausage stuffer, we borrowed the big stuffer from Paul's work instead. Quite a amazing peice of machinery. A hand crank device who's technology has stayed about the same since the early 1900's. If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

As always, Louie was getting in the way while we were in the kitchen. I tell him to get out and sit and he does. He somehow slowly sneaks back in after a while, we are working away and don't even notice until we are tripping over him. He sure loves the smell of raw meat, what dog doesn't right? He has no idea of spatial boundaries like some dogs. While Snorp lays on the floor in the dining area, carefully watching us to see if we drop anything that we need him to clean up for us, Louie stands inches away for the sausage stuffer. He knows not to grab anything, but he still will be as close as he can get just listening.

We made breakfast sausage. Just pork, spices and lamb casing. No filler or weird preservatives you can't pronounce. It feels good to make things for your family from scratch. Yesterday I roasted and peeled eggplant and made some killer babaganoush. Louie wasn't nearly as interested in the roasted eggplant. I guess raw pork is more apitizing for a blind dog, who would have thought?

When my dad came over with Budde, things got a little rowdy for a minute. Budde smelled those same delicious smells that Louie was already savoring, but had no social filter, manners or self control. He did not watch and wait across the room like Snorp, nor did he sit close but patiently nearby. He wanted to climb into the bin with the sausage. This was stopped before it happened and then we got to practice good manners. Oh, Budde. You are a puppy afterall.


Little Budde sat close by watching the sausage fall out of the stuffer into the bin, smelling the smells. He showed tremendous self control. It must be hard for the little guy to sit so close and not take a bite. My new job became puppy wrangler and I just kept the dogs away from the food and took a few cute pictures. I let the dogs sit close just for long enough to snap a few shots and then I asked them to move out into the dining room to sit a safer distance away from all the action.



Now we have a freezer full of breakfast links. Next time we'll make bratwurst and maybe we'll put up the baby gate to keep our furry little helpers out of the kitchen. Louie is cute, but it's hard not to trip over a 100lb dog who's trying to follow your every move but can't see a thing. He doesn't exactly know how to get out of the way.




Sunday, March 17, 2013

Budde the Puppy is 4 Months Old

Budde, smashing my legs.
Budde is already 4 months old! I say it every week but, sheesh, time is flying and he is growing fast. Saturday we went to the vet for some shots. My dad stayed home with Louie and my mom and I took Budde and Shotgun the cat in for their shots. My mom drove and Shotgun got the VIC (very important cat) Crate. Shotgun rode shotgun. Me and Budde got the backseat all to ourselves.

Budde and I have only been in a car together once. It was the day we brought him home. I drove and my dad held him. He was tiny and nervous and slept most of the drive. Budde is not my dog, he's my neighbor and my dad's dog. That means he's never taken a ride in my car. I've never walked him on a leash, and we've never been to a park together. This was our first outing together.

Budde seemed to like riding in the car. He was completely unaware that he was crushing my legs while he decided to sit on my lap. He climbed around until he was comfortable. He squirmed and changed positions. He tried to climb out the window. I decided he is still learning his car riding etiquette. I tried to encourage good behavior on the ride into town. This involved lots of correction. I didn't mind. Budde is so cute.
VIC? or Cat Trap?

Shotgun on the other hand, was not a happy camper. She did not enjoy the VIC Crate. I told her it was only for very important cats, but she did not listen. She meowed and howled from the crate on the floor by the front seat. I don't think it helped things that she was also stuck in a car with 'that puppy'. She is not a Budde fan, that is for sure.

Budde got a little whiny on the ride to the vets. It's not a short drive, about 20 or 25 minutes in the car can be an eternity for a puppy. Between the Shotgun kitty and Budde there was quite the serenade. No need for the radio to be on. When we got there, Budde was more than happy to hop out of the car. He enjoyed all the new smells. My mom carried the crate with Shotgun inside to get checked in as Budde checked out the grass out front. It was a too person job, that crate was heavy and Budde isn't a flawless leash walker yet, so I was glad I could be there to help out.

Budde did pretty good on the leash. He seemed happy to follow along. That was the case until I opened the door and walked inside to the clinic's waiting area. There were dogs and people and cats OH MY! He struggled and pulled back. I walked back and circled around him and walked forward again. Everytime I did this we made a little progress until we got to the scale. After I got him in the right spot I asked him to sit, and he did. About 3 people in the office said "Awww, what a good boy.". How sweet it is to see such a young guy behaving so well. Good dog Budde.

Relaxed, dozing off on the way home from the vet.
Shotgun had gained almost 4 pounds since my dad rescued her, that is a ton of weight in cat pounds. She was so sick and skinny when we brought her home, she has really come a long way.

Budde is already 38 pounds, no wonder my legs were sore from him standing on me in the car. He was such a good boy when he got his shots, she didn't even notice, he was too busy being happy and trying to get treats. The ride home was much more peaceful. Budde was tired from all the excitment and probably from the vaccines too. He snuggled up next to me and fell right to sleep. I don't get Budde quiet time very often. He doesn't sleep at our house and anytime I come over it's an exciting event. It was nice to have some puppy snuggle time and just get to pet him with out all the wiggling.

Cute Louie in the Sunshine
When we got home, Louie was outside waiting for us with Snorp. Louie was enjoying the sunshine we were having and I snapped this cute picture of him





Sunday, March 10, 2013

Budde the Puppy is 15 Weeks Old

This puppy is becoming a little dog! Growing and growing. Budde is a good dog, we are happy to have him in the family. We're having success in training this little guy, he knows how to sit and to speak. New this week is the combo pack. If you ask him to sit, he will bark once and sit down. If you ask him to speak he will bark once and sit down. I think he's not sure which is which and the words do sound the same. It's like he's just covering all his bases to make sure he's pleasing us. However, it would be nice of him to sit without yelling at us every time. It looks like we have some work to do.




If you read our last post, Louie and I have taken the 50 sits a day challenge. We will practice 50 sits everyday for seven days. When we are practicing in the same space a Budde, there is a lot of barking going on. Every time I say sit, Louie sits and Budde speaks and sometimes sits. Maybe with all this sitting practice Budde will get the idea from Louie's example of the silent sits.

The best this this week is the ongoing Snorp and Budde wrestling tournament. Snorp always lets Budde think he's winning. Snorp will roll over onto his back and pretend to struggle as Budde tires himself out. Then Snorp will quickly flip back over and snatch away whatever toy is in the mix and run from Budde.

Louie is getting along better with Budde everyday, although Louie is still not his biggest fan. Louie is no longer very jumpy around Budde and they sleep together nicely. All in all we're raising a very happy dog family, and everyone is getting along okay with the cats too.









Friday, March 8, 2013

Sit, Sit and Sit Again


A good example of a studious sit.
Louie is a dog. Blind or not. He sometimes has bad manners. Sometimes he's too pushy, too whiny. Sometimes he doesn't listen well. When I ask him to do something he decides not to listen for whatever reason. That is frustrating at times because we've worked together so much. We've trained together since he was a tiny unruly puppy. When I ask him to get out of the kitchen and he doesn't move immediately, I am annoyed. I expect more from him.

Let's think of something we do everyday. Something people ask us to do and we do without even thinking, like say, talking. Someone says hello to us and we respond "Hello.", "Hi", "How are you?". What if we were removed from that entirely, for years. Like, stranded on a desert island for twenty years. If a random person suddenly appeared before you and said hello, I think you might just stand and stare, or maybe even panic and attack! Now, this is a very far off comparison, but what I am getting at is: if you don't use it, you lose it. Like our math teacher's always said.

If I don't practice with Louie EVERYDAY Louie will not understand me as well as he did the day before. If several days go by without working together, he will understand me even less. Instead of getting frustrated with your dogs lack of response to your command, practice with them, and make it fun while you're at it.

2 for 1 Special! Say sit once and have two dogs sit.
I must admit, I've fallen off the wagon. Louie and I aren't training together everyday. He has taken a backseat to something else that has come up in our lives. I still love him, we still snuggle on the bed together and I've never forgotten to feed him, he will not let me forget of course. But still I find myself thinking, how can I help Louie and I have a better relationship and live happier and healthier lives together?

I came across a post on the The Dog Guy's Facebook page. That page is run by Michael Nichols, the instructor that taught the Canine Good Citizen class Louie and I took at Tails-a-Wagging in Bellingham. The post suggest practicing 50 sits a day, everyday. While this might not be the most fun and exciting thing you've ever engaged in, it is incredibly helpful in keeping the dog and owner ready for whatever. Think of this as your primer. Your breakfast.

It also might sound like a lot of work. Fifty sits!? FIVE-ZERO?! Like 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6....FIFTY! So quit your whining and get to work, self! You'll spend more time thinking about how it will take too long then it would take you to do it. Especially if you split it up into 3 rounds of 16 or 17 sits instead. Just watch the video of Michael and Rudy showing off there speed sitting skills, and the video is sped up too so it takes even less time to watch it.

So I will take the 50 sit a day challenge. Louie and I (and hopefully Snorp and Budde) will try 50 sits a day for seven days. I will report back to you on observations. How can this simple and boring thing improve our daily lives? We shall see.

Watch Micheal's video below and check out his awesome rott, Rudy.
Find more about The Dog Guy on Facebook, or on www.dogguy.net





Tuesday, March 5, 2013

Budde the Puppy is 14 Weeks Old

We got a new computer! I haven't had a chance to write anything in over a week since our laptop bit it big time. I've thought of a million ideas and subjects and hilarious little quips to write about, and they have all just come and gone. Ha! I also had a really tough time getting any decent photos of Budde this weekend. He's one crazy mofo. Jumping, flailing about like a Tasmanian devil. Or at least like the Warner Brothers cartoon adaptation of the Tasmanian Devil. He runs and jumps and spits and bites and barks and snarls and and and... he just doesn't stop! Until he drops to the floor with a big sigh and falls asleep. Do not disturb the sleeping puppy or the process will begin again.

Louie is getting more tolerant of this mayhem everyday. He seems to understand the puppy's movements better all the time and Budde seems to understand he needs to be more gentle for Louie. So Snorp is taking the brunt of it. He gets all the fake fights and wrestle time. If Budde is bored I will sacrifice Snorp and 'throw him to the dogs' and shut the door, leaving Budde outside with Snorp to babysit so Louie and I can have a break. So mean.

Budde the Puppy, on the move!
The biggest, most noticeable change in Budde this week is, it seems that he has finally found his voice. He barks to ask to go outside, he barks when he wants back in, he barks at the cat, he barks when his dish is empty, he barks when he wants a toy he can't reach. All this barking can be really annoying. It's important for Budde to know how to speak, but he also needs to learn the proper etiquette. When is it good for him to bark and when is he being just plain rude?

This is why I like teaching the command 'speak'. If you teach them speak and the understand that word and what it means, then you can tell them not to speak or to stop speaking. Easy. Well, kind of. It still takes a lot of work, patients, practice.

Budde is also learning that he can listen to what is going on outside. He's trying his paw at investigative reporting. He hears me outside with the dogs and he starts barking at the back door. 'Look! Look! Dad Dad Dad!!! Something's out there, I think it's the big dogs! Look! Look!'

I can hear my dad inside telling Budde to 'Leave it' and 'No speak'. He'll quiet down in a second or two. But good for him, little Budde. He knows now that there is a world outside that exists, even when he is not there. A big step for a little guy.

Snorp winces after a loud bark from Budde. (see top left corner for Meatloaf the Kitty sneaking up on the boys)