Dog update
Jan. 10th, 2012 07:44 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
mousmeSergent is settling in beautifully.
We have been going out every day to the dog park, and have made lots of new friends. We've been working very hard on his obedience training, reinforcing "sit," "stay," "lie down," and "come." We've been paying particular attention to how he walks to heel, because he has a tendency to pull a little on the leash or to try to pull ahead of me, but so far he's been responding really well to gentle correction.
The dog park is by far his favourite place. We have taken to going there twice a day as much as possible, and at least once a day in the evenings when I don't have time to take him in the morning. There is nothing better than a good frolic in the snow and sniffing around, not necessarily in that order.
He has the weirdest habit of going to one part of the fence or another, sitting and staring off into the distance every so often. I have yet to figure out what it is that's attracting his attention.
I discovered yesterday that Sergent does play fetch, contrary to what I thought. The trick? The ball has to look like a tennis ball. A local guy brought his big old Newfoundland last night and had a kong toy shaped like a tennis ball which squeaked, and Sergent promptly lost his mind over it. He loves the look of tennis balls, and the fact that this toy squeaked was obviously the best. thing. ever.
So I went to the pet store today and got the same toy, along with what![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
fearsclave called a "tennis ball atlal," which I think is actually a pretty apt name for it.
I recently did something muscle-related to my back which doesn't respond well to running or even to ball-throwing (something about the torque motion when I throw), and I was getting really worried that poor Sergent wasn't getting enough exercise with me. If I take him to the park and there are other dogs there, it's great: he'll make friends immediately (he's kind of dominant and there are therefore squabbles with other dominant-type dogs, but those squabbles have been brief and quickly resolved) and loves nothing more than to run for as long as possible with his new "pack." Otherwise, if it's just the two of us, he'll trot around the park and sniff around a lot, but won't really run unless I run with him. So I was concerned that, being the high-energy dog that he is, he wasn't getting in enough exercise.
The "kong rocket" aka "tennis ball atlal" has changed all that. He adores it. Best toy ever. Not the rocket itself, but the tennis ball, and the rocket makes it super easy for me to throw it far enough that Sergent gets to run quite a distance in order to fetch the ball. We're still having trouble with getting him to bring it right back to me once he's got the ball. He loves making it squeak, and often enough he'll race right by me because he's built up so much momentum, and he'll circle wide and sometimes won't come right to me when I call him. We're working on that too, but it's tricky.
And tonight, as a reward for a very good walk and a good romp in the park with all his friends during which he was beautifully well-behaved, he got a chewy bone (aka a "bone of angst" if you'refearsclave's dog):
In other good news, the cats are doing much, much better with the interloper. Well, Pan-Pan and George are. I still haven't seen Smudge. I'm really hoping he hasn't died of a heart attack in the basement ceiling. :P
Otherwise, we started seeing progress over the weekend. George actually started sneaking upstairs from where all the cats had taken refuge in the basement, and came into the kitchen. Mind you, it wasn't all sunshine and roses.
This was the beginning of the détente, but it was short-lived.
Sergent's problem is that he's overly friendly and enthusiastic with the cats, and they want nothing to do with that, especially when he backs them into corners.
That being said, today we finally achieved a proper truce, with George eating out of his own bowl while the dog looked on from less than two feet away and didn't so much as twitch.
We have been going out every day to the dog park, and have made lots of new friends. We've been working very hard on his obedience training, reinforcing "sit," "stay," "lie down," and "come." We've been paying particular attention to how he walks to heel, because he has a tendency to pull a little on the leash or to try to pull ahead of me, but so far he's been responding really well to gentle correction.
The dog park is by far his favourite place. We have taken to going there twice a day as much as possible, and at least once a day in the evenings when I don't have time to take him in the morning. There is nothing better than a good frolic in the snow and sniffing around, not necessarily in that order.
He has the weirdest habit of going to one part of the fence or another, sitting and staring off into the distance every so often. I have yet to figure out what it is that's attracting his attention.
I discovered yesterday that Sergent does play fetch, contrary to what I thought. The trick? The ball has to look like a tennis ball. A local guy brought his big old Newfoundland last night and had a kong toy shaped like a tennis ball which squeaked, and Sergent promptly lost his mind over it. He loves the look of tennis balls, and the fact that this toy squeaked was obviously the best. thing. ever.
So I went to the pet store today and got the same toy, along with what
fearsclave called a "tennis ball atlal," which I think is actually a pretty apt name for it.I recently did something muscle-related to my back which doesn't respond well to running or even to ball-throwing (something about the torque motion when I throw), and I was getting really worried that poor Sergent wasn't getting enough exercise with me. If I take him to the park and there are other dogs there, it's great: he'll make friends immediately (he's kind of dominant and there are therefore squabbles with other dominant-type dogs, but those squabbles have been brief and quickly resolved) and loves nothing more than to run for as long as possible with his new "pack." Otherwise, if it's just the two of us, he'll trot around the park and sniff around a lot, but won't really run unless I run with him. So I was concerned that, being the high-energy dog that he is, he wasn't getting in enough exercise.
The "kong rocket" aka "tennis ball atlal" has changed all that. He adores it. Best toy ever. Not the rocket itself, but the tennis ball, and the rocket makes it super easy for me to throw it far enough that Sergent gets to run quite a distance in order to fetch the ball. We're still having trouble with getting him to bring it right back to me once he's got the ball. He loves making it squeak, and often enough he'll race right by me because he's built up so much momentum, and he'll circle wide and sometimes won't come right to me when I call him. We're working on that too, but it's tricky.
And tonight, as a reward for a very good walk and a good romp in the park with all his friends during which he was beautifully well-behaved, he got a chewy bone (aka a "bone of angst" if you're
fearsclave's dog):In other good news, the cats are doing much, much better with the interloper. Well, Pan-Pan and George are. I still haven't seen Smudge. I'm really hoping he hasn't died of a heart attack in the basement ceiling. :P
Otherwise, we started seeing progress over the weekend. George actually started sneaking upstairs from where all the cats had taken refuge in the basement, and came into the kitchen. Mind you, it wasn't all sunshine and roses.
This was the beginning of the détente, but it was short-lived.Sergent's problem is that he's overly friendly and enthusiastic with the cats, and they want nothing to do with that, especially when he backs them into corners.That being said, today we finally achieved a proper truce, with George eating out of his own bowl while the dog looked on from less than two feet away and didn't so much as twitch.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2012-01-11 01:51 am (UTC)He's really handsome. I'm so glad everyone seems to be settling into a rhythm and detente.
no subject
Date: 2012-01-11 02:09 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-01-11 03:06 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-01-11 03:11 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-01-11 04:16 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-01-11 01:40 pm (UTC)*dances*
I've been checking your livejournal several times daily to see if there were updates :)
Have you really not seen Smudge at all? Or is he/she just peeking out but barely around?
Love the pics with George. Reminds me of how my kitty looked down at my dogs.
Yay for dog parks.
This is all so exciting!
I'm very happy for all of you.
no subject
Date: 2012-01-11 05:31 pm (UTC)You know you can track the tags on LJ, right? So you don't have to check back compulsively. Just track the "sergent" tag and LJ will alert you when there's an update. :)
I really have not seen Smudge at all. I just hope he hasn't starved to death up there.
no subject
Date: 2012-01-11 07:32 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-01-11 07:33 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-01-11 05:24 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-01-11 05:35 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-01-11 09:39 pm (UTC)<3