The Summer That Did Not Relent....Or Forgive - Part 1 - Bailey Rae

I know I’ve sort of disappeared of the blogsphere in recent months; it’s not for lack of content or commitment to documenting. More like lack of energy, motivation, drive…take your pick. To get up to speed, I’m going to start at the beginning, see where that takes us and extrapolate accordingly.

Bailey Rae (aka: Bailey Boo Boo)
We can start with Bailey Rae because she became the center of my universe immediately and remains a fairly prominent aspect of my daily existence; she is the one thing that can bring me from Craptastic to Fantastic in a matter of moments. How Bailey came to me is a long story, but I want to make it clear that I did not buy her from a breeder. It was friend of a former co-worker type of situation, one of those opportunities you just can’t pass up and I was lucky enough to only have to pay for the items that came with her (food, small crate and blankets), her spay and shots. I need to clarify this because I am firm opponent to many of the breeding practices incorporated by many pug breeders and vowed I would never buy one, thus the reason I thought I’d never in the world actually get to have one, let alone a puppy. Not all dog breeders are the greedy, neglectful, dishonest slime balls you see on television and I know that, but my issue was always, how do I REALLY know? You don’t, you have to take their word for it and that’s just not enough for me. Besides, there are so many animals that need adopting; I truly never thought I’d end up doing it any other way then researching adoption options at Table Mountain Animal Rescue. So, you can imagine my excitement when she did fall into my lap unexpectedly and such a way that I felt comfortable going forward with it.

This is not to say I didn’t agonize about the decision to bring Bailey into my home. I did (and still do) have some residual guilt about Kasha. I know sending Kasha off to live in rescue until she could be adopted out was the best thing for all of us; she truly was such a disruptive source in my home that her very presence was overwhelming and I sometimes dreaded coming home. Let me also remind my readers (because this is what I do to make myself feel better) that I did not choose that dog and in not doing so, I subjected myself to the trauma of having to clean up that mess as well. I felt (and still feel) that Kasha’s presence in my life was much like C’s presence in my life, disruptive and traumatic and nothing I did could remedy it, no matter how much I tried because I was dealing with a being that was damaged in ways my love could not repair. So when Bailey came along, I was very frightened and resisted it a first. What if I can’t take good care of her? Can I afford this? What about Pumpkin and Gaia? What if I screw this up to? What if I’m just being impulsive and leaping before looking long enough, etc..etc…I tried really hard to talk myself out of it and even when I said “Ok sister, you won’t know unless you give it a shot and you’ve wanted this a long long long time and the Universe responded so suck it up” and I got her home, I STILL spent the first week or so simultaneously in love and freaking the frick out!

Let’s just say, I’m happy that I took that chance. Not ALL “chances“ are scary things I’m finding, especially when the decisions are made with clear minds and outside the rose colored glass. This particular adventure has thus far, been one of my favorites. Bailey truly is one of the sweetest companion animals I’ve ever shared a space with. She’s surprisingly mellow for a puppy (I think) and has this general “hey it’s cool as long as your playing with me” kind of attitude. The fact that she might be the cutest thing I’ve ever seen helps too. And the puppy breath and curly little pig tail and “rarrooooooooooooo” when she yawns  oh and the puppy head tilt thing? That never ever gets old, not ever.

I will also say that with all of the rewards, having my very first pug puppy has also been an experience in patience. She potty trained remarkably well, partly I’m sure this is due the fact that she was 4 months when I got her and her previous momma did a lot of the work. Her bday is Feb 19th btw. That said, the first 2 weeks were still pretty much all about her. I didn’t get a lot of sleep and I think there is such a thing as being overly attentive. The crate training went really well, but I couldn’t commit to driving at home for lunch every single day forever so we began working what I call the “doggy jail” which is something like this:
http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3510034

What’s great about this is that the one I have is adjustable in size so I can create a space for her that is as small as a crate/kennel or as big as an apartment sized patio. It travels really well if I want to take her with me somewhere and set it up if we are going to be there for a while, it’s washable, pretty much the perfect thing and it was a left over from Kasha so I didn’t have to buy anything. This basically replaced the crate/kennel training and works perfectly because she can be contained during the day while I am gone, yet she has the freedom to move around in a fairly decent sized space and if she does have an accident…well it’s in the kitchen so it’s not the end of the world. She has had one in the entire time she’s been in there and that was due to a little too much wet food/treats the night before…otherwise she somehow manages to hold it all day while I’m at work. I joke w/ her that she’s got the bladder of a grown man inside that little body…she just licks my face when I say that.

I’ve been told to avoid any other type of training until they are 6 months because pugs are notably intelligent, but they have to grow up a tad before you can really train them efficiently. I don’t think I can wait that long for the basics tho, which would be “leave it” and “down.” Leave it will address an array of issues, in particular the nipping and when she’s feeling really feisty running off with my slipper or clamping down on my pajama bottoms and refusing to let go unless I pry her little jaws open…oh and um, puppy teeth? Let’s all say it together “OW.” Yep, they are like little razors and I think she knows JUST how much pressure to apply to really make it hurt if she’s mad at me. Now, because she weighs all of 8 lbs (maybe) it’s fairly simple to manage her – as in remove her from the situation – but I still don’t want her nipping…so the “leave it” will help with that. “Down” because I need her to not jump on the cats or people, again because of her size some of that behavior can be easily forgiven. It’s not like it hurts when she jumps on you, but it still needs to be addressed.

I’m working with what is known as “clicker training” and it’s quite effective in getting her attention for very short periods of time, though I’ll admit that Bailey gets her fair share of treats around my house. Puppies are excellent vacuum cleaners in the kitchen when cooking, so I don’t discourage her from being in there while I’m cooking. But I am trying to teach her to not sit there and stare at me while I’m eating b/c that IS annoying….who wants to be stared down while they are finishing off half a gallon of ice cream? I mean, cripes, I feel guilty enough as it is!

One difficulty I face in training her is that she’s so damn cute. Some of the stuff she shouldn’t be doing (like running off with my slippers or sandals or trying to eat my shoe laces or taking off with a guests flip flop should it be sitting under the patio furniture, things like that) is really hilarious. It’s a lot like toddlers, sometimes it’s impossible to cover the laughter while you are disciplining them and therefore, the discipline isn’t very effective because the puppy can absolutely gauge how serious you are about it all. Oh that’s the other thing, this dog is absolutely 100% attuned to my mood at all times. She’s no fool, she knows when I’m being serious and when mom is serious she usually listens. So, like all things in life, I am learning how choose my battles with her and if I am laughing my ass off and trying to tell her “no” at the same time….it might be wise to re-examine how important the situation really is. Plus, puppies chew on stuff….the world is their oyster for nom-ming and I do my best to make sure she has plenty to nom on (looks like a puppy child care center in my house) but sometimes, she just wants to nom on something different…like my hand or toes.

Puppy proofing was and is an adventure. Puppies will find whatever you did think of plus everything you didn’t. I can’t even tell you the weird stuff I find in her mouth and she’s hip to my game, she knows when she’s chewing on something of question when I come after her because she runs away…which then becomes a game. Oh? Mommy is chasing me…wooo hoooo wweeeeeeeeeeee, come get me mommy! I’ve pulled out some disgusting stuff out of her mouth….another toddler similaritie. Essentially, it is very much like having a human 12 month old baby in your house.

Over all, she has brought nothing but joy to my life. In between the moments when I want to chuck her out the back door and the occasional nipping that went a little too far, she truly is the best part of my day. I love when I come home; her little curly tail wiggles so much she almost knocks herself over. All the little sounds she makes, the stubborn-ness, her relentless curiosity, the chorus of “awwwwwwwwww” when I take her out in public (which can be difficult when I’m trying to get her some exercise cuz she loves EVERYONE and everyone loves her) and our routines when we wake up and go to sleep at night (she sleeps w/ me of course) are some of the most memorable thus far. Much like our human children, our furbabies become beings you create memories with and I know Bailey will be a big part of my life for as long as I’m lucky to have her. She is my best friend and I can honestly say that when I was in the midst of the funk (more on that later) I wanted nothing but to be with her, she played a pivotal role in getting me out of it and I appreciate that.

Memorable moments:

- One morning, I woke up around 6:30 am, opened my eyes and there she was…maybe 3 inches from my face very quietly and gently nom-ming the corner of my pillow. She noticed that I’d woken up and her big huge bubble eyes looked up at me and her little tail began to wiggle slowly. I almost cried it was so sweet.

- Various trips to the vet for ingesting plastic arm men. Good times.

- The first time I caught Bailey and Gaia playing together, Gaia was totally busted and she knew it.

- The night I’d taken her out twice and she pooed both times and STILL had an accident on my bed in the middle of the night. This is when we learned that puppies don’t really need wet food, it’s not all that good for them anyway and now it’s only a treat on the weekends.

- The night we had the tornado and she was terrified, keeping her calm helped me to stay calm.

- The night she was breathing funny and I sat up with her all night freaking out.

- Her playing with her furbaby cousins (she goes bat shit around other dogs, in the best way possible)

- Teaching her to go up and down the “stairs” we’d made for her from my bed to the floor.

There are tons more and there will be tons more if I am lucky, more on her to come.

No Dear Blog, I've NOT Abandoned You

I'm just busy, going through some personal things I don't much feel like elaborating on and find myself MUCH more inclined to be outside playing my dogs/garden/hula hoops then inside sitting behind a computer monitor any longer then I absolutely have to....so sit tight friends and I'll be back in due time.

Until then:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/30854268@N03/sets/72157620685619893/