JMFS

She's back to her hyper self. Definitely feeling better. The gas is less present and there's food in her tummy and intestines. No BM, yet, just scooting on her butt. The funniest part about yesterday was when they couldn't get a stool sample and the husband took her one more time and she pooped. I was on the phone with the tech and told him and he said, "Oh snap! Yes!" Never heard anyone so ecstatic about diarrhea in my life, haha. The husband reminded me she's been gassy for a while now so it could go back even further. We'll have test results for Giardia and everything else known to man. I'm broke now, lol, but she's on the road to recovery. Their loyalty program gives you x points for x dollars and we're at 11 / 16 towards a free visit. Just one more reason pet insurance is so important! I need to find a good one. Nationwide has a plan that I'm going to look into. I'll post it if I deem it worthy. Not much sleep for her or me. Husband was smart and slept on the couch. He must have realized cone + crate = mayhem. Every 2 hours she was wanting to go out, but nothing happened. No more cone and I was allowed to take the bandage off 20 minutes ago. She's not messing with the cath site so I'm hopeful. We have all these meds to give her. D is technically not a med, it's a probiotic, but if it has to be given on a schedule it's a med to me! I had to label them instead of writing the name because they wouldn't fit on the whiteboard. Antibiotic, gastroprotectant, anti nausea, and the probiotic on top of her Incurin and Proin, whew! She was taken off the other antibiotic because it could cause gas so that's one less med at least. She's greedily chomping down the Royal Canin GI food and holding it down. I did catch some videos of her behavior when a human was walking their furry friend and then sat on one of the benches about 15 - 20 feet from us. I'm so confused as to what she's thinking. Whines, growls, pacing, panting . . .. I sent three to Leah so she can assess and will pop them up on my YouTube later in case anyone is interested. Not much training going on this week with her needing to eat GI food. Going to go stuff her tire with it now so we can do our date night. Mama needs a break, even if only a couple hours!

So much for That plan. She got into stagnant water Tuesday and felt awful today. Took her to the vet because she was exhibiting the same behavior and signs as Mo did. We're not having that again! I was in tears when I called the vet the 2nd time because the first time she'd already thrown up all the water she'd had and they had us scheduled for 4:30, which was 3 hours away. When she threw up again I called to see if they could move us up and they did. She was refusing food, couldn't get comfy, and had diarrhea in addition to the vomiting. The only thing she wanted was water. Didn't have time or the ability to give her the trazadone this time and she was So good, considering. They were able to do everything without me going in, though she was whale eyeing them and stiff as a board. She did like the one gal and took to her "immediately" for Esther. Not shying away is considered practically best friends for anyone outside of my husband or myself. They kept her there for a few hours to give her fluids, Famotidine, Metronodazole, and Cerenia as well as do x-rays and ultrasound. She has a bit of bloating going on, but the vet isn't worried about twisting - it didn't look that dilated at this point so hopefully we caught it super early - and this Vet isn't taking any chances. She's home with a cath and a cone and she's pretty well drained. They gave us some Royal Canin GI wet food to give her and I'll try that here momentarily. Want to time it with our own dinner so we can jump up at a moment's notice in case she needs to go outside. I did get some comfort from this knowing that despite the diarrhea and vomiting she was only .75 higher than normal for dehydration. That's verification she's getting enough water normally. Her water test showed 60 oz / day and that's what I give her (10 oz in 6 "doses") each day. I feel better having proof that it's plenty. We go back in the morning for a check up. I'm whooped, she's whooped.

Welcome, Jamie. Boy are you in the right place! We've all been there. :) Good news is at only 15 weeks you've got loads of time to work with her on this as she's young enough to be taught how to be alone in the kennel. I'm not sure if it will matter, but it may be asked so I'll get you started - has she been spayed? When you leave the house has she been given something to keep her busy? A Kong with treats, a favorite chew toy, or three . . .. I'm going to give you enough credit to assume she's been fed, had water, and gone potty. Has she been exercised and / or walked before you leave? Has she caused injury to herself and do you know if she calms down after a time or if she keeps it up the entirety of your absence? Dogs are really good at worrying us with their initial behavior when we leave, but then 5 - 10 minutes later they chill out until we come home and then they ramp it up again so we think they've been carrying on the whole time. We have three dogs with varying degrees of separation / isolation issues. Abbi, the old gal, barks and howls and injures herself when we're gone so my daughter dog sits for us now so we can get a weekly date night. Gertrude acts a fool when we get home, wiggle butted, jumping, barking, etc . . . but while we've been gone she's been sleeping after finishing her treats. Esther is kind of between the two. She's jail broken a couple times and chewed the handle off the top of the kennel gate to where we're going to have to get a bungee cord to tie it shut. If she has treat toys and a Nylabone she's okay the majority of the time. As soon as the garage door opens all three of them start a symphony of barking, whining, and howling so we think they've been losing their minds the entire time. We bought a Furbo a few years back and it showed us the truth. Any baby monitor camera will work - you don't have to spend hundreds of dollars. The only one who pitches a fit while we're gone is the old lady, Abbi. She gets the other two going, though, so separating her from them has settled things down. All of that is to say there's a lot going on that we don't see when we're gone. It will take some trial and error, but this is definitely the place to get you situated. :)

She took treats from them happily initially, but the gal said when they attempted to examine she took the treat but growled while taking it. That's when they came and got me. Yep, same vet. She acknowledged the incontinence. However, Esther's been doing really well the past week so I think I've hit the magic number on titrating the Proin combined with the Incurin. Or maybe the bladder shifted or who knows. All I know is that she's gone 2 hours between outings lately and it's been Heaven, lol. I even upped the amount I give her and she's left some in the bowl several times now. They told me some dogs do far worse with their human counterparts present and others do much better. I am inclined to say the helicopter / coddling companions would make matters worse by being nervous or aggressive towards the doctors and techs themselves. "How dare you hurt my baby," or, "do you have to do it that way," kind of mentality. I go in there with the mentality of, "okay miss ma'am, this is going to suck but it's for the greater good of your health so I'm going to help them help you." Owners who exude confidence and positivity I think would be helpful in getting their pooches through the ordeal. It's also a smaller practice, not a national provider like Banfield, so they have the final say in whether they're going to allow owners in or not. Once I was there and Finally got that muzzle on her - she was dodging and ducking it so we need to work on that - she was compliant. They took it nice and slow to form a more positive association with being poked and prodded. Banfield has the better cost but that comes at the price of my dogs' mental well being so I'm likely going to be switching Gertie over to this clinic as well. Just need to find a wellness plan that can get us discounted. Banfield is 100% the pandemic. It just needs to go away already! It's caused so much mental anguish for pets and humans alike. I'll leave it at that. I think she was doing as you said, guarding her rear. It got to the point to where I couldn't palpate it without her doing the C with her body and whale eyeing me. That's when I decided to take her in - I didn't want to risk injuring her with my bungling or upsetting her further by causing pain. She did marvelously when the doc was examining the tender bits, though she wouldn't take her treats. Next time I bring in the Ziwi Peak - up the reward a bit. Or maybe I'll try some liver paste, take a page out of Frederyk's book. The grumping at people and animals in the car is nothing new. I gave her treats every time a tech came out and caught her eye and marked it with a "yes!" The boy was simply moving far too fast for her comfort. Especially with those adorable puppies nearby. I was thinking of going to the vet's office and hanging out in the parking lot to do more conditioning as people and pets come and go. I warned them they may see me and I'm not being a creeper, lol. The doc said she wished more people trained their dogs for these situations.

We had to go to the vet's today. 250 mg of trazadone for 46 lbs isn't enough. She still didn't let them examine her without me. I brought her flirt pole, which got her in the door, and her meatos (the VitalEssentials food reminds me of Cheetos made of meat) and that was all good until they tried to examine. They came and got me and all was right in the world. It took a couple minutes to get her calm again, but they were able to take a fecal, feel the anal glands, and examine her foot. When the doc and I were talking I gave Esther a treat every time she looked at the doc. Glands are empty but smell metallic so she's suspecting blood and gave us antibiotics. Prednisone. Which increases thirst and the need to urinate. /sigh Lol We've been accident free for 5 days, a personal best! So now we're upping the ante. :p Foot has some kind of ulcerated bulbous wound on it and she said that's common on puppies. Just keep it clean, keep an eye on it. It should puss up in a few days then dry out. This poor girl needs to catch a break! There were 3 lab puppies in the car next to us. Yellow. Except for the faces and ears they looked like Esther! I had to go see. Esther was okay'ish until the fellow adopting one of the pups kept approaching her window. I warned him she has issues and she let him know but he kept coming back so I rolled up the window. I had it down so they could see her coloring at the shoulders, just like the puppies. I didn't want to risk a bite or escalating her mood so we mosied on down the road. Compared to usual she did quite well despite his continued quick approaches.

Quick question from someone who has an incontinent puppy. Has she been to the vet to rule out a UTI? The trickle and constant peeing makes me think UTI. She may be apt to have accidents inside if it is and it would be stinky, but I wanted to throw that possibility out there. UTI, while not desirable, would be an easy fix and make your life simpler! Or kidney or bladder stones. We went through the gamut of tests before the final diagnosis of "pelvic bladder," so I take a keen interest in urinary issues. Bowing out now. :)

I bought a long lead and tied knots in it about every 2' so I can reel it in. That might work for you as well. The one I got was from Chewy and it's not terribly heavy and since she's on the smaller side that may work for y'all. Mine is 20', but they do have 15 and I think they had a 10 and an 8 as well.

Momo used to entirely empty himself at the dog park to the point of nothing but (my turn for TMI) green slime that I had No idea how to pick up. I would kick some dirt over it and try to pick that up the best I could. For him I think it was nerves. He was always Mr. Independent at home, but when we got to the dog park he was Mr. Velcro. After the initial, "wowowowow, all these dogs! Here I gooooo," it was like, "uh, that's a lot of dogs and they're like . . . sniffing and looking at me. Moooooom!" That poor pup with the ruptured gland! Owie. For the left side I'm going to have the husband hold her leash - she did the C body curl a couple times when I was getting the right side. Better safe . . .. I'm ambidextrous to a point so I'll try left handing it so as not to have to use my thumb and hopefully make it easier on her as a result. Hers is metallic - like wet metal. Much preferred to Gertie's rotten tuna, but still a bit nauseating due to the strength of the odor. Training went very well. She said she was sorry to have me do some of the remedial things because both girls are already quite well on their way, Gertie especially, but it will help to restructure my technique. She thinks my skill level is above what she's having me do for the restructure so good job Adrienne for helping me get there! 💜 We got a compliment today. 😊 Gertie's homework is sitting at the door and sitting for greetings, regardless of who it is. Recalls (still - forever if we're honest). Step and Sit is a game we'll be playing with her. Esther's homework . . . lol. Leave - she knocked this one out of the park after about 7 repeats with Leah. Leah says Esther is "scary smart," and I agree. That's part of the issue, ha! It was the same problem with Momo - he was smarter than me! Esther started looking away when presented with the "forbidden" hand and at one point even moved away from it to get her reward. Go Esther! Naturally it was a little less smooth when it was my turn. 85% of dog training is human training after all! Esther is also going to be learning heel, restructured. Leah was really good about explaining where Esther's body should be and how I should lead with the foot next to Esther and I could use the seam on my jeans as a good idea of where Esther should be taking the treat. She showed me how to use the fence as a guide to get Esther in the correct place. We'll work on body position in the future so Esther is parallel with me instead of cattywampus, but for now it's getting her close to having her toes just behind my toes. Considering the puppies across the street were out Esther did marvelously. Lastly, the Step and Sit game for Esther as well. I am going to learn to reward for each, "yes" I issue, regardless of intention. This will build trust. I have a bad habit of saying yes when there isn't going to be a payment. I may be the worst of the students in this equation by the time everything is done! I will also be getting into the habit of praising even when there won't be a reward, but that praise shan't include the word, "yes." 🤦‍♀️ I'm like a Thesaurus until it comes to training and then I'm on repeat. The pups are sleeping now, lol. Time for me to try to get some work done during this peaceful moment. It was a great session and she was pleased with the progress I made so I get to stay on green instead of being demoted. I think I should get a treat for that. <eyeballs the "leftover" KitKats from Halloween> (We never get trick or treaters . . . ).

Woo hoo! I like it! She's been having issues with anal glands and I can't express them externally. We all know how she feels about the vet so I gave internal a try. I was able to get the right one but when I attempted the left she was done. I'm sure it wasn't the smoothest expression in this history of expressions so I don't blame her. It was uncomfortable for me, too, lol. She's still scooting so I know there's more to do. Poor girl. Now I'm curious whether female dogs are more susceptible to being unable to express on their own. Momo nor Brownie never had these woes, but all three girls do. She absolutely loves the Jazz Up Settle Down game. I have the scratches and bruises to prove it! She was still jazzed up when we went into the yard and the excitement of being outside stoked that flames and she gave me a tremendous display of jazzing up, ugh! She's getting better each day, though. She's actually settled on the couch with us the last couple nights where normally she curls up when we're ready to retire. Prior to that it's up, down, up, down, until I remember I can put her in the kennel instead of getting frustrated with the disruptions. 6 more months of teenagerdom to go! Thursday Leah gets here for more and I hope I've done enough of the homework to make her proud. There were 25 recommendations in addition to the goals and I am trying my best. 24 hours in a day just aren't enough on top of the job, house, husband, etc . . .. Crossing my fingers Esther will show visible improvement or changes when Leah gets here. It's a terrible feeling to work so hard then have the teacher check your work and it's a blank page! We started working on a stronger Leave today and she did quite well. I started with a mundane item, then changed that out for a different boring item, then upgraded to an empty treat toy. She grabbed the treat toy a couple times, but quickly realized I had the softened kibble and the toy had Nothin'. It was nice to see her ignore that toy. I suppose I might start with that toy next time then up the ante and have the mundane items waiting in the wings in case we have to go back a step. The girls haven't passed playing in the small yard, yet. I'm to let them out in that yard then after a minute or two, or as soon as Esther starts bullying, call them to me. If they don't respond then play time is to end. It's ended the 3 times I've tried it so far. She wanted me to start inside, but I don't allow them to rough house inside so I had to skip that step (not allowing indoor play is one of the management items to preventing fights - every fight has been inside). Can't wait to see what she has in store for us Thursday. Even if it's something boring it's always nice to have that professional set of eyes to firm things up.

Going to chime in with our dogs' new favorite: https://www.chewy.com/brands/vital-essentials-7704 I bought the actual food, but you mentioned you're in a dorm and if your college days were like mine, $30 for treats isn't exactly in the budget without knowing if they'll work. They do have smaller bags of actual treats for around $8 - 9 you could try first. I think of the food like Cheetos for dogs, only with meat instead of flours and fake cheese. Meatos? 😏 The other one they really go for is the Ziwi Peak: https://www.chewy.com/brands/ziwi-7776 More expensive than the VitalEssentials, but they stink to high heaven and the dogs go positively bonkers for them. With both foods I break them up into much smaller pieces to make them last. Think of the size of a Claritin pill (I can't come up with anything better for comparison at the moment!) for the Ziwi Peak and maybe an Advil for the VitalEssentials because they're a little tougher to get super small. Just some thoughts based on my recent experience - I'm working on desensitizing / conditioning Esther to numerous distractions and these foods, used as treats, are doing the trick. On another note, the real deal works quite well, too! If you eat chicken for dinner, for example, you could set aside a handful for her next session (I use the innermost pieces that don't have sauce or seasonings).

Esther is becoming a master at sit. I use it for so many things and it really helps to deescalate things and get her focus back on me. :) It also helps with leash pulling when I'm putting on or taking off my Sloggers. Gertie still seems to think she's too well-behaved to bother with sit. She gets away with more because she's generally calmer and rarely does anything "wrong." Once Esther is better at response it shall be Miss Gertrude's turn. Both of them Really like that VitalEssentials raw food as a treat. I can use my thumb nails to break them into smaller pieces. She told me to try it with the Zuke's and whatnot and the girls respond just as well as they ever did with a whole treat. I do need to check that swapping walk and train is okay with her. With Esther's incontinence it's really important to get outside asap! Morning session is sit, down, bed, and here in any combination. Trainer comes back next Thursday and we'll see what she has in store for us for that session. And yes, I was Not made for mornings, lol.

How terrifying that must have been! Like, at what point do you go home to make posters instead of calling and calling and calling . . .? So glad they came back!

VitaEssentials freeze dried raw food is proving to be a good training tool. https://www.chewy.com/brands/shop-by-dog-11279 I grabbed the nibs in turkey and I believe a duck. Even Monkey likes the turkey (haven't opened the duck, yet). Esther was heeling beautifully, even with distractions, this morning. I'm still working on the routine change. She wants train > play game > walk > eat. Yesterday I managed potty > walk around the yard > eat. It's tough to fit it all in with two other dogs and the cat and I'm thanking my lucky stars I work for myself because waking up at 5 am to do all this is Not appealing to me, lol. I can do it on our own time schedule at least. This morning it was train > walk > eat. The game play is the one I can't really squeeze in there because poor Gertie is like Dying of hunger and all antsy. I'll get it figured out! I need to ask her if she wanted the train > game > walk > eat for Gertie as well, or if it was only Esther because if it's only Esther then I can feed Gerts first. Esther has become Very good at sit and down. Initially down was eliciting barking because she wanted her treat and Now. Uh uh little mama, you put that hip to the floor or I hold this treat foreeeever! I started with rewarding her just for the down and when that was fluid I added the requirement of hip to floor rather than ready to spring into action. Gertie seems bored with the whole sit and down, is reluctant to do them, rolls her eyes, then does it for a treat. The goal with her is to get her sit fluid so she sits for guests instead of being her overjoyed tail wagging wiggle butted self. The greeting the trainer got from Esther and Gertie couldn't have been more different. Here are her Esther observations: Esther May, upon seeing and meeting alert barking, tail low but not tucked. hackles, whale eye, 'cobra' hyper vigilance, dilated pupils. tail up, curious and willing to investigate me with nose bumps and small lick, investigated my bag. Tail raised and wagging. Attempted to get on the couch with Abby, possibly to relax but was taken by the leash. Seems to be of a healthy weight. Worried about vacuum, furrowed brow, full engagement, some stiffness and forward whiskers. Esther's goals: Nutrition to optimal- Use regular kibble as often as possible to increase the value of higher value treats and to help the higher value treats to be more novel. Use food (kibble) in the home and have a tier structure for treats (Low to high value and used appropriately) Gain peak performance for at least Sit, Down, Sit Stay and Down Stay, Wait, Leave It, Watch Me and Leash skills (Loose leash, heel, left, right and about turns and Left U-turn) Increase skills for impulse control, (Stays, Waits, step and sit, lunge toy) Remodel Look At That Game Work towards desensitizing to triggers. Address bully behavior Take Gertie on walks by herself on the trail. Make sure Gertie gets some really good one on one time with both of you. Gertie's goals: Remodel the wait at the door or restructer. Teach Gertie to Sit for Greeting and use Negative Punishment (see the jumping) 😆😆😆

Found these as well: https://www.chewy.com/brands/shop-by-dog-11279 They have a bully stick but it's made of beef so I limited the protein to chicken only for this search. While it doesn't help with the bully stick question, it does give chicken treat options (just use the freeze dried kibble as treats). Thought I'd post it just in case you have trouble finding treats for her.

Have you tried the Busy Bone? https://www.chewy.com/busy-bone-real-meat-smallmedium-dog/dp/204507 Will she work on antlers? I steer away from them myself because I have a power chewer and my last power chewer cracked his tooth. I know Yorkies are notorious for having bad teeth so I'm not sure if this is a good item or not. https://www.chewy.com/lucky-premium-treats-chicken-jerky/dp/177415 Those above are 100% chicken but I cannot speak to how long they will last. https://www.chewy.com/waggin-train-chicken-jerky-tenders/dp/130378 Those are what I get. They're out of stock now. Chicken and vegetable glycerin are the only ingredients. No funky smells and the girls go wild for them. The only bummer is when we get to the bottom of the bag there are small bits. The majority of the bag, though, is about 6 - 8" strips. They're not going to last super long, but maybe long enough for you to get the dishwasher emptied, for example. Your best bet is probably going to be a long lasting toy like a Kong or other puzzle toy and then stuff that with treats. Here are a couple we like and they're tried and true: https://www.chewy.com/planet-dog-orbee-tuff-lil-snoop-treat/dp/196419 https://www.chewy.com/petstages-orka-tire-tough-dog-chew/dp/217421 They just came out with that green version for smaller dogs. This is one of three toys Esther has not managed to puncture, yet. She chewed through an XL black Kong, for point of reference. The opening is pretty small so she'll have to work for it. https://www.chewy.com/jolly-pets-monster-ball-dog-toy/dp/38809 The opening to that is fairly big, but larger treats, or even long soft treats rolled up, make it more challenging. And she has to chase it on the floor. https://www.chewy.com/ethical-pet-dura-brite-treat/dp/180974 Out of stock, but putting it here for future use. https://www.chewy.com/starmark-treat-dispensing-pickle/dp/50538 I put kibble in this one, but any treat that size will work. You could even put wet food in it and freeze it or break up larger treats so they fit. https://www.chewy.com/kong-goodie-ribbon-dog-toy/dp/188578 There's a bone version of that with two ends and a long middle instead. We have a 10-lb Dachshund so I know how challenging it can be to find things for the little guys! Compound that with the GI issue and I imagine you have a dickens of a time. Is there anything else she tolerates? Like sweet potato, turkey, lamb, duck, or pumpkin? That would open up options. Abbi has sweet potato chews that last her about 5 minutes, 10 if she's not that hungry. All our dogs go through chews really fast. They're built to rip apart prey after all and the treats we humans come up with don't hold a candle to the difficulty of navigating a carcass. The only way to slow ours down is treat toys. I hope something in this post is useful!

Good points! Esther used to hold #2 as long as possible to get sniffs in because she knew as soon as she did her business we were going back inside. Now I let her sniff around for a bit after she does her thing. Nights are different. When it's bed time it's bed time and the potty trips are business only. Not all treats are created equal - totally agree with Frederyk on that one. Higher value (your chicken, liver, beef) are best reserved for the tougher things to train and recall is up there on that list. It's probably the toughest for most dogs next to perhaps "leave" or "drop." They're also among the most important so they get the super duper special treats. I'm going to add, always praise him for coming. Even if it took 10 minutes, refrain from negativity. Say you're late to a friend's house and they greet you enthusiastically and was happy to see you vs arriving at a friend's house and they yell and gripe at you for being late. Which friend are you going to want to visit again? I'm about to purchase this: https://www.chewy.com/four-paws-cotton-web-training-dog/dp/52587 so Esther and Gertie can go out and we can work on recall. If they don't respond I'll slowly reel them in then praise the heck out of them when they get to me. That makes them Want to come see me. I was told to cut the handle so it doesn't catch on things and to put knots about every 3' so I have something to grip. Believe you me, rope burn from these lines Hurts and those knots are helpful in avoiding that.

Alright, so I already have to use the Red Pen on our accident calendar. /sigh I had my cataract lens replacement measurement appointment today and it was at the crack of dawn. I made it to bed at 1:15 am, woo hoo, but after yesterday's excitement that still wasn't enough and I was so very tired. I laid down to rest my (still dilated) eyes and dozed off for at least an hour! Esther was sleeping when I snuck my nap in, but she woke while I was chasing my own z's and couldn't wait. She at least hit the entire pad so rather than cleaning floors I just have more laundry to do, lol. She is focused on nutrition and found a ProPlan food that she liked better than what they're already eating and I'll make that switch. It's the turkey for sensitive stomachs instead of the salmon for sensitive stomachs and we're taking Esther off the puppy food - she didn't like the ProPlan Puppy at all. She did say to take it with a grain of salt as she feeds raw and so can be a bit harsh on kibbles; however, I'm willing to see if changing to a "cool" protein will take Esther's energy level down a notch. She also crunched the numbers on our treats and they're high in sugar and carbs; hence the recommendation to use the kibble for indoor training and she recommended some treats with better nutritional value for outdoor / high distraction training. I'm up for giving things a try so I'll be purchasing those along with a 20' lead. The kibble goes into a ziploc (or old Cool Whip container in my case), that gets filled with water and shaken up, then drained. It goes in the fridge for a couple hours and voila, indoor doggie treats. I tried it with the girls today outside and it was enough for Gertie to come, but not Esther, so I'll be using up what I have on hand and then using her recommended treats. She recommended having the girls play in the smaller area we have fenced so we have better control and less competing stimuli when working to correct Esther's bullying, eliciting voluntary check-ins, and Gertie's recall. Yep, Esther's been branded a bully. I always took it for the brashness of youth, but after some observation she was deemed to have bullying behavior. In the bigger yards the 20' lead with knots about every 3' is to be used. That way if Esther picks up something and wants to play Keep Away I can grab it and slowly reel her in to retrieve whatever it is. I was told to use common sense because if it's something dangerous and I need to get it then I should simply get it. The lead will help with that. She said to cut the handle so it doesn't get caught on things. Gertie will be on the same lead so I can more easily stop her chasing / barking habits (she's gotten pretty bad what with me having focus on Esther so much). She gave me numerous reading materials and a body language chart I can print out. We have an accident calendar where blue ink = no accidents, red star = accident on my watch, red circle = accident on the husband's watch. She encouraged me to start taking Gertie places again. She said just because Esther can't / doesn't like to socialize Gertie shouldn't lose that privilege and that one-on-one time with me. It was nice to get that "permission," because she's right - poor Gerts has kind of been punished because of Esther's behavior. On the flip side I am to take Esther on fun trips in the car so she doesn't anticipate car = Veterinarian. She didn't take my water bottle away, haha. I can still use it as a tool for now (if the girls don't stop barking after I've told them to shhhh a couple times I shake the bottle and that's usually enough to stop it, very rarely do I actually have to squirt anyone - except the husband, he doesn't know any better and won't shhh, lol). She gave us some product links for Esther's confinement when we're out. Esther has now chewed the end off the latch so it can't be tucked under the catch and she can get the door open. The next house will be tougher to crack! 20 - 30 recalls per day for no reason for both girls. "Hi, how are you, here's a treat, bye." I need to grab a recording of Esther with dogs on YouTube or the television and if she starts getting agitated we're to turn off whatever is playing until she's calm again. I am to reward every "shake off" of stress. It took her 11 minutes to do her first shake off while the trainer was here. The trainer was very watchful of Esther's body language, jotting down notes of every lick, shape and size of the eyes and pupils, facial tension, etc . . . and explaining each to me and what they mean. She did not look at the mess in the small living room I told her to ignore, lol. She Did flick her eyes to the state of the kitchen and I saw a twinge. Daughter was supposed to empty the dishwasher and put the rest of her mess away but fell asleep and I didn't have enough time to tidy it. I also notice body language - just on a different species. 😆😆 I'm not a neat freak nor a complete slob (somewhere in the middle), but it's embarrassing to have the kitchen a fright when someone comes over. Like, "no wonder your dogs are a mess, look at the state of your kitchen!" Play soft music for Esther when she's crated and don't be afraid to use the crate for negative punishment. That was confusing until she explained positive punishment is adding to their stress like a collar grab, shock, yelling, while negative punishment is taking away from their stress like a nap in a crate or removing them from playing. If Esther doesn't recall, play time is over. During play time ask for recalls in the first 1 - 2 minutes, then a couple more times throughout. Whoever gets there first wins the jackpot of treats, the second one to arrive gets a single treat. I'm not sure how this one is going to work out. Esther did not seem bothered at all that she only got one treat. She also didn't really see me giving the jackpot to Gertie so I need a tweak to my delivery method most likely. The reactivity we'll work on later, but for now it's the basics. The trainer ignored Esther the entire time we were going over paperwork (that was like 3½ hours) and let Esther lick her and told me what Esther was doing each time she was over there because I couldn't see. Esther laid at the trainer's feet as well as mine several times. When I brought Gertie down there was about 5 minutes of excitement and that's when Esther was branded a bully because Esther kept trying to entice play by biting Gertie's neck, jumping on Gerts, and pushing her out of the way. Gertie responded playfully so I'm guessing the trainer saw something I didn't. That's from the conversation. She sent me a comprehensive email and summarized the goals at the bottom. Esther has like 10 where Gertie has 2, lol. Both are to follow: train, then play game, then walk, then feed with a meal. Ziwi Peak. That's the treat name Esther went gaga over. Oof, I'm tired just thinking about it all again! I see I already goofed up after going through the information again. I was supposed to do the recalls for play inside, not outside. Inside, then small yard outside, then move to the bigger yard. Oops! Human training is way tougher than dog training. 😆

Hi Leslie, Puppies Love Love Love to play chase, whether the chaser or the prey. At 4 months old, personally, I would have him on leash 100% of the time outside for potty time. There is a "potty on command" lesson on the site that will help with this as well. After he's done his business you can lead him inside and then lavish him with praise and treats when he enters the house. That's the short and sweet version. I'm a member like you, I've just been around for a while and Adrienne's helped me with umpteen questions. :) For yard exploration you can put him on a long lead so you still have control while he has a bit of freedom until his recall is more reliable. I'll leave the elaboration on the details to the professional, but that's a quick look at possible solutions. I can guarantee there are several threads about recall, each with its own special brand of "I'm not listening," from the pups. The outside is just far more interesting than we humans which means we have a Lot to compete with.

Super duper quick update because I have checks to write or subs will gripe! It took five hours! Esther's took up the majority of the time. Gertie is back to Kindergarten with her freedom outside due to her deteriorated recall. I'm to start taking Gertie places again. She said just because Esther can't go doesn't mean Gerts should be punished by being excluded. I have a long email from her that she typed while she was here so I need to read through that and then I have a Lot of homework to do! I liked her. She was the right mix of serious and personable. I was nervous we might not click but those fears have been removed. She does want me to find new words to describe the girls. Instead of cantankerous say challenging, for example. She wants the dogs to get lavished with positivity. That's going to be a tough one for me as I'm fluent in sarcasm. Who knew I was hiring a life coach as well as a dog trainer?! She's opened herself up to emails and us sending videos for trouble shooting. She wants small videos via text so she can blow them up and focus on the facial expressions and other body language. Our next appointment is Nov 4 because next week she's studying for another certification and then testing. She had some kind of addictive treat with green lips in it (mussels I think) that Esther couldn't get enough of and totally ignored me for. She asked me to leave those for her to use because she needs a leg up with gaining Esther's trust as she'll work with Esther as well instead of only us doing as instructed 100% of the time. Off to go get these folks paid. I'll give more info when I have some free time!

So nervous but excited for tomorrow! I'm only on page 4 of Esther's 10-page questionnaire. Gertie's is finished. She asks a Lot of questions and some are seeming repeats. I'm guessing that may be to see if there is a change in the answer to try to glean a bit more information. I'll be taking Benadryl around 8 pm so I can hopefully get to sleep at a reasonable hour as she's arriving at 11 am and wants the girls to eat 4 hours ahead of her arrival. She wants them hungry and I figure she may roll her eyes at assurances that they'll work hard for treats even if they've eaten, the little gluttons. I'll let you know how it goes! Tuesday I get fitted for lenses for cataract surgery so it may not be until Wednesday when I can post an update. Or I'll be brimming with excitement and dash right on over. Never can tell with me - I don't even know myself which way things like this will go, lol. As an introvert people time exhausts me, but when it comes to my dogs I'm usually happy to yap away.

I have to do the same with Esther, Fredery. Sometimes we just need a break! We're not around our spouses, co-workers, or children 24 / 7 - we're simply not wired for constant company, even extroverts need some alone time now and then. In fact, I believe naps were invented to give parents a moment of peace away from their children, lol. Think of it this way, each time he spends time alone with y'all there it's preparing him in a healthy way to spend time alone when you need to leave the house. :) Congratulations on having a smooth evening!

I've looked at the Gonoughts and I think I'm going to get one in addition to another of these: Smaller dogs: https://www.chewy.com/petstages-orka-tire-tough-dog-chew/dp/217422 Bigger dogs: https://www.chewy.com/petstages-orka-tire-tough-dog-chew/dp/46937 She does have a Wobbler I use every morning. Her afternoon meal has the meds in it so I bowl feed that one in hopes she gulps the meds down with a big bite. The evening meal is also in a bowl because my kiddo is asleep and the Wobbler makes an awful racket right above her room. When we get that next house I'll be able to come up with some new ideas. We have the kennels figured out now that we've expanded them to 4' x 4'. I attached a picture of their current set up with my best effort at displaying the concept for the new ones. The current is 68" L x 44" W so they'll lose a little length but gain a little width and then the door will lead out to a 4' x 6' run. Plenty of space to work with for feeding / toys and we'll have a sturdier gate built with more height so they can't try a jump-over-the gate stunt from the beds. The stairs pictured are just about right - they need maybe one more step to reach 30" high. I'm losing my drawers underneath but we're getting more closet space so that's okay. The drawers go back about 2' and the closet will be 4' deep and 6 or 8' high so I am definitely not going to complain! The rest of the house is standard, but the office is all about the dogs and storage, lol. I am making the beds mini crib mattress size because those are easy to find waterproof and fitted sheets for and oddly, mini crib mattresses are less expensive than most dog beds. They're pretty tough and have thus far stood up to her chewing. They're just a bit tricky to stuff with mushier things to freeze. I am going to try a peanut butter / apple sauce / yogurt mix in a baking piping set as they have a good long attachment that can reach into the crease. I also keep my eye out for chunky treats that can go in there because all three dogs are too dang good at getting things out. Esther is now 46 lbs and maybe 11 months old. We got her May 9th and the vet said she was about 6 - 7 months old then so yes, 11 - 12 months old. Time has Flown! With the pushing it doesn't start fights, it mainly annoys me because Gertie just takes it and it's rude (to me). We haven't had a fight in a good long while as I've been vigilant with management. Gertie will make this weird high pitched growl? snarl? when Esther is being too Esther and once in a while it will come with a warning air snap. This usually occurs when they're lying on the couch or their beds and Esther is trying to entice play while Gerts wants to chill. In those cases I have them move further away from each other and face the other direction so they're not looking at one another and that's been effective thus far. In extreme cases I put Esther in her kennel with a toy. Esther doesn't sleep during the day and wants to play all the time, despite outside play and brain games. Endless energy! It's tiring the rest of us out and October 18th can't come along soon enough! I don't know if you know how much your clients look forward to your help, but I'm here to tell you it's like waiting for Christmas or a really exciting vacation! You are so very important to your clients' lives! <3 Abbi sees the doc about 1 - 2x per month and there was talk about amputation, but he said it would have to be at the shoulder and she would really struggle with that. I sewed (horribly, lol) three hand towels together and we use those as a sling for toileting. We couldn't find anything on the market, that wasn't super expensive, for a Dachshund's odd shape and the sling we did find was too narrow. The towels work well because we can adjust the width and even air lift her so her back is supported and her weight is off her legs entirely. There's a bit of a balancing act to get it right so her rib cage is supporting most of the weight and it's not on her soft organs. Her poor little foot has rotated severely.

I can't Wait for October 18th! It's going to be expensive, but less so than the Gainesville doctor. $500 for the initial 4-hour consult, $175 / hour after that. It's a bit steeper than I was looking for given Mo's trainer was $550 for 5 weeks, but if it brings peace to our lives then so be it! I don't know what reasonable pricing is, but we shall find out if it's worth the cost! She's including Abbi in the pricing but Abbi isn't going to participate. She's at the stage in life where we're just making her as comfortable as possible. That, and Abbi doesn't move any more. Her right side simply does not function and we're wondering if she perhaps had a stroke we didn't catch due to all the other issues. Esther's leash pulling and pushing Gertie out of the way are about to drive me up the wall. Not to mention she's killing my neck and shoulders with the yanking. U-turns and stopping in place and waiting aren't doing the trick, but she sure will stick by my side if I have treats. We'll have to undo something, I'm sure, before we can get that leash nice and loose. Pushing Gertie is aggravating. Gerts was here first, youngun, have some respect! The Incurin finally arrived today so we'll pair that with the Proin and hope for the best. She's still accident prone with the Proin (husband had to change the dogs' bed sheets 3 times because he was stuck on the phone or outside). Other than that they behaved for him for the most part. I make it look easy, haha. The first text I got from him was, "I don't know why you have so much trouble with Esther, it's been 3 hours and we're doing fine." In my mind I was thinking, "wait for it . . .". Haha! I think he has a new appreciation for why I can't get my work done as quickly and thoroughly as I did pre-Esther. She's a mess, but help is on the way. :) Oh, and Esther has managed to chew up not only the red Kong toys, but even the black ones! Holy crud. Even Momo, who could crush them down completely and chewed through all other toys, never damaged the Kongs, red or black. So I'm looking for some stronger treat toys for her. The black Kong she tore up was the XL ribbon. They don't get tougher than that in the Kong line!

I've been doing some desensitization with Esther and found a wide variety of barks on YouTube. If you have a Bluetooth or WiFi speaker, those are extremely helpful as they're louder / more realistic than a phone or tablet speaker and you can move them around to gain or close distance, experiment with behind doors, around corners, outside vs inside, etc . . .. If you can't get the sound through the speaker via its natural coding there is a program I use (I have a Sonos speaker which does not play YouTube, for example) here: http://www.streamwhatyouhear.com/ With that I can play YouTube through the Sonos speaker now. I mute my computer so there's no feedback or competing sound. Not sure if they have it for other devices - I use it on my Win 10 PC. Phones and tablets should be able to use Bluetooth with no issues, not sure about WiFi as we've only ever had the Sonos for a WiFi speaker. Bluetooth are so inexpensive you could pick one up for under $10 just for this purpose.

Gerts has done it twice more and it's been tape from our well each time. I thought I'd cleaned it all up, but dang if dogs aren't better at finding things, lol. Gertie was "naughty" today because the yard guys Never close the gate that encloses the pool yard. Grrrr. I called the girls in and there's Gerts, cooling her feet off in the pool. I was not impressed and she got to stay in the kennel after eating to dry off before I allowed her on the dog beds. She Definitely needs refresher courses - her behavior is becoming less-than-stellar. Barking at anything moving along the fence line, shooting out of the door at break neck speed (though she Does wait until I tell her she can go), not sitting (basic stuff here, Gerts!), and her recall Stinks. She practices selective hearing. I Know she can hear me because if I so much as whisper "treat" to Esther I can see Gertie's ears perk up. However! Help is on the way! I procured an appointment with Leah on the 18th. I have a 10-page document to fill out for each dog and the initial consult is 3 hours as we go through everything the pups need to learn. Can't wait to see how the husband fares when I leave him on Sunday. 😆 I come back Wednesday. Hopefully everyone's alive and well! I printed out instructions and The Schedule, lol.