It's been a combination of several things: a) in general, Echo has fallen into a routine, and there hasn't been anything that notable to report; b) with Amy's new job, Jesus prepping to start college tomorrow, Andrew starting a new job, and me taking care of the final details for retirement, things have been a bit hectic.
The one picture I have to add is this one:
So, onto the recent developments.
I reported a few days back that I bought two rawhide bones for her and Gimli. Between the two of them, one of those is gone. Tonight, Gimli took one of the knots off the end of the remaining one. That has become his toy, and Echo is working on the rest. I am pretty sure it will be gone within the next 48 hours.
Then, there are family issues. Not bad ones, per se, but there are issues. Echo and Andrew get along well. With everything else going on, in general, Echo ends up trying Amy's patience, all to often. Jesus ...
Jesus didn't grow up around dogs. In fact, until he started coming to our house on a regular basis in 2007, he had limited exposure to dogs. When he, first, started coming to our house, Radar and Tas were almost 12, and Gimli was 2. So, Jesus' exposure to puppies was VERY limited, before Echo came to live with us 2 weeks ago. Don't get me wrong, he loves dogs. You don't have to see his face to "hear" him smile as he talks to Gimli, who he refers to, regularly, as "the Black Monster". He is just not sure what to make of this puppy, never having been around a real puppy, before. So, Jesus doesn't dislike Echo, but, I don't think he likes her that much either. Once again, limited exposure to dogs/puppies, has discovered a love for dogs, not acquainted with the reality of puppies.
As I relate this, I realize that I have not introduced the entire cast of characters.
There have been multiple pictures of me on the blog, and the photo in the right hand column is me, with Tas across my shoulders. (He loved napping that way.)
Amy has been in multiple pictures.
Gimli has been in a few.
This is a picture of my two sons. They are both "fosters", but I couldn't love them more if they were my biological kids. (Jesus is on the left, if you can't guess.)
I could go on ... and on ... and on ... I'm proud of my sons, and I love them. I think they are fine young men. Enough said on that.
Back in 2007, when Brandon and his father moved to the Olympia area, Brandon started assembling a group of friends(Jesus, as noted before, was part of that group.). A friend of Amy and I referred to them as "The Lost Boys", referencing the story of "Peter Pan". Because they all needed something from each other that they were not getting at home. Amy, once they started coming to our house on a regular basis, started referring to them as "The Teen Hoard".
Just like Brandon and Jesus, they became family that we "chose", as opposed to the family that genetics imposed on us. ... Unlike Brandon and Jesus, the rest of the "Teen Hoard" have become "chosen" nieces and nephews.
That's where Andrew comes in.
---
That gives you faces to put to names, when I talk about things.
---
Back to Echo.
---
She has begun obsessing over bugs.
She will, actually, stalk them in the backyard.
She's become quite good at it. (More on that later.)
---
I hated doing this, but I had to.
Amy and Andrew had to work. Jesus was doing things to get ready for his first day of college.
I couldn't put it off any longer, I had to do my physical for military retirement.
Which meant that, once I left the house, Echo was in her crate for about 4 hours. She was awake when I put her in the crate.
Since she came to live with us, she has NEVER been locked in her crate that long, unless she was asleep going in, and was going to sleep longer.
She wasn't happy when I got home, but that was okay.
I took her out, she peed, she pooped. I took her in and fed her. We went back out. She peed. We went into the "cordoned off" part of the backyard, and played "chase" for a bit.
I'm not sure what Echo does with Amy, Andrew, or Jesus, but, if I run, she will chase me anywhere.
---
Amy thinks her original crate is too small.
I don't think so.
She can lay down, comfortably. She turns around with ease.
Amy says that she can't stand up.
The roof of the crate is higher than her shoulders. She has to duck her head to stand up, but she can stand up.
---
So, today, during her normal "afternoon nap time", I moved the larger crate into the bedroom, threw her towel into it, along with a couple of her favorite toys, and laid down for a nap.
She HATED it, at first, but after a while, she napped there.
I think her towel helped.
---
After "naptime" was over, I put her in her crate, put the crate in the backseat of the truck, and we went to pick Amy up from work.
She did fine on the ride over.
I had the opening of the crate facing me, as I drove.
She seemed fine.
We arrived at Amy's workplace. I left the truck on, with the A/C going, and went in to get Amy.
After about 5 minutes, I saw that Amy was not going to be ready to go soon. So, I went out to check on Echo.
She had thrown up on her towel, in the crate, and was eating it.
It was, mostly, semi-digested food from her last meal, but there were a few whole chunks.
We've taken the towel out the crate (it's in the wash now, no soap), but she has been reluctant to get into her crate ever since. Even after I put pillow cases that Amy and I have slept on, in the crate.
---
So, all through the evening, when Echo would, normally, get into her crate and crash, she has put up a fight going into it.
---
If part of the goal is to get Echo to bond to one person, it has worked.
If she knows I am in the house, then she doesn't want to be near anyone but me. ... She doesn't want to play with them. She doesn't want to be .... anything.
She is inconsolable unless she is being "my dog". She gets irritable if I pay any attention to Gmili.
---
Tonight, she did not "crash" at her usual time.
It was, almost, 1:30 AM before she settled down. ... as opposed to 10:30 PM.
She didn't want to play. She didn't want to eat, or "hurry", or whatever.
She was a pain in the rear end, UNLESS, she could sit in my lap on the couch.
She wanted to "crash", but it HAD to be on my lap.
---
If things continue the way they are going, I feel sorry for Jean and Pan, and whoever else is in the house with them, when they take her on the 25th.
If tonight is any idea of how that is going to go, then she is going to be insane.
---
I just hope that she will bond with her "veteran" the way that we have bonded.
Echo is a "sweetheart".
She would rather play with "her person" than any toy.
---
Which brings me back to this afternoon, we played "chase" in the "sideyard", as Amy calls it.
Echo was off lead. in a confined space.
We ran back and forth, until my knees and ankles could take no more.
She chased me, and, if need be, waited for me to run.
Her eyes were COMPLETELY focused on me.
We did this twice, today.
---
Amy and I have, only, had dachsunds. We were married in June of 1985. The first dog in our house was a dachshund, in March of 1986. Except for a few visitors, all of our dogs have been dachshunds.
Amy is not sure what to make of this "leggy" girl.
I had noticed this sometime before.
Before tonight, I had never said this aloud, but I said it to Amy: "Think of her as "Long. Tall Sally".
... Music link to follow.
No comments:
Post a Comment