This isn't the routine

Dogs pick up on routine fast. Gracie and Gus are no exception. Gus has been very quick to learn the pace of the house. Our weekday morning routines go like clockwork. That is until I threw a monkey-wrench into the works last week.

I needed to be at work really early one morning for an online training course. So I was changing the usual morning potty routine. It didn't go well. 

This was our conversation:

Me:  OK, you two go potty.

Gus: What's this? A leaf!

Gracie: Wait, what? You want me to do what out here? Go...potty, is it? Is this new?  I usually get a walk.

Me: I don't have time for a walk this morning, so go potty!

Gus: And a dirt clod! Look a dirt clod. Chase me!

Me: Gus, give me that. Now, go potty!

Gracie: Here? You want me to go potty here? Well, let me sniff around for a while. I need to inspect each piece of bark dust first. 

Gus: Hey Gracie, what are you doing? Can I sniff, too?

Me: Come on, you two! Go potty!

Gus: I found a pinecone! Yay! 

Gracie: Nope. Can't do it. I'm going to need a walk. 

Me:  Fine! Gus did you go?

Gus: Go? Yep, let's go!

A short while later...

Gracie and I return from our walk -- she did NOT go potty.

Meanwhile, Gus, in his crate, HAD gone potty.

Give him a sedagive!

One of the best scenes in the movie Young Frankenstein is when Dr. Frankenstein performs charades for his coworkers while the monster is choking him. He wants his assistants to give the monster a sedative. Instead, we get hilarious guesses from Igor.

If Gracie could do charades, I think she would have been playing Gene Wilder's role this week. Gus had his neutering surgery on Wednesday. The vet said "keep him calm for two weeks." Seriously? If anything, he's been more wound up since then and constantly picking at Gracie to play. 

I rooted through Gracie's pharmaceutical supply and found some sedatives from her last surgery. So I called my vet to see if I could give a puppy-size dose to Gus. Last night was a bit better, although I still need to keep them separate because Gus can't resist play-attacking his big sis.  

Following the charades scene in Young Frankenstein Dr. F inquires of Igor about the brain he collected. Turns out it belonged to someone named Abbie...Abbie Normal. Sounds a bit like a puppy brain!

No breakfast this morning

"A spayed or neutered dog is simply much easier to live with. Your Lab will be more focused on you and less on other dogs."
                                                ~Your Labrador Retriever Puppy Month by Month

Gus is scheduled for surgery today. Right now he is blissfully unaware of what is about to happen. (Although he is wondering why Gracie got breakfast and he did not.)

I've noticed an interesting thing the last few weeks. When I tell people Gus is being neutered, I tend to get this reaction from people: "Oh...poor Gus!"  Or some equivalent of that sentiment. I recall when Gracie had her spay surgery so many years ago, that people didn't bat an eye or make a comment. Could there be a gender bias in the dog world? Are we humans subconsciously equating neutering with the emasculation of men? Do we see spaying a female dog as the equivalent of the woman taking responsibility for birth control? 

Oh I know, this is all too much for an early morning blog post. And to paraphrase Freud, sometimes a surgery is just a surgery. 

Regardless, I do feel a twinge at leaving my boy at the vet's office today. On the upside, I'm looking forward to a more low key evening tonight.

Bragging rights, part 2

Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall.
                                           ~Proverbs 16:18

Back in July I boasted about the brilliance of my dogs. So smart! Over the last couple of days I also found myself bragging about Gus as a potty-training prodigy. 

But as the proverb reminds us, this kind of talk can only lead to destruction. Thursday night I noticed a flood of pee on the kitchen floor. The back door to the backyard was wide open, but apparently someone waited until the last minute and couldn't make the dash in time. Gus looked at me with wide-eyed innocence. Gracie just shrugged. 

This morning as I was awaiting a visitor, I heard the tell-tale sound of someone peeing on the carpet. How can so much come out such a little guy? As I was cleaning up, Gracie dashed off with the used paper towels. And, no, she wasn't trying to help. Really, you guys!?

This past Thursday and Friday, I attended the Global Leadership Summit and was privileged to hear from some great speakers. Joseph Grenny, the author of Influencer told us how focusing on six key sources can enable us to influence change: personal motivation and ability, social motivation and ability, and structural motivation and ability. As I apply this to potty training Gus, I believe I've been employing at least four these six sources. Time to add the other two.

Also at the Summit, General Colin Powell offered sage advice: get mad, then get over it. Sure I was mad that Gus hadn't availed himself to the outdoors to relieve himself, but I wasn't going to let that ruin my day or my relationship with him.

Last but not least, Dr. Henry Cloud, taking a quote from his book Boundaries for Leaders, reminded us: "In the end, as a leader, you are always going to get a combination of two things: what you create and what you allow." 

As I reflect on these teachings, I'm challenged to apply them to my home life as well as my work life. And when I stumble in these areas, I reminded of another great quote from the literary heroine Scarlett O'Hara:  "After all, tomorrow is another day."

Driving Miss Gracie...and Mr. Gus

Yesterday Gracie and Gus had vet appointments. Gus was due for his second round of booster shots and Gracie to check on a pesky hot spot that keeps flaring up on her chin. Wrangling two dogs into the Jeep, out of the Jeep, and into the vet's office was an adventure. I was so  harried by the experienced that I left my purse at home! Thank goodness I'm a regular at the vet's office and they agreed to mail an invoice to me. 

Gracie is an great car-rider. She settles into her space in the back of the Jeep with little fuss. Her main challenge is getting in and out due to her hip and knee problems. We solved that problem a couple of years ago with an Otto step. She is a great pal to have along on a road trip. She watches the road for a bit and the settles in for a nap until we reach our destination. 

Gus has not taken to car riding as well. Of course, this was only his third car ride so he doesn't have the experience. 

I tried to explain to Gus that car rides meant adventures and we would have great fun wherever we went. He had much to say about that (none of it good) on short drive to the vet's office. 

I want to be able to take my dogs with me when I go places. For now, Gus needs to ride in a crate so that he is safe. And he did not much care for that. So I'll need to keep working him to get him use to the car, the crate, and the feel of the road. 

This will be important because in October we'll take our first major road trip to the beach and then he'll see the payoff for being a good car-rider like Gracie. 

A quiet house

Hi there Gus. What have you been up to?

Oh.

Dog days of summer

The period from 12 to 16 weeks is a lot of fun for your family and your puppy. This month is also a challenge as your joyful toddler becomes more active. Overenthusiastic about everything, he acts first and things later.
                                                        
                                              ~Your Labrador Retriever Puppy Month by Month

The phrase "dog days of summer" usually means a low-key, subdued approach to each summer day. The summer heat weighs people down, slowing their walk and their talk. It evokes images of sitting on the front porch sipping ice tea. 

And then there's Gus. 

Overnight, we've gone from a "play hard, sleep hard" puppy, to a "play hard, then play even harder" puppy. Even Gracie is struggling to keep up. We've taken to tag-teaming him - Gracie plays with him until she is worn out, then I take over while she rests. I marvel that I survived this phase when it was just Gracie and me!

It is this stage that reminds me the importance of crate training and I'm thankful that Gus is getting use to his crate. It is working well to have it in the garage next to Gracie's kennel. I still hear the occasional yip, but I think he is now finding it a place of rest. 

And that is a good thing. 

P.S. Photos are getting harder to take. By the time I have the camera ready, Gus has moved on to other things. Things I usually need to pry from his mouth.

Bragging rights

Here's the thing about Labs: they're goofy, fun, and playful...and they're smart. 

Gus already knows two important commands: sit and come. The "sit" command has come in handy at feeding time. We are now working on the commands: leave it and release. These are two important commands for Labs who put everything in their mouths. 

Over the past years, there has been a plethora of "my kid is smart" bumper stickers.  I have found it a bit wearisome to see these ubiquitous bumper stickers on cars around town touting the intellectual prowess of their little dears. One has to question the veracity of these statements when one reads job applications spelled in texting short-hand and listen to dialogue composed of you knows, likes, and whatevers.

And so it was with special glee that I took to displaying the above bumper sticker on my Ford Escape. Unfortunately, it doesn't fit on my Jeep. 

But that's OK.  It's enough for me to know that my chocolate Labs are smart. I just hope I can continue to outwit them!

Everybody poops

"Start house training the first day you bring your new puppy home. He'll need to go almost hourly the first week. By 12 weeks he should be able to last an hour and a half." 
                                      ~Your Labrador Retriever Puppy Month by Month

Gus is 12 weeks old and making progress in his potty training. About 90 percent of the time he makes it outside to go potty. And contrary to the book, he can go almost three hours before he needs to go outside. This is especially helpful at nighttime. Yay! Good boy! 

Because of Gus' initial aversion to his crate, I move it into the garage next to Gracie's kennel. He loves his big sister and so far this seems to be a good set-up. [Lest any dear readers scold me for leaving the dogs in the garage on hot days, please know the garage has AC.]

Potty training has also been helped along by Gus's nannies - dog walkers who come by two to three times a day to let him out while I'm at work. And speaking of work, my employer has been gracious in allowing me to skip home periodically during the day to let Gus out when the dog walkers are not available. 

The training manual reminds owners to go outside every time with their puppy so that they can be on hand to praise and reward puppy for a successful pee and poop. Happily the dry, sunny weather has made this a pleasure for me. 

And I suppose turnabout is fair play. I now have not one, but two Labs watching me when I'm in the bathroom!

Sleeping arrangements, part 2

In Sleeping Arrangements, I boasted about crate training Gus. But Gus had other ideas. 

Suffice it to say, Gus does not like his crate. Our first night together, he didn't just whine, he screamed. And he yelped. And he barked. I lasted only 20 minutes. Then Gus got what he wanted: a plum spot on the bed in between me and Gracie. 

On the plus side, all three of us slept well. On the downside...well, I suspect that will come when I'm competing with two 80+ pound dogs for space on the bed. 




Dog bed update:
So far the expensive Orvis brand Tough Chew dog bed has remained in one piece. But it has yet to be used for sleeping. Gracie simply paws at it and occasionally humps it. Gus has managed to both pee and poop on it (so I guess it's his now). 

This is the closest I've seen either dog to using it for it's intended purpose:

Two weeks later

After much anticipation, I brought Gus home on June 28. He was not terribly excited about the car ride home, but has adapted well to his new home. 

His first encounter at home was with his "big sister" Gracie. She was a bit stand-offish to start.

But they have since warmed up to each other.

Sleep for me has been somewhat elusive with twice nightly bathroom breaks for Gus. Turns out Gus is also a morning dog. An early, "hey it's 4:30 a.m. everyone!" morning dog. And a fact which Gracie, who is most definitely not a morning dog, reminds me of with a glare each day.  

I'm already collecting stories for this blog. Now I just need to find the time to write them down.

The proof is in the puppy

Anything that can hurt a human baby can hurt your puppy, too. Puppies don’t have hands, so yours is going to explore his new world with his mouth. Anything he can sink his teeth into is fair game, and it’s your job to be sure he stays safe. That means puppy-proofing your home.
                                                                   -Your Labrador Retriever Puppy, Month by Month

As soon as she was able, Gracie went for the books on the bookcase. I lost more than a handful of paperbacks, before it dawned on me to box up the surviving books and store them until this phase of puppyhood passed.

Gracie found a better use for the bookcase after that.

Instead of fighting the losing battle against my Lab’s need to explore her world with her mouth, I adapted. I closed bedroom and bathroom doors. I crated trained for the times when I couldn’t watch her. I put away favorite knick-knacks. I cleared off my kitchen counters. I taught Gracie important commands like “leave it” and “spit it.” And I kept an endless supply of toys on hand, rotating them every few weeks so it appeared they were new.

Sure, my house looked pretty bare for about a year, but as a result, I lost only one TV remote and suffered only minor damage to the corner of the coffee table. Eventually, I was able to have nice things again.

I’m a proponent of puppy-proofing. I want to spend my time with my puppy playing and having fun. Plus, life goes on in spite of the puppy and I don’t have time to be constantly chaperoning his escapades.

When Gus arrives in 10 days, the house and yard will be ready for his puppy explorations. I’m sure he’ll throw some new tricks at me. So I’ll need to stay sharp.

 

Father's Day

Just as we were reaching the car, we heard a commotion coming from the woods. Something was crashing through the brush – and breathing very heavily. Then in a flash the thing burst into the clearing and came charging in our direction, a yellow blur. As it galloped past, not stopping, we could see it was a large Labrador retriever. But it was nothing like the sweet Lily we had just cuddled with inside. This one was soaking wet and covered up to its belly in mud and burrs. Its tongue hung out wildly to one side, and froth flew off its jowls as it barreled past. In the split second glimpse I got, I detected an odd, slightly crazed, yet somehow joyous gaze in its eye.  “I think,” I said, a slight queasiness rising in my gut, “we just met Dad.”

                                                          -Except from Marley & Me by John Grogan

I remember reading that paragraph in the Marley & Me and thinking it described perfectly Gracie’s sire, except he was a black Lab with a little Rottweiler mixed in. His name was Chopper. His owner said they were big fans of the popular Discovery Channel show Orange County Choppers about a father and son who spent more time yelling at each other than building custom motorcycles.

It should have warned me off, but sweet little Gracie, just four weeks old, had fallen asleep on my lap with her mom’s head resting serenely nearby. “Maybe she’ll take after her mother,” I remember thinking.

In reality Gracie must have been more like her dad with some of Marley’s dad mixed in because I’ve definitely seen that “odd, slightly crazed, yet somehow joyous gaze” in her eyes.

I didn’t get a chance to meet Gus’s dad, Odie. I was so excited to meet Gus it never crossed my mind to ask to see his parents. But the breeder told me that Odie couldn't be a sweeter boy and that he is very gentle and loves affection. I also hear he loves water and chasing balls.

Today is Father’s Day and I’ve been thinking about my dad. Most people think I take after my mom, but I think that’s only because I spend a lot of time with her. My mom is the family planner, organizer, and realist. People see those qualities in me, but it’s only because I’ve always had jobs that require me to use those skills. At home, I’m anything but. No, I’ve always thought I took after my dad. We shared a similar sense of humor and even now some of my best jokes were his jokes. My dad was a visionary – able to see the possibilities in life and people, but he had a harder time executing on those dreams. Yep, that’s me too.

Sometimes children rebel or resist the things of their parents. “I’ll never be like that,” they say. But I’ve learned many lessons from Gracie over the years. One of the biggest lessons is to embrace life and be content with who you are. She may have been a difficult puppy and a challenging adolescent, but Gracie has become a faithful companion who makes me laugh every day.

Gus won’t have his father around to show him the joys of swimming and getting petted by the neighbors, but I know Gracie will happily step into that role and will lead Gus and me on our next joyous adventure.

Sleeping arrangements

One question I've been getting lately is "where will Gus sleep?"  My friends and family know that Gracie sleeps in bed with me. Or rather, I sleep in bed with her. Most nights I have a narrow strip of the queen size bed and she stretches  out on the rest. Over the years we've made it work, but this isn't how it always was.

I believe in crate training. For the first year of Gracie's life with me, she stayed in her crate at night. Her crate was her sanctuary, a place she could rest completely without feeling compelled to watch for errant neighbor cats violating the Smith property line or to follow me each step as I puttered around the house. Her crate was also her time-out zone when she pushed me too far. 

We expanded the crate concept to include a luxurious 9 by 12 foot kennel in the garage. As Gracie got older, this would be where she would spend her days while I was at work. Initially, the kennel sat on the the concrete garage floor. 

And I felt bad about that, so I bought Gracie a dog bed.

But not just any dog bed. I bought a bed from Orvis called a Tough Chew durable bed.  The description promised the beds were chew-resistant with a double-layer construction that would stand up to the most persistent chewers (e.g., Gracie). What sold me was the final sentence: If your dog can chew through one of these durable dog beds, we’ll refund your money. No questions asked.

When I ordered the bed, this was my expectation:

In reality, this is what happened. 

But true to their word, Orvis did refund my money after I stuffed the sad remains of the tough chew bed in a box and sent it back to the company. 

So back to the question at hand: where will Gus sleep?

Gus will also be crated trained. I will have his crate in my bedroom at the foot of the bed. It will be his sanctuary and, when needed, his time-out zone. 

But expectations are hard things to release, so I recently ordered a new Tough Chew bed from Orvis for Gus to use. 

Although, I'm saving my receipt and the box it came in, especially after reading this warning on the box:  

Hello, my name is Gus

Hello, my name is Gus. 

I met my new person yesterday. Although at four weeks, I'm not sure what that really means. I just know this lady held me up and said "are you the one?" and I responded by wagging my tail to let her know I was. 

Then one of my brothers interrupted us by pouncing on a toy. I had to get in on that action, so I squirmed to be put down. 

There were lots of people wanting to hold, pet, and play with me. I loved that! 

I few minutes later, the lady clamped a big red collar around my neck. I did NOT love that. In fact, I tried to get it off straight away. I may have even cried a bit, but then again I'm only four weeks old. 

Then all of a sudden me and my brothers got sleepy, so we found a cozy blanket. Little bro got cranky when I tried to lay on top of him for added cushion, but because I'm a nice guy, I moved over. 

Maybe when I wake up this collar will be gone. 

What to expect when you're expecting

Amazon recently delivered a new copy of Your Labrador Retriever Puppy, Month by Month. I had to get a new book when at about 8 months of age, Gracie could stand it no longer and ripped my original How to Train a Lab Puppy to shreds. 

Gracie, December 2005

In the new book, I found this commentary:

"You may have heard the old wives' tale that chocolate Labs are more hyperactive. In reality, there's no difference in the personality of any particular color."

Hmm...

Naming conventions

Does a puppy become the name you give him?

I had Gracie's name picked out long before I found her. Gracie is named after my favorite Sandra Bullock character - Gracie Hart from the move Miss Congeniality). Gracie grew into her name. She is funny and decidedly not graceful or ladylike. 

And now there's Gus. Except Gus almost wasn't Gus. He was almost Carson. 

Carson is another favorite character of mine, this time from the hit British drama Downton Abbey.  Carson is the head butler. He serves the family. But even more so, he cares deeply for the family and protects them. Perfect qualities for a companion dog.

Except he almost wasn't Carson either.  He was almost Reacher. 

Reacher is the ex-Army drifter traveling the country righting wrongs in the novels by Lee Child. To my mind a dog named Reacher would be tough, confident, and in charge. 

Then I thought about Gracie and knew there could only be one alpha dog in the family and while I hoped it would be me, I know deep down it is Gracie. 

And then I landed on Gus. I'm borrowing this nickname from my great-grandfather and great-great-grandfather, both named Agustus. I have a series of letters my great-great-grandfather wrote during the Civil War to his fiance and then wife, Mary. From those letters, I've been able to derive a sketch of who he was: loyal, determined, loving, and funny.  These are all qualities I would love to have in my next dog.

I haven't met Gus yet, but I know this is his name. 

Cinco de Mayo

Cinco de Mayo. May 5. Just another Sunday. 

That is until I got the email. I had forgotten about this person in the little town of Scio, south of Salem. I had forgotten that a litter was planned for this summer. But I had not forgotten the sting of missing out on a sweet black Lab in January. 

But the breeder remembered. And now she announced her two chocolate Labs, Chloe and Odie just had a litter of eight chocolates and one yellow. She wanted to know - "did I still want first pick of the males?"

Did I?

My quest for a Lab puppy had waned since losing out on the black Lab puppy earlier in the year. But isn't that what they say...as soon as you stop looking, it happens?

Within the hour I had sent my deposit for first pick of the chocolate males. 

Next weekend, June 1, I'll meet the little boy that will rock my world. And Gracie's world. 

Let the adventures begin!