Last week I wrote about my frustration with puppy school. Thank you so much to the peeps who commented. It is really helpful to hear about your experiences. It is also really nice to hear that things will get better. Sometimes I lose sight of that; I think that just because things suck right now they will suck forever. I went to class last week with a shitty, negative attitude and came away from it feeling pretty good. Stella didn't amaze me. She didn't suddenly calm down and behave like an angel. What she did do, is remind me that she's a puppy - a smart, dynamic, sweet puppy. She had made some progress in between last week's class and the week before's class. That small amount of progress shed new light on the situation. I need to stop expecting so much from her. She's not even 6 months old yet and here I am expecting her to be well-behaved and obedient. I'm not letting her be a puppy. The fact that she made a bit of progress showed me that she is teachable. It just takes time and patience and I have resolved to give her more of both. It's time to find the right balance between letting her be a rambuctious puppy and trying to control her bad behaviour.
This week we had a really positive puppy class. It helped that instead of doing the boring sit-stay-come stuff we were doing tricks. I've found my puppy's calling - Stella wants to be a performer. She's such a ham. We had so much fun teaching her to give high-fives and play dead and roll over. At the end of class, the teacher let the dogs run around off leash and Stella didn't try to eat the maltese once. Progress, my friends, progress.
In other Stella news, she's getting her lady bits removed tomorrow. I'm a bit concerned (this probably has something to do with the waiver they make you sign that says if your dog dies they're not at fault) but I'm trying to not freak out. I'm not worried about the actual surgery because I trust Stella's vet; I'm just worried that she'll think we've abandoned her. She doesn't need to stay overnight though, so I'm sure she'll be fine.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Hey Hill!
ReplyDeleteSo glad to hear that you're looking at it differently now. You're totally on the money, puppies need to be puppies. I'm reiterating what you're saying because I need the positive reinforcement while I'm about to strangle two wieners that have ganged up on me and are barking until I lose my sanity.
More on this to come provided I don't break down completely.
Regardless, very happy for you and your adorable Stella.
Sincerely,
Crazy Dog Killer
er
Ben
OMG...this is my third attempt to fill in the word verification correctly. NOT HELPING.
Training a dog is the absolute hardest thing to do. It takes a ton of patience. Puppy school will do absolute wonders. It's one of those things that is hard at first, but will finally click for the puppy somehow.
ReplyDeleteUgh, but until then...good luck!
Also--your puppy is absolutely ADORABLE.
Sounds like you've now got great perspective about puppies! And the operation? Though not fun, just imagine all the doting you'll be able to do when she's feeling a little sluggish at home. Hope everything went well...
ReplyDeletewe recently got the lady bits taken out of both of our dogs at the same time.
ReplyDeletestormy did great! she acted like nothing had even happened.
chewy acted like she might curl up and die at any second.
don't be surprised if she has a couple of accidents for a day or two afterward...otherwise she should be fine.
That's awesome that you have a performing dog...it's a whole lot cooler than a super obedient one. Good luck with puppy surgery and have a great weekend!
ReplyDeleteOh my gosh. I totally could have wrote this myself! I have a 4.5 month old corgi and we are in puppy class too. She is very uncooperative because she just wants to play. I have to remind myself she is just a baby.
ReplyDelete