My first few days as a dog owner

Until about three minutes ago, I was typing with my arms fully outstretched, my neck turned nearly to Exorcist levels, with my laptop turned 45 degrees from it's usual resting place. Krista had fallen asleep at my feet. I'd been petting her and rubbing her tummy (reward for seemingly learning "Down"), so I should really blame myself. If I were a more tyrannical leader, I might have made her move. But I figure there is some wisdom behind that old proverb, "Let sleeping dogs lie." I did just that. Actually, I reached for my camera. But fiddling around with the batteries aroused her and set her on alert. She likes being photographed about as much as Judson, it seems. I am now free and back with my laptop in its customary position.

I guess it should be obvious by now that we adopted Krista. Here's what she looks like, post-nap, when I call her while holding a scary electronic thing in front of my normally friendly face:


I think the first few days of any life change are the toughest. When I started losing my extra pounds, I was pretty sure that I'd either die of hunger or murder someone for at least a week. And I was eating 1700 calories per day! I try to keep that in mind when I get tired of the drama on The Biggest Loser. Anyhow, I digress. Friday was frustrating because Krista pulled like a madwoman on her leash, and then she cried through half the night. I had to wake up at 7:00 Saturday to take her out. Ugh. She was still pulling like crazy on the leash. But I did finally figure out how to fit the Gentle Leader, and things started to look up. Well, that, and all this time, she was completely adorable and pretty obedient inside.


Today, we've been for a couple of longer walks, and she's not pulling so much. She is very good with "sit" inside, by hand signal or by word. Outside, she's starting to figure it out. I've been working on having her sit when I am not looking at her or not facing her, and she's slowly but surely getting it. I've also basically taught her to lie down, and she is doing better with "stay." Leave it is an issue, because if I use treats in my hand, she usually looks at me, confused, and then sits. I usually figure that's close enough. If I put the treat on the ground, she won't even go for it if it's near me. I have to turn away for her to attempt to get it, and then I'm not usually quick enough to sidetrack her with a treat she prefers. I really wish she had a greater affinity for toys, because I think it'd be easier to train her with those. My theory is that no one gave her toys when she was a puppy, so she doesn't know what to do with them.

I think the funniest thing about her so far is that she attempts to bury her bones under the pad in her crate.

We've also been very impressed with how polite she generally is. Today, we were lazy and ate dinner while sitting on the couch. She lay down and slept on the dining room rug.

The next week or two will probably be tough as we figure out how to adapt our schedules to fit Krista while she still adapts to walking on leash and to walking on concrete and asphalt. Even if she were already great on leash, she wouldn't be ready to run because the pads on her little feet need to toughen up. I'm sure that we'll come through it just fine. Life as a dog owner is pretty darn rewarding so far.