Weekend recap
Mar. 6th, 2006 09:38 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
wordinistaWell, this weekend was... not nearly long enough, actually. Granted, you could argue that, for me, every day is a weekend, but I still really enjoy the time I get with Tora-kun. I don't remember anything of Saturday, which is kind of sad. I think there was a lot of napping involved, since I still haven't been getting a lot of sleep lately (for puppy-related reasons).
Actually, here's the puppy-related reason for my lack of sleep: crate-training.
Yes, still.
No, the problem isn't the whimpering/howling. That's pretty much done and over with. He only whimpers if he knows something fun is going on beyond reach of his paws. The problem is him sleeping overnight in the crate without potty accidents.
I'd thought we had gotten a handle on this a week or so ago. The crate was adjusted so he could only turn around and lay down, and he was starting to have consecutive nights of dryness. Granted, we had to take his water up an hour or two before bedtime, but this was a small price to pay for no puppy pee in the crate. And thenall hell broke loose I changed his kibble. Had to do it, really. The corn product in the kibble I was giving him was causing an allergic reaction, and he was scratching/chewing himself like crazy. I started weaning in the new kibble on a Monday, and he started having overnight accidents in the crate starting Tuesday morning. I thought it was a fluke, so I cleaned the crate, treated it with Nature's Miracle, and dealt with it.
Next morning, same story.
I didn't want him to get into the habit of going in his crate, so it was time to figure out a plan of attack. So, I set an alarm for 4:30 am, and let him out to potty. This created two problems: (a) he didn't want to go BACK into his crate, and (b) there was still a teeny puddle there when I went out at 6:30 to let him out of his crate for the day. Again, I cleaned the crate with Nature's Miracle and went on with my day.
Next, we looked again at the crate divider as a potential problem. There was no way -- NO WAY -- I could make his area any smaller. I just couldn't. But as Tora-kun and I were watching Darwin nap, we noticed something interesting: he sleeps best when he can stretch way the hell out. The way the crate was, he could lay down, but he couldn't stretch out and get comfortable. And if he couldn't get comfortable, chances are, he wouldn't sleep as well, which (we reasoned) would invite more potential for potty accidents. At that point we decided to commit a cardinal sin against puppy crate training: we took the divider out. This changed things with the crate drastically (mostly, it made it easier to coax Darwin into the crate, which I REALLY LIKE).
I was still hesitant to try him out on a full night's sleep in the crate, especially since his system's been all messed up with the kibble-change, so I was breaking up the night -- putting him to bed at 11:00, setting an alarm for a potty-break at 3:30, and then another at 6:30. This was working all right for a few days. Then I tried bumping him up from four and a half hours to five hours -- and found a teeny puppy puddle for my troubles. (Mind you, during this entire time, we're doing The Great Kibble Change, and he's been asking to go outside a LOT more often during the day.)
Needless to say, my sleep patterns have been so fucked up lately, it's not funny.
I'm still blaming the kibble-change, though. And we're now into week 2 of kibble-weaning (one part old kibble to three parts new), and should be done with that before much longer. We'll see how well he does after he's completely on the new kibble. I mean, that makes sense, doesn't it? Changing his food is throwing his entire system out of whack (even changing it bit by bit, as we've been doing), and that would affect his bladder too, wouldn't it?
Anyway, that's where we stood until now. But last night? Last night was an anomaly that blew everything out of the water.
It was about ten-thirty, and I was on the couch, watching the Oscars. I had, at some point, fallen asleep sitting up, and Tora-kun came out and was like, "Holy shit, just go to bed already. Put Darwin in his crate and go to bed."
Me: *sleepily* No, can't. Gotta wait.
TK: Like a half hour's going to make a difference.
Me: *is unable to argue that logic, because, tired*
As I was setting my 3:30 alarm, TK looked at me and said, "Okay. You look like hell. Like, you really look like hell. Why not just skip the wake-up this once? I mean, cleaning up a puddle is a small price to pay for seven hours of consecutive sleep. And you obviously need the sleep."
I would've argued, but... yeah. Tired. So, I set an alarm for 6:00 am, and promptly passed out. 11:00 to 6:00 = seven hours of cratedom for the D-man.
Guess what I didn't find in the crate this morning?
So... yeah. I don't know what the variable is between a dry night in the crate and a not-dry night in the crate, but I really wish I could find it, because, holy shit, that was a nice seven hours of sleep. Maybe this is the first sign that his system is getting used to the kibble change. I hope so. I really hope so. Because I could get used to not cleaning up puddles in the morning.
(Note: Another variable to consider -- rather than cleaning up the puddle with Nature's Miracle, I cleaned it up with a water/vinegar mix, because we were almost out of NM. I've read that the water/vinegar mix worked well to counteract the ammonia in the urine, so I gave that a try. I suppose it's possible that the water/vinegar worked better to kill the scent, but I'm not sure.)
Anyway -- Saturday was pretty lazy. Sunday was Grampa's birthday, AND we were having a new refrigerator delivered (OMG, the new fridge is love, seriously). After the fridge got delivered, we brought Darwin over to the party. We were both a little nervous about doing this, because it was a mix of adults and kids he'd never met before, and Mom's dog, and just general chaos, and we really weren't sure how he'd react.
Long story short? OMG, he was so good. Like, people were coming to us and telling us how impressed they were that he was so well-behaved.
!!!!
He was really gentle around my little cousins (who are something like four and six or five and seven -- I can never keep track, but the four year old is a little skittish around dogs since my mother's terrier nipped her a while back [not the dog's fault IMO]), and one of my uncles was totally ready to bring Darwin home with him. (Actually, he asked for the name of the breeder -- he really liked Darwin, and has been thinking about getting a dog. He'd been torn between an Akita or a German Shepherd, but Darwin totally won him over.) In fact, both of my cousins were asking him if they could take Darwin home with them. He's got back problems (a police officer, injured on-duty), and he doesn't want a dog that'll pull him down the street. I pointed out that Darwin's taking to leash-training really well, even after just a few days of it. (Hell, if he gets one, I might even be able to help him with the super-basic training later on.)
The only problem that came was with Zoe -- Mom's Cairn Terrier. Zoe is usually the sweetest, most loving dog you'll ever meet. But she wasn't socialized very well around other dogs, and she's not really sure of Darwin, who is already bigger than she is, and wants nothing more than to play with her. At one point, he tried to play with her, and she snapped at him and he yipped, stumbling backwards. We all thought that she'd nipped him on the nose (to put him in his place), but he wasn't bleeding anywhere on his muzzle. After a few seconds, we realized he was bleeding. In his haste to get away from Zoe, he'd bitten his tongue.
Go ahead and laugh. We did.
The rest of the day and into the night, Darwin kept his distance from Zoe. (Though there was one sketchy moment when she pulled her lips back and snarled at him, because he was in a spot that was "hers" -- lying at my grandfather's feet.)
Grampa's birthday was a lot of fun -- Mom's been thinking about having a little party in April to celebrate Grampa surviving his heart attack (he had it a year ago). There will probably also be a party to commemorate the anniversary of his last radiation treatment. (Random note regarding Grampa's health: He's been doing very well lately. There was a brief scare when one of his follow-up scans showed a mark on his kidney, but that turned out to be nothing, thank goodness.)
Actually, here's the puppy-related reason for my lack of sleep: crate-training.
Yes, still.
No, the problem isn't the whimpering/howling. That's pretty much done and over with. He only whimpers if he knows something fun is going on beyond reach of his paws. The problem is him sleeping overnight in the crate without potty accidents.
I'd thought we had gotten a handle on this a week or so ago. The crate was adjusted so he could only turn around and lay down, and he was starting to have consecutive nights of dryness. Granted, we had to take his water up an hour or two before bedtime, but this was a small price to pay for no puppy pee in the crate. And then
Next morning, same story.
I didn't want him to get into the habit of going in his crate, so it was time to figure out a plan of attack. So, I set an alarm for 4:30 am, and let him out to potty. This created two problems: (a) he didn't want to go BACK into his crate, and (b) there was still a teeny puddle there when I went out at 6:30 to let him out of his crate for the day. Again, I cleaned the crate with Nature's Miracle and went on with my day.
Next, we looked again at the crate divider as a potential problem. There was no way -- NO WAY -- I could make his area any smaller. I just couldn't. But as Tora-kun and I were watching Darwin nap, we noticed something interesting: he sleeps best when he can stretch way the hell out. The way the crate was, he could lay down, but he couldn't stretch out and get comfortable. And if he couldn't get comfortable, chances are, he wouldn't sleep as well, which (we reasoned) would invite more potential for potty accidents. At that point we decided to commit a cardinal sin against puppy crate training: we took the divider out. This changed things with the crate drastically (mostly, it made it easier to coax Darwin into the crate, which I REALLY LIKE).
I was still hesitant to try him out on a full night's sleep in the crate, especially since his system's been all messed up with the kibble-change, so I was breaking up the night -- putting him to bed at 11:00, setting an alarm for a potty-break at 3:30, and then another at 6:30. This was working all right for a few days. Then I tried bumping him up from four and a half hours to five hours -- and found a teeny puppy puddle for my troubles. (Mind you, during this entire time, we're doing The Great Kibble Change, and he's been asking to go outside a LOT more often during the day.)
Needless to say, my sleep patterns have been so fucked up lately, it's not funny.
I'm still blaming the kibble-change, though. And we're now into week 2 of kibble-weaning (one part old kibble to three parts new), and should be done with that before much longer. We'll see how well he does after he's completely on the new kibble. I mean, that makes sense, doesn't it? Changing his food is throwing his entire system out of whack (even changing it bit by bit, as we've been doing), and that would affect his bladder too, wouldn't it?
Anyway, that's where we stood until now. But last night? Last night was an anomaly that blew everything out of the water.
It was about ten-thirty, and I was on the couch, watching the Oscars. I had, at some point, fallen asleep sitting up, and Tora-kun came out and was like, "Holy shit, just go to bed already. Put Darwin in his crate and go to bed."
Me: *sleepily* No, can't. Gotta wait.
TK: Like a half hour's going to make a difference.
Me: *is unable to argue that logic, because, tired*
As I was setting my 3:30 alarm, TK looked at me and said, "Okay. You look like hell. Like, you really look like hell. Why not just skip the wake-up this once? I mean, cleaning up a puddle is a small price to pay for seven hours of consecutive sleep. And you obviously need the sleep."
I would've argued, but... yeah. Tired. So, I set an alarm for 6:00 am, and promptly passed out. 11:00 to 6:00 = seven hours of cratedom for the D-man.
Guess what I didn't find in the crate this morning?
So... yeah. I don't know what the variable is between a dry night in the crate and a not-dry night in the crate, but I really wish I could find it, because, holy shit, that was a nice seven hours of sleep. Maybe this is the first sign that his system is getting used to the kibble change. I hope so. I really hope so. Because I could get used to not cleaning up puddles in the morning.
(Note: Another variable to consider -- rather than cleaning up the puddle with Nature's Miracle, I cleaned it up with a water/vinegar mix, because we were almost out of NM. I've read that the water/vinegar mix worked well to counteract the ammonia in the urine, so I gave that a try. I suppose it's possible that the water/vinegar worked better to kill the scent, but I'm not sure.)
Anyway -- Saturday was pretty lazy. Sunday was Grampa's birthday, AND we were having a new refrigerator delivered (OMG, the new fridge is love, seriously). After the fridge got delivered, we brought Darwin over to the party. We were both a little nervous about doing this, because it was a mix of adults and kids he'd never met before, and Mom's dog, and just general chaos, and we really weren't sure how he'd react.
Long story short? OMG, he was so good. Like, people were coming to us and telling us how impressed they were that he was so well-behaved.
!!!!
He was really gentle around my little cousins (who are something like four and six or five and seven -- I can never keep track, but the four year old is a little skittish around dogs since my mother's terrier nipped her a while back [not the dog's fault IMO]), and one of my uncles was totally ready to bring Darwin home with him. (Actually, he asked for the name of the breeder -- he really liked Darwin, and has been thinking about getting a dog. He'd been torn between an Akita or a German Shepherd, but Darwin totally won him over.) In fact, both of my cousins were asking him if they could take Darwin home with them. He's got back problems (a police officer, injured on-duty), and he doesn't want a dog that'll pull him down the street. I pointed out that Darwin's taking to leash-training really well, even after just a few days of it. (Hell, if he gets one, I might even be able to help him with the super-basic training later on.)
The only problem that came was with Zoe -- Mom's Cairn Terrier. Zoe is usually the sweetest, most loving dog you'll ever meet. But she wasn't socialized very well around other dogs, and she's not really sure of Darwin, who is already bigger than she is, and wants nothing more than to play with her. At one point, he tried to play with her, and she snapped at him and he yipped, stumbling backwards. We all thought that she'd nipped him on the nose (to put him in his place), but he wasn't bleeding anywhere on his muzzle. After a few seconds, we realized he was bleeding. In his haste to get away from Zoe, he'd bitten his tongue.
Go ahead and laugh. We did.
The rest of the day and into the night, Darwin kept his distance from Zoe. (Though there was one sketchy moment when she pulled her lips back and snarled at him, because he was in a spot that was "hers" -- lying at my grandfather's feet.)
Grampa's birthday was a lot of fun -- Mom's been thinking about having a little party in April to celebrate Grampa surviving his heart attack (he had it a year ago). There will probably also be a party to commemorate the anniversary of his last radiation treatment. (Random note regarding Grampa's health: He's been doing very well lately. There was a brief scare when one of his follow-up scans showed a mark on his kidney, but that turned out to be nothing, thank goodness.)
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no subject
Date: 2006-03-06 03:10 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-03-06 03:25 pm (UTC)Either he bit his own tongue, or Zoe bit it. And... I don't know, but the latter seems a whole lot less probable. :) Particularly since, when we opened his mouth to see, there wasn't much of a bite. Just a tiny bit of red on his tongue. Couldn't even really SEE a bite.
There was a lot of, "Awwwwwwwwwwpoorbaby!" cooing after that. And none of it from me, shock of shocks. ;) (Most of it coming from my dog-luvvin uncle, who is such a manly man that it was a RIOT seeing him go to goo over the puppy.)
no subject
Date: 2006-03-06 06:16 pm (UTC)Here's to hoping for another dry night :D
no subject
Date: 2006-03-06 10:08 pm (UTC)Seriously -- I'm impossible to deal with when I'm overtired. I'm illogical and overemotional, and craaaaaanky. It's best for all involved that I get my sleep. Really.
no subject
Date: 2006-03-06 09:57 pm (UTC)Awwww. Poor puppy. *coddles*
(You know, I think I'm fangirling your dog. I think I actually fangirl your dog more than I fangirl Harry Potter — but, then, I'm just like that with dogs. Please don't think I'm a creep.)
no subject
Date: 2006-03-06 10:06 pm (UTC)(You know, I think I'm fangirling your dog. I think I actually fangirl your dog more than I fangirl Harry Potter — but, then, I'm just like that with dogs. Please don't think I'm a creep.)
ROFLMAO!! Awwww! I don't think you're a creep. It's kind of funny, but people just gravitate to Darwin. He's just so... I don't know. It's something beyond the cuteness, I think. He's just so damned sweet. Of course, I don't post about the days where he makes me want to tear my hair out. And he STILL requires SO MUCH COAXING to get him into the crate. (Today he wouldn't go in, and I had to leave and he couldn't come with me, so I broke down and used a slice of cheese. That worked, but he was still regarding me with "HOW COULD YOU TRICK ME LIKE THAT!?" eyes.)
I think it's kind of cute that he's fangirled before he's even old enough to drive -- err, you get what I mean. ;D
no subject
Date: 2006-03-07 03:27 am (UTC)I love hearing your puppy news. I've been kind of bummed since we lost our dog to cancer three weeks ago. It was very sudden, too. So I need my vicarious puppy news.
It's seems that every time you post, Darwin has made some progress. And puppies are adorable for a reason. It's how they live long enough to become adult dogs.