Today was a pretty uneventful day. Since it’s pretty cold here (not for Newfie standards of course), we played inside a lot and tried to distract her during her crazy nipping periods (not quite a FRAP) with some obedience training (Sit, Come, Down…). She has picked up Down pretty well now thanks to lots of treats. We’ve found the “Good Owners, Great Dogs” book to be pretty helpful during this past week as we try to figure out ways to correct some of her behaviors. She has starting playing way too hard with us and bites at us quite a bit. These moments are usually very high activity times and FRAPs so we’re hoping that she will be dropping them in the next couple of months and we aren’t dealing with a highly aggressive little girl here. Still seem to be having a little alpha dominance as well but we’re trying. Will be really good when she’s had her vaccinations and we can get her started in a puppy playgroup and some training classes.
My husband was at his wits end today…basically how I was feeling last Wednesday. I was probably making him take more than half the responsibility for the day but since I spend weekdays with her alone I don’t want her starting to listen only to me and obviously they need to develop a bond as well. After she got too rough with him today and bit him pretty hard, he commented that he feels they aren’t bonding at all. I could only say that at least now he knows how I felt on Wednesday and to remember she’s only a 9 week old puppy (which he reminded me of often last week). Although the bad moments we have with her are quite unpleasant and have now made us both think twice about getting her, I think, I have to say that the good moments when she’s rolling around like a little bear or swinging a toy about are still managing to outweigh the bad.
I guess the most exciting thing that has happened today is I got stung by something although I have no idea what. It seems like it could be a wasp sting or something similar but I didn’t feel it sting me and it’s on my calf muscle despite me wearing pants all day. Went to the on call pharmacy in the next nearest town (not the convenience society of America for sure) and the pharmacist didn’t seem alarmed by it so we have some Cortisone cream and I’m hoping that will fix me up. When I noticed it, the area around what appears to be the sting was two shades of bruising, purple and lilac I’d say and there was some stiffness to the tissue around the sting. The bruising, swelling and stiffness have subsided and I’m only feeling a little pain in my leg so I think everything should be ok. I imagine if it was a wasp or yellow jacket or something then the stinger is likely still in my leg so I hope that we can locate it relatively soon and hopefully it will return to normal.
Anyways, she’s had dinner now and we’re basically waiting for her to fall asleep so we can have our own dinner. Maybe she’ll sleep long enough for us to watch an entire movie for a change and eat without distractions. A girl can dream right? lol
