Face Plant

I was Feeling guilty on Friday as I was gone all day and Walker had to stay in his kennel, so being a good owner I decided to take him for a walk on his leash down our road.  As I got to the end of the driveway I decided to go left instead of right.

As we go by the neighbors place he has two dogs that are penned up but put up a good fuss of barking and jumping and I have used that as training for Walker to not get excited.  That worked good so I thought beings we are out and it is not raining lets go up to the corner and up the other road as it was a nice evening.  Walker was a bit heiper and I knew he had been bored and was ready to play so onward we went.  Pass two other houses and just hear the dogs barking from behind their place and as we passed the second one I didn't even know they had a dog. 

The light is starting to fade so I think best turn back, which we did, and BAM!   out comes a black dog barking but not aggressive but Walker went nuts.  I tried to hold him and turned my back on the black dog because he scared me, BIG MISTAKE.  Later I realized he hadn't even gone off of the black top of his own drive way. With that excitement for Walker, around me he went and the leash caught me at shin level and down I went into the gravel, face down, still holding onto Walker.

My first thought was Who saw me fall??? How embarrassing?  Well of course no one.  I gathered my self up and was shaking so hard I thought I can just walk the rest of the way home.  Then I felt the blood coming off of my head and my glasses were in my hand.  Still holding onto Walker and I remembered I had my cell phone in my pocket so I called John's cell and no answer so I called the house and said "Come and get me and bring a towel".  I thought I told him the right place where I was but I was a road off, he found me tho just fine.  Still shaking it was crazy.
While waiting for John a neighbor drove by and waved.  I was far enough off of the road she couldn't tell that I had blood all over my face.

There will be no pictures of this fiasco .  Feeling so stupid and silly but also relieved that it wasn't worse.  I now have new battle scars and a memory of walking with Walker.



John loaded  Walker up in the back of the Jeep and home we went.  John did the first aid care and we decided no stitches needed.  My fear was my front teeth.  I was really feeling sore and bruised and worried about the teeth but just the inside of my lip had a little cut.

Where the blood was coming from was on my nose where my glasses had dug into the left side of my nose and produced a nice gouge.  A fair size bump on the right side of my forehead and a scrap on my upper lip.

My glasses are really scraped up but as far as I can tell the frame is fine.

Thank goodness I didn't give my old glasses away to the Lions for people less fortunate, so at least I have something to wear for short times when I need to read something, but they sit right on the cut spot of my nose.

Not as much bruising as I expected when I got up this morning but we will see as the day progresses.

Facination with Kleenx

No matter how hard I try Walker can find a piece of Kleenex and begin his ritual of tearing and shredding it to pieces in just  matter of a few seconds, or at least until I come upon him and his escapade.

Thinking I had it all covered, I removed the waste paper basket that I keep by my make up table, where I would put my used Kleenex and little things like that.

Well today I found him by my side of the bed well hidden from view and he had several full Kleenex.  Not sure where he even go them but I sure ruined his fun in a Minnesota minute, by grabbing his sweet little face and ripping it out of his mouth.

Kleenex is easy to deal with but garden hoses.  There has been a garden hose laying from the outdoor faucet to the water trough since Walker came to live here in September and it has been just fine.
One day last week I noticed it had a leak in it and was spraying a small stream out onto the grass.  No big deal I thought, but as I looked closer I could see it was just one of a few little teeth marks that had bitten through the hose.  That is easy to fix.  Just get a new end and redo the hose because it was close to an end.  Problem solved I figured.  Now all that I had to wait for was John( hubby) to decide he could take the time to fix it.

A couple of days later I looked out the window and low and behold there were 3 sections of hose that had been chewed apart from the main hose.  When he did that I am not sure.

I had hurt my neck and back and had been out of commission for a couple of days and had not taken him on any walks or any time to work him.

Truly I know he was bored and he decided to just show me.  If you don't pay attention to me I will fix it so you do.

The digging seems to be still one of his things that are most fun like the Honeysuckle plant.  I found over hidden behind the greenhouse a hole and he had dug up a Money plant.  No big deal it never yields money like it's name sake, but it is fun to watch in the summer as it changes from purple flowers to little discs like coins.  SO I fixed Walker.  I filled in the hole and went around the yard and found several piles of his "doggie doo" and placed it on top of the hole.  I will keep you posted on  that plan.

Spelling

This blogging is about as nerve wracking as raising a puppy.

I apologize for the spelling.  It should have been Un-attended.  Anyone who chances reading this pathetic blog I hope will take mercy on a frustrated puppy owner.

Honeysuckle

Label that was on the  plant

Plant in jug hoping for the best

Here's what left of my struggling Honeysucke that I had pampered for a couple of years.

In my post about digging I was still ok with "He is just a puppy" but after last night my patience is very thin at this point.

Walker is just like an infant .  I can't leave him attended for more than a minute because he finds something to do that is going to upset me.  I was dealing with the other plant ok  but last night was a topper. As I was taking Walker to his kennel for the night I stumbled across the other plant.  Best part about that was it still have the root system in tact.  So I put it in the gallon jug and waited until morning and I will plant it again and take some more starts from this one.

Yesterday he also chewed a garden hose in half.  I don't even want to go there on that story.

The Bell

Several years ago  a family member had trained his dogs to ring a bell that was by the door when they needed to go outside.  What a great idea I said to self.  So when Walker came to live here of course I thought I should do the same.  How cute that would be.

So with the brilliant idea I searched out the house because I knew I had a bell some where in all of my treasures.  Sure enough I found it and hung it by the sliding door out to the deck .  Perfect spot was from the hanging macrame hanger that I have a beautiful  plant.

Naturally the thing to do was when ever I took Walker out the door to go do his business I would take his paw and touch the bell.  Doesn't that make sense on how he should learn??  

Yes he indeed learned how to ring the bell but not just to go outside.  He did it for several reasons.  One it made noise, 2 it got my attention and 3 it was something to  play with.  After some time I was getting irritated with his games and thought this back fired on me.  I put the bell up so he couldn't ring it so then he would just push on the planter until it knocked into the wall with a thud!  NOW that really upset me.  My wall was getting dented and paint getting marked.  I gave in and put the bell back down.  For some reason it all came together that it was a good idea to ring the bell on his part.  If I don't respond right away to his ringing the bell I hear a whining so then I best get the door open.

He loves noises. Empty pop cans that he can pounce on. They make an unusual sound,  balls that have squeak to them.  Of course I can't forget the ice cubes.  He still loves the sound of the ice maker when I get ice water .  I certainly want to make him happy so I drop a couple on the floor for him to scoot around and play with before they melt.

Today we made a trip to our local feed store and I asked the owner if it was OK for Walker to come in.  Egads!  the smells in the feed store were so awesome for him.  He was like a kid in a candy store.  Yeah Mom lets come here again.  I think that was what he was thinking.

After that visit we stopped at the fire station to visit and more fun and people that wanted to pet him and tell him he was so pretty and on and on.  His manners were a bit lacking but I think that has something to do with the person on the other end of the leash.  Anyway it gave me more courage to take him places and get him socialized.  What a day.

Digging

Where do I start?  I thought it was so cute to watch Walker dig a hole and bury a bone that I gave him. 

Thinking that was all he would do about digging sent me into a situation of wanting to yank his toe nails out of his paws.  Now that I write that out it sounds barbaric and I wouldn't do that ever but at that moment in time when I saw that he had dug up and entire Honeysuckle plant that I had been giving mega TLC this last year to grow up over my arbor, I was hit with so many emotions I was beside myself.


He knows what the collar is that can give a shock.  I have used the shock part only once but even the noise that I can send really gets his attention.  After I found my Honeysuckle dug up I immediately marched into the house and retrieved that collar and put it on him.  Off he went to pout.   I didn't care I was upset!!!


That plan was two fold because I wanted to plant some day lilies that needed to get into the ground and I knew he would think I was playing and he would want to dig as I was digging so I knew it would work but I don't know where he went to pout.  To the barn I suspect to be with the steers that were feeding.  They wouldn't hurt him.  They were his friends.


Like I told you he had learned to escape under the fake wire I had put up but while we were out in the rain and wind John ran a real hot wire and he seems to know that it is serious business.  He hasn't hit it yet but it will happen I think.

We must practice all that we learned in puppy class everyday but when the weather is so dreadful it is discouraging to go outside.

I will move the Jeep out of the garage and work in there I think today.

OH!!! I forgot about more holes that he  proceeded to dig in the dog run.  It is so amazing that for all the years his predecessor, Braxton, lived in that dog run never dug.  He was about 4 though ,when we moved here so maybe he was past the digging.  My memory fails me thinking of when Braxton was a puppy.
I relate that to giving child birth.  Once it is over and a beautiful baby is all cuddly and cooing in your arms you forget, just as I did.

Survival is the word of the day for me and puppy Walker.

No Diploma

Last class tonight at puppy class. The disappointment was overwhelming.  Not just for Walker and me but for all of the other class mates.  We all had a good report from our trainer saying "Good Job and Well Done" but not diploma to hang on our kennel wall.

Speaking for myself I was the most relaxed I have been in class all these weeks.  Not sure why, but I suspect beings my husband wasn't there watching, with the critizing eye that he usually has could have been some of the cause of my being so tense at previous classes.  

You know I have to blame someone and beings John wasn't there he was my target of blame.  What ever the reason I felt I did better or I should say I had confidence.  The trainer even complimented me and no more probation.  So  I consider that a good night.
Walker does get bored when we have to sit and watch the others go through their paces so a couple of times he started to act up so finally I have learned to just walk him around and have him re sit and that seems to work.

I was so proud of his sit and stay tonight in class ,over and over. It was like my child getting an A for good behaviour in school, but in reality I guess that is what it was.  

Walker is like my kid, now that all my boys are grown and left the nest. One of the  greatest thing having a dog instead of a child  is when he really gets on my nerves I can put him in his kennel and close the door.  For some reason child services wouldn't look kindly on me locking my sons in a kennel .


Now that  I bragged about him I need to tell on him.  Late this after noon there was knock on the door and the neighbor from up the road was on my front porch with his dog on his leash with Walker bouncing off the wall with excitement to have a friend to play with.  Problem with that was Walker had escaped from the back yard through the hot wire that we had across the drive way.  In all reality the wire was fake.  It didn't have a charge to it but I had put the red flags on a wire and Walker thought it was fake until today.

So tomorrow guess what is going to be done?? You got it.  There will be a charge hooked up and I think it will only take once and he will see that it is really really not a good idea to go running through it.

I breaks my heart when he gets bit by the hot wire but I would rather that than have him hit by a car.

My desire for Walker is to really be obedient and then I will think about some further training. The trainer enforced that is so important so now it is my job to be sure and work him everyday.  He will only be as good as I am in training him and to show him I AM THE ALFA one.
He has some temper tantrums sometimes. Those drive me nuts and I lose my cool, not so unlike in the days raising 3 little boys that could really test me.

Walker loves to jump so I would like to see him be a flyer and go after a Frisbee like on TV.  So whose job it?? You got it, ME.