Dog Training

Advice to help you understand and mold your dog into a life-long family friend, establish pack order and shape good behavior.

NEW PUPPY ANTICS, FIRST DOG ACCEPTANCE

Maureen Coyle

Bringing a rambunctious new puppy into the home can present an adjustment problem for your older dog and the rest of the family but this wise owner made it easy.

The new puppy is cracking me up! First, there were the figure-eights fraps all over the house, then the reaction from Cyril, my usually sedate older dog.

When I asked Cyril where the mini-tennis ball went (it was the only one that could fit in Tiny Girl’s mouth) he looked puzzled. I repeated my question with emphasis on “tennis ball.” He jumped up and ran out to the rose-bed where I had accidentally tossed his first bouncy-ball ages ago. He did a little pantomime of “looking” for a ball, then turned to me with a doggy laugh.

Well, of course, if one of the balls is missing, Mommy must have thrown it in the rose bed. Hahaha! He remembered that from when I meant to throw it across the yard for him but missed. His trick didn’t work.

Cyril and I both knew the mini-tennis ball was in the dining room with the puppy, he was trying to be above it all, but it is hard because Deirdre’s puppy antics and bouncing around keep interrupting his manly persona.

Cyril doesn’t seem to mind though. He just drops the toys so that the puppy can play with them. I think he is giving her a much-deserved puppy license.

We call, “Cyril, come ‘ere!” and we hear a little jingle from his harness and the faint sound of prancing feet. We call, “Deirdre, come ‘ere!” and there is a thunder of puppy feet and she comes in like a cavalry charge. Cyril has always had ninja-paws. Deirdre, not so much.

Anyway, little Deirdre can now carry Cyril’s bouncy ball but it required some jaw-stretching on her part. Unlike Cyril, she actually brings it back all the way.

Puppy now knows “Go pee-pee” in addition to “Sit!” I think her next trick is going to be “Sit Pretty!”

She’s a natural as she’s already done the weirdest “Sit Pretty!” I’ve ever seen. She was doing a very good Sit-Stay but when the treat appeared above, her front paws levitated and curled up over her tummy. Utterly adorable.

Cyril loves her and she worships Cyril. He seems to be taking it as his job to protect her and teach her the ropes and she is just as set on teaching him that life isn’t that serious.

Fresh marrow bones must be managed carefully. So, “special food zone” rules apply, and the bones need to be picked up at the end of each chew session. Eventually, they will become “old” and boring and not worth burying, but, until then, caution is advised.

Cyril, despite being just a big puppy himself, does not quite understand the need for puppy growing-sleep. Once, he woke Deirdre up because he was convinced she was having a nightmare. Then, just this afternoon, he woke her up just because he wanted to play with her. He really wants to wrestle, but she’s not big enough yet, at least according to Deirdre.

We heard play barks and thought it was Deirdre at first. But then we saw Cyril’s play bows and his play-yips, and it was Cyril looking to play with his little sister.

Now they are both completely pooped. All that playing and chewing marrow bones takes it out of a puppy.

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