This n That

EO has a little bit of a hangover today... I just talked to him. He's very subdued, but it's clear he is looking forward to our visit. Me, too! I love Scotland! (Oh, and I love EO, too, of course.)

The other night when I got home from work, the weather was fantastic. So I poured a glass of wine and took Kira out onto our big wraparound porch and opened the mail. We live on a cul-de-sac that leads into a bike path, and as a result we have more bike and foot traffic than most places. I can’t begin to count all the people who walk their dogs up the street. Kira barked at the first dog that walked by and I shushed her. She “boofed” at the next dog. When the third one went by, she was quiet. I told her what a good girl she was. She was quiet with the next three or four dogs. I was so proud of her. Then a neighbor said hi to me as she walked by, and Kira started barking. So we still need to work on it. But it's great that my vision has come true: Me, sitting on the front porch drinking a glass of wine after a day at work, and my faithful companion, Kira, sitting next to me.

In conjunction with trying to be the calm and assertive pack leader recommended by Cesar Millan, I have also been reading a book called “The Dog Bible” which says you should ignore the bad behavior and reward the good behavior. It seems to work very well for some things. For example, she used to get overly excited when I came home from work, barking and wining, rearing up and putting her paws on me. I like that she is happy to see me (in fact, I love that she's happy to see me), but I don’t want her leaping up on me or knocking me over. I want her to understand that I will pay attention to her after I have put down my bags down and brought in the mail. So, I’ve started ignoring her until she becomes calm and still. I’ve even turned my back to her when she starts to leap up, which she seems to understand. It must be some sort of doggy language. Then as soon as she has relaxed (which happens quickly now), I turn and give her lots of hugs and kisses. She loves hugs and kisses; she is female, after all. And she is SO smart (she is female, after all). In only three days she had figured it all out. Now she waits politely while I put my things down…AND while I go upstairs to change out of my work clothes. Then I come downstairs again and greet her and we go outside so she can do her business. She is very attached to me. I’ve never had a dog of my own, and it’s so gratifying that she’s mine. I don't know what I did to deserve such devotion from a dog.

Daily is trying to make a break for it these days. I opened the door yesterday to let Kira out to do her business, and Daily scooted right under her legs and out the door. I didn't realise it right away. Of course, he's such a goof: he meowed the moment he went out, so, although I did not SEE him go out (because he was under Kira), I heard him. It's like Sadie (long gone now) used to do when she did something naughty. I would not know that she had taken small articles of clothing out of the laundry basket (yes, I'm talking about those) and put them in places of her own choosing, like under the sofa. But when I looked at her, she'd make this loud "meow" as if to say "Nothing." It was an unmistakable meow. And I'd know immediately that I needed to look around to see what she had done. It looks like Daily has the same vocal affliction. So I captured him, brought him back inside the house, and gave him a severe dose of corporal cuddling as recommended by those clever engineers on youtube:



I also call it his "Daily abuse." My little Wolfie cat is a naughty boy as well. He's my little devil cat. I have a magnificent rose garden in front of the house, and I have to be very careful about bringing in cuttings. Like Morticia on the Adamms Family, Wolfie likes to bite the heads off of long-stemmed roses and just leave the stems and thorns. He is a master at redecorating.

Maybe tomorrow I'll tell the Tomato Tale.