Poison

This morning, Guinness found the irises in bloom and ate one or two. This afternoon, he began vomiting which lasted intermittently for over two weeks. :(

The Chase Game has gone too far

This pathos plant was in this antique dust bin in front of the fireplace for years. Until Guinness, it was a very healthy plant and had to be cut back regularly. Guinness took over the pruning responsibilities and carried it to extreme until there was barely a stalk left. Tonight, I heard a noise in the living room that I did not recognize. When I checked to see what he was up to, he had the pathos pot in his mouth. The remaining plant parts were strewn on the floor. Once he saw me, the chase game began with him spilling wet dirt from the pot all over the living room and dining room carpets, finally dumping the whole pot in the dining room, yet still carrying the pot in his mouth.

The Guard Dog

After class, Grant was watching TV in the bedroom, and Guinness sacked out on our bed. Grant phoned telling me to come up to take Guin's picture as he was so cute. I snuck quietly upstairs to not disturb him. But I surprised him! He went into defensive mode, barked, and charged me. Yay! We have a guard dog! The photographic moment was lost.

Back to School

Tonight Guinness began Intermediate classes at PetSmart. Unlike our last school, this one allows the dogs to play together before class. Guinness’s classmates are Marley, a goldydoodle (Golden/poodle mix), and Snorts, a pug/Jack Russell mix. Guinness always loves everyone, but Marley does not like Guinness, though Guin is very submissive. Snorts thought Guinness was OK, but Snorts’ parents were worried about giant Guinness’s boisterous play with small Snorts, plus he wanted to sit on Snorts. I told the owners that sitting on him was a sign of affection, as he used to sit on Hershey and roll over him as if he were a jungle gym. Since Guinness has learned most of the exercises, he served as an example. He was so attentive that he responded when the other dog’s handlers called, “Come.” When I left him on a sit stay, walked away 20 feet, and called him, the teacher complimented him on his focused, cute bouncy run. His classmates know “shake your paw” from their previous PetSmart training, and now they all need to learn “roll over.” There are a couple of red flags about his new class: their system of training uses only treats, NO corrections! Oh, my… This dog needs correction or we will never survive, let alone learn anything. Also the teacher is ambidextrous about heeling: you can teach your dog to walk on either side of you. I think that obedience training should be an exact science, but I will hold my reservations on that issue until I see how everything pans out.

The Ball Juggler

Today was yard maintenance day. They mowed and aerated the lawn. While the aerator was running (you can hear it in the background), the other guy juggled Guinness’s balls! Too funny!

The Chase Game

The Chase Game is so much fun for Guinness. He has not chewed anything up of any consequence yet. He likes taking something he knows he is not to have to make us chase him. Our breeder told me recently to grab his favorite toy and sit in the middle of the floor playing with it until he comes to get it. There isn’t a toy that he likes enough to come for, but he does like treats. So… would you believe…. we TREAT him for playing the Chase Game! But it works! He drops the forbidden object for a tiny bone, small treat, or an ice cube! Now is that all bad? We try to keep his favorite Chase Game items out of reach. I now keep my outdoor doggie shoes on top of the curio cabinet in the living room! Makes a lovely decoration. Today he grabbed this take-out food container off the kitchen counter. He didn’t really want to play with it; he just knew it was a forbidden thing which would start a Chase Game.