Bathing a dog

I have decided this is complete impossibility without flooded bathroom floor, myself soaked and Babu trying to escape at every point! Everytime we go out Babu comes home wet, muddy and totally happy. I, on the other hand, have a wet, soggy, smelly dog who passes this smell and mud around my house. So I grab the bull by the horns, or the dog by the legs, fill a bath with cool water and lower my struggling dog into the water. At which point he looks at me in shock and horror and accuses me, with his eyes, of cruelty that is beyond belief! I have just about covered him in very expensive dog shampoo, can’t I use a cheaper alternative, when he decides to leave the bath, flood the floor, cover me in soap and create disaster. My bathroom is not big and it is now covered in water, dog, soap and grumpy owner. I grab dog and try to get him back in the bath. He struggles and I only manage three legs in. He whelps and family start to arrive at the door shouting about dog torture. Well the dog thinks this might be the solution and whimper’s and struggles more. So here I am covered in soap, water and a mood that is not happy, forcing a large leggy hound to stay in the bath, and I do not have enough hands. So now I am leaning on the dog to keep him in the bath, trying to say positive and calming words and also grabbing a large tupperware box to use to rinse off the soap. Another final struggle and he is free, out of the bath and I give up. He is sort of clean, the bath is disgusting and I am completely sodden. There must be a better way……….any ideas?

Rain, mud and footprints on the pillow

Have you seen the advert for ‘vanish’ where the dog leave a perfect small footprint of a perfect white cushion? Well we had a similar episode except is was not one footprint, it was not a perfect paw print shape, and I was a lot more cross. My son took the dog out, forgot the clean and dry process when you return, and then delivered the dog back to me! Thus dog thought he would help me with the bed making and was a bit shocked that help was not wanted. Poor dog. Plus the fact that he does not like the rain very much and we have had a great few days. I have been waiting for weeks to see if he will chase things but so far he really seems most impressed by bumble bees. We have see rabbits and he has run towards them, but then looses interest. Mind you I am quite happy with that at present.

Meanwhile back at home I have had massive tooth problems and have missed two days walks. The tooth is bad and I have a swollen face and appointments next week that I do not want to think about. I am on lots of different tablets but poor Babu is worried that I will not get up and madly chase him round and round. So we are in the wars here and waiting for the rain to stop the pain to end and Matthew, my partner, to recover from his operation this week, oh and babu to stop sneaking off with my daughters favourite slipper socks when she is not looking.

Dog at dusk

Last night we went for our first dusk walk. I was worried about letting Babu off the lead as we were both walking at dusk and walking in the woods. Walking in the woods is difficult as sometimes there is a long run before you hit a fence and one day I know he will run. But the wood walk is a shorter run and it was getting late. I also like to repeat the same walk quite a few times as Babu then will get to know the route and might come back if there is any problem. I was also going to try my new whistle! When Babu came from Gill she called the dogs with a whistle. I have now decided that I must be someone who cannot whistle and although I could practice and improve, making sure Babu would come back is more important. So I now have a dog whistle and we have done some simple games and training at home but never outside. Because of the light I was worried that Babu might loose sight of me so the whistle came too. We were half way through the walk when Babu had just slipped inside the trees. I blew the whistle and he appeared back like a shot racing up and down the pathway. A first success and a great relief. It was a great walk, and dry as the rain had been on and off all day. I took home my tired and happy dog who ate well and slept on the floor as we had dinner and talked, looking totally exhausted.

Catching up

Well it has been quiet on the Babu front as I have had work and have had to travel around and write reports. Meanwhile my dog has been growing up and has settled himself well into home life. He is such a calm and relaxed dog at home. He enjoys people and is now quite happy to meet all the people who come through the door every day. He is petted and fussed over by a large number of people every week and accepts it all. He will also move from room to room following the attention and the people. He is just about coping with the car now and yesterday he coped with lots of people, children and dogs on a busy Sunday in the park. We went and sat in a cafe afterwards and I was pleased that by then there was no-one around as he did not sit still and relax. I am going to work on him sitting on a mat and then taking that with me to see if that works. He is getting a lot better at meeting other dogs. If he knows the other dog, friends from training, he can let all the sniffing happening. When he is out he can get a bit spooked if the sniff around him too quickly. He seems to feel there should be a proper length of nose to nose introduction before we move on to the body sniffing. Ahh even amongst dogs manners are important!

 

Filming my Blogpost

The perfect dog to teach to heal –

My beautiful Silken Windhound has a long pointed nose that is perfect for sneaking into my pocket to see if there are any treats. He is also exactly the right height to teach to walk to heal without bending, tipping over or having to do anything else strange. As I walk along he is just the right height and that long elegant nose reaches into my hand to see if he has done well enough to gain a treat. It is that long nose that was so beloved of the Art Deco designers and artists is very useful if you are Babu.

Snow and Dog

Well Babu did not take to the snow as the family expected him to. We all ran out in excitement and he jumped out the back door then jumped straight back in and refused to try that again! He was not impressed and did not understand the fuss. We eventually took him out in the car and by then the snow was better that the car, so into the snow he went ending up with a very white snow covered nose. It did not take him long, especially as there were so many people to play with, to enjoy the snow. We have found a field that is all fenced in so we could let him off the lead so that he could run and run and run, then fling himself down into the snow. He did find it difficult when we were not all together as he was not sure who he was with and got very confused. People should stay together and concentrate on him and not chat!

Yesterday we went for a walk in the fog and snow and he found that difficult to work out. He could hear voices but not see people and dogs, and the sight-lines were not clear with the fog making distance difficult to see. At one point he started barking! Babu never barks so this was shocking but I think it was the way his eyes were not telling him what he could hear. He could hear another dog nearby but not see it as the sound was being amplified by the snow and fog. It was really quite spooky for 9.30 on Monday morning.

This morning it has been sunny and frosty creating a fine crust on top of the snow. Babu had a problem with a snowman this morning. There was a fat rounded faceless classical shaped snowman on the common and he suddenly refused to go anywhere near it. I eventually took him very close and walked round and round the white monster and he was not convinced that it was safe. well it is a bit odd, a large round human shaped lump with no eyes but stick arms waving at you, its enough to drive and dog back to his bed for a long snooze.

The Dog and the dishwasher

Am I the only person who has a dog that cannot keep its nose out of the dishwasher! If it was all about food then there would be a difference between a clean dishwasher to a dirty one. Babu just wants to help. But do I need the help of my long-nosed friend! I am very happy that he wants to help and in a household of teenagers the offer of help is very welcome, even if it is from a dog. He is not much good at the house work but at least he makes it fun and there is always someone to chat too……and he does not answer back. I have also discovered something he does not eat, rice. This is the morning after, cold, white cooked rice. He patted it around and then walked away. I use leftovers as a dishwasher distraction plan. Yesterday it was pasta, and he ate that, but today the rice was rejected. Obviously I need a new distraction method. Training this week was difficult. I had been unwell and Babu did not get a proper walk so by the time we got to training he was very hyper. Babu was more interested in the smells of dogs than any treat I could give him. He also thinks that sitting and looking cute must be the answer to all requests. I was trying to make Babu heel and he turns round and sits looking beautiful! I have lots of practice to do and Babu has a lot of quizzical looks to work on as he wonders what on earth that mad woman wants him to do this time.

Beef, dog and an indoor waterfeature…….

It has been an epic week in the life of the family and their new dog. It started on Sunday when Babu stole the beef! We had finished dinner but left everything out for son number 2 who was due back soon. We all went to sit down when suddenly in came Babu to show us his find…..THE BEEF. Panic and uproar, partner a wee bit cross with the dog and eldest son taking beef from mouth of dog. Son was told to take beef outside, not put it in a bin in the kitchen, and then he shouts ‘there’s a flood’. He can hear the overflow outside. Daughter is in bathroom and more shouting as she is accused of running water over the top of the bath. But no, the water is poring through my bedroom ceiling. We all run upstairs, collect towels, buckets etc and son 2 arrives home and is made to hold bucket to ceiling, he is very,very tall.  We with all the shouting, rushing, panic and activity poor Babu has been left and he stands at the bottom of the stairs, closed out but the stair gate, whining. So amid all the bedlam I bring him upstairs and he seems happy to sit and watch as we gradually gain control. The water tank in the attic has overflowed as the ‘ball-cock??’ has become loose. Everything mended we are left with damp towels, full buckets, and luckily very little damage except to the ceiling, and no mention of BEEF!

Tuesday started well with Babu visiting the Locksmiths shop and behaving very well. No problems even though we had to wait a while and listen to keys being cut. We then delivered the keys to the plumber who was at the rectory. I am not sure what Babu picked up in the garden but after a short walk he threw up twice in the car on the way home and ate very little for the rest of the day. Wednesday he was back to normal and we were off to our first training. It was very funny as I had not expected to feel so responsible for my dog and worried about how he would he behave. He has been quite shy around other dogs and people, so I was ready for a quiet evening. He did very well and was not the most shy dog, yeah. He tried hard but did not understand the repeat process, once he had done it once why do it again, these people are mad. Anyway we have come away with lots to practice before next week to I am off to sit, lie and come when I am called…………………

They didn’t take me with them………….was it the beef?

Whoops, what am I doing, is that a dog?

Well I have surpassed myself today in the, ‘fret about the dog’ stakes. My partner goes out at 5.30am for a cycle, don’t ask, it is his thing and happens all year. Anyway, so he has gone and for some reason I wake up just after 6.30 and am totally convinced that the dog has been whining for ages! I crawl out of bed go downstairs and let him out of the playpen, for which he is of course delighted. I take him to the garden return and look at the clock. At this point reality sets in! It is 6.47 and it is totally dark in the house and, WHAT AM I DOING. Luckily I have not turned on any lights and to both me and the dog it still seems like the middle of the night. It is now Babu takes on saint status as he seems quite happy to curl up on a bean bag and go back to sleep, there was some gentle encouragement, and I wander back upstairs and get back into bed. Feeling quite ridiculous I now blame it all on radio 4 and farming today. I sleep with the radio on and assume that early this morning they had various animal noises on farming today, which in my mind was the dog needing me. Anyway, this is my theory and I am sticking with it.