12 Weeks

I find myself very frustrated training humans.  Teaching canine rules to a child is painfully slow.  Many people we meet ignore the "four on the floor" rule immediately.  Despite great efforts, all family members aren't consistently reactive to Clover's excessive vocalizations. I fear my work is undone and our girl will be hopelessly confused. It's very defeating.

A good friend recently posted a nice photo comment "Aren't puppies precious?"  I respond with mixed emotion.  Puppies are like looking after a colic stricken infant while being perpetually hung-over for several weeks (and for the record, I don't handle alcohol well in minimal amounts at best).  Like children, cuteness saves them from you losing your mind while helping them to grow into an emotionally secure, confident, obedient (law-abiding), respectable adult.   Don't get me wrong, the process is incredibly rewarding but realistically speaking, my opinion of "precious" highly depends on two critical factors.  How much sleep I've obtained and which minute of the laborious day you ask.♥

19 lbs 16" wither

The daytime hours alone with her have significantly improved.  She can actually be quite relaxed and obedient without the boy running about the house like an impending tornado.  The cats have still avoided direct confrontation.  With a hiss or two it seems they've claimed their territory.  The dog has learned to be cautious around these odd cranky creatures.  She sits patiently, watching them move about and probably dying inside with feline enthusiasm.

We can confine a lot less now that she is better at house training.  I'm still holding on to medical science and a maturing bladder.  12-14 weeks should be the magic number and life will get significantly easier.  The increased room space from the pen is helping with the constant barking.

A day at the park

Socialization continues.  There's an adorable chocolate lab pup in the neighbourhood and a sweet Brittany spaniel she's had the opportunity to share some play time with.  We are meeting as many different dogs, people, places as possible with a few more car rides thrown in.  All sites and sounds are on my radar.  We watched a motorcycle parade down the street and met a man in his big crazy helmet (I loaded his hands with dog cookies).  We've received excellent support from the trash collectors and utility trucks!  Many more trips to area lakeside parks from one end of the region to the other.  It's a game of cramming great experiences every day.

She's learned a few more moves like "spin" and "sleep" and continues to work on "crawl", "sit pretty" and "roll over".