JOEY'S FIRST PUPPY PLAY GROUP!
Joey went to sleep last night in the Puppy Palace and didn't wake me up to move from the couch to the bedroom last night! I ended up getting us both up to pee just at the crack of dawn, then to the bedroom to sleep until 8:15 a.m. Wow!!
He ate breakfast well and even offered a very cute sit for brekkies! He then barked and play bowed to BJ in the living room. He really wants to get BJ to play with him. After breakfast we went out to the big backyard to do some walking on leash. Joey got clicks/treats for catching up to me (Tami's liver treats). At one point, he flopped into a down, then got up into a sit and straight-away gave me eye contact! Yay! Starting to see offered behaviors! The styling gel that I applied last night is really working nicely. I can see his precious eyes much better.
Marian and Sydney came for a lesson and Joey napped in the big outdoor crate during the lesson. He woke up just when we finished, just in time to wipe the sleepies away and gear up for his first Puppy Play Group.
The Group:
Marian and Sydney (16 month old Pap)
Chris and Jorja (18 week old Corgi)
Kitty and Sam (her husband) with Timmy (14 week old Border Collie)
Plus Marcus and BJ, Havanese adults
OH what a whirling mass of running and wrestling puppies! Sydney led those boys on a merry chase all over the yard. When the group first started running, BJ was actually following along at a slow pace but he soon retired to his role of overseer. Joey and Marcus had a ball playing Roll the Corgi - Jorja (like a little barrel) just rolls so well! Jorja loves the water and she would play and splash in the pool between races around the yard.
Joey spent quite a bit of time jaw wrestling with Timmy the Border Collie. Despite Timmy's bigger size, they really were nicely matched in play energy. Kitty successfully called Timmy out of play and to give her attention several times. I do hope Joey and I can get some name recognition training so that next play group we can work on that a little bit.
Whirling mass of herding puppies with a bunny-Pap leading them in a chase! How much fun is that! I can only guess that all puppies involved slept soundly on the way home. Joey immediately crashed in the Puppy Palace. I made up his lunch but he was sound asleep before I could even get it to him! And he didn't wake up until almost 5 p.m.
NOTE: I will be adding some photos as soon as the person who took some sends them to me.
The mailman drove up in his mail truck during play group and I took advantage of that opportunity to take Joey out to the truck and have the mailman hold him and cuddle him.
Joey would only eat a little bit when he woke up so we went off to do some errands - car trip to the post office and feed store. At the feed store he was cuddled by the man who works there and petted by another fellow. Once home again, he still did not want to eat anything. He's been resting and playing softly near me in the office and is again about to drift off into nap time.
Later: I tried to pick the sleepy puppy up and hold him a bit on my lap and make him drowsy with petting or T-Touch. Again, all I seem to do is stimulate him when I try to calm him. I finally gave up and put him in the Puppy Palace to go to sleep. It's very discouraging when everyone tells you help him drift off to sleep, use your hands to put him to sleep, and so on. The minute I get near him with my hands it becomes too stimulating for him.
Joey slept a bit while I went outside and raked grass and played fetch with Marcus and BJ. He was just waking up when we came inside. I took him outside on leash to the backyard and we did a little bit of walking on leash with click/treats using Natural Balance. Finally he understands that those bits I hand him are for eating! This is a nice change indeed. We did a little tuggie on a fleece thing and a little eye contact then came back inside.
The neighbor that I share a driveway with drove up in a big noisy pickup truck. He and a buddy tossed railroad ties off the truck onto their front lawn. Since that made some interesting noises, I click/treated Joey a bit. I then let him off leash to play with Marcus a bit while they were running the diesel truck and flopping ties onto the ground.
Because it was now 9 pm I wanted him to have some quiet time yet not necessarily back to sleep. Again, there just seems to be no way I can be near him and yet have quiet time. I don't mind the play-biting and all of that in the way that the average pet owner does (though I sure have a very clear sense of why they can't stand it). What bothers me is that I do not want to over-stimulate him as happened the other night yet there seems to be nothing we can do together late in the evening when he's not quite ready to go to bed.
People Joey met today:
3 women, three men (two of them held him and cuddled him)
Dogs Joey met today:
Sydney (Pap), Timmy (BC), Jorja (Corgi)
Novel sounds:
diesel truck, railroad ties being tossed to the ground
New sleeping place:
crate in the yard
Eating for today: only one real meal
Concerns:
Finding a way I can bond with him yet keep him relaxed