best served cold

Lest I give the impression here that life is a bed of roses, let me give a fuller picture.

Walking her is always a challenge.  First there's her obnoxiousness when we first head out and convincing her that pulling isn't going to get her there faster, and then there are all the things she'll lunge at and all the dogs riling her up. 

She riles up.  Desperately so.  There is a lot of two hands on the leash and wrapped around for a good grip.  She is not a calm dog, at all.

Nor is she compliant.  She was proudly bringing the frisbee inside and I told her no, confiscated it and threw it out and she just brought it back in and jumped on the bed with a daring look.  So I took it and put it on top of the dresser and walked away.  She could have gotten it, but she's quite good about not ever taking things from on top of furniture, even if it's hers. 

But what she did do is grab my flip flop and run out the door.  "Fair is fair.  Eye for an eye, shoe for a frisbee," she taunted. 

This dog.  Sassy pants. 

I've had a lot of dogs who were revenge-motivated.  We would always joke about how Selma would make us pay later for anything.  But Ziggy?  Oh, this dog can hold a grudge and plot. 

puppy gone good

We went to visit friends tonight and Ziggy was AWESOME.  She hardly jumped or mouthed at all.  She was happy and friendly and sweet.  She sat at people's feet for them to pet her.  She was adorable and charming.  She came whenever called, she sat whenever asked. 

THIS IS THE DOG I'VE BEEN TALKING ABOUT.  I KNEW SHE WAS IN THERE.

And now she's exhausted.

She was happy to get there, she was happy to be there, and she was happy to leave.  Mostly happy to leave.  But she was glad about it all.

Finally I feel like I can take her places.

So ... what next?

Well, we have to deal with her obsession with cats.  She's out of control about that.  I'm afraid the only thing that will cure it is getting her a cat.  And honestly, I tried.  A friend was adopted by a teenage tabby and good god I want that cat.  It is so adorable.  I've begged and pleaded but the friend is beyond smitten.

Why can we have our own kitten show up?  Ziggy would be Over The Moon.

OK, progress.  Bit by bit.  

weekends

As the weekend progresses, Ziggy becomes more connected.  She has to investigate everything, always be present.  She tries to stay out of the way, but even if I'm just crossing the room, she has to cross the room and see what's up. 

By Sunday evenings we are so close, I swear she can read my mind.

And then Monday comes, and I leave her for many hours and every Monday evening is the pits.  She's belligerent and rough, won't mind at all.  Obnoxious and hyper and naughty. 

And she calms down through the week, and then it all starts again.

city mouse

I long to move out to the country, a cabin in the woods with 100 acres of my land and adjoining a national forest.

But Ziggy?  Nah.  She just wants to roam free in a subdivision.

She's been really amped up this weekend and I knew we needed to go out this morning, have an adventure.

We headed out.  I hit a dead end at railroad tracks and saw lots of open space so out we went and I let her off leash and rather than running free in the wide meadow like area she beelined straight across the street (more of an alley, with no traffic anywhere) and ran to a big boat in a yard and got super excited.  So apparently in Ziggy's past she WAS a water dog, but on a boat.  Then she went to the front door of the house and stood staring in through the glass door with her tail wagging and a smile on her face as though they just forgot to open the door for her; I'm sure that the inhabitants of the house were very surprised to have such an outgoing Catahoula trying to convince them to let her in.

She would look over at me but she was NOT coming back over to the side without people and she took off down the block.  I caught up with her a couple houses down where she was trying to burrow under a fence that had a dog on the other side who was very confused with this whole situation.  She turned around to see me walking up with a very happy look - "Oh good, you got here!  Give me a hand - let's go under here!" and wasn't too happy when I clipped her leash back on and insisted on not breaking into the yard, but she was ok.

Then I kept driving out to where I planned.  We tried to go to the road that I really want to walk on (gravel, little or no traffic, no houses around), but it really is under construction (which is what the strongly worded multiple signs said that forbade entry, but I had to try) and I saw people working with heavy equipment, so we turned back around.

We went where I let her run off-leash before and she ran right down to the swamp and I heard a lot of splashing so she was chasing something in.  She was running fast and free and when she got too far up I called out and told her that and she cheerfully looped back and started to run back to me but then something caught her eye across the street and she beelined down the ridge and over.  I shouted but she was not coming back and then a car appeared so I didn't want her to run back .  I followed and she was investigating a bunch of garbage somebody had dumped (that's such a thing here, ugh), and she peeped out from behind an old mattress.  "Look!  A treasure trove!" she was delighted to report.  I called her to me and she came and I gave her a treat and some water and clipped her back on.  Sigh.

Then we walked along the levee and it was fine because it's really cool right now - a big storm just rolled out and another looks to be rolling in.  Usually it's miserable to walk on a paved levee in the summer, it just radiates so much heat and the direct sun is unbearable.  But this was pretty enjoyable, but she kept trying to pull me down the levee and over to the houses where there were people and dogs.

Ziggy loves people and dogs more than she loves being alone with me.  She is very gregarious and thrives on a party.  She is so NOT like me.

But maybe I need to get over my idea that we need to live off the grid somewhere, letting Ziggy have a life of chasing wild animals.  She is a city dog, who loves population density and Popeye's.  Unfortunately for her I will not ever intentionally let her run free on city streets, which is her very favorite thing to do.  Fortunately for me, whenever that happens she comes back and/or cheerfully lets me catch her pretty quickly.

It's pretty clear from today - she has no interest in running away from me, she just wants to have fun.  Even when she was taking off away from me, she was keeping a close eye on where I was and making sure I was following her.  If it weren't for roads, I likely would have run the other direction and called her and I'm 95% sure she would have followed.

Now, I need her to not take off at all, and I need her to 100% come when called, and I need to be able to trust her judgment (that she won't piss off alligators who can eat her).  She will always want to have fun, which is really pretty darn charming.  She delights in life.  This is what is good about having a dog, the belief that the world is a fun place to explore.  I have a sidekick for whatever comes down.

And she is not to 100% obedience yet, and maybe she never will be, but she will continue to improve.

And we will keep trying to find good places to let her run free, because that is the only thing that can take the edge off for her ... and probably for me.  She is the city mouse, but I am very much country mouse.  We'll find our common ground.

my little protector

"No more!" Ziggy said, forcefully pushing my laptop off my lap and then sitting herself in that position - something she has never done.  I can't remember her ever sitting actually on my lap before.  She'll sometimes have her chin on my thigh, but never like this. 

She could feel my rage rising - seeing David Duke running for Senate is really upsetting.  So she made me stop reacting to it, and just sit and pet her. 

"We'll be ok.  I can take out the Klansmen in their stupid sheets. I've been practicing, didn't you notice the gnawholes in those sheets?"

the bond with the vet

I've recently learned of a small vet practice not far from me and one of the vets is into yoga and such.  The vibe from their website and reviews is totally me and Ziggy, and they're near which is so nice.

My current vet is a haul away and I don't like his staff very much with the exception of the "professional hugger" who meets Ziggy in the parking lot and sneaks her in the back way for me. 

And the vet is ... he's old school.  He's not interested in giving Ziggy medications, he says I need to train her with a choke chain.  And I disagree with that method especially with her (the choke chain, not the training obviously), but his vibe with Ziggy is really good.  He loves animals and he sees all the good in Ziggy that is sometimes hidden.  He may very well have saved her life - I went to him for her post-quarantine rabies check after The Bite, and when I very upset asked if I should give her back to the shelter, he was just not having that.  At all.  But instead of calling me out (and to be fair, I'd only had her a couple of weeks and she was WAY more than I knew how to handle), he just ignored that as something that did not compute.  Of course not.  She was my dog and I would train her and she would someday be good.  She was obnoxious, but she was a Catahoula rescue puppy, within normal parameters for that.

Had I taken Ziggy back to the shelter after she'd been investigated as "dangerous and aggressive" ... well, I can't even think about that.  So, he probably saved her life by taking that option entirely off the table.  And this was right before I had to travel for work and I realized I couldn't leave her at any of those doggy day care places while I traveled, which had been my plan.  He made suggestions and said that while his facilities wouldn't be the most desirable for her, he would board her any time, no problem. He took what seemed impossible and made it all possible. 

And, his prices are the most reasonable.  I always feel like I'm getting a good bargain for the quality of care.  And my understanding is that he volunteers a lot of surgical care for rescue societies.  He's good people whom I want to support.

So, to give him up just because the drive there is awful, and it's hard to manage with Ziggy in their parking lot and office because there's no time that's not busy? 

When we were there last, the vet tech said the vet was asking which dog was coming up and the vet tech said, "The really aggressive and dangerous Catahoula," and they both laughed at the absurdity of that.  And I could laugh then too (this was months later, when she cut her paw), but they did not make light of my situation in any way when I was there for that.  They wrote exactly the letter that needed to be written to the animal enforcement, and they faxed and mailed it and gave me a copy and told me what number to call to follow up, and exactly what to say.  He was all business, while I was so overwhelmed, and it was exactly right.

So, yeah.  Maybe if he retires I'll look for a vet closer, but until then, he's clearly our guy. 

over there

We are sitting here on the couch, my pup and me.  I invited her up when the rain came down and she is resting against me so long as I pet her.  "Isn't it nicer to have a home like this than to live on the street," I ask her, but she's still weighing pros and cons. 

How long until this dog decides to choose me?  Will she ever?  Was the rift caused by other(s) abandoning her too deep to ever heal? 

I like to take off her collar because that's where she sheds the most so I want to brush her neck, and she looks better without it and it lets her neck rolls be less bunched up.  But she hates having it removed, she gets really nervous and today it looked like she was trying to put it back on herself.  HOw on earth does she make sense of any of that?  She can't possibly understand her name tags on it or any of that. 

She left me to sit on the chaise near the window, to look out.  Not convinced she's where she wants to be.

Ziggy prozac

This morning when we walked, the loose big pit bull was out - Ziggy stopped and looked and then I looked, and the guy held it on the porch, and Ziggy just kept walking.  No fuss.  And when we walked past the Rottweiler that barks viciously and is chained in the front yard, she actually laid down, as if he wasn't even there (after she looked carefully to see what was up).

At one point we walked past a vacant lot and from somewhere a black cat came roaring out to attack Ziggy, who attacked back.  I was startled but kept a hold of her and we kept going - and Ziggy just like totally took it in stride.  None of her freaking out behavior - just, "OH, hey, whatever, it happens."

Dude.  WHATEVER, IT HAPPENS?!  Where is my dog? 

She did give me her normal hijinks when we approached a house - the view to the yard was blocked by big truck, etc., but a dog was barking crazy.  There's never been a dog there before so we were curious, but it's also a low fence and ... we walked out in the street and Ziggy barked and danced and I calmed her down.  So, she's still herself.  and, she just barked at a woman walking across the street, but she did let the neighbors come home without any barking. 

Who ever knows what's in this dog's brain?  I sure don't.  She's a mystery. 

But, I think her time with Roux is helping her not be so reactive. 

Houdini

One of Ziggy's skills is to untie knots.  I discovered this when I had her long line out and it got all tangled.  I gave up unknotting it in frustration and left it on the ground, where she picked it up.  Within minutes, all the knots were undone. 

She did it again last night with rope toy that had a ball knotted on the end. It took her a little time, but soon it was all apart.  "Look!  I made two toys out of one!"  Sure, Ziggy. 

One of my biggest fears is that she will discover she can climb out of any fence.  Catahoulas are known for climbing trees, and she has the best tree-climbing claws of any dog I've ever seen.  Better than a bear, even.  She can turn her paws and extend her nails significantly, and she uses her paws and nails to manipulate objects all the time, very much like a cat. 

My backyard is a 6' high wooden fence.  Ziggy could be out and over it in no time ... if she wanted to.  Thank all that is goodness and light that she doesn't want to, that she would rather come inside to the air conditioning. 

Ziggy's very best friend is a golden retriever named Gus.  From the first time they met, they were so happy to be together.  He adored her - he's the one dog I know who barks at her to get her attention and she uses calming signals to make him mellow.  He's not hyper or anything, he just loves Ziggy so very deeply. 

Gus's owner's husband didn't like having a dog and so she left Gus with her sister in the country.  And he ran away.  And they never found him.

This is devastating to think of the sweetest puppy ever being lost and hurt somewhere.  I wish that I had convinced her to let me take him.  Gus was a roamer, probably in part at least because he wasnt neutered until he was nearly two years old.  He was left alone outside a lot, and so he learned to dig out and escape. Looking for adventure and love.

And he wasn't microchipped.

Do I sound judgmental?  Maybe I am a little bit.  MOstly because I want to learn from the mistakes and not lose Ziggy.

Ziggy has pretty good sense - she knows where her bread is buttered.  And when we go out hiking, I let her run off leash because she always stays near.  But ... what if she doesn't once?  What if she follows a flock of turkeys and loses me?

This is a balance I have to strike.  We both really enjoy off-leash time, which i never do in the city or near roads.  Except when at the cabin and I let her off and once or twice she took off towards the main road to check out the neighbor's garbage or something.  She's so funny - she saw something that caught her attention on the first drive in and she was obsessed about investigating ever since.  And she comes back, always.  Once I started my truck and started driving toward the road and she came bursting out of the forest.

One thing Ziggy cannot abide: being left out of anything fun or the potential of an adventure, which my truck often provides.

Ziggy stays with me because she wants to - she remembers life as a stray and she knows regular feedings (when I remember!) is better.  She lets me catch her when she gets loose. She no longer tries to run out the front door whenever it's open but instead only wnats to go out when she's on leash.

And she has a very strong healthy fear of roads.  She always pulls when we're crossing a street because she doesn't like to be in them, and I don't stop that.  I want her to keep her good sense about the danger of cars.

So, her adventures will be managed to magically untied rope toys and leashes, and off-leash walks in the forest that I have sanctioned.  Here's to never losing her!

worst dog mom ever

I forgot to feed my dog.

IT probably wasn't more than 30 hours or so, and she had snacks in between.  A dog treat, a carrot, a bit of banana.

Still ... yikes.  That explains why she was barking at me last night. 

I'm so lost in my head with schoolwork.  No excuse.  Now, to be fair, Ziggy could lose a few pounds.  I don't think she's fat, but she's not skinny. 

We went to see her dog friend today and he was sooo happy when we came in the yard and they frolicked and all was good ... until she started barking at him.  He came to me to ask me to get her to stop and I'm like, "Dude, if I knew how, I would."  We left when she wouldn't.  Which is unfortunate, as they are going to have an overnight soon, and I won't be there.  I'll give them the crate and the baby gate and tell them to give her time outs when she's naughty.  They are very good dog people, it'll be fine.  I hope.  Ziggy can wear down every mortal I've met.

Roux, her friend, has the happiest happy gallop, and he was over the moon delighted to see both of us.  He's always been happy to see me, but he was also very happy to see her, which is good.  He jumped on me which was unusual, but oh well.  Not the first dog scratch I've had this month.  They get a little pissy with each other - they are both very spoiled only dogs, so it'll be a little rough. 

It's making it clearer to me - Ziggy won't be getting a pal.  Her lack of socialization has made her a bully.  Roux handles it pretty well, first coming to me to intervene, and then trying to play along with her and then grabbing at her legs, which makes her dodge and repel him.  He's like, "Hey, if you're going to do what I don't like, I'm going to do what you don't like."  I think she'll figure it out.  He's no weak-willed submissive dog - he'll let her know what's up.  He growled when she approached his toy, but I took them both away and then the dogs were fine.  She just gets so worked up to be someplace new and doesn't know how to handle a playmate.  She was good with the people again, and except for her barking good all around.  The two of them have an ease with each other now - at one point Roux came to me to be pet and Ziggy came too and then she was done so she crouched down to walk under him.  He's a long-legged lanky dude but it was still hilarious and showed that they are ok with physical proximity.  Which was not the case always.  The first time they met, there were some issues and it ended in blood - he nipped her ear which bled a lot.  So, slow and steady reintroduction and we're doing pretty good.  Here's hoping for a very good overnight visit. 

I found an all-natural tick repellent which I'll give a try - https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004T3C0P2/ref=ox_sc_act_title_3?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=APKJD6XSINJFP.  I'll also get tick remover just in case.  I hate ticks, but I also worry about the diseases they transmit in addition to being super creeped out by them. 

Not the scholarly type

This dog is so done with school.

trained

Ziggy has me very well-trained, I realize  sometimes.  Like in the mornings, she now regularly gets a treat to say good morning.  She has made this happen by sitting watchfully outside the kitchen as I make my coffee, being a very good dog whom I wanted to reward.  But now it's an every day kind of thing.  She loves that morning snack so it's hard for me to say no to a very good dog. 

She likes routines and rewards, and who doesn't? 

I'm wondering again about her backstory - she had to have had cats with her.  The way she uses her paws to bat things and how she tucks them in like a cat.  Also, whenever she sees a cat she gets super excited - even more than she does with a dog now. 

I wish I liked cats enough to get one for her.  I know she needs a friend, but another dog is seeming less like a good idea.  Ziggy likes being an only dog in many respects, and she's recently been showing some jealousy of her friend when he's here.  Not much, just wanting to be sure he's not getting  a treat without her.  He is pretty stand-offish and not pushy at all like her so it's fine - he's usually not wanting to be around people anyway.  I first met him the day they adopted him and he and I have always had a more affectionate relationship than he does with anybody else, but he's not jealous of Ziggy.  He's very mild-mannered, as they said and I agree.  He's the opposite of Ziggy, who is would very tight. 

I contacted the dog trainer over the weekend, knowing I need some professional intervention to keep us on track because I've gotten lazy.  ON Monday he said to call but I was so busy, so I called on TUesday.  Then I followed up with email.  He said he'd call yesterday, but no word.  Um ... that doesn't seem very professional. 

And now Ziggy is telling me it's time to go for a walk.  It's like she can tell time because at exactly the correct time of when "oh good grief, it's so late I need to go walk if I'm going to or Ill be late to work" she came and sat to stare at me. 

This dog is so adorable.  Maybe she's like Luther, my anger translator.  I convey a calmer demeanor than I feel on the inside - I always want to tell people off for their ridiculousness and rarely do, and Ziggy feels no need to be similarly contained. 

good pup

Last night I was out cutting the grass in the front yard with Ziggy on a tether and a couple approached on the other side of the street with their little dog on a leash.  I stood with Ziggy and pet her and calmly spoke with her, and while she watched closely she didn't bark, lunge, or even tense up to play.  She just watched completely calmly.

Woot!

This morning we went to see the black lab and its owner was there.  I asked about selling her house and she said it's too much for her but she doesn't know where she's going.  Since her arm is bandaged (broken? surgery? I don't know) she said she hasn't been able to take her dog out and I volunteered to let him play in my backyard.  "Oh, I don't even probably still have a leash for him." OK, woman, your arm ain't been bandaged so long that you lost a leash.  You don't take your dog out and that's nothing new, just own it.

It doesn't matter.  He's a good pup, Ziggy learns a lot from him, and he's invited here.  I'll drop off my phone number with her.  We'll see how it goes.

I have a lot of reading to do and have moved around as I do so, including lying down on my bed which is the room where the dog door to outside is.  Ziggy would lay on the floor beside me and then get up and go outside and I can hear her running around, enjoying her favorite toy (a plastic pot for a tree).  She comes storming back into the house to see what's going on - I'm in the same position and she goes back outside.

Then she came storming in with my garden shoe.  I had left them outside at the base of the stairs after mowing the grass the other day, and Ziggy wanted to let me know that I was forgetful because she came storming through the door with it in her mouth and ran right to me and as I reached down she pushed it into my hand and let go.  If I honestly have a dog who will remind me when I forget things, then I'm thrilled.  I'll also happily take a dog who brings me my things instead of ripping them up.  She long had a fascination with those shoes and while she never destroyed them she got a few teeth marks in. If those days are over or she's moved on, that good news. She's never really been destructive of anything but human skin, and that usually heals.

 ***
Ziggy is so ready for bed, and her sleeping spot is on the couch where I am right now.  She came and looked at me, and I know what she wants.  But rather than attacking me like she used to, or being a pain in the ass, she just laid down on the floor right beside me and is playing with a toy.  What a good dog. I just told her to kiss me and shake my hand, both of which she did with a bit of a sigh, but she did it.  She's so ready for bed and I'm in her way.  And she's right, it's bedtime. 

Before i even had it assembled

Ziggy claimed the new furniture as hers.

This sleepy dog

Is looking forward to me going to work tomorrow and letting her nap in peace.

off leash

The visit with friends seems to have taken the edge off Ziggy's workedupedness.  Thank goodness.  She's not so spun out this morning.  She didn't force me to wake up early, she just snuggled a bit and then went outside for quite a while.  Long enough that I was worried that perhaps she'd gotten out of the yard, but she has never tried that.  She did at my old house because there was a huge gap in the fence that I hadn't noticed, and then a big gap underneath the house that I'd missed.  While Ziggy has the potential to climb right over my fence now, a 6' wooden fence, thank goodness that she doesn't have the desire.  To play with the two dogs in adjoining lots (one is only very rarely out), she's fine with seeing them through the fence and running with them, no need to get actually face-to-face.  Which is good. 

We need more good dog friends, with weekly dog play dates.  Maybe I go back to my idea of fostering from the shelter, but Ziggy is still just too wound up.  Yesterday her barking at Roux when she got overstimulated reminded me that while we've come far there's still distance to go.  A few times of her getting to that point and then being removed from the situation should do it.  I need her to become the calm dog, as any foster dog would have its own issues that she would need to help calm and not agitate - which is what she likes to do now.  She can be such a sassy pants and egg other dogs on. 

I have so much reading and writing to do today which I'm having a really hard time focusing on.  Maybe we'll start with a long walk.  I need a productive day and that's a good start for us both.  I would love to take her out somewhere to run off-leash, but I still haven't found a place near enough for that.  I'm hoping that in September we can go back out to that cabin where we went before, though we'll need to find a tick preventative that doesn't affect us both so badly.  Such a shame as it works so effectively.  Oh well.

There is so much wonderful about my life here in New Orleans, but I still dream of a day when I'm finished with my degree and perhaps can get a different job that is nearby national forest land, where we can hike and run with wild abandon because I won't have homework and by then her manners will hopefully be to the point that I won't worry about a chance encounter with a person and/or dog with Ziggy off-leash.  I stand by my assessment that Ziggy is not aggressive, but I recognize that she can be unmannerly, which can agitate other dogs.  

All right, she's giving me all indications that we need to get out - bringing me toys, chasing her tail, standing and yawning at me.  "Move, person.  There's a world out there for us to explore."  I think we'll drive out along some railroad tracks - unlikely to find any shade so we won't want to walk far, bt perhaps there's some potential walking there, maybe some shell roads (what we call gravel or dirt roads here, because they were traditionally made with crushed oyster shells). Maybe not.  Won't know until I check it out.  Ziggy has been wanting to take a ride, so let's do it. 

***
We took the drive and found a spot that had some cleared area like a levee near some swampland so I let her off leash twice.  Unfortunately, my catahooligan is very interested also in the housing across the street.  She is a savvy street dog and knows houses = people = love and treats.  Fortunately I was able to intervene when she thought about crossing the street and she was all, "Oh, I wasn't going to go over there, I'm just here to poop in this area near the road."  Yeah, ok.  Just like when I said, "Hey Ziggy, want some water?" and was able to convince her to come to me and I could grab her to releash her, she was like, "Yeah, ok."  She knows my games, I know hers.  We live in a mutually feigned belief in bullshit society, and so long as she comes when called and doesn't run in front of cars, I'm perfectly fine with that. 

Unfortunately the road I really wanted to drive down was blocked off, all access restricted to active construction.  Boo.  While I did see a number of vehicles I didn't see active construction going on, so maybe next week we'll go even earlier and see if we can sneak that way - if traffic is blocked and nobody is around, it's a perfect place for Ziggy to run free.  But their signs are pretty onerous, requiring hard hats and safety gear to even enter the area where I want to let her run.  Maybe it's not a good spot after all.  We'll see.

The things I do for this dog ... 

 

friends and meds

Ziggy's friends came to visit and she was over the moon.

But it's only now, seven hours after they left, that she's really napping. 

She's been really worked up for days, so full of energy that she overwhelms me and drives me crazy.  She's not sleeping as much as used to and she's been waking me up entirely too early. 

I know that me painting the house and moving all the furniture out has worried her a lot.  She doesn't handle change all that well.  She worries.  She feels deeply.  She is not mild-mannered in the least.

And now I think for the first time: maybe some anti-anxiety meds would be good for her.  NOt all the time, not to change her personality, but when her feelings are so intense and she can't calm down, maybe a pill could help her weather the storm.  A drink to calm her nerves, so to speak. 

She is better now that the furniture is put back and it's obvious that we're not going anywhere and she can sleep on her couch again, but she has a hard time calming herself back down.  It takes time.

She got overstimulated with the other dog and after they'd played and were both resting, she suddenly began barking belligerently at him.  Her body was taut like a spring.  She didn't want to attack him, but she wanted him to play on her terms.  He's a very good dog, mild-mannered and a good sport, and he was like, "OK."  But Ziggy didn't know what she really wanted, what her terms were, and I could see her frustration rising.  Like a toddler heading toward a supermarket meltdown, Ziggy's belligerence escalates and erupts.  They didn't have any negative experiences at all, but it's still a little intense.  I'm very watchful. 

Roux, the other dog, likes to roughhouse and run and grab at her feet with his mouth.  She does NOT like having her legs pulled out from underneath her, and at first I intervened and told him she doesn't like that and he would stop.  Now she's learned to block it better and she'll turn her body so he can't get at her legs.  These are good skills for them to learn. 

Ziggy really really loves Roux's people and she is so good with them compared to how she is with other people, it's mind boggling.  She did though make them both bleed today - neither on purpose, but an inadvertent head butt on one and a little scratch on another led to a lot of blood because he's on a lot of blood thinners.  I felt bad but this is the way with my wild beast.  They are so very good with her, very patient and kind, and she adores them. 

when you have a Catahoula, you're never alone

"What are we doing now?  Is it going to be fun?  I"ll bet it's fun!  Let's go!" 

This is Ziggy's attitude about everything because she takes her role as my sidekick extremely seriously.  No shenanigans, she's got my back. 

You can imagine her delight when I started pulling up the masking paper in the living room.  For days she had to just see it there but suddenly she was allowed to YANK IT UP AND DESTROY IT.

She is a demolition dog.  If she were human, she would have a sledgehammer tattoo.  She loves ripping shit up.  That she very rarely does it (now) and only when it appears sanctioned speaks volumes to her character.  This is a dog who a month after I had her went out and dug up the sweet potatoes BECAUSE THEY WERE READY.  She had never seen me dig things up and yet there she was one day with sweet potato bits all over my bed from munching away. 

She is a delight and a terror.  she is a shameless spackle addict.

And never in my life has laundry been more fun, but all I have to say is, "You want to help me do laundry?" and this dog dances with delight.  Nothing anything more exciting has ever happened with those words than me carrying a basket of clothes downstairs, and yet she can get fired up over anything.  LAUNDRY IS FUN! she exclaims, and she leaps and waits for me at the head of the stairs - "ARe you really coming?  YAY!  YOU ARE COMING!" and she runs down, so happy. 

She does love this house and yard, which is a good thing because I did buy it for her.  But I like it too, of course. 

Freedom dreams

This has been a rough long weekend for both of us. Painting is not fun and despite her best efforts not much a Catahoula can do to help.

painting with a Catahoula

At the paint store, I'm trying to help the store clerk understand why I don't want to spill paint. 

"What kind of dog do you have?"

"A Catahoula."

"Oh, a real small dog."

I don't know that I've ever been so offended in my life. 

Also, the Catahoula is the Louisiana state dog.  How come New Orleanians who aren't from the country know nothing about them?  Well, I guess that just proves the point that they are country dogs.

Ziggy is being very helpful with the paint prep by licking the drywall patches smooth.  I'm hoping both that the spackle is nontoxic and that she will start climbing the ladder to hit the higher spots. 

I already know that we have to keep the paint up out of her range because she has previously eagerly drunk paint.  Lapping it up like water.  She pooped a lot of Eider White that day.

in search of nuanced responses

So, not only are chicken and bully sticks - her all-time favorite - not enough to distract Ziggy from barking at the AC guy at the door, but she's just decided treats aren't the way to her heart at all.  I tried to use a spoon of peanut butter to distract her from a padded envelope I had stupidly given to her as a joke, but she was not having it.  She eventually did relent, but she was making the choice.

Every time Ziggy has gotten loose and run away, she has very easily let me catch her.  I get a little run around, but she's never given me a fuss when I do catch her.  Now I know how much of a choice that is for her, because if she didn't want me to catch her there is no way I could, the little greased pig that she is. 

I can only think of four times that she's gotten loose - twice at my old house (before I fixed the fence; neighbors let me know each time) and twice here (once by the painter who was pretty high).  She doesn't really want to run away - if she did, she could easily climb over or burrow out of the yard.  I don't think she's really discontent, she just likes an adventure.  Who doesn't?  And she was a street dog before I got her, or so the shelter was told.

She is right now obsessed with a cockroach trapped in the vacuum container that I caught this morning, thinking it was dead.  It's not dead and it's moving in the plastic part she can see, and it's definitely got her attention.  I appreciate how she lets me know things that are out of the ordinary like that.  She no longer kills any crawling/flying bug that she sees, probably because she got stopped from killing lizards, but she does still let me know if she sees one.  I've killed two that way; fortunately there aren't a lot of roaches about. 

Now she's out yelling at the neighbor for being in his yard to move out his work van.  She likes being belligerent to him, and while I can get her to stop and distract her, she is all junkyard dog with him.  He seems to be a good sport about it - yesterday when she was barking at him and I told her to stop being a jerk - he offered to let me use his lawnmower because mine seems pathetic.  I mean, I guess he should appreciate her interest in his yard - she's a watchdog for them, too.  If somebody were to break into his work van, chances are that Ziggy would be going berserk. 

This is also the issue that I have about people coming to the door - I need to teach her to stand down when I tell her to, but she gets very worked up.  And I need different levels of stand-down - one for people I know and trust and she shouldn't be concerned about and she can greet friendly, and another for when I want her to stop barking but to pay close attention because it's a stranger.  I have not figured out how to teach her that, and so she is a firm protector of home with everybody.  She's having none of the calming work we've been trying - she goes straight to her amygdala and is in fight mode.  And this is biological - Catahoulas are known to be very protective of their people.  This is a major reason that I got her, and I do feel safer for having her.  I just want to have her be more nuanced. 

So, I need a training plan for that and a lot of people to come around and implement it, I guess.  I may reach out to the trainer who works with the behavioral vet to see if that's something he can help with because I'm kind of out of my depth on how to parse response behaviors but also because I need another person involved with this.