More Firsts...

Since last week, Murph has entered into "Puppy Mode."  He is doing all the things he likely never got to do when he was a puppy.  He has discovered the art of chewing on shoes and power cords.  He tries to explore corners where he doesn't actually fit.  He thought sitting ON TOP of the crate might be more comfortable than sitting IN the crate.  We discovered he is now strong enough to jump up onto our bed.  This means we likely need a bigger bed.  Kirby, Stu, Murph and I can certainly fill our double bed...especially when the 2 beagle morph into St Bernard's when they sleep.

I know that his foster mom gave him 2 bathes during the week she had him, so Kirby and I gave him the third bath of his life last Sunday.  He took it all in stride.

We are struggling with taking Murph E on walks.  He can be VERY stubborn.  He sits or lays down and NOTHING is going to move him.  He vet suggested that when he does this, we should make the leash as tight as possible and turn our back to him and that he would then realize that he needed to get up and walk, and when he did we were to praise him and continue our walk.  I am here to tell you, this dog won't move for anything.  It takes a lot of patience to walk him right now.  I am hopeful we get this figured out and very soon.  Potty training has still been going pretty good with minimal accidents in the house.

I discussed the last post that Murph is not a morning dog.  For this reason, he gets to sleep in until 6:30am and Kirby takes him for his walk in the morning.  I take Stu for his brisk walk around the neighborhood, as he is up and ready at 5:15am.

Much of our week has been consumed by having family visit.  My Mom, Dad and Aunt arrived on Monday and with Wylie and Katelin here too, it made for a full house for a few days.  We love it!  It was extra good that they were here right now because Stu E was pretty sick for a few days.  Friday evening he was very lethargic and just laid around shaking, like he was shivering.  He wasn't interested in eating, playing or snuggling.  Nothing about this is normal behavior for Stu, so I was worried.  This continued through the weekend and worsened to the extent that he didn't want to be petted or held and hid under the bed.

First we thought he was upset because Katelin was gone for a couple of days.  He can be sensitive about that sort of thing.  He went on quite the hunger strike this past winter while I was on a recruiting trip.  Katelin came back and Stu did not improve.  Then I thought my parents arrival would cheer him up.  That didn't work either, so Tuesday afternoon, my Dad and I took both dogs to the mainland to see the vet.  We chose to fly to the mainland and back, as Murph E hasn't been downtown yet and I think the large crowds of people and noise would be too much for him, plus there is that whole walking thing...

The vet gave Murph a clean bill of health.  Her only thought was that he looks older than he is or maybe he had a rough life.  Duh.  I'm going with rough life on that one.

Stu E on the other hand is suffering from some sort of virus which is similar to you or I having the flu.  She said he was probably very sore, he has a fever and probably a sore throat, which is why he won't eat.  We've been doctoring his normal food with baby food to soften it up and that has helped.  I also let him have a couple of teaspoons of vanilla ice cream (a favorite of Stu E).  I am happy to say, I think he is on the mend, but it's taking a while.

Mom, Dad and Aunt Cathy all left this morning, so the house has returned to "normal" for the boys.  I think we are all due for an early bedtime tonight.