Someone needs to learn how to SHARE

Argos expands his territory

Several nights ago, Dad stopped closing the doors of the library when Argos was in there after dinner.  Argos generally stayed in the library near Dad rather than wandering around the house getting into trouble.  Since he seemed able to handle the additional freedom, we then removed the barriers keeping Argos trapped in the kitchen.  He really enjoys being able to wander around, although he spends the vast majority of his time in whatever room we are in.  He craves attention and likes to be near us.  We decided to block off all the stairs so that he would only have one floor to roam.  When he does disappear and explore other parts of the house, it’s easier to have to search only one floor.  

Argos is, however, very clever and somewhat mischievous.  He decided to see what would happen if he pushed the cardboard blocking the stairs in the library (there are baby gates on the main stairs).  He discovered that if he pushed his nose against the cardboard very close to the wall, it moved and he was able to slip through.  I was watching him and he looked over at me and then trotted down the stairs.  I immediately followed him, but he was already half-way across the lower level by the time I got down.  He decided I was going to chase him and that it would be a fun game.  I did not want to get involved in chasing him (he is much faster and more agile than I am), but I did play a game where I would hide behind a wall and then pop out.  Each time he saw me, he raced away.  He had a great time!  When he got tired, we came back upstairs.  (And now we have a more secure way of blocking the stairs.)

Argos goes down to the lower level every day after breakfast with Dad and they play fetch with a tennis ball.  Dad usually sits on the floor and Argos does all the running.  It’s a great way for Argos to burn off some energy.  For Dad, not so much. I have tried the same game, but Argos doesn’t bring the ball back to me – he brings it close but then squeaks it without giving it to me (I think he’s trying to make me chase him, but it doesn’t work).

For now, we’re not taking Argos upstairs.  He’s got plenty of room to roam.  The main floor of the house looks like a toddler lives here.  There are toys scattered everywhere.  It’s very convenient for Argos – he has something to play with no matter what room he’s in. He still sleeps in the crate at night and seems content with that.  On several occasions he has asked to go out well before bedtime (once as early as 9 pm) and then indicated that he was ready to have his collar removed and get in the crate.  We have encouraged him to return to the library and nap, rather than getting in the crate so early.  He still gets up around 7:30 AM and that’s plenty early.

McLean PetFest

Today we went to the McLean PetFest in McLean Central Park (corner of Old Dominion and Dolley Madison).  Argos had a really good time.  There wasn’t a whole lot of structure, just a few booths from dog trainers/doggie day care/boarding facilities.  One person told us he could tell that Argos has a lot of energy and would really enjoy going to his facility to play with other dogs.  (Or we could just walk in the neighborhood and play with dogs here or go to a dog park.)

There were a number of other dogs that Argos got to meet.  Some of them just wanted a brief sniff, but there was a 6-month old Newfoundland (about 45 pounds) who he really liked.  The two of them played for quite a long time, the usual dog games with some growling and lots of play-biting.  At one point they were both tired and lying down, but still trying to bite each other.  Then they perked up again and played more vigorously, taking turns lying on their backs and climbing on each other.  The worst part (I think) is that both of them ended up covered in dog slobber.  I guess that means they both had a good time.

There was also a dog costume contest, where dogs in costume had a parade.  People do the strangest things to their dogs.  One dog looked like a white sheep, but didn’t seem to be especially enjoying himself.  One little dog had a taco costume that seemed bigger than the dog.

Afterwards we went to PetSmart to buy dog food and dog biscuits.  Although it wasn’t the PetSmart we usually go to, Argos seemed to recognize that it was a place where he could get lots of attention from people (we didn’t see too many dogs there).  He was having a great time.  Of course he is now exhausted and is having a really good nap.

Enjoying an Unusually Warm Day

Argos has spent lots of time outside today.  He went for a walk with Dad this morning and then out for coffee  – well, he went to Starbucks and got to relax in the sun, although he didn’t have any coffee.   When he got home, he was ravenous (even though it was only 11:00) so he had an early lunch.  Shortly after that, we headed out and picked up Grandma Betty for lunch at Pete’s Pizza.  It was lovely and warm and Argos was so tired that he was very well-behaved, lying under the table and not fussing.  He did lick the ground a bunch, picking up whatever pizza crumbs were there.  Dad dropped us at the entrance to the Reserve and we walked home from there.  By the time we got home he was exhausted.  He’s now taking a much-needed nap.

Playing at the Dog Park

This morning I took Argos to the dog park in Reston.  He had a great time!  We got there about 8:15 and there were about 10 dogs running around.  One person explained to me that the same group shows up every day and the dogs and owners know each other.  Dogs and owners kept coming and going over the next hour, and indeed most of them did seem to know each other and their dogs.  

Argos got into the spirit of things pretty quickly, sniffing other dogs on the nose in greeting.  After he’d been there for a while he started to sniff rear ends as well, as did the other dogs.  He decided he liked one dog a lot, an Australian shepherd named Odin (I think a year old).  They wrestled for a long time.  Odin was bigger, but a bit gentler and quite patient when Argos jumped up and put his front paws on his shoulders.  At one point Odin was on his back and Argos was on top of him.  Mostly they were both standing and using their jaws to try and grab each other. At another point Argos was on his back and Odin was on top of him.  Odin’s owner pointed out to me after a while that Odin had blood on his fur although neither dog had been biting hard enough to draw blood.  I said Argos was teething and she replied that sometimes they lose teeth while playing at the dog park.  I realized that Odin had Argos’ blood in at least three places, but his owner was totally unconcerned by it.  (Later I checked and he had lost one of his premolars.)

One of the nice things was that all the owners were watching all the dogs.  One dog kept trying to hump other dogs, and whoever was closest would gently pull him off (once his owner told him not to do that because it was rude, but I’m not sure dogs listen to that kind of explanation).  I was keeping a close eye on Argos because he is still learning what’s acceptable behavior.  At some point he was on the far side of the park with another dog and the other dog snarled and Argos yipped and came running over toward me, looking scared.  I glanced at his muzzle (the only part of him that had been near the other dog) and he seemed fine.  Then one of the men came over and checked him more carefully and said he wanted to make sure he was ok because he realized he had been with Bailey.  He said all the dogs learn that Bailey is not sociable and you should leave him alone.  (This was not Bailey’s owner, just another concerned person.)  The other thing people do is pet all the dogs that come near them.  Argos thinks that’s a great idea – he loves the attention.

Argos did do some running around with another dog his size – and some wrestling as well.  While that was going on, Odin kept trying to join in.  It’s a little tricky having three dogs wrestling at once, but they were having fun.

We stayed for about an hour and I think Argos got quite tired.  He napped in the car on the way home and then napped some more at home.

It’s fun to walk in the rain…

if you’re a dog.  There has been heavy rain all day and Argos has gone out for three different walks.  He doesn’t seem to realize or care that he is getting absolutely wet (2 towels to dry off each time we return home).  He was especially excited by the water running in the streets.  Especially where the street was hilly, the amount of water running towards the storm sewers was quite high.  Argos put his nose in the water and blew bubbles, then wanted to chase the bubbles until they disappeared as they ran into the storm sewers.  He also tried pawing at the water (but  I’m not really sure what he was trying to do – the water continued to run past his paws.  It’s clear he will really enjoy playing in streams next spring/summer.  Fortunately he seemed uninterested in the many worms that were around.

Comfortable chair in the kitchen

We moved a comfortable chair into the kitchen when we realized we needed a comfortable place to sit/doze while watching Argos.  At first he was unable to get up to it, although we sometimes held him on our laps.  Then he realized he could put his front paws up on the edge of the seat and get picked up.  One day he surprised me by taking a leap and then landing in my lap.  Once he knew he could get onto the chair, he did so every time he saw me sitting there.  He’s grown big enough that he doesn’t really want to be on my lap, but would prefer to be next to me.  But he’s a bit big for that – we need a loveseat instead of a chair.  Argos has also realized that he can jump onto the chair when no-one is there and use it as a bed.  He really enjoys that, perhaps because it gives him a higher view of the world, perhaps simply because he sees us sit in it. Once he’s spread out in the chair (sometimes watching us, sometimes sleeping), there isn’t enough room for us to sit there as well.

Junk Mail!

This house has an upstairs level!

Argos has discovered that the house has an upper level.  We have not given him much freedom to explore the house, generally restricting him to the kitchen or library.  But today I let him roam, while I followed and let him know which things he had to leave alone (fake flowers in the living room, tassels on pillows in Rachel’s room, etc).  He was having a great time on the main floor, checking out the living room and dining room (which he quickly realized has two entrances).  And then he started up the stairs, looking back at me from the landing as if wondering if I was going to scold him.  The first room he explored was Rachel’s room, and only tried a few things inappropriate (chewing on pillow tassels and the bath mat).  He was very interested in the upper library, since he could walk in a circle and look down on Dad in the main library.  He headed down the stairs into the library.  But then he returned to the main staircase and headed upstairs again.  Sarah’s closet is full of all sorts of shoes – fascinating but not allowed.  I think that he will be trying to go upstairs more frequently now that he knows the upper level exists.  He still hasn’t tried to go downstairs to the lower level, but I think that will happen very soon.

Carrying the newspaper/mail

Argos continues to love carrying the newspaper into the house.  Actually, he likes to carry them and then be allowed to chew on them (which doesn’t happen).  He likes to carry things through the backyard and into the kitchen.  We always stop at the gate into the backyard and he sits before I open the gate (well, sometimes he needs reminding, but I don’t open the gate until he is sitting).  He likes to run once he’s in the backyard, so once I took off the leash so I wouldn’t have to run with him.  He thought that was great, and detoured into the grass and lay down and started attacking the newspaper.  I learn pretty quickly, so  he is no longer off leash when he’s carrying.  Argos does, however, realize that once he gets into the house, he has to relinquish whatever he has, so he tries to veer off into the grass so that he can carry it for longer.  Unfortunately for him, that tactic doesn’t work and we insist he go straight to the house.  

Argos has learned that not only the newspaper needs to be brought to the house, so does the mail.  Now he waits patiently as we empty the mailbox and sits until we give him something to carry.  It’s great that we get so much junk mail.  A few days ago he carried a large cardboard envelope; today it was a credit card solicitation.  I let him keep it as we went into the kitchen.  It’s not good for him to chew the paper, but if I chase him around the kitchen, he is so busy running around that he doesn’t have time to settle down and chew.  The contest is to see how quickly (or slowly) I can either catch him or grab the envelope if he drops it.  It’s a fun game, but we have to be careful not to leave any papers or envelopes lying around.  We have moved the recycling bin in the library because Argos discovered it was a great source of paper to carry and play with.