Rufus Report - Week 3

Posted: November 16, 2009

I had forgotten how much a human being can love a dog.

We begin our third full week with Rufus. I love him more every day. I took this picture while playing with him in the backyard Sunday.

Our cock-a-poo puppy is beginning to exert his independence. He’s quicker than lightning. He visited two neighbors’ yards over the weekend before I could catch up with the rascal. He likes to hide out under my car. He doesn’t like the leash.

He has wild puppy spells. He zips around the house like a whirling dervish. He attacks all of his toys and dominates them with sheer force and determination. Then he melts in a furry ball of docility lapping up love, kisses and tummy rubs.

He’s pretty good about sleeping through the night now. His accident rate is on the decline. Puppy training will begin soon.

Rufus doesn’t like loud noises. All of those leaf blowers were starting to unnerve him.

He loves Cindy’s robe. He loves to chew it. We need to work on his puppy biting. The vet says when he gets in the biting mood give him a good substitute. A nice chew toy usually works.

Any advice you’d like to give? It’s been a long time since I last had a puppy.

7 Comments

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Welcome to the neighborhood Rufus! When you need to run and play just come over and play with Mary Ann & Gilligan across the street!

mcarrgary
November 17, 2009 6:28 p.m.

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Gracious. I don't know how we did it but my yorkie never chewed anything but his toys (except one pair of sunglasses that I left out). We got him at 6 weeks old and it's like he knew the differene between toys and non-toys. He also never had an accident in the house. Not one. We took him out very often, even during the night but no accidents. He was truly a great puppy. My female yorkie wasn't house broken until she was a year old but she never chewed anything at all, not even toys. Mine are 4 and 7 now and I wouldn't trade them for anything. Rufus is adorable - Enjoy! and if you find a way to get him to come to you let me know. We haven't mastered that with our male yet.

whatever02
November 17, 2009 6:02 p.m.

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OH I had an ink incident too! Fella Sue had found a pen somewhere and chewed it. Of course she waited until we got to puppy school that night and she threw up black. I had no idea what it was (and neither did the teacher!) until I got home and found the pen.

I also went through 2 $50 remotes for my satellite dish. I even saved the pieces and brought them to show the guy at the electronics place. He had never seen a remote in that many pieces.

My snow boots and golf shoes were also victims.

My bassets never liked toys. They would find the squeeker, dig it out and then not touch them again. On several occasions, it looked like it had snowed in my house with all the stuffing from the toys tossed all over.

Sorry Bill. Obviously I never got the hang of the "no bite" thing. I hear the Kongs work great.

LMRA
November 16, 2009 4:37 p.m.

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We were taught in puppy training to hold their mouth together and say "no bite" when they do it and make sure you have lots of options for them to chew on. Also, I used to tug at my pups fur (not hard or anything) and then when the dog would try to bite (in a playful way) I would also say "no bite" and hold her mouth together. This really was great training for little kids when they visit with my dog. She never nips at them even if they pull her fur (which we try to avoid). Good luck. This pup is adorable!

snorkelers
November 16, 2009 3:06 p.m.

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Best of luck Bill.....My little girl, Sammie, just turned 1 year old on Nov 12th and she still chews up everything around her! I have tried everything under the sun, chew bones, frozen rings, etc. and nothing has worked. I hope you have better success than I have but I wouldn't trade her for anything else in the world.

kimberlyflee
November 16, 2009 1:32 p.m.

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Based on my experience, put away ink pens. When our dog was a puppy, he seemed to like chewing on those. We still have a blue ink stain on our carpet.

westoflyra
November 16, 2009 1:16 p.m.

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For teething, a frozen rubber Kong toy helps. Fill it with peanut butter and treats before freezing. It creates a nice treat for them and helps ease sore gums.