The Rawhide Game
We moved the furniture around in our living room yesterday. We opened up the porch and moved the couch for the dogs out to the porch. Gromit loves this new layut. He is closer to the street but it is harder for him to see outside, more work for his ears and nose. We left the windows open on the porch last night - and that was a mistake. At about midnght the staff from a local resturaunt/bar were getting into their cars and they woke up the big G and he told them they needed to get in their cars and go home - bark bark bark. It didn't last long so he must have been successful and succinct in his message as he stopped quickly and went back to sleep.
This morning he popped upstairs to remind me that he needed to go out and Chewie needed breakfast. Gromit has a very subtle morning voice, he kind of whispers a little bit and then has an almost throaty whimper - this usually works to wake one of us, and if not, unless he is desparate he will fall on the floor and sleep a bit more, if we don't get up. If he is desparate he will up his vocals a notch - but I have to say that I completley appreciate this method of waking us in the morning - quite sensitive for a dog that loves his voice.
I got up today with Gromit as Sunday's are often my day to get up. Kristin takes Saturday and so I get up with the boys on Sunday. Now there is nothing ureasonable about this morning routine - Gromit waits until 8am on most weekend mornings. Which in the dog world for a dog who has ADHD must seem like an eternity and for me it seems very reasonable so I respect his apparent restraint.
This morning, after breakfast, Gromit was a bit charged up so I went about closing windows and trying to remove the extra fray from his distractabe life. I pulled out a couple of rawhides for the boys. One for Gromit and one for Chewie. I gave Gromit his rawhide and he went trotting off to the rug in the piano room. Chewie would not take it from my hand. I tossed his on the floor and went about cleaning the kitchen.
Let the Rawhide Game Begin -
Chewie gently picks his rawhide up off the floor, promptly trots into the piano room and drops his rawhide about 2 feet away from Gromit.
Gromit props himself up on his elbow takes note of the new rawhide dropped on the rug and then appears to ponder the situation.
I take my cup of coffee into the living room and Chewie follows me like glue sans his rawhide. I offer him a spot on my lap but he is not interested. He looks at me with his pleading eyes, but asks for nothing that I can determine. I finally look away...I feel bad but our conversation is too difficult for me. He is going to have to get himself a clicker and some dove ice cream treats to start shaping my behavior in these situations.
Alas, I spy into the piano room and Gromit is just laying on the floor, paw on a rawhide, not chewing, looking puzzled. Honestly I can't tell if I am puzzled and just transferring my feelings to Gromit - antromorphizing the poor dog. Okay, I keep watching and he is looking around and then just lies his big white head on the floor, and inhales deeply and exhales loudly.
Chewie in the meantime trots his self upstairs and gets in a morning snooze with Kristin. This apparently is a cue for Gromit to move his rawhide - he picks it up and heads to the porch but then turns and looks at me and comes into the living room ncollapses his boney body on the floor with a crunch and thud. Takes a couple of chews on the rawhide, stands up and leaves the rawhide and moves his tired, bored self behind my chair and again thuds to the floor.
About half an hour later, Kristin smells the coffee and brings Chewie downstairs. Nothing really changes, Gromit holds his ground, Chewie sniffs the lone rawhide in the middle of the living room. Kristin poors herself a cup of coffee, grabs her computer and we sit down together watching a Sunday morning silly movie and catching up on the forum and facebook. Just as we relax, Chewie is heard from the kitchen with an urgent woof - I look at Kristin and say - "your dog needs something" She says he is fine. But the woof comes again. I say, "aha - the game is back on." As I stand up Chewie comes running and reinforces me with another serious woof -
I go to let him out and Kristin asks me what he wants - and I tell her he is going to get that rawhide and bring it outside - sure enough as he realizes I am fully committed to the back door, Chewie races into the piano room where he left his rawhide and picks it up and is at the back door before me... I open it up and he is gone. I look behind me and there is Gromit who has his rawhide in mouth looking like Frank Sinatra with an oversized cigarette - He looks at the door and Chewie leaving and the turns around and drops his rawhide on the floor in the living room and lays down next to our chairs.
That is where we are at with the rawhide game today. Chewie's rawhide is in the backyard, Gromit's in the living room and no one is chewing anything. Eventually they will get chewed but who knows when. This write up will be forthcoming, but I need to shower and get the boys to the dog park before we head off to the Greek Festival at noon.
Stay posted...LOL! I am sure you are all dying to know which rawhide gets chewed and by who - as it stands now, we could put both rawhides back in the bag and return them to the store and no one ever have known a dog had them in their mouths - that is how gently the game is going right now. Treasures apparently need soft mouths and lots of time....
This morning he popped upstairs to remind me that he needed to go out and Chewie needed breakfast. Gromit has a very subtle morning voice, he kind of whispers a little bit and then has an almost throaty whimper - this usually works to wake one of us, and if not, unless he is desparate he will fall on the floor and sleep a bit more, if we don't get up. If he is desparate he will up his vocals a notch - but I have to say that I completley appreciate this method of waking us in the morning - quite sensitive for a dog that loves his voice.
I got up today with Gromit as Sunday's are often my day to get up. Kristin takes Saturday and so I get up with the boys on Sunday. Now there is nothing ureasonable about this morning routine - Gromit waits until 8am on most weekend mornings. Which in the dog world for a dog who has ADHD must seem like an eternity and for me it seems very reasonable so I respect his apparent restraint.
This morning, after breakfast, Gromit was a bit charged up so I went about closing windows and trying to remove the extra fray from his distractabe life. I pulled out a couple of rawhides for the boys. One for Gromit and one for Chewie. I gave Gromit his rawhide and he went trotting off to the rug in the piano room. Chewie would not take it from my hand. I tossed his on the floor and went about cleaning the kitchen.
Let the Rawhide Game Begin -
Chewie gently picks his rawhide up off the floor, promptly trots into the piano room and drops his rawhide about 2 feet away from Gromit.
Gromit props himself up on his elbow takes note of the new rawhide dropped on the rug and then appears to ponder the situation.
I take my cup of coffee into the living room and Chewie follows me like glue sans his rawhide. I offer him a spot on my lap but he is not interested. He looks at me with his pleading eyes, but asks for nothing that I can determine. I finally look away...I feel bad but our conversation is too difficult for me. He is going to have to get himself a clicker and some dove ice cream treats to start shaping my behavior in these situations.
Alas, I spy into the piano room and Gromit is just laying on the floor, paw on a rawhide, not chewing, looking puzzled. Honestly I can't tell if I am puzzled and just transferring my feelings to Gromit - antromorphizing the poor dog. Okay, I keep watching and he is looking around and then just lies his big white head on the floor, and inhales deeply and exhales loudly.
Chewie in the meantime trots his self upstairs and gets in a morning snooze with Kristin. This apparently is a cue for Gromit to move his rawhide - he picks it up and heads to the porch but then turns and looks at me and comes into the living room ncollapses his boney body on the floor with a crunch and thud. Takes a couple of chews on the rawhide, stands up and leaves the rawhide and moves his tired, bored self behind my chair and again thuds to the floor.
About half an hour later, Kristin smells the coffee and brings Chewie downstairs. Nothing really changes, Gromit holds his ground, Chewie sniffs the lone rawhide in the middle of the living room. Kristin poors herself a cup of coffee, grabs her computer and we sit down together watching a Sunday morning silly movie and catching up on the forum and facebook. Just as we relax, Chewie is heard from the kitchen with an urgent woof - I look at Kristin and say - "your dog needs something" She says he is fine. But the woof comes again. I say, "aha - the game is back on." As I stand up Chewie comes running and reinforces me with another serious woof -
I go to let him out and Kristin asks me what he wants - and I tell her he is going to get that rawhide and bring it outside - sure enough as he realizes I am fully committed to the back door, Chewie races into the piano room where he left his rawhide and picks it up and is at the back door before me... I open it up and he is gone. I look behind me and there is Gromit who has his rawhide in mouth looking like Frank Sinatra with an oversized cigarette - He looks at the door and Chewie leaving and the turns around and drops his rawhide on the floor in the living room and lays down next to our chairs.
That is where we are at with the rawhide game today. Chewie's rawhide is in the backyard, Gromit's in the living room and no one is chewing anything. Eventually they will get chewed but who knows when. This write up will be forthcoming, but I need to shower and get the boys to the dog park before we head off to the Greek Festival at noon.
Stay posted...LOL! I am sure you are all dying to know which rawhide gets chewed and by who - as it stands now, we could put both rawhides back in the bag and return them to the store and no one ever have known a dog had them in their mouths - that is how gently the game is going right now. Treasures apparently need soft mouths and lots of time....
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