Week
6
This
week has seen a definite increase in Lewi’s bad behaviours. He had learnt
previously the leave command, as soon as he had started to attempt a chew on my
trainers, for example, a quick “Leave!” was sufficient to stop him. This
week, often, the command is ignored, he is grabbing at and gnawing things that
he had not before – doors, settee legs, human legs, fingers, feet, toes –
anything within reach, and chewed with a vengeance, ignoring all 'No' or 'Leave'
commands. Even the Vick bottle held near will not stop him. I decided it was a
training issue and would bring it up with the trainer at puppy class. I have
also noticed an increase in other behaviours such as totally uncontrolled mad
sessions when he will run around in circles through the room, totally oblivious
to obstacles such as furniture and people, or grabbing at people.
I
was quite confident going to class, as in our final homework session both the 'sit' and
'down' commands were well-established and working without fail. At class,
it all went. During the introduction chat, he was restless and pulling to get at
other puppies, the teacher’s assistant came and sat with us and whilst I was
listening to the talk, she was teaching him the ’Shh’ command and calming
him. We were going to make a start on ‘Stay’. No chance, he refused to even
look at me, would not sit or go down, in the introduction to the ‘come’
command, he would not return to me, though at home, playing puppy ping-pong I
had been having really good responses. When it came to socialisation time,
whilst he was good with others, he managed to get into a fight with another
puppy. When I dived in to break it up, I discovered how sharp the other
puppy’s teeth were and ended up with a well blooded left hand. As everyone was
going, the trainer and her assistant came across to me. I actually thought we
were going to get expelled! Instead, the assistant asked me if I had noticed his
frequent scratching of his ear, had I noticed increased chewing and over excited
behaviour. Yes – I had, I had wanted to ask about these (though I hadn’t
noticed the scratching, I thought that was a reaction to the collar). The trainer
looked in his ears – they were clear and not inflamed. She then gave him a
good dental inspection and they passed a verdict. Teething. I had – a while
back - falsely diagnosed that. Though they did say there are no teeth appearing
to fall out at the moment, he was definitely showing signs of suffering from
teething pain. Ice cold chews, and if the gums become too painful, Bonjela. I will
be keeping a very close watch on this and then, if necessary, a trip to the vets.
The
other change has been with his coat. The undercoat – is that the correct word?
– seems to be becoming much thicker and we are having to brush some tufts out,
moulting and developing a nice new thick winter coat. He has lost a lot of the
black hairs on his back, and the lighter coloured band around his shoulder is becoming more
clearly defined.
He
is learning about the great outdoors. We have been for a few walks across to the
local riverside meadows, and he has enjoyed the exploring and seeing lots of new
faces (human and canine). His behaviour there is better than at school. Mind
you, all the parents of naughty children used to say the same to me when I was
teaching! No school next week, due to bonfire night. I have the DAP diffuser
working full time in the kitchen (his bedroom) now. Not sure if it will have any
effect at all. I have planned a very quiet night in on 5th November.
Calming music on the stereo, quite loud and me sitting reading quietly. A calm
atmosphere, hopefully, will be infectious.