The Collie’s Revenge

Full Size 900×1354

Lody and Orion have been getting on reasonably well together. I had my doubts  the second day Rion was here, because it looked as though our mild-mannered Collie, who is one of the most reasonable dogs I have ever known, was going to have a full-scale panic attack over the puppy. But next morning, Lody apparently woke up with a “oh well, what the hell” attitude, and has tolerated Orion’s antics fairly well since then. She even plays with him occasionally, which is fairly blood-curdling to watch, since she out-masses him 15 to 1.

However, Lody is not above throwing her weight around when it comes to Orion. The scenario in this photo has become common. I am in my office sitting at my desk. Lody lays in the doorway between me and the puppy. She will not let the puppy pass by her to get to me. BP (Before Puppy), Lody never frequented that spot. I can’t tell the difference between Lody’s growls that mean “I am playing with you, kid” and “I am serious about ripping off your face if you continue, you miserable little monster” but Orion seems to be able to do so, fortunately. (A few minutes after I took this photo, Lody went to her bed by the slider, and now Rion is curled up where she was laying.)

Rion – A few answers

This is a general response based on questions in the comments.
 
Orion was nine weeks old last Monday, having been born in foster care on October 20. As far as we know, since he was born at a Pikes Peak Humane Society foster home, he is a purebred Miniature Schnauzer. Based on his size at nine weeks, I think he may run big for a male. From observing his behavior, his foster family did a great job with him. According to notes from his veterinarian, his mother was not good at keeping her puppies clean, and the foster family had to help, but otherwise the puppies in the litter were considered healthy. 

Lody, our elderly Collie, had a very hard time with him Saturday, and was extremely anxious even being in the same room with him.  Then, since Sunday, she has become increasing comfortable with him.  She now shows the same resigned tolerance that most elderly dogs display around obnoxious puppies.  She growls at him occasionally when he becomes particularly obstreperous, but hangs out with him with no signs of stress. 

Schnauzers frequently turn gray as they get older. However, we cannot find any gray hairs on his body, so he may stay black.  Based on his puppy coat, I expect he will have a very wiry, dense, long adult coat. 

Merry Christmas, and No Worries

Full Size 1200×798

Rion is worn out from a busy morning of supervising turkey preparation, overseeing the present opening, playing with his new toys, playing with the gift wrap, and attempting to remove the shoe-laces from my mother’s shoes. The rope toy is one of his new toys, and there is twelve inch ruler beside him as he sleeps, to give an idea of his size.

It is generally recommended not to get a puppy at Christmas. And it is true, my preparations for this Christmas have been, as a result, even more haphazard than usual. (Apologies for those who will be getting late presents and IOUs.  And it isn’t just getting a puppy, but the additional effort of helping to pack the office where I work for a move to Denver.) However, every time I start to stress about how much I haven’t done, I play with the puppy, or just watch him sleep, and I feel just fine. (Note: In our favor, as far as adopting a puppy, we have a flexible and versatile setup for dogs. Some people have gone so far as to call it perfect.)

My Evil Plan…

Full Size 1200×798

…to exhaust Orion yesterday so we could get some sleep last night worked! I tried to get him to play once more after this photo was taken but most of his bounce was gone. He only woke me up twice last night to go out, and both times the mission was accomplished so quickly that we were back to sleep within minutes.

Today’s exciting plans include a planned visit to a friend who has cats that are accustomed to dogs. Rion is sufficiently predatory that I want him meet cats while they are bigger than he.

Rion

I made a strategic error when I got home last night:  I was so tired myself I didn’t wake Rion and play with him for a while.  He had been sleeping on Jack quietly, so I took him outside and then put him in his crate, and went to sleep myself not long after.  Rion must have been tired his first night here, because last night he woke me every sixty to ninety minutes after midnight. Then I compounded the error by giving him one of his new toys, and Rion evidently decided “Wow:  this place rocks at night.”  On the other hand, watching him pounce and kill his little plush hippo toy was worth the price of admission.

Rion seems totally at home now. Like any properly adjusted puppy, he views everything as a potential toy.  The puppy toys I brought home yesterday are nice, but nothing beats a human being.  The Collie has potential too:  if he could just figure out how to get her to cooperate.

We have the house set up in zones.  The small puppy proof zone is the master bathroom.  The associated bedroom is puppy safe:  he could damage stuff, but is unlikely to get hurt doing so.  The remainder of the ground floor on this side of the French doors should be puppy safe after today, except for my office.  We are not even going to attempt to puppy safe the area on the other side of the French doors.  He still cries when he doesn’t have Jack or me in sight, but is more apt to wander off exploring on his own for a while before realizing he can’t see us.

The biggest surprise is how cheerful Rion is about going outside.  I am sure he doesn’t understand “walkies” yet, but he is enthusiastic about following me to the mudroom door.  This morning he was frolicking about in 14F and seemed quite comfortable, at least for the five minutes I was willing to keep him outside.  So far walkies consist of going the length of the dog run to the gate to the horse field.

He can now jump down from the bed, and is quite indignant that he can’t get back up under his own steam. I started brushing him with a puppy brush, but it wasn’t doing the job, so I’ve been using a tiny wire brush which he thinks is a game. 

Miniature Schnauzer

Rion, our Miniature Schnauzer puppy spent a relatively quiet night. I, on the other hand, was too jazzed to sleep more than a few hours. Although he is really too small, he somehow manages to get up the stairs out of our sunken living room. He flows up them, rather than climbing them. I am trying to avoid the temptation to carry him everywhere: he needs the exercise, even though he is very cuddly when I lift him. I also need to get him some smaller toys: all our existing dog toys are bigger than he is. So are my Crocs, though he is perfectly willing to try to chew on them, especially if my feet are in them. He seems to have the appropriate instincts about not soiling in his crate, and let me know emphatically that he needed out about 11:30 pm last night. So far, the one thing that seems to worry him is doors slamming. He must not have heard that noise where he lived with his litter mates.