A Little Update About...........

Elsie had a super social weekend, met some dogs, and is learning to obey better now!

Saturday Walk

We went on a walk/run on Saturday morning. It was BEAUTIFUL! And amazing! Elsie does so well running with us! And she gets me out soo much! On the way back from the pond we normally run down to, Elsie somewhat met two Papillons, a mother and her daughter. They were very little and Elsie really did not have much chance to get much warmed up to them.

When we got home, I brushed her. She is getting to be like our male dog with tangles and little whirls here and there on her coat! She has such a pretty face.

Saturday (Socializing)

My sister has a bridal shower on Saturday. There were almost thirty people there and we took Elsie. She was pretty good. And I think she ate a little too much junk food, as she threw up that night. Elsie and I took a walk around part of the property. She also met our friends' dog, Bijou, a poodle.

For the most part, she spent a lot of time sleeping on the nice leather couch. A friend of mine, who loves Elsie, wanted to be with almost constantly while she was awake. She was not really bothered by a 1 year old toddler or a 3 year old.... though she was timid as usual... It was good to get her out.... and she even got to be in the girl pictures!

Sunday (Socializing)

After meeting on Sunday, Bijou, who had come over with her "parents" got re-introduced to Elsie. Elsie was shy and timid at first but warmed up and played for about a half and hour or more with Bijou..... Which got both her and Bijou a lot of exercise.

Along with that, she also had to deal with seven other people that she did not really know. She still did very reasonably well and had a great time with Bijou.

Dew Claws

As we made an appointment for Elsie to have her dew claws removed, LORD willing, she should have surgery this Wednesday. You can pray that all goes well!

~Western Belle

What We've Been Working On

WOW! Elsie is almost 11 weeks old. We have had her over three weeks by now and she is such a sweet heart or else a very naughty puppy. This post is mostly about what we've been doing this week. :)

VET....

To start with, Elsie had her second veterinarian appointment this morning. Second set of shots! YEAH!!!! She did not scream this time and did not even whimper! A huge improvement since her last appointment. WE made two other appointments, LORD willing, for later on - one for her third set of shots and one to have her rare, rear dew-claws removed. She did very well and was calm enough to eat a vitamin and some dog food as treats. GOOD DOG!!!

Outdoors....

Outside... that is were you get the exercise for your crazy mutt who can't hold still..... Earlier this week, we spent about an hour outside playing around and practicing come..... yes, it worked for about a half hour... then, tired out and maybe thirsty, Elsie decided to disobey and go home... Naughty dog.... So we finished up mostly on a leash as Elsie was just running off and not following me and her mentor, Skia.

Still running and running and running.... Yes, she can still run about two miles tirelessly. I was reading how they are great dogs for runners and bikers... and she is.... just needs a little leash training. Elsie likes to follow Skia, mom, my older sis, or whoever does not have the leash. Getting ahead? Instant stop (or almost instant). But over all, she is still a great run along dog and keeps up (only behind a few or so paces) with Skia who weighs about 90 pounds and is about 8 times older then her..... Talk about energy!

Play Time (The NEW Toy)....

New toy. Mom bought Elsie a chew-kong on Monday. I did not give it to Elsie till this morning and we got an interesting reaction out of her. Evidently, the toy smelled a little too much like rubber and even though it had meat on it, Elsie had a hilarious fit. She'd lie down and stare at the toy, yipping her head off. I put it in olive oil to hide the smell and get her to like it and finally she definitely likes it. Skia likes it too, and both top dogs almost got in a sort of fight over it.... Whoever maintains possession over it is the winner and all they must do to fend off the other crazy dog is yip, nip, or bark. Skia let out the worst little bark she had done to Elsie ever over it. :) Well have fun, Elsie!

Crate?

Crate? Yes, well.... Elsie has been doing exceptional! Wonderful and sleeping the night through. I get her up and often she does not eat till about seven now.... just sleeps (or stays awake) or chews about till it is light. So crate = GOOD!

AWANA (Socializing a timid pup)

AWANAs is a Bible club that is national (and maybe international). I volunteer there on Wednesday nights (normally) to help with 3 to sixth grade girls. Elsie tagged along this time. It is a perfect place to socialize her. She has grown timid and new hands, new places, sounds, and smells are a good thing for her. Yes, she was a little scared. But she did fine and did not have an accident (YAY!!!)... Mom would like to try taking her every week from now on.

~Western Belle