First Day with Coco - reaching into the Archive

Coco and the Kitty Revolution

COCO!!!

Yes, she's 8 months old and over 70 lbs. She's growing up fast and thankfully, starting to chill out a bit.

A few weeks ago she mysteriously broke her toe. 3 weeks of house arrest resulted in one of WORST periods of dog ownership EVER. I'll spare you the 1000 word essay here, but let's just say this - we lost a cozy feather comforter and Chris and I nearly strangled one another because we were so frustrated. She was TERRIBLE.

The Kitty Cat Revolution

Yeeeeeeeeeeeah -- so, the cats are still NOT okay with this whole doggy thing. Coco loves kitties, and unfortunately wants to play with them. So recently she's been on a leash, tied to me belt loop when she's around the kitties. This works pretty well and she's rewarded when she remains passive with them.

Unfortunately, the kitty revolution began a few months ago and has resulted in an issue that
I am almost too embarrassed to talk about. They urinated on the furniture. It's awful and after spending $1500 on our new living room set, I'm seriously ready to lose my mind. Luckily, I'm going back to the old reliable method that has worked in the past.

What has not worked

I heard a lot of good things about Nature's Miracle. I tried it numerous times, but it never worked. EVER. So my local pet supply folks told me to try Urine Off. It's #1 Vet recommended and they say it's The World's Best Urine Stain and Odor Remover, so I fell for the marketing hype and decided to give it a whirl. It made my furniture smell 10 times worse and my entire house smelled like fresh cat urine. Chris was ready to lose his mind and I was ready to make a fur hat out of Miss Bast, as I know for a fact that she's the Che Guevara of this Revolution.

Super Size Bast

Large AND in charge!

What has worked

My kitty cat guru, Dave Rhabari, highly recommended water and vinegar. I had used it before when we first brought JuJu home. It worked like a charm. But for some reason I wanted to try the expensive crap that I heard so many good things about. Natures Miracle + Urine Off came to about $30+ and didn't do a damn thing. The White Vinegar was $1.29 and I mixed it with an equal part of water. 1 cup of White Vinegar + 1 cup of water. It killed the scent and didn't destroy my furniture.

Between kitty drama and the MONEY PIT that is now my dog, I can say that this is all totally worth it. Coco is an amazing creature. She's so darn smart and and about as sweet as it gets. She's been chilling out on the puppy craziness a bit more every single week. I know that she and the kitties will come full circle...once she decides that they are NOT going to play with her.

7 Months Old! Happy Birthday Coco!!

A little retrospect!


Can you believe that our little 'Boo Boos' is already 7 months old??

I was recently talking to my neighbor Stephanie, who is 3 1/2 yrs old. She reminded me that I brought Coco home when it was snowing and that Coco was the size of her little wiener dog, Bronson. Wow, things have changed.

She has grown into quite the little stink bomb. Coco is now 65 lbs and very strong. She still gets 3 walks a day and it still seems like it's never enough exercise. We're hoping to complete our fenced-in yard this weekend so that Coco can run wild and will not be limited to the house and leash time, during walks. *fingers gently crossed*

What we did right

Well, that schedule kept Coco potty trained. She only had two accidents inside the house. We were pretty fortunate! Another success - we have been committed to making sure that Coco gets more than enough exercise. It's been good for us, too! We reinforced all 'commands' during our walks and when we fail - try, try again! She continues to test us every single day, and we continue to reinforce all rules so that she does not take advantage of us. Crate training is key, folks. It keeps your dog out of trouble and you get to correct your dog under constant supervision when it is not in the crate. I cannot believe that people don't crate train their dogs. Those are some of the same people who FLIP out when their dog chews up their couch while unsupervised.

What we could have done better

Well...to this day I still feel bad about that Pigs Ear that made her so tremendously ill. Yeah - I'm a sap and it was like MONTHS ago...but I still remember her anguish and discomfort. We also refused to crate her at night. I wish that I had just stuck with it, as we had MONTHS of sleepless nights. Wow. For those who are consistent, it can really pay off. Actually, last night we had a quiet night with Coco in her crate. She didn't make a peep! We'll see how tonight goes...so far so good.

I wish that I had saved my $$ on absurd dog treats/toys and spent more on obedience training. But overall - I am so grateful that I brought Coco home, very much against my husbands will. Don't get me wrong, he loves her to pieces. But he was NOT a fan of taking on this responsibility. Now we cannot imagine our lives without Miss Coco. SHE ROCKS!

ADVENTURE DOG!

COCO VISITS THE OUTER BANKS!

For the most part, Coco has been great. She was a perfect Princess on the 2 day drive. But the waves have proven to be a little much for her. She's okay with walking the beach with us, but the breaking waves seem to cause her a little anxiety and she gets a little nippy and weird when she's on the beach too long. In the meantime, she's been making friends with my brothers dog Winston and we even made pals with some other German Shepherd on the beach. We met Elsa (10 months old) and Trooper - a retired Polics Dog from Commerce Twp, MI. It's been fun, but Coco is definitly NOT a beach bum. I don't know how I was attracted to a breed that is NOT water friendly, as I am quite the Mermaid. Hopefully Coco will come around a bit.

Well -we knew it was going to a great adventure when we spotted the Batmobile. :)

Create your own video slideshow at animoto.com.

101 DOG TRICKS

101 DOG TRICKS: I am already picking thru this book and growing more and more excited about teaching the ever active Coco some new tricks. I have located a Hula-Hoop and we shall see how long it takes for Coco to learn to jump thru it. There's a whole chapter just on Hoop tricks, so that should be fun.

JAIL BREAK - COCO ESCAPES HER CRATE

Of course, this should come as no surprise.

When Coco was 10 weeks old, I sat in disbelief as I watched her jiggle the handle on her teeny little crate and let herself right out. We had a bungie chord around the crate for months. When she grew a bit bigger, we moved her to a medium size crate that my mother let us borrow. It was far more secure, so we didn't have any problems.

Recently, we bought her a SUPER SIZE crate. One like this:


























And now I am wishing that I had splurged on something more secure like this one:

The wire crate seems a bit flimsy, but we bought it 50% off. So I thought we'd be able to use it for the rest of Coco's life. It's totally huge! But Coco is a smart cookie and has already managed to get out of it. Chris (my hubby) secured it with a bungie chord this morning, so we'll see what happens.

Honestly, we were expecting a "Keith Moon" type reception when we got home. Thankfully, she was sound asleep by the door - which shocks me. Coco has been on house arrest for one week due to her spay and she has been a BAD BAD little girl. Exercise is the key to obedience, and she's not getting any of that! I can't blame her. But the house was oddly in order. I thought at the very least there would be broken pens and ink all over the furniture, but she didn't do a single thing. Altho - I bet her puppy tummy is FULL of kitty poo, via the litter box. *barf*

Anyhoo...we'll see how this goes. If you have a smart German Shepherd or any large breed, I don't recommend these wire crates. Splurge for the more secure ones, as these crates are going to last the dogs entire life.

More Senseless Violence Against Animals

“The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated” - Gandhi



"Shadow"





















Holy smokes - ANOTHER dog was horribly beaten by their owner? It seems like every few months AnnArbor.com posts a horrific story about a dog owner losing their temper and damn near beating their dog to death! This time, it was a little Jack Russell/Terrier Mix named "Shadow." I just cannot believe that someone would beat a tiny dog with a hammer over an indoor "potty" accident. I mean really - WHAT does one think that a dog does in a new environment?? Especially little dogs that are notorious for their little bladders? This is so sad. CLICK HERE FOR THE WHOLE STORY.

I'm obviously preaching to the choir, here. You are reading this blog because you are a fellow dog lover and you are just as floored by these senseless tales of impatience and unforgivable abuse.



"Annie" finds a loving home

















Last February, a local man was finally convicted of brutally beating his dog "Brownie" nearly to death, this time with a tire iron. Her abuse was so extensive that she had to have one of her hind legs amputated. After lying under oath and swearing that he accidentally ran the dog over with his car, the judge slapped him with a 2-4 year prison term. According to AnnArbor.com; "Washtenaw County Circuit Judge David Swartz slapped Rutley with a two- to four-year prison sentence and said he would have issued more time if state guidelines allowed." CLICK HERE FOR THE FULL STORY. "Brownie" was renamed "Annie" by her adoptive family and is thankfully living a new life of luxury and prestige!

At least the laws are somewhat in-place to handle these types of cases. Many other states merely give a slap on the wrist, and offer probation. I'm thankful that Judge David Swartz took this case seriously and handed this criminal a tough sentence, especially after he refused to take accountability for his actions.

As much as it shocks me to see these stories come out of the woodwork, I am glad to see that AnnArbor.com treats them as "Headline News." Are there a sudden rash of violent cases against animals? Probably not, animal abuse is as old as mankind - but it seems that the media is jumping on the stories as more and more people are responding to them. People are fed up with these disparaging stories and are taking steps to mitigate this senseless violence against our precious little fur babies.