Dog School

Today is the Puppy Bean's second day of dog school! We are looking forward to his next lesson.

He is having some problems in the car. He gets SO excited about going on a car trip that he whines and barks constantly. We have been spraying him with vinegar water every time he whines or barks and it is making a difference and he is starting to calm down. The bad thing is that now the car smells like vinegar. The Husband complains, but I tell him that his options are stinky good dog, or out of control sweet smelling dog. He has yet to tell me which he prefers.

The Puppy Bean still runs off and there is only a 30% percent chance he will come to you when you call him. The only 100% guaranteed way to get him to come is to walk away from him. When he sees you going away from him, he immediately tries to catch up. The only negative is that sometimes he just runs by you and continues his evasion tactics. He is getting better though.

He is also an expert at determining the personality of people he meets. If he thinks they are alpha, he will not jump on them, but will act appropriately, if he thinks they are weak or not comfortable with dogs, he will jump up on them, nibble their hands, and act out super bad so that the Husband or I have to step in and stop him. I find that intersting.

One good thing I have to report about the Puppy Bean is that he will let the Little Bean do almost anything to him. It is almost as though he had decided that the baby is the alpha dog in this house. He doesn't try to walk in front of her stroller anymore, and when he is laying around the house, she can do anything and he barely even opens his eyes. It is remarkable. She looks at his teeth, his feet, and in his ears. She sits on him and pulls him by his collar. He just lays around and acts like he enjoys the attention. The only time I step in is when the Little Bean is being naughty. She sometimes hits him in the face, hits him with her sword, and chases him around with her popper and her chair. He is totally afraid of the chair and the popper. When she hits him, he just lays there and looks at her like, "why?"
We step in quickly and tell the Little Bean to stop. Generally, she kisses the Puppy and pats him when she gets in trouble for hitting. The chair and the popper is different, when she is stopped from chasing him with those, she goes CRAZY! She cries and runs away and has a little tantrum.

Never a dull moment in this house. :)

Here are two photos of the Little Bean sitting in her highchair and drawing with crayons. It is a constant battle to keep her from eating them.

Below is a photo of a tantrum. This occured when she bit off part of the crayon and I took the crayons away. She is so mad that she is trying to throw the paper from her highchair. That is my girl.