Hello all,
We are pleased to announce our adoption by Wyemede's Gallant
Gelbackler. Gelli was 10 weeks old this past Monday and we have
survived 21 days of living with this little devil who answers to
the sobriquet "Gelli, the Gila monster". So far, he has visited
9 states (on his drive home) and met 73 new people. One
neighbor, who is into computer photography, has made a special
study of Gelli and is producing incredible digital photos which
I will load onto a web site as soon as I can get some spare
time.
Gelli is a brave little trooper who is adapting very well to his
new home in Missouri. He is making good progress on house
training (two days w/o an accident!) and wakes me to take him
out during the night and yips by the door during the day. (Ma!
don't embarrass me!) Gelli has also tamed the wild and dangerous
downspout drain pipes and all the flowers and trees in the yard
know that Gelli is boss. The birds and rabbits are still
learning but the dust mop, broom, and vacuum cleaner are sworn
enemies and have been vanquished. It should be noted that Gelli
and the dishwasher have negotiated a mutual non-aggression pact.
The refrigerator is still an open question. Yes, it hums and
periodically make threatening noises but when barked at
aggressively it sometime produces interesting treats like
carrots and ice cubes. We'll have to work on training that white
box to routinely disgorge interesting stuff.
Gelli is also exhibiting typical BMD behaviors - he regularly
bumps us with his nose (he barely has a nose for cryin' out
loud!) and does the foot sits and leg wraps pretty frequently.
Someone, (not me) taught him about belly rubs and he is
routinely demanding those. There must be some kind of BMD
correspondance course these babies attend before they are
adopted coz this little guy sure knows all the moves.
Weeks ago, in life BG (Before Gelli), I asked for advice on what
to do to prepare for the pup. Many of you suggested that I catch
up on my sleep. The message was fairly easy to grasp. New puppy
= no sleep. The reality is something very different. Now, having
lived 21 days with this little tornado I am driven to ask: What
is sleep? I've had virtually no REM sleep in 21 days. I've taken
to lying down on the floor with Gelli when he takes his nap.
("Ma! That's MY bed!.") The house is a shambles with doggie
toys, gates, leashes, and assorted puppy paraphenalia
everywhere.
Professional appearance at work? - forget it! I got a quick dry
haircut just for the pup. My team members laugh at me as I
stumble through the day mumbling, "good boy". I've forced all of
my colleagues to look at photos of my dog. On the other hand, I
am pleased that I have to go to work. Its the only place I get
any peace!
To the person who recommended a gallon of Nature's Miracle --
are you sure this is enough? While Gelli is perfectly happy to
reap the "Good Boys!" when he does his business outside this
does not seem to deter him from doing a quick piddle indoors as
need arises. Need arises after play, after sleep, after eating,
after stretching, after 45 minutes, after drinking, after ...,
pretty basically, after anything.
To the person who recommended presentable pjs for midnite
excursions. Thanks for the great advice! I would add that its
inportant to practice donning these clothes and shoes in the
dark in a sleep befuddled state while holding a squirming pup
who needs to go NOW and it is pouring rain! Let's see, slip on
shoes - whoops! Left foot into LEFT shoe! Pull on pants - no,
you can't fit two human legs into one pants leg! Shirt is
inside out and backwards? Who cares!? Ma! I gotta go NOW, NOW,
NOW! Oh yeah, its raining and cold - where is the rain gear?
Ooops! Need the towel for the pup when he comes inside AND
finally, I've got to figure out where the damn door is and
unlock it. All at 3:00am on a seriously sleep deprived schedule.
After one night of this I learned to plan ahead: place clothes
and shoes and raincoat where they can easily be found and put on
in the dark. And, its not so bad to appear in the backyard in
only a shirt and undies at 3:00 am. After all, who would be out
at that hour except another puppy parent and they would
understand. Finally, remember, failures in training are my
failures -- not the pup's!
After all this whining I have to count our blessings. There is
nothing better than being adopted by a Berner and I would not
trade this for anything!
=====
Patricia Buickerood
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