Little Dog in a Big World

Archive for the ‘Misha’ Category

Misha is such a character! You never know what she’s going to do next. She is a quick learner and picks up tricks easily. This trick was something Misha already did. Whenever you get her food, she springs in the air 3 to 4 feet off the ground–jumping in place.

I have her doing it on command. We call this trick Jump For Joy…

Misha Jumps For Joy

Misha turned two years old on the 20th!  Woo hoo!  She even sang “Happy Birthday” to herself.

She turned out to have a very busy weekend.  My niece and her puppy stayed the night.  Misha had an unplanned birthday sleepover.

It was funny to see how mature Misha was compared to the 6 month old puppy.  She wasn’t really crazy about being chased around in circles and the constant sneak attacks.  She hasn’t had much experience with puppies, so she really wasn’t sure what to do.  The puppy was quite bratty and Misha lost her temper once.  Luckily, it was more posturing than anything.

Other than that the two dogs got along pretty well.  After they left, Misha collapsed into an exhausted heap.

So…Happy Birthday Misha!

Although I don’t live in snow country, our weather gets pretty chilly in the Winter.  When you have a dog who burrows under a heat reflecting blanket when it’s 80 degrees, you have to take certain precautions.  Early mornings, Misha shivers when she goes for her first potty break.  So, I figured it was time to get her a jacket.

I had no idea how traumatic this would be for both of us.  Misha is terrified of her dog jackets.  She doesn’t like to wear them at all.  I tried a pull over type but I couldn’t even get it close to her head.  The best bet was one that had velcro enclosures.  This worked okay except for the fact that she’s terrified of the sound the velcro makes.

She looked really cute in her first jacket, but it was too big for her (even though it was a hand-me-down from a Mini Pischer!)

The next jacket was smaller and had less velcro to deal with.  However, it became clear that Misha was not going to wear it.  The back end stuck up a bit and she ran around the house looking back in fear.  She though the jacket was following her!

Finally, my Mom found this little brown number at Ross.  It was small enough that Misha didn’t think it was following her and it was easy to put on.

We’ve been working on getting her to accept wearing a jacket for 4 months now.  While she is more tolerant, she still hates it.  I no longer have to feed her treats to get her to allow me to put it on.  But, the minute I put her down she runs around the house rubbing the walls trying to take it off.  She has only been successful once!

Once we’re out walking, she doesn’t notice the jacket at all.  Maybe by next Winter she will have decided that it’s not such a bad thing.

Misha is a funny dog.  I read somewhere that Jack Russell’s hate to be held.  They aren’t lap dogs and don’t want to be treated as such.

Well, Misha must be the fluke because she loves being held.  In fact, when she is wild, holding her is her “settle”.  She instantly settles down once she is in your arms.  She’ll even fall asleep if you wait long enough.

The problem is getting her there!  When she went through her trauma last Summer, picking her up became dangerous.  She would attack anyone who approached her.

I’ve been working with her…alot.  She’s gotten better.  She will tolerate being picked up most of the time.  Sometimes there is this look of panic in her eyes though and then she overreacts.  Or, sometimes she plays the clown and no matter how you try to lift her up, she rolls over on her back to make it more difficult.

She is now to the point where others can hold her.   She loves when people hold her.   She has even relented to being held upside down like a baby a few times recently.

There’s definitely more work to be done.  I’ll keep at it.  Eventually, I would like her to be a willing participant rather than a reluctant one.

Misha’s shots came due in December.  Since Misha’s traumatic visit to the Veterinary Hospital last December, I was not looking forward to taking her to the Vet for her vaccinations.  I was very concerned that she might bite someone.

We had to delay her appointment when my relative had surgery.  During that time, I worked with Misha constantly.  I held her every day.  I played with her ears, checked her paws, and wiped her down with a towel. (She hates the towel monster!)

Finally, I set the appointment.  My sister and I took our dogs together.  I though since she was so comfortable around my sister’s dog that perhaps that would help ease her fears.

I took the Veterinarian’s advice.  I took Misha out of her crate and let her walk into the waiting room on leash.  They suggested that this might make it easier as sometimes they will barricade themselves in their crate making the experience even scarier.  I was armed with a bag full of treats, which I doled out all along the way, so she might associate the vet’s office with food.  And, Misha never turns down food!

She was really good in the waiting room.  She sat on my lap and shivered, but she didn’t bark.  Occasionally, she sniffed her dog cousin.

We were allowed to go in together. I made sure the tech and the veterinarian were aware of Misha’s fears.  The goal was to get as much done in the visit as Misha would allow without further terrorizing her.

Summit got treated first by the tech.  She took her temperature and then was weighed.  Next it was Misha’s turn.  She was not happy at all about the thermometer up the butt, but she tolerated it as long as I held her.  She was timid as the tech took her off to the scale, but she did go.

Next up, the Veterinarian’s visit.  She took care of Summit first while Misha reluctantly watched.  When it was her turn, she was scared.  The Veterinarian gave her a couple of treats which made Misha a little bit less fearful.  I held her as the Veterinarian checked her out.  She allowed the stethoscope to touch her but would have nothing to do with the ear probe.

It was time for the shots and to have blood drawn.  We decided it might be best for Misha to go with the Veterinarian in the back.  That way none of my anxiety would rub off on her.

Ten minutes later, my dog was back in my arms with two bandaged legs.  They were able to do everything and had very little trouble.  They were aware that she would attack if they tried to muzzle her.  Instead they used a towel for defense.  They went slowly and did everything gently.  She did not complain about the shots, but got a little feisty when they bandaged her legs.

I think the approach worked.  She seemed to be more interested in my sister’s dog than she was the things in the vet’s office.  The treats helped take her mind off all the rotten things happening to her.  The veterinary staff were willing to work with her.  I was worried that once I told them she might bite that they would refuse to take her, but they were far more able to handle her than the emergency hospital.  There also wasn’t that constant background chatter from fearful dogs and cats.  I think that helped ease her anxiety.

This all reminds me of how spoiled I was with Sierra.  She loved people and she just assumed that everyone in the veterinarian office was sitting around waiting for her to visit.  She didn’t mind the care as long as she got treats and she was never afraid of the doctors.

This turned out to be a very good experience.  I continue to work with her so that she becomes even more at ease being handled.  Hopefully, next time she will be more at ease.

So much has been going on lately that I haven’t been able to update Misha’s blog.  In January, a family member had major surgery (tumor removal–outpatient).  I was taking care of the person and so everything was upside down.

Misha had a little trouble adjusting to boundaries the first couple of days.  I think she must have picked up on medical smells because she was a bit out of control for 3-4 days.  Then it seemed she relaxed and was okay with everything.

The person’s recovery was 6 weeks.  We had to keep Misha away during that whole time.  We built a boundary around the patient and Misha respected it.

She kept an eye on the patient though.  I move her bed into the living room.  She crawled under the blankets and peeked out.  It made her feel more comfortable knowing she could see the person even if she couldn’t get close.

We made it through recovery and slowly but surely things are getting back to normal.

Common sense would have told me to crate Misha while we decorated the tree.  She was off playing with her treat ball, so I didn’t think I had to worry.

Then she darted into the room.  Before we knew it she had something in her mouth that looked suspiciously like an ornament hook.  I grabbed her and felt nothing.  But, there was no hook on the ground.

After several minutes of back and forth, I decided to call the emergency vet clinic.  Of course, I should bring her in!  Her size (7 1/2 lbs.) made it more of a danger.  So, off we went to the emergency clinic.

Misha is terrified of the emergency clinic.  She went last May for a severe allergic reaction to a spider bite.  They got her muzzled and were able to give her the necessary shots.  But, when they turned on the razor to shave the area so they could clean it up, she freaked out.

She had not forgotten.

They first tried to work with her but she wasn’t participating.  I was brought in to weigh her.  I was able to do that with no problem.  I handed her over, but they couldn’t get her to calm down.

They tried to muzzle her, then I tried to muzzle her.  No go.

The Veterinarian came in and decided that before x-rays they would induce vomiting to see if we got lucky.  The inducer had an mild opiate in it which would calm Misha for the x-rays.

Misha got the inducer and then a plate of food.  She never has canned food.  She didn’t know what to do with it.  She would put some in her mouth, swish it around, then spit it out.  She finally decided that it was food and it was okay to eat.

Then she went through about 20 minutes of vomiting, poor thing!  And…no hook.  So, they did x-rays to be sure.  She was much calmer at this point and they were able to x-ray her just fine.  The hook did not appear on the x-rays.  Because we took her to the clinic so quickly, the Veterinarian was pretty sure she didn’t swallow a hook.

We took her home, where she turned into a wild banshee.  And, then she fell asleep.

The next day she was pretty dopey.  Around noon she picked up something behind the couch.  I chased her down.  What ever it was, she didn’t like it because she kept spitting it out.  Eventually she dropped it and abandoned it and I picked it up.  It was an ornament hook!  Not again!  We then felt the entire carpet to ensure that nothing else was lurking in the fibers.

As were down on our hands and knees, the thought occurred to me that no one had been behind the couch.  How did the hook get there?  It must have been the hook she picked up the night before!  She dropped it behind the couch before I caught her.

We were so fortunate.  We dodged the bullet twice in 24 hours.  I can tell you that when we take the tree down, she’ll be crated with a padlock for security!

It’s time.  Misha is acclimated to her new surroundings and no longer gets into as much trouble as she used to.  So, I’ve decided it’s time to get rid of the playpen.

It certainly served it’s purpose.  It provided a safe place for Misha to be when I couldn’t keep an eye on her.  Because of this, she rarely got into things she shouldn’t have.

When we moved, it became her comfort place.  It was something from the old house that smelled familiar and made her feel safe.

I highly recommend a playpen for anyone with a puppy or with a small dog.  It’s a better safe place than a fenced off room.  The chances that your puppy will get into trouble are greatly reduced.

Misha is doing really well in the house, so there is no need for the playpen.  To make the transition go more smoothly, I bought her a tent.

My puppy has graduated

I’ve been searching for ways to deter Misha’s carpet eating.  Bitter Apple works, but it’s not long lasting.  I have to spray it every few days to keep the icky taste up.

I decided Misha needed something to occupy her time.  I ordered a Kong bone with two holes on the end for stuffing treats.

When I first gave it to Misha, she gave me this look like I was playing some trick on her.  It really was funny to watch.  And, then she figured out that she could taste the treat when she licked the bone.  45 minutes later, she was still working on it!  Regular ol’ puppy pacifier.  LOL

Since I’ve been giving her the bone filled with treats her carpet chewing has decreased to almost nothing.  She is also much calmer than she was when we first moved in.  It relaxes her quite a bit.  I give it to her in the afternoon when the neighbors are being too noisy.  I sometimes give it to her after dinner.  It mellows her out completely.  I usually don’t have to worry about her in the evening.  Once she’s done with her bone, she is pooped out.

Why didn’t I think of this before?  I remember having problems with Sierra in the evening the first year.  She’d be wild, bouncing off the walls, and running across the furniture.  I got her a treat ball.  A half hour on that and she’d take a nap afterward.

I’m glad it’s having the same affect on Misha.  It looks like she is spending most of her excess chewing power by focusing on the treats.  Score one for the Kong Company!

Moving has turned into an ordeal for both Misha and myself.  Life has been unsettled.  I’m still living out of boxes and Misha’s trying to sort out the new rules that come with her new home.

She’s been overly excited since we moved in at the end of July.   I’ve tried to make a place for her stuff that feels like her old home.

She’s adapted to new rules like no jumping on the furniture.  She quickly learned this rule and has not been on the furniture since the third or fourth day.  I’ve got a blanket on my bed for her which is her place.  I did the same thing with Sierra and it seemed to work fine.

As Misha has learned the new rules and her new hangouts, she’s picked up some unsavory behaviors.  She attacks me whenever I sit on the floor.  If I’m on the couch, in a chair, standing, etc., she does not bother me.  The minute I’m on the ground at her height she goes ballistic.  I’ve stopped doing it so as not to encourage the wildness.

She is also eating carpet.  She never did this at our old house.  However, the first week she figure out that there were some loose pieces of yarn by the bathroom door.  Now she goes in search of loose yarn throughout the house then she pulls it out and eats it.

Bitter Apple seems to do the trick.  The first week I had to spray it every morning as a reminder.  But, now I only need to do it about once a week whenever she decides to go carpet hunting.

Lastly, she cannot leave the tan bark in the backyard alone.  I’ve started taking her outside on leash because if I don’t she runs to the tan bark and begins eating it as if it’s a buffet.  Bitter Apple had no affect on her tan bark behavior.

Each day I continue to work with her setting boundaries and limitations.  I know that each of these behaviors is a reaction to moving and all the change she’s encountered in the last few weeks.  Hopefully, she will soon mellow out and get back to normal.