dachshunds | Dangerous Common Sense

Day 74 – Morning Accomplishments

Well, it happened.

About 5:45 this morning, I had taken Aurora out for her housetraining. She told me several times that she was fine and didn’t need to go out.

A couple times she turned away from the backyard and went up the four stairs she’d just mastered yesterday evening just to show me how done she was with the backyard. She’d try to reach the pack members just inside who were taunting her with how comfortable they were inside. Each time I went up to the landing and brought her back into a spot where previous biological activities had taken place.

She finally produced, and I let her run up the stairs to go back inside to join the other pack members. Her lightened state apparently enabled her to jump up the final step.

Yep. She made it all the way up the stairs into the house on her own. An accomplishment!

Crud! We aren’t safe any more!

I didn’t expect that the final step would be overcome so quickly!

We celebrated briefly, and then the whole pack went to sleep with Geoffrey while I went off to the gym. Later I did have the camera ready for the mid-morning playful attack of the agapantha roots.

Day 74 — Celebrating with a bit of Agapantha Root

By Galen|2018-12-08T18:59:41-08:00December 6, 2018|dachshunds|0 Comments

Day 73 — Four Steps at a Time

The big development of the day occurred late, out of the range of any camera. Aurora made it up four steps from the backyard to the landing tonight!

True, she made her way up the steps to end the tedious patrol of the backyard I was insisting on because I wanted her to “Go do doggie things.” She insisted that she had no biological needs, and I had been insisting that she needed get in touch with her own body.

Instead, she turned toward the stairs and slowly, with great effort, climbed all of them to the top of the landing. There she sniffed around after gauging that the big step inside was beyond her strength.

When I lifted her back down to the yard to “Do doggie things!” she would have none if it. This time she went up the stairs to the landing at a pretty good clip.

I gave up (and saw no biological punishment from Aurora) after the third time she went up the stairs. This time I helped her over the big step, and she went bounding inside.

Unfortunately, today’s picture of mother and daughter simultaneously clamped on the tennis ball doesn’t capture the momentous progress of the day. But, I think it’s still a cute look!

Zenith and Aurora dispute ownership of the yellow tennis ball

Day 73 — MY Ball!

By Galen|2018-12-08T18:34:15-08:00December 5, 2018|dachshunds|0 Comments

Day 72 — Late Play is Better than No Play

Aurora was kept from her mid-day play routine today because I had to go to a 12:30 meeting. She made do, though.

When I got home the sun had already gone past her backyard, but the far outback was still warm and fragrant.

Aurora in the far back yard checking out a stump while Apex gnaws her ball in the blurry background

Day 72 — Afternoon Exploration in the Way Back

Aurora must chew everything, while Apex is very happy tackling just one of her balls.

Because Aurora had a good lunch, we weren’t worried about a late dog dinner due to the humans having a date night. When we got home, the adults chowed down quickly but Aurora was more interested in playing. (You can tell by her coat, that Apex had already her share of playing outside in the rain.)

Aurora looking at the camera ready to play .

Day 72 — Giving up on a Late Dinner to Play

By Galen|2018-12-08T18:19:45-08:00December 4, 2018|dachshunds|0 Comments

Day 71 — Turning Off the Irrigation

Today Aurora reminded us of another home feature we used to have but which proved incompatible with puppies: a sprinkler system.

Day 71 — Examining the Roots

Aurora has consistently (so far) focused on chewing plants and their roots. She’s left the plastic bits of sprinklers alone.

However, this picture reminds us that previous puppies chewed enough parts to make the system leaking and unreliable. For a while — a few years, actually — we dutifully replaced the tubes and connectors gnawed by our beasts. But, we’ve stopped.

I’d like to say we stopped because we became more water conscious during the drought years. And, there’s some truth to that. Plus, our newer plants and bushes didn’t line up with the existing irrigation lines. But, the stop-stopping reason for no longer turning on the water is canine behavior!

By Galen|2018-12-08T17:06:08-08:00December 3, 2018|dachshunds|0 Comments

Day 70 — Continuing Traditional Gardening

Our backyard planter boxes arrived when our first pack was getting elderly. We were able to grow some flowers and tomatoes without fighting over them with the canines. However, in 2008 SeQueL arrived, and the planters quickly became a favorite playtime destination.

Aurora has continued the puppy tradition of wallowing, digging, and generally enjoying the now-falling-apart planters.

Aurora looking at the camera from the back of the planter

Day 70 — Morning Play in the Planter

Aurora has also decided that the planter box is also a litter box, at least the center part of it is. Very confusing to us humans, but the whole box is being enjoyed by this puppy.

Meanwhile, she continues another Ozdachs puppy tradition: nibbling on the roots of the agapantha. All of our puppies have decided the exposed agapantha roots are the best for flavor and texture!

Aurora chewing on agapantha roots in the backyard.

Day 70 — Agapantha Roots Cure Everything, right?

Today was pretty low key. Play, church (for me), play, and then dinner.

By Galen|2018-12-08T16:52:55-08:00December 2, 2018|dachshunds|0 Comments