His old mommy told me he used to have his own blog, where she would tell stories about him, so I thought he deserved at least one blog post dedicated only to him. So this post, my dear pooch, is for you.
Things with Klaus are, well, about as good as could be expected, I suppose. It is heart-breaking to see how sad he is about losing his humans. Poor guy. They got him when he was four from a shelter. They've had him for four years. And everything was going swimmingly, everyone was happy... and then one day they drove him to my house and left him and didn't come back. His mom was playing with him, and threw the toy down the hall, and then slipped out the door without him seeing. When he came back with the toy, there was this horrible moment when he just looked down the stairs, still. He ran down and started whining and scratching at the door. I wanted to cry. Poor little guy!
So I was extra nice to him, took him for a little walk, scratched his ears, tried to play, invited him on the couch. He was unamused at first, but came around. He is quite the explorer, and the first thing he does in a new place is check out every room of the house, so that's what he started to do. Finally, he joined me on the couch, and I got this handsome picture:
After a few more hours, he started to warm up to me. He would crawl into my lap, up my chest, into my face, and lick uncontrollably. At first I thought it might be because I had some soup on my face, but he kept going! He does seem to love his new mama, even though he is still very sad.
So Day 1 went okay. When Michael came over that evening, he and Klaus got along fine, too. He especially loved the belly rubs. (But I still think he prefers his mama!) He is such a love. That night, however...
Klaus's old family told me that they let him sleep in bed with them. I love dogs, but I'm sorry, no dogs in my bed. That is my place. Klaus did not understand this. So he stood at the side of bed looking confused and whining for a good long while. "Don't acknowledge him," I thought. "It'll only encourage him." But he was breaking my heart! So then, even though I had JUST taken him out, he went and pooped in the guest bedroom. That was my surprise to find in the morning.
Day 2 was a little better - a little less pathetic, but still sad. He still just whimpers sometimes. I gave him a little bath, which was fun... after which he peed in the guest bedroom. (Could he not have gone in the tub?? Note to self: take the dog out first next time, before showering him with warm water.) I planned to take him with me to my couple of meetings, but right before we left, he pooped in the guest bedroom. Seriously?? I had JUST taken him out! So he got a lot of "bad dogs" and he got crated for a few hours. He was not amused. Neither was I.
Later that evening I took him to Michael's house, where he met Daisy the Collie again, this time on her own turf. It was okay! They tolerated each other just fine, and Klaus curled up with us on the couch while we watched TV. Like a little family. We have plans tomorrow to go for a family walk in the park, if the weather is okay.
So how am I feeling about the whole dog ownership thing? So far, it definitely has its ups and downs. He has already delighted and infuriated me. He likes to follow me from room to room (even the bathroom), so I guess my alone time is no more, and I have to be careful not to trip on him. It is definitely a responsibility I will have to get used to, but it's a good step toward preparing for children, right? (Although I've heard crating babies is not an accepted method for dealing with babies who poop when and where you don't want them to...) I have definitely thought, "This was a mistake," but I have also been delighted, and I believe once everyone gets settled it won't feel like that anymore. So... so far so good, I guess?
No comments:
Post a Comment