If your puppy is like me (I’m two years old now), it probably has some pet peeves. It’s hard for dogs to express themselves, but if you really pay attention you might be able to figure out some things that bug your pup. Here are a few of my Puppy Pet Peeves:

Short leash
Here’s one that just drives me nuts. Ever notice how many dog owners pull their dog’s leash real tight when another dog comes along? Why can’t people just trust us dogs to work things out? As soon as that leash tightens up, the dogs gets a message from its owner, “I’m afraid of this other dog.” So their dog gets real defensive and protective. C’mon. Give us dogs some credit, will you? We’re probably better than most people at making new friends, sniffing out (if you know what I mean) they lay of the land, and getting along peacefully.

Getting left home
I know there’s nothing to do about this one, but I really don’t like to get left home alone. There are times when Fred and Barbara both have to go their work. Then don’t usually leave me for very long, but it means I have to go back in my cage. It’s soooooo much better when I can hang out in Fred’s office, take a nap on the futon, play with Fred a little, and go where I want around the house.
When Fred says “No” to playing soccer with me
I can never understand why Fred doesn’t always accept my invitations to play soccer in the back yard. I just love to play soccer with Fred. So I poke my nose through the opening in the sliding glad door to the back yard. And Fred knows that’s my way of inviting him to play soccer with me. But sometimes he just walks right on by to get a cup of coffee or go back to his office. Why can’t we just play soccer for about eight hours every day?

How come I’m the one who always remembers my jumping rock and my jumping bench?
When I go on my morning jog with Fred and Barbara, I have a few places where I get to jump up and sit for a minute. One is a tall flat boulder by the post office. Another is a wooden bench on the golf course. I’ve got Fred and Barbara trained to give me a little piece of puppy treat when I jump up on the boulder or the bench. But lots of time Fred and Barbara forget about my jumping places. So I have to drag them over to remind them. I guess it’s not a big deal, because they usually remember (finally!), but why can’t they always remember? Humans must have funny memories that don’t work as well as dogs’ brains.

No divots?
Everyone knows that dogs like to eat a little grass. It can even be good for our tummies — sometimes. And we live right across the street from “Grass Heaven” – a golf course with an occasional divot that is just perfect bite-size for a puppy like me. I snatch these little suckers every chance I get, but Fred and Barbara try to pull me away from them with my leash. So I keep working on being a little faster and sneakier. I can snatch a divot faster that John Wayne could draw his six-shooter. But it’s getting harder all the time. Hey, guys! What would be so bad about a little perennial ryegrass divot once in a while?

Why do I have to keep learning how to swim?
Every time Fred and Barbara take me swimming, it seems like I have to learn all over again. I wade in until the water gets deep, and then I back up to the shoreline, because I’m not quite sure how to handle the deeper water. Fred keeps throwing my “Floppy Disc” farther out, and, pretty soon, I have to swim to get to it. Why can’t they teach me to swim once and for all, so I don’t have to keep going through this learning thing? It’s a pain in the doggie tail, if you know what I mean.

Why can’t I chase those cute little animals with the black and white tail?
Sometimes at night I see little critters in the back yard, and I bark my brains out to warn Fred and Barbara about these guys. There are some funny grey animals that pretend they are dead when they hear me barking. And there are some guys who look like bandits, with black masks over their eyes – and fluffy tails with rings and circles all around. And then there are black and white cat-looking animals with long black and white tails. I sure wish Fred would let me go out and chase them sometimes.He says they’re skunks.

Give yourself the Puppy Pet Peeve Test and see if you can figure out some of the things that upset your dog. It will help you have a better relationship.

Bye for now,

Callie

This entry was posted on Saturday, February 14th, 2009 at 8:52 am and is filed under Callie. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.