Interesting Coincidence?
The cleaner we have come every 2 weeks came today, and that was kind of stressful for Baby what with all the noises and having strangers (the cleaner and his assistant) carry things in and out of the house.
She did bark and growl at them a bit when they first got here with their loads of vaccuums and cleaning supplies. But I had them give her treats and she decided they were OK.
They didn't seem at all phased by it. The cleaner has a dog of his own, and really liked Baby and was friendly to her. I think it's so helpful for her to get that kind of socialization and realize that all these "mean scary strangers" can really be her friends if she will just give them a chance.
She was a bit stressed out by the vaccuums and the smell of the cleaning supplies and everything, so the kids and I did take her out to wander a few blocks this afternoon to give her a little break from that.
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She does pretty well with heeling, but she does have a tendency to want to keep just a slight pressure on the leash--not really pulling, but keeping tension on it. So I changed directions and stopped often to help her learn to pay attention and keep the leash loose.
I was really feeling unwell (the cleaner coming tires ME out too, plus it's been a really crazy week with getting Baby and everything), so that was part of the reason we kept the walk really short. Actually, just a few yards from our house I told the kids I didn't feel well and thought we should go back, but their pleas to go "just a little bit farther" got the best of my better judgement.
Just as we got to the end of the street, Baby suddenly got very agitated and went quickly through all her alert stages. Soon she was whining, barking, and standing up to put her paws on me repeatedly. Eventually she grabbed me with both paws and gave me a "hug"--all of this gently, but she persisted even though I was turning away from her and saying "no, off".
About a minute later I crashed in earnest. I was dizzy, completely drained, in pain and couldn't see straight. I had to sit down for a while before we could go back home, and then I wasn't sure I was going to make it home. I had to lie down before I could get the kids a drink of water and get them settled for quiet time, and then after a few minutes of rest I was able to drag myself up just long enough to take care of their needs and then lie down again.
I think it's likely that Baby was excited by something else. I thought it was that she wanted blackberries from the bushes we were standing near, but giving her some didn't settle her down.
It seems impossible that she could have been alerting to my fatigue levels and impending crash this early in the game. Especially since it was only about the second time she'd seen me have a real crash, and the first time she'd seen one that bad. Definitely an interesting coincidence, though.
If she really can learn to alert me when I'm about to crash, that would be so incredibly wonderful.
Seriously, I can be so bullheaded or foggy-brained sometimes that if she IS going to alert to that sort of thing, the paws-up extreme alert might be what it takes to get through to me. I'm wondering now if I really want to break her of that or just refine it so it's more useful.
She did bark and growl at them a bit when they first got here with their loads of vaccuums and cleaning supplies. But I had them give her treats and she decided they were OK.
They didn't seem at all phased by it. The cleaner has a dog of his own, and really liked Baby and was friendly to her. I think it's so helpful for her to get that kind of socialization and realize that all these "mean scary strangers" can really be her friends if she will just give them a chance.
She was a bit stressed out by the vaccuums and the smell of the cleaning supplies and everything, so the kids and I did take her out to wander a few blocks this afternoon to give her a little break from that.
############################
She does pretty well with heeling, but she does have a tendency to want to keep just a slight pressure on the leash--not really pulling, but keeping tension on it. So I changed directions and stopped often to help her learn to pay attention and keep the leash loose.
I was really feeling unwell (the cleaner coming tires ME out too, plus it's been a really crazy week with getting Baby and everything), so that was part of the reason we kept the walk really short. Actually, just a few yards from our house I told the kids I didn't feel well and thought we should go back, but their pleas to go "just a little bit farther" got the best of my better judgement.
Just as we got to the end of the street, Baby suddenly got very agitated and went quickly through all her alert stages. Soon she was whining, barking, and standing up to put her paws on me repeatedly. Eventually she grabbed me with both paws and gave me a "hug"--all of this gently, but she persisted even though I was turning away from her and saying "no, off".
About a minute later I crashed in earnest. I was dizzy, completely drained, in pain and couldn't see straight. I had to sit down for a while before we could go back home, and then I wasn't sure I was going to make it home. I had to lie down before I could get the kids a drink of water and get them settled for quiet time, and then after a few minutes of rest I was able to drag myself up just long enough to take care of their needs and then lie down again.
I think it's likely that Baby was excited by something else. I thought it was that she wanted blackberries from the bushes we were standing near, but giving her some didn't settle her down.
It seems impossible that she could have been alerting to my fatigue levels and impending crash this early in the game. Especially since it was only about the second time she'd seen me have a real crash, and the first time she'd seen one that bad. Definitely an interesting coincidence, though.
If she really can learn to alert me when I'm about to crash, that would be so incredibly wonderful.
Seriously, I can be so bullheaded or foggy-brained sometimes that if she IS going to alert to that sort of thing, the paws-up extreme alert might be what it takes to get through to me. I'm wondering now if I really want to break her of that or just refine it so it's more useful.
Labels: health issues, just life, pets, SD
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Posted by purple_kangaroo at 6:20 PM[Permanent link]
3 Comments:
I would want to hone in on that so you'll have that extra help. (((hugs))) hope you're feeling better today.
She sounds like a truly amazing dog, and she sounds as though she is so gentle.
She could well have been alerting to you that there was a problem and trying to tell you to turn around. Service dogs came about when quite accidentally a young man had a dog alert him to his Hypoglycaemic episodes. Initially he thought it was a coincidence but the dog would also wake hime during the night when his blood sugers were too low.
Not only do they have dogs that sniff for explosives and drugs and the like, there is a Dr in London England working with some dogs that seem to acurately, as in 89% of the time be able to alert him to people with both breast cancer and bladder cancer. They apparently emit some sort of smell that we can't smell but the dog can. After all a dogs smell is so incredibly refined.
Take Care, take it easy (the best you can) and listen to Baby.
Lots of Love Carolynn xxx :-)
That would be awesome if she can alert you of a crash or flare. The hard part is gonna be figuring out what she means since she alerts for so many things.
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