Thursday, October 26, 2006


I think I am changing my mind on the topic of puppies.

Yes, we were all puppies at one time. Still this is no excuse for disrespect for one's elders. When the big dumb wolfhounds had their puppies (they were dumb but not big), they had absolutely no respect. It was shameful. One couldn't walk across the kitchen without them running after one and snapping at one's legs. They did not wait patiently for their elders to get any scraps offered. They did not honor "everything in the realm belongs to the Estrela" rule. I mean, come on. And there were ten of them for a while there.

When they started disappearing I thought they must be going to get their just desserts. Sent away maybe to the Estrela Mountains where they would be taught properly by lots of Estrelas. Maybe someplace with lots of toads. Sending them off one at a time was brilliant... don't let them communicate with each other, keep their anxiety up, make them wonder what their fate will be.

Well, unfortunately, I have found out that they have actually been sent off to lead lives of luxury. Take a look at this one! Her name was Sikozu when she was at my house and she was the tiniest of the puppies.

I mean, it is just shameful for a big dumb wolfhound to live a life like this. She acts like she gets belly rubs!

But here's where my feelings have changed. My agent likes to say that the best way to get "good" behavior out of your dog is to get a puppy. Your other dog will soon turn into an angel, which is just the humans' way of saying that it will not behave as a proper Estrela would. Now, I don't know why he would think this is true, because certainly there never was any dog in the household before moi... despite what the others in the house say about it.

But let me tell you... the puppies' bad behavior (bad by human desireability standards) really is a boon to the rest of us. We can still be "naughty" (by human standards) and the humans don't really care, because the puppies are more "naughty!" What a great thing! Make a little mark on the kitchen chair because it deserves some chewing? No problem, the puppies almost chewed it in half! Open the fridge to check out what is rightfully mine for the taking? Fine, because it will be the puppies who are gluttons and empty it out! A little peeing in the living room to mark my territory? Well, you would think that it would be eclipsed by the lakes in the kitchen, but alas not. Still, it only got me to spend more time outside where it's nice and cool. It's not like they tried to not feed me or stopped petting me or anything.

So, in effect, puppy behavior can be used to your advantage. Let it "lower the bar" of your humans' expectations of you, and you will be able to "get away with" much more of your natural, deserved behavior. Yes, they can be troublesome, but they can also be fun to play with (in small quantities).

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