Walkin' Easy Without an Easy Walker

Tiny has graduated from walking with an Easy Walker harness to walking loose leash with a slip collar.  It also helps when he sees those damn squirrels! :D

Tiny Learns 1st Step of "Leave It"

No News is Good News

Sorry it’s been awhile since I’ve posted.  Things have been busy but Tiny continues to make progress in becoming a great pet.  We’ve been working on the “Leave it” command….Thanks Tiffany :D  He still goes crazy after squirrels, so we’ll have to keep at it.  At this point though, Tiny hangs out with “The Girls” all day.  He has his moments when he wants to be alone.  Most of the time, he’ll disappear upstairs to lounge in the hallway.  Tiny has developed a love for Milo’s Kitchen Chicken Meatballs.  They’re the perfect size for his Kong and he knows exactly where I keep them.  When he wants one, he scratches on the basement door and when I open it, he runs down the steps and sits in front of the shelf where the dog treats are stored.  Such a smart boy! 

We still have to keep his muzzle on when he’s around Ginger and Reese.  99% of the time, things are great, but there’s just something about Ginger that sets him off from time to time.  I still can’t figure it out.  But as I’ve stated before, he doesn’t seem to mind wearing it so until we can get to the root of the problem, the muzzle serves its purpose. 

We’ve started fundraising for his next eye surgery to correct his entropion.  His eye is starting to tear up more and more so I’m hoping to schedule his surgery for early fall…if he can hold out that long. 

So for now, there’s not much to update…other than Tiny is becoming a well-mannered, friendly and sociable dog.  What more could we ask for? 

The Boy and his Blankie :)

Ginger and Tiny relaxing together...peacefully.

Tiny's spit bubble

Reese's spit bubble

Tiny and Gunnar catching a snooze.

These boys love to nap.

Doggie Vinyasas

Tiny practicing Downward and Upward Facing Dog ;)

Teach-a-bull Moments



Even big boys sleep with blankies :)



Tiny…AKA “Wee Man”…AKA “Mush”…AKA “The Boy” is becoming a pet.  I mean a real pet J  For the most part he now hangs out with the girls (Reese and Ginger) during the day.  He continues to wear his muzzle around them, but they all play and lounge like it’s non-existent.  He and Reese love to torment Ginger by running circles around her.  Ginger just barks and barks until Tiny and Reese collapse on the living room floor in a heap of fur and drool. I walk him around 5:45am every morning for at least 30 minutes.  Instead of going around the neighborhood where everyone is walking their little dogs before they go to work, we walk down Rt 291 or behind Baldwin Towers.  He seems happier on the walks AND he’s been muzzle-free for over a week now when we go out. 

Tiny has “Sit” and “Down” mastered.  We continue to work on “Watch me” and have now added in “Stay”.  In our house, all dogs eat in different rooms.  Before they are allowed to eat, they have to “sit”, then “stay” and can only eat after I say “Take it!”.  Tiny learned this VERY quickly!  He's doing pretty well with his Sit/Stay for about 5 seconds.  Then he just runs up to you with that big ol' mush head that just begs to be pet.

                My youngest son, Zac, has taken an interest in training Tiny.  He works with him almost every day and Tiny really does listen  to him.  I love watching the two of them interact with each other.  I’m still not comfortable enough to let Zac walk Tiny during the day.  Those darn squirrels are like crack to him.  When he sees one, he shakes all over and then he starts barking and whining like a 3- year old whose ice cream cone has just fallen on the ground.  It’s definitely a spectacle.   Tiny acts like this around little dogs, too.  Something about little furry animals drives him crazy.  Any suggestions on how to help Tiny overcome his fervor for little critters?  Please feel free comment J  Until then, we keep working on his exposure to the "tree rats" and his patience. 

Road Trip!

Tiny took his first Road Trip over the weekend.  We visited my parents’ farm in the Shenandoah Valley in Virginia.  He was a perfect gentleman.  My mother, who is deathly afraid of dogs ever since she was bitten by a neighbor’s black lab several years ago, found him charming after all was said and done.  Though he wasn’t allowed in the house, he was allowed in the basement where it was nice and cool.  I think his favorite spot was under the big oak tree in the back yard.  He acted very appropriately when meeting all the new people...my parents and my roommates from college.  (I was there for a college reunion) Tiny didn’t quite know what to make of the cows and he struggled a bit with crossing over the cattle guard in the drive way, but he seemed very comfortable in the country.  We continue to work on the command “watch me” and his focus, but this weekend was all about fun and relaxation.  Now that I know he travels really well, I’m looking forward to taking him more places.  Below are some pictures of Tiny’s trip to the country.

Watching the sunrise

Goofing off for Grandma

Happy dog!

Tiny's first look at cows

Sleeping on the porch

Tiny can't take his eyes off my friend Eve :)

Life Happens....

WHEW!!!!!   Last week was a true challenge as far as making sure Tiny had ample time to be walked, exercised, and socialized with the girls.  Not only did we have the normal day-to-day stuff, but we also had my stepson’s graduation followed by the graduation party the next day.  We also have a close relative in the hospital and have been making daily trips to visit.  Thank goodness we started reintroducing the pack to each other over the long Memorial Day weekend.  It definitely made things easier.  Other than being off schedule, it’s been business as usual.  We continue to work on Tiny’s high prey drive.  (damn squirrels!)  The next command to be learned is “Watch me” in order to get him to focus more.  I think I’m having more problems with this one than he is.  The idea is to have him “sit” and as soon as he makes eye contact with me, I mark it by saying “yes” and then give him a treat.  The problem is that his expressions KILL me!  J  I end up cracking up laughing, then he thinks I’m playing and the whole training session goes completely downhill.  This is why I’m not a professional trainer.  Good thing we’re not on a deadline.    

Dave and Tiny’s relationship is getting stronger though we’ve established that Dave just doesn’t have it in him to be a pack leader.  He’s much too lenient with his commands.  They sound more like a drawn out question.  “Sit?, Sit?, Sit?”  At this point, Tiny usually looks at Dave sideways then they wrestle like pups!  Haha! 

I thought walking Tiny this morning would be a nightmare because of our crazy few days.  He’s been exercised every day but hasn’t been out of the yard since Friday.  Again, he amazed me at well he’s  doing.  He now walks extremely well on the leash.  When there are no distractions, he is directly beside my left leg with a loose leash.  The Easy Walker harness has helped with this, but eventually I would like to wean him off of it.  That’s down the line though…for now we’ll continue to work on his commands and his focus.  By this time next year, I am hoping that Tiny will have aced his Canine Good Citizen test and we’ll be working on having him certified as service dog for PTSD.