A brush with hygiene

We're finally painting this weekend! Last night we Home Depot'd it and
bought all the necessary things: paint, brushes, rollers, booze,
coveralls, a goat, dropsheets, diapers, snowgoggles and a leafblower.

The colour we've selected is called Desert Sand. When it's windy outside,
hard micro-pellets of sand will detach from the wall and whip against our
bare legs and scratch our retinas (See? Now you know why we'll need the goat).

I have been busy sanding down the plastered bits on the wall. The sanding is dirty and there are mini-piles of dust all along the baseboard. Flea and Chachi look like that dandruffy kid in Grade 3 that no one would sit beside (did that kid also eat poop sangweeches?).

Oh - speaking of which, I gave them a bath yesterday because despite their size they still manage to generate quite a hum. The best way I can describe it is - they smell like eyes, ears and mouth. All rolled into one.

I had to laugh because it was the first time that Chachi actually REALIZED that he was going to get a bath. I ran the water in the tub, shook up a shampoo bottle and he ran away. When he runs to 'hide' he only goes as far as the safety of a little dogbed beside the couch - sittin' there all earless, wide-eyed and trembling. And when I got closer, he turned his back to me, like 'If I can't see you, you can't see me!' Finally, as a last resort he rolled on his back and tapped at me with his front paws, pleadingly.

Minutes later, he smelled like Mango Tango.

I actually took a photo of him playing the victim because I was laughing
so hard. I'm even posting it for ya because I know how you can't get enough of my dog photos and me talking about my dogs and dogs dogs blah blah blaaahhhhhhhhhh DOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOGS!!!!

If there's one thing I can say about chihuahuas, they can really milk the pity card like you've never seen. I give you Exhibit A. I call it "hygiene-phobic ratdawg". If you look closely, you can see wavy lines of stink eminating from his body (and Flea's mini-feets).



HAH! If the neighbourhood dogs saw this, Chachi would never live it down.

So, yeah. Painting. The place might be a mess this weekend, but at least I gots clean dogs. Oh, and just in case you bleeding hearts are wondering if Chachi's okay -right now he's sitting on my lap hosing down his crotch. Everything is as it should be.

For Shit's Sake (or, "Dogs Are Retarded')

Say friends,

Just out of curiousity and for no reason in particular...has anyone's dog ever, oh..I dunno - eaten the WAX RING FROM A TOILET?!!

I closed the bathroom door, but I guess there was just enough of a crack for a 4lb shithead named Chachi to sneak in.

I don't know how much he ingested but he freakin' GOING TO TOWN on the thing!

Won't be so glad when it sneaks back up on him at 3am in the form of projectile vomit.

ERGHGHGHGHGHGH!!!!!!

The Toilet Whisperer is still MIA.

The Chihuahua Chronicles

I have a very dominant dog. I know he's only 4 pounds. But every tendon, every ligament, every hair on his puny little body is all about owning me.

We had a private consultation for the problem child this evening. A private trainer came over and I really learned a lot. I needed someone to see Chachi in action when we're out on a walk and show me what to do. She taught me proper distraction method and leash technique and gave me activities to practice at home with him. She said leash aggression is a very common problem and she has definitely seen dogs get better..but it depends on the dog, and on how dedicated the owner is to practicing. I am ready to dive in, baby!

Flea is the angel and Chachi the demon seed...but I love them both. I worked so hard with Flea (and continue to keep up our training)...so I know I can work hard with him too (the little asshole), now that I know the specifics I need! It's really been an amazing learning experience having 2 distinctly opposite dogs that require entirely opposite training methods.
I know more about dogs than I ever did!!

And I just bought 2 great dog books online - one being Cesar Millan's first book, which I am devouring. Love that guy. Gonna hit the hay and crack it open again.....

Dog Daze of Spring

This is a dog post, so suck it.

I only half-watched Idol last night (but I still want Taylor to win!!) because I was too busy researching leash aggression online. See, Corn just can't seem to get along with other people when I tie him up outside the grocery store.

Okay, it's Chachi. The demon seed. His aggressiveness on leash is getting worse, despite everything I tried to do to make him a nice little fellah when he was a puppy. When he sees a dog, he wants to kill it (did you see this on Oprah yesterday? Nate Burkus has the same problem with his pooch). It's embarassing. And makes me sad for him, because ultimately, when a dog acts out like that - they are not enjoying it. They are unhappy and feel they need to 'protect' themselves or their people. Dogs ENJOY being followers. They want to not take the helm....
I bought this thing months ago called the Gentle Leader (looks like a muzzle, but isn't). It just keeps them from pulling on the leash, which he is a big fan of. The idea is - when he is going after a dog, he will naturally pull and the leash self-corrects and closes around his mouth, so he learns that pulling is not the way to success.

Yeah, okay. Actually, I have been getting him slowly used to wearing it around the apartment and he seems alright with it. Yesterday, I brought him for a walk and it was a dream. I can't imagine how I must look to other people..having a 5 lb dog wearing a head harness. But.. no pulling. The walk went so well, I took him out for a second round last night. He saw two dogs. He went crazy each time. And this time, his fear/aggression was compounded by this thing closing on his nose. It was really a murder scene out there. So..yeah, I went home and consulted the internet for a couple of hours.

We have a private trainer coming to see the Chachman in action on Monday. I hope she can help me. Gotta get this under control before it gets even worse!

Flea, on the other hand continues to make leaps and bounds in her walks. She went from an undersocialized, terrified dog (not housetrained, no toys, never saw a leash in her life, sparse fur, ear mites) who lived her life in a cage-- to a healthy, happy dog who loves going for walks and even meeting new people. It's amazing. I have worked really hard with helping her come out of her shell and she's come a long, long way.

Actually, I have this memory of when I first got Flea. She was petrified of everything...so, I used to carry her around in a little bag in the outside world so she could get used to noises/people/different scenery. Can you imagine living your life in one room your whole life with no interaction - then suddenly being thrust into the big bad world? Needless to say, she was afraid, so the whole time she'd shake and try to hide her head. One day, I walked past these girls and one of them said, 'Ugh! I hate those dogs so much..they're always so afraid of everything'. And she was right. But she didn't know about Flea's life before that. So, sometimes I think about that now, every time I see people cooing over Flea on the street and stopping to meet her little waggy tail. I think she will always be a little hestitant, but she is miles away from what she was. And it's further proof that dogs can change their behaviour. Not overnight, but it can happen. So, I am optimistic for Chachi.

In other news..there better be some dang answers on Lost tonight, or I am starting a revolt!