Irresponsible Dog owners

So, we've recently begun training Remus to heel on a leash. He had previously been too young to go on a forced walk at all (too much strain on extremely fagile growth plates), but finally we began short walks. Unlike the blackwater creek hike with dad, these walks are always short enough that he still has energy at the end... I took him out this morning for a walk, he was doing very very well. He had had diarrhea the night before and still had it, so I figured I'd mention it to the vet at his appointment. On our way back, only three yards away from our own, a large akita looking like dog comes charging from the back yard of the houses that back up to the ones on our street and freaking attacks Remus. I was BEYOND angry. I tried desperately to keep myself between Remus and the other dog, and I yanked/punched/kicked at the other dog repetitively to get him to back off. i finally had to scoop up Remus and kick the other dog to get him to leave. Meanwhile, the owner is like "Bad boy, haha, oh I'm sorry, he's never done that before. C'mere, C'mere ____" I yelled at her that her freaking dog needed to be on a leash, Remus was a puppy, and she simply responded with "let me know if he (her dog) hurt him (my dog)" Fat white trash idiot.

The other dog did manage to bite Remus on the back leg, the punctures bled a little, but he seems to have full use of it. I'm more worried about psychological damage. I feel like I let him down, not getting that other dog off him fast enough. Not to mention he's at such an impressionable puppy age, here I am socializing him, teaching him that walks are OK, other dogs and people are OK, and some dumpy idiot who can't control her dog allows him to get attacked. Believe it or not, I'm not made at the dog. he was real pretty, and really out of control. He didn't try to bite me at all, even when I was hitting him, his focus was entirely on Remus. ANY big dog should be on a leash or behind a fence when there are small dogs around. Many big dogs are hunters or very territorial, usually very Alpha breeds, and smaller dogs are easy targets. Same applies to Remus (which would be why we're leash training him). He will always be on a leash, unless at a dog park playing with other big dogs...preferably ones I know, and ones he's met on the leash first. NEVER will he be unrestrained in a neighborhood with small children, cats, and/or small dogs. Wolfhounds are sight hounds. If a chihuahua streaks in front of him like a tasty squirrel, it's my fault if he catches and kills it, not his. I know his temperment and what he's been bred for, I should have him controlled at all times.

That woman clearly does not know what she's doing. Tomorrow morning I'm getting her information and reporting the incident to animal control. It sucks that if it happens again it will be taken out on the dog, she's the one who should be caged and/or euthanized. It's her poor handling that allowed the incident to happen in the first place.

I tried to get the information today, but she didn't answer when I knocked/rang the doorbell. I don't know if she was home or not, but I'm trying again tomorrow. I'm also finding a weighted stick/baton/maglight to carry when I take Remus for his next walk.

Weekend trip :)

First long road trip with Remus went very well. We went up to Lynchburg this past weekend to visit the fam and get my eyes examined. Remus came a long to meet my mother-in-law and my dad, both absentees from the previous Labor Day Picnic, and thus new to the Remus experience. Also, we didn't want to pay to kennel him. He whined and barked and howled on the way up at first, until I decided after being awake for over 24 hours I was going to at least attempt to lay my seat down and doze. We had secured Remus in his doggie seatbelt harness behind my seat, but laying down my seat didn't touch him, because he'd stretched out into the middle seat. Once I laid back and closed my eyes, Remus hushed and passed out himself. After that, whenever I would start talking to Brian he'd whine and fuss, but as soon as I closed my eyes and laid still he'd go back to sleep. I didn't get much real sleep, but it was nice and quiet.

Keeping me company when I passed out after being awake for over 36 hours.

We kept him on the porch at my in-laws for the most part since they have a big deck and Remus is still not completely housebroken, but he came inside to play whenever we were around, and I still tried to take him outside every hour and a half so he wouldn't make a mess on the deck if it could at all be avoided. He even slept outside in a kennel from Brian's childhood pet, a french mastiff named Harley.

On Friday I took Remus to PetSmart, which was thankfully not too busy, and he sniffed around, made a few canine and human friends, and peed in the median. A successful trip. I also discovered that he loves to chew ice after buying him an ice water from McDonalds. After he drank his fill I fed him ice chips like candy to a baby.

On Saturday I drove Remus over to my parents house and Dad and I took him to the Blackwater Creek Trails for a walk. Yeah, we over estimated Remus's stamina and ended up carrying him for some of the way there and a considerable amount of the way back. He made a lot of friends along the way, and I get reminded again and again of how big he is for his age. He still looks little to me, his shoulder is up to my knee, but he's such a floppy big footed cute fuzz face that I can't see him as being big. After meeting an 8year old mutt that outweighed Remus but was on level with him, it reminds me that Remus really is big for a puppy. After the walk, which tuckered Remus out, he passed out in the back seat of Dad's PT cruiser and slept like the dead the whole way home

On Sunday, while Brian packed the car, we decided we'd try the whole "walk him so he sleeps" method again, and I took Remus on a walk around the neighborhood-or so I thought. Maybe it was pent up energy since we had had to leave him on the porch while we were at church and out to lunch, but after walking him down the road a considerable distance, he wanted to run on the way back. SO run we did, and he's got quite the lope, keeping up with me easily as I flip-flopped along (I was definitely not in appropriate running footwear) and occasionally attempting to sprint in front of me. We ran almost the entire way back. I'm hoping we haven't strained his developing puppy muscles or bones, but he seemed to love it. AND our method worked, he slept the way back with nary a whine (except for when he needed to pee).

I vote the weekend a success :) And I think Remus is finally getting used to riding in the car, YAY. Vet appt tomorrow!

Wolf vs. Hound

With his long legs, dark grey scruffy coat, narrow snout and huge feet, Remus resembled a little wolf puppy more than he didn't. After a thorough shaving, that is patchy at best, down through his extremely dense white blond underfluff that leaves his lanky frame entirely exposed, his sleek silhoute emphasizes his huge floppy ears and whip like tail. As a new "short hair" dog, Remus looks entirely like a hound. I'm working on getting a good picture, one hopefully with his ear cocked upright. His ears are floppy and when he's just sitting around, they perk forward when he's interested like any normal floppy eared dog. However, if he's running, playing, or otherwise shaking his head, he often gets the right ear to flop upright across his forhead, making it stick up almost vertical. It gives him an adorable but entirely lopsided appearance. He'll prowl around the yard with his one ear perked forward and the other one half cocked standing sentinal over his eyebrows.

He is completely blond now, with a really dark tail and a dark mask on his face. He looks kinda like a German Shepard puppy with his coloring, except no saddle markings, and he's definitely all legs. His ears make his face entirely hound. He looks rather ridiculous, but doesn't seem to mind now that the torture of the actual buzzing process is over. I think he's cute regardless, but next time I don't think I'll shave him quite so close...

Terrible Two's and Grooming adventures...

Remus has gone nuts. He is no longer content to sleep away most of the day. He wants play time and a lot of it. He is spastic hyper, running around the kitchen with his toys, and even a few laps around the house aren't enough to blow off some steam. Yesterday I took him for a short walk right before I left for work to try and work out some energy. It seemed to help a little, but not much. When we're in the kitchen he's incorrigable, barking and prancing under our feet, chasing his tail and attacking his toys at random. He's not content to play with his toys on his own, he drags them over to us and barks. We're thinking this is the puppy equivalent to the terrible twos...

Today after I got off work (yes, I've been up for almost 24 hours now) I went to pet smart to get some nail clippers and a pet harness for the car. With good intentions I sat Remus down in my lap to clip his nails. It definitely turned out to be a two person job. It's not that he was scared of the clippers, it was more he just has a hard time sitting still for very long. I held and Brian clipped, and we got the front ones done at least. I then took him outside and tied him on the deck for his intro to the hair buzzers. He was not a fan, but the buzzing continued anyway. With practice I hope this gets easier for both of us. He is now definitely blond, his dark top coat buzzed away and leaving the soft light underfluff exposed. It actually wasn't that bad shaving his face and head, but his legs are a different matter all together. I think he'll have to go back outside for touch ups when Brian gets home. He doesn't like being on a leash at all, but we're working on that too.

Now, I think a quick nap is in order. It's been a long night and day for me.

Picnic

My mom, Matthew, Rebecca and Nick, my father in-law, my sister in law Jessica, my sister in-law Rachel, and her husband (my brother in law once removed?) all came to my house Sat for a picnic :) Mom and I cooked (mom mostly) and everybody brought card tables and chairs and we set up in the living room to eat. It was so great seeing everyone! Mom bought Remus several treats and a hard rubber ball, and Rebecca had bought him a stuffed spider chew toy. Remus was initially shy and unnerved by all the people crowding around him, but Rachel especially was not to be daunted and pet him wether he wanted it or not. He warmed up to everybody by the end of the day, except Matthew who he barked at everytime Matthew had the spider.

Remus and Mr. Keefer :)

Remus and Rachel, my sis-in-law :)

After everyone had left Remus was practically hyper with pent up energy. It must of been hard work being so timid for everyone, he was quite the clown as the house got quieter.

Sunday Brian and I had a "date" in Raleigh. Not really a date, just getting to finally spend some time with each other. We left Remus in his outdoor pen as we explored the REI, Best Buy, and Target in Raleigh. It was wonderful :) We bought a bunch of movies, and when we came back Remus was sleeping with his butt in the hole he had dug in the middle of his pen. We had to rinse of his legs with the hose and he didn't seem to mind so much, he squirmed a little-but not much, and nary a whimper did he utter. I'm hoping this means progress towards his fear of water/bathing. Watching a movie in the living room later, we let Remus out-my hopes being he'd fall asleep next to us. No such luck, even though it was past his bed time he was bent on playing and mouthing and barking. So I put him in his cage and like a wound up kid who doesn't want to go to bed, as soon as he stretched out he was asleep. Yeah, I knew it was bedtime for him.

Brian and I finished up the movie in peace and went to bed ourselves. As cute as Remus is, I'll be happy when he grows out of his puppyness. At least we haven't had any accident indoors for awhile...

The spider toy Rebecca bought him

He's a big boy :)