Category Archives: People Visitors

Shih Tzu Day 81: People Visitors Again!

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Kibble Scavenger Hunt

Last night before we went to bed, we rolled up the living room rug to prevent anyone peeing on it during the night. When I came downstairs this morning, there were three spots all in a row on the two training pads I placed together. Someone who has never had three dogs with training issues won’t understand how happy that made me.

shih tzu in child's lapEver since the shih tzu sisters have come to live with us, I have had to keep Flower from gobbling down her food and then scurrying to Candy or Dottie’s bowl to help them eat there. I recently started giving them a little less kibble in their bowls, and I take what I keep out and give it to them later. When Flower is done, I give her one or two pieces at a time, to make her eat slower. When they are all done, I sprinkle kibble bits near them, like food scavenger hunt. It keeps them busy. I just have to make sure they all find equal amounts.

Human Birthday Party

child trying to give shih tzus treatsWe had a birthday party for our granddaughter, Rema, this afternoon, so Dottie, Candy and Flower had to put up with nine visitors: Rema and her four sisters; Leticia, their mom; and Gabe, his girlfriend Crystal and her daughter, Avi.

I sent the dogs outside when everyone first showed up, and we put their plastic gate back in their corner so they could feel secure behind it. When I let the dogs back in, Flower and Candy went straight to Shih Tzu Central, but Dottie seemed confused. Rema, Junior and one of the other children were sitting on the couch where Dottie and I always sit. Dottie was nervous, and jumped up, trying to sit on Rema’s lap. Rema thought she did it because Rema held her on the way back from the grooming class last month, but I think it was probably that Rema was sitting where I usually sit, and Dottie just got confused. I think that because her movements were kind of like the time that John did something that scared the dogs and they all jumped up on the couch.

shih tzu watches child give treat to other shih tzuAfter everyone had been at the house for a few hours, I ushered the dogs back outside and gave Rema treats to feed them. Flower and Dottie took one, but Candy kept her distance. Later on, I told Oriana to go inside their gate with treats. She was very timid and they wouldn’t respond to her, so I asked Evita to try. Flower and Dottie took a small treat from her, but Candy wouldn’t.

Compared to how the dogs reacted the first time the children and grandchildren came over, I think shih tzus have come quite a way. I don’t recall any of the dogs growling at any of our visitors, so that’s a big improvement.

Shih Tzu Day 74: Training Pad Improvement

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training pad use

John got up about 5:30 and tried to get the shih tzus to go outside, but only Candy would listen to him. When I came down an hour and a half later, it looked like the other two used the training pad.

closeup of a shih tzuI had about an hour to sit on the couch with Dottie before I had to get ready for church. I took the time to go through the iWork Pages tutorial at Lynda.com and drink coffee. Gabe and Crystal were riding to church with us. When they came in, only Flower growled, but the shih tzus mainly just sat in their corner, waiting for the company to go away.

I stayed inside with the girls all afternoon, while John and Gabe tinkered with the rototiller in the garage. It hasn’t worked for weeks, so the weeds are overtaking us in the backyard. They are especially high down the middle of the yard, where the water flows down. The girls seem to love jumping the water and the weeds. Candy and Flower jump pretty high for small dogs.

While I worked on my laptop, Candy amused me by doing stretches across the carpet. She’d stretch out, walk a few steps, stretch out, then walk a few more steps. I think she is bored. Later, she amused herself by taking bites out of the newspaper I put under the training pad.

three shih tzus on a large dog bed.How to get them to do their business on the training pad still remains a puzzle. Since we took our large area rug out to the backyard and drenched it with cleaner and rinsed it well, it doesn’t have that lovely urine scent. Still, I know that the girls use it at least occasionally. I had tried setting three training pads out next to each other, but only two training pads ever got use, so I stopped that. I started trying to put newspaper under the training pad, sticking out at the edges, since they seem to like to squat at the edge. Candy still prefers to run upstairs to our bedroom or the spare room and relieve herself, however, instead of using the training pad.

I have more ideas. We might roll up the big rug at night, to remove that temptation. Also, I am thinking of trying doggie litter in conjunction with the training pad.

 

 

 

Shih Tzu Day 71: Country Dog, Shake It For Me

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the shih tzus and the unwelcome guest

John went downstairs at about 4:30 to let the shih tzus out, but Candy was the only one that would go outside. After that, they were perfectly quiet. Their sharp doggie ears heard me get up at 6:45 and go in the bathroom, and the shih tzus started barking. When I opened the door, they rushed me excitedly.

<em srcset=shih tzu on dog bed looking bored.” width=”300″ height=”199″ />After I fed them and brought them inside, the shih tzus sat on the carpet staring at me, as if to say, “What now?” I usually leave them to themselves after they come inside, and start my work. This morning, I sat on the carpet with Candy and Flower for a while, rubbing those cute little shih tzu faces between my hands. I am trying to follow a Twitter friend’s website advice and give them daily, planned “love time.”

<u srcset=shih tzu eying a treat” width=”300″ height=”199″ />two shih tzus watch another get a treat.My stepdaughter Candace came over mid-morning to help me organize some papers. The dogs didn’t immediately growl at her, because she didn’t stop at Shih Tzu Central to say hi. The shih tzus did growl at her later, however, when she walked too close to them. After she’d been here about an hour, I ushered Candy, Flower and Dottie outside to see if they would let Candace give them a treat. I am starting to think Dottie will take food from anyone; she eagerly approached her. Candy and Flower stayed in the yard, staring at the treat and at Candace, but only taking a few steps towards her, then moving back. She ended up throwing them some chicken jerky, which they picked up and ate.

shih tzu getting jerky from porchAfter we came inside, Candy went up to her room to hide. When Candace and I left for lunch, I put the gate across the door, to prevent Candace from going in there and peeing on the floor, not knowing that she was already in the room. When we came back, I looked around the dining room and living room and couldn’t find her. I looked in the spare room, just in case, and found her sitting in the closet, resting on a purse.

shih tzu hiding in closet.Flower jumped up on the couch to see me several times in the afternoon. On one of the occasions, she brought her Oinkies pigskin treat with her. I thought I’d try the Hartz brand this time, because it has a sweet potato center. They seem to like it better than the other brands of that type of treat.

shake It, country dog

shih tzu shaking her buttI realized that we have been lazy this week — no grooming, no trying to get them on a leash. The only training I have been doing is still trying to get them to pee on the training pad and not on the carpet.

shih tzu shaking her butt in excitementWhen I came down this morning, there were three yellow spots on the two pads I put down, and even some poop, so someone is trying. Candy continues her habit of napping on it and chewing on treats on it, so I doubt if she is using the training pads for their intended purpose.

shih tzu shaking her butt in excitementBut good news. It’s official. Candy now gets excited when John gets home. Country singer Luke Bryan has a song called “Country Girl (Shake It For Me).” That is my theme song for Candy, only I sing to her, “Country Dog (Shake It For Me).” She is just so adorable when she shakes her little bootie.

Flower is getting better. She isn’t where Candy is, but when John got home tonight, she did act halfway excited. They now know that treats quickly follow after he comes home.

Although Dottie hung back, not one of the dogs growled. Outside, all three of them came up to him for treats readily, with Flower not giving a second thought to putting her paw on his knee. John held Candy for a while later. She seemed content. He also pet Dottie, and she let him, but she looked the other way the entire time.

Shih Tzu Day 53: Happy Birthday, Dad

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Swim Day with Grandpa J

If I sit really still, the visitors will think I'm a shoe and leave me alone. Dottie, Flower and Candy The dogs were home alone a lot today. It is John’s birthday, and instead of a typical birthday present, I gathered coupons for free birthday meals. We started out the day by going to IHOP for breakfast. We came home and spent a few hours with the girls before going back out for lunch at Noodles.

While we were at lunch, Leticia and her children and Gabe, Crystal and Avi arrived at the community pool. We told them we’d come by later with our camera, because I wanted to get pool pics of all the kids. We had a pool party for John’s birthday last year, but then, we both swam. We didn’t feel like getting wet this year.

Do we really have to have visitors?I knew that Flower, Dottie and Candy wouldn’t like the grandchildren to raid their house after the pool party, so I told everyone we would set up the ping pong table outside and visit out there. However, they wanted to come inside and say hi to the dogs. As soon as they came in, Candy ran upstairs to hide.I found her later hiding in John’s side of the closet. She must have thought she’d look like a shoe and would go unnoticed. It reminded me of a famous scene from “ET,” where ET hides in the closet. As for Flower and Dottie, they stayed in their corner, growling their unwelcome.

Is he going to pull another treat out of that bag or not?After everyone left, we gave the girls some privacy. I had one more phase left of my birthday present to John, which was dinner out at Macaroni Grill. When we came home, we took the girls outside for their nighttime treat and romp in the grass, before settling down on the couch, with Dottie beside me, to watch a few episodes of The Dog Whisperer.

Shih Tzu Day 52: A New Visitor

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My Sister-in-Law Visits the Shih Tzus

John’s sister Lynda called this morning and said she’d been reading my blog and that she wanted to come over and meet the dogs. Lynda is a quiet, gentle person who has several cats. I figured she wouldn’t be as much of a threat to the shih tzus as the grandchildren or even teenagers are.

Flower, Candy and Dottie eyed her suspiciously when she came in, but they seemed fairly calm. I gave her some treats to try to feed them while we were inside. Dottie approached her tentatively, but took a treat. Flower and Candy kept their distance. I thought they might do better outside, so I opened the back door and they scurried out. Dottie was still the only one who would take a treat.

Once we went back inside, I was able to catch Candy, and Lynda held her for a while. She might not have enjoyed it, but she didn’t fight it. Baby steps.