POP QUIZ: How Much Naughty Can One Puppy Contain?

            A.)  None. Puppies are sugar and spice and everything nice.

            B.) Some amounts are possible, but all beings are inherently good.

            C.)  It’s 50/50. The sweet cuteness balances the naughty proportionally.

            D.)  Trick Question. There is no limit to the amount of naughty contained in a puppy.

If you have answered “D” give yourself one point. And then a cookie because like me you probably need it (make it a cocktail if your puppy has demonstrated this point first-hand in the last 24 hours).

If you answered any other option, minus 5000 points and give yourself a pinch on the arm. From me. There. Let that be a reminder of your foolishness! Now you know better.  

Puppy has now discovered that the house has so much more to offer than the toys and food we present her with.  Why eat dinner when you can chew on the bathroom wall? Who wants a sock-like toy when you can steal real socks? And why lay in your crate or pen when you can wedge yourself behind the couch just out of reach with the aforementioned sock?  

Naugh. Ty.

I mean, socks are one thing. But the wires... and rocks… and bits of plastic she got from… where? I don’t even know… but they are not good things for puppies to have. And the worse it may be, the more she wants it. And is inclined to run away with it. Then the hiding and wedging ensues.  Or, if we are really lucky, she will try to bury it. In the carpet…

We just lost our best line of defense- she was scared of the strange shadowy places (e.g. behind the couch, under/behind the entertainment center, behind the coffee table…) and of going downstairs, so many things were protected in the shadows and by hiding downstairs (that was The Dog’s escape route). All of a sudden the other day she decided that she was 100% fearless. Plop, plop, plop, down the stairs she went to bite The Dog’s tail.  And oops, who is now scurrying around chomping the Wii controller under the TV?

Again, I am reminded of Jurassic Park, when they realize that the electricity went out on the raptor paddock and that the Velociraptors were free.  There is that moments when they see that they are kind of screwed.  They clutch their only weapon, a semi-automatic, a little closer. Been there, done that.

Except instead of the gun, we have a small canister of Scope breath spray. This is all that stands in the way of total annihilation now.  A teeny one ounce spritzer.  Eep.  But it’s gone a long way with preventing further perforation of our body parts. (Probably wouldn’t work as well with a real Velociraptor though.  Good thing she is only part.) At this point, she truly despises the bottle and will back off immediately when it appears. However, I can see her calculating the best way to bring about its destruction.  I’m sure she has plans to bury that too once she figures out how to touch it. Hasn’t worked that bit out yet, she settles for growling and yipping at it- scare tactics for now.

I’m not  complaining, more amazed at the amount of raw energy and visceral brain crammed into one little package.  Harnessing and diverting this into the right outlets is the key. There are a lot of good things waiting to be drawn out and used. The mix of BC/terrier tendencies makes it a particularly fun learning experience.  Seeing which traits pop up and when is really interesting. Like split personalities. One second she is stalking Border collie-style, the next going total terrier with the burying/rooting stuff. I’ve got to learn to speak to both sides when working with her… sort of like having two puppies at once, I would imagine. (*Involuntary Shudder* Can you imagine?  I don’t know how people can do that!!)

The important thing to remember is that she is ALL puppy regardless of the mix in there. Puppies are only “naughty” because they don’t know better. Patience and positive reinforcement are the words of the day and will get me farther than anything else now.

But it also helps to share!! So here is an ‘outtake’ video of sorts. Conglomeration of naughtiness.  Love it, since someday it will translate to an awesome Aframe or something! (I hope!!!)