A Homemaking Journey

Once again, I acted too impulsively and now have another dog, Cookie. Even though I said it 500 times that we would NEVER have another puppy, Cookie is only 4 months old. She's a basset hound and Shar-Pei mix, however, she really looks more like border collie or lab. She is a goofy dog, but she's got a good personality and she's been training well on everything but house training. The kids adore her. I like her. She's been getting attached to everyone in the family.

We took her from an elderly guy on our paper route. Isaac saw her one day we delivered the paper and she like him and wouldn't leave her alone. However, her owner was frustrated. He was going to dialysis twice a week and he was having trouble walking, and then Cookie kept getting out and running off if he wasn't fast enough to get her on the leash. He offered her to the kids, and I resisted, until one day he called us and asked if we would please take her since she had tripped him and sent him to the ER after the fall, not once, but twice! So, we bundled her up and took her home.

Anyone remember Bella, the Pappillon we took in in February? She's seven years old and I figured, she's an older dog, she should be settled down now, obedient, and have some kind of house training. I remember specifically asking the previous owners if she was a runner: did she run off without a leash? Was she snappy? No, they said. Yes, she's house trained, they said. Mmm-hhhmmm.



If the door is opened 3 inches, Bella is out like a rocket. She will not respond to commands, whistling, slapping your leg, or hand signals. I cannot tell you how many times she's taken off, my kids have ran off after her, and are never able to catch her except to hopefully herd her back home. Do you know that Pappillons have been known to beat Border Collies in timed trials for speed? And let's not count the number of times she's almost been run over by a car, or my kids, because they are trying to catch her. And this isn't just my kids chasing her down either, it's me too. (Imagine what kind of circus we look like with me running down a dog, 6 kids running behind me, and we're all crowded into someone's yard yelling for the dog to "COME HERE", while we just barely get near her and she's off like a rocket again. I'm sure my neighbors are very entertained.) One day Bella shot out the door and tried to attack the UPS guy. Now she's starting to snap at the kids. And, forget house training. She runs down to the basement to poop in the storage room. At least it's a concrete floor. To cure this, we thought we would crate her at night, or when we left. Big mistake! She made such a huge mess in the crate (pooping and peeing until it was filled almost to the brim of the door ledge), we now just block her in the kitchen with baby gates when we leave. She proved tonight she could jump the gates. Makes me wonder how many times she's done that, but we've always found her back in the kitchen, and no accidents. She also forgets we have a cat that has claimed our room as her territory and Bella forgets Missy sleeps in there, so almost every night we are woken up with Bella snarling and growling at the cat. The previous owners said she was from a Rescue Mission, and it makes me wonder what horrible things she endured in previous homes, and it makes me feel bad for her, but glad she's in a home that is not abusive or neglectful. However, I don't think Bella is a good fit for our family anymore, unfortunately. I'm not sure what to do with her now. Between this and Cookie's puppiness, I'm more inclined to deal with Cookie!

I was crying to Curtis tonight that I really wish we another dog like Justin, my heeler/German Shepherd mix, that died 3 years ago. I see some of his traits in Cookie, and maybe that's why I feel better about Cookie than I do Bella, but still, it's just not the same. Regardless, Cookie needs some intense puppy training and we are working on that every day.

So, I don't have any direction right now on what do for the dogs. I hate "collecting" them and then giving them away, however Cookie, did come in at first to be a foster dog. I did try to find her another home, and am still trying to do so, but haven't had any takers yet. The longer she is here, the more attached we get! Bella, however, I think needs to go to another home without so much chaos. I know its not safe for her to just charge out the door and run all over the neighborhood. Its still so heartbreaking to have to do that though.

Cookie and Bella: The Choice Between Two Evils