Polly went off to dog training on Saturday with a nice girl named Valerie. I didn't see Valerie after class, but got a note from her asking if she could come and work with Polly in her home environment where she (Polly) might feel more comfortable. I had forgotten she was coming today.
In the meantime, I wrote a very sad note to Ashley asking her to find a new home for Xena and the puppies. I thought things were settling in all right, but last night everything exploded. Suddenly Xena and Sheila took an intense dislike to each other. I think it was over food. I had spilled some kibble on the floor when I put down Xena's bowl. Sheila had also been on her own version of a hunger strike for several days, just leaving her food untouched in the bowl--she does this every so often. Actually, all three dogs had been off their feed, though they would occasionally eat the food out of someone else's bowl.
Well, hunger coincided with the food spill and when Sheila gingerly picked up a piece of kibble from Xena's bowl off the floor, Xena went after her, literally tooth and nail. I was unable to get control of the situation after that, other than putting Xena in the cage and locking her inside.
I had hopes for this morning, after a calm night, but Xena's memory is long. She absolutely cannot stand to see Sheila today. If Sheila is in my office, under my desk, Xena stands outside the door and barks and barks and barks until I have to take her back to the cage. If Sheila and Lizzie are outside, she charges the back door, barking. When things are calm and everybody is asleep, I can let Xena out of the cage and she's fine until Sheila wakes up and moves. Then she's on the attack again.
This does not bode well for how she will get along when the puppies are mobile.
As it happened Valerie arrived at the door today just as Xena was remembering that she hates Sheila and there was World War III going on just inside the door as she entered. It had been Valerie's intention to get Polly off in a corner and work with her, but that wasn't going to happen. Xena wouldn't stop barking and Polly, recognizing Valerie as that horrible person who made her to into that scary place, wasn't having any of that bonding nonsense with her. Valerie did say that she was a completely different dog here, so stressed that it is important for her to bond with Polly here where she has me to run to if she gets scared. [I didn't realize that it had taken her half an hour to get Polly out of her car at training and that she bit Caycee, the teacher, during her attempts to touch Polly.]
But before we could get to bonding lessons, we had to find a temporary cease-fire for World War III. Walt locked Sheila and Lizzie outside. Lizzie immediately started leaping at the door, but calmed down quickly. I thought Xena might be OK, because she now gets along all right with Polly, and because she was taking treats from Valerie all right, but then Valerie shifted her position--not even a step, really--and that was too much, treat or no treat. Xena barked and barked and barked and actually bit her in the leg. Thank goodness she isn't afraid of me. I was able to pick her and lock her in the cage and had to cover the cage with a towel because as long as she could see Valerie she would growl and bark.
Valerie just kept tossing treats for Polly, who would dart in, take them, and then back up to me, where she felt safe. She filled up with treats before she would let Valerie touch her, so that is for another day.
In the meantime, the commotion with the other dogs has been crazy all day. Other than taking a nap today it seems that I have done nothing but let dogs out, and then call them back in, and put Xena in the cage and let her out and then put her back in again. As soon as the other dogs get outside, they bark at the back fence. As soon as I call them in, Xena barks at them and I have to lock her up.
My plan had been to go to the store today, but I don't dare leave the house! Which is why it was so important to move Xena today, since tomorrow is Cousins Day and I'm not canceling that. And I don't want to leave this chaos for Walt.
I am going to miss watching Itsy and Bitsy grow up , but it's clear that with the hatred between Xena and Sheila growing, that is not a positive situation for anybody.
However, the family has moved to Ashley's, where Xena can have the kitchen all to herself, and Ashley says probably when the puppies are weaned and don't need Xena any more, we will see them again.
2 comments:
Animals have feelings and emotions. I really believe that. They cannot articulate their emotions and they get upset, just like our humans.
Wilson has no trouble letting us know how he feels about things, but we pay a lot of attention to him.
He is the only non-verbal member of our family.
When there is a lot of other dogs or cats around it can get a little chaotic.
Hopefully everyone will find a happy place to live.
Mingle****
Bev,
I am amazed at the staying power of your blog, "growing up in the fifties". I often see on feejit that people are still reading it. I go back and look at it myself occasionally.
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