Walking, Sitting, Healing, Cuddling

Have I mentioned that given the opportunity, she will climb all over you and lick your face raw?

We've been using the Gentle Leader for a week or two now (I can't keep track of the time anymore!) on walks, and though Mabel hasn't given up tugging entirely, especially when we first start out down the sidewalk, walks with her are definitely more controlled than they were once we reached the end of her first week here. When she first arrived, and we first started walking, pulling was not a concern at all. She was so baffled by the concept of taking walks around the neighborhood or was so afraid that we were going to run off and leave her when she wasn't looking that she moved very slowly and stayed close to us--too slow and too close almost, stopping and turning her head around or looking up every few seconds to be sure we were still there and causing us to run into her sometimes in the process. But once she felt safer and more comfortable, she started tugging when she wanted to get further ahead to the other dogs or just move faster than we were going. She was anything but thrilled with the head collar at first, but she's tolerating it pretty well now, only rarely pawing at it or rubbing her face against the sidewalk in an attempt to get it off--for example, maybe once or twice during just one of the day's walks instead of every six feet on every one of the day's walks.

She has taken to the "sit" command easily too. She sits when told to much more quickly and consistently than the other dogs around here, and I'm not surprised; she is nothing if not eager to please.

She hasn't tried to jump on any couches or beds in over a week (maybe two weeks), and I'm damn proud of her for that too, especially given that she regularly sees Ella and Sara on the love seat when we corral all four dogs into the living room in the evenings (allowing Ella and/or Sara up there is just about the only way we can keep everyone in the same small area while also giving everyone enough personal space; it also minimizes the chance of whining or wrestling from Ella). It's not that we wouldn't love to have her cuddling next to us--she is a serious, serious cuddler--and hopefully, her permanent family will indeed welcome her onto their couches, but for now, we don't want her to have any habits that might put off her future family or make her transition into their home any more difficult than necessary. For her sake, in terms of other people's reactions to and expectations of her, we want her to jump up on furniture only when she's invited to and not just whenever she feels like it. So she just curls up at my feet on her bed, periodically sitting up so that she can rest her head on my lap or on the couch next to my legs for a while.

And no, I did not misspell "heeling" in the title. I really am talking about her healing, not any kind of training. Her ear flap, a week out from removal of plastic and stitches, looks great. The wounds on her leg and head, including the ones she sustained after joining our household, such as when she took a scary tumble down the deck steps a couple weeks ago (see earlier posts about her left-eye blindness and general clumsiness), are looking much better--another week, and I bet they'll be barely noticeable, if visible at all. She has gained weight steadily and as of a week ago needed to put on just a few more pounds. And the antibiotic that she's been on, without pause, from the beginning--first to fight her ear infections, then to stave off infection in a small leg wound, and now to help clear up a possible skin infection--are doing their thing. The couple small spots where she's had lesions aren't yet covered by hair again, but the skin is no longer red and inflamed. And with our newfound knowledge of her compromised sight and her increasing knowledge of and comfort with her surroundings, I'm relieved to report that there haven't been any more major stumbles or head bangings.

And best of all? She's as happy and funny and loving a dog as ever. She probably won't be quite as happy as usual for a few days next week--she's getting spayed next Wednesday--but I've no doubt that she'll recover quickly from that too; nothing keeps this girl down.