OK, enough with the pot photos...but it was a spectacle and Stella kept us entertained as she dashed from one end of the yard to the other with this fractured plastic pot dangling from her mouth.  So much for expensive dog toys that sit in the toy basket unattended.  So far her favorite toys are things she finds herself like sticks, wood chips, dead beetles and flower pots. 
   I have not made any entries to this blog for the last several weeks because I am an avid gardener and have been putting bedding plants in my many flower gardens.  We have been blessed with pretty decent weather so  I took advantage of that and got everything into the ground.  Stella of course has been a constant "help"; digging holes in the warm moist soil, carrying off the little six-packs of plants and hiding them or trying to bury them, making off with my garden gloves when I'm not looking,  I could go on and on. She loves to be outside and there are times when she winds down and enjoys laying in the grass basking in the warm sunshine.
   She had her first walk into the real world on leash last weekend.  We live very close to a city park on the river and I took her there.  She was very excited and I had to do a lot of what we call "Start-Stop-Change Direction".  If she bolts ahead of me wanting to chose her path I just stop.  When she turns to me to find out why,  I call her to heel and head a different direction.  She must not get the idea that she is dictating where we are going or that it is her choice.  It can look a little silly to someone watching us but it really works in letting her know who makes the decisions.  She was experiencing many new sights, sounds and smells and if she would stop or "freeze" in response to them I would just let her.  I did not give her any sign that there was reason to be nervous and soon she would relax and continue on.   It wasn't a perfect "walk" with a relaxed dog walking quietly and calmly  at my heel, but it was a good start.  I took many deep breaths, stayed as calm and relaxed as I could and praised her when she got it right.  It's hard to know when the right time is to try the first walk out in public.  If it had started off as a complete disaster I would have turned around and headed home for more work in the yard.  But she has responded well to leash work at home and it was evident she knew what was expected of her.
   Yesterday she was spayed.  I have no intention of breeding her and believe that she will be happier not going through unnecessary heats  and we will be happier not worrying about her getting pregnant by accident.  She came through it just fine and I have to admit I enjoyed the peace and calm last night as she slept off the anesthesia.  Dr Boer says five days of keeping her quiet. I am going to call him today and ask if he put a turbo charged battery in her tummy while he was in there.  This morning she woke up full of vim and vigor as if nothing had happened.  Now, how to keep her "quiet"? 
   Our nice weather has turned to cold constant rain so I cannot be out working in the garden.  The rain is good for the plants so I will just let them soak it all in and grow.  The weeds like the rain too!

   It is so good to be back in Montana and getting back to our every day lives.  After some very much needed and appreciated "R & R" we came home to six happy healthy pets and we were all very glad to see each other.     
   
   Gordon and Stella did just fine at the kennels and, in fact, I believe some good things came out of their stay there.  First, Stella grew into a dog! We left a puppy and came back to a lovely young lady dog.  I noticed several changes in her and Gordon. They are much closer now. Gordo has grown very tolerant of her and they seem very happy in each other's company.  They probably drew comfort from each other while their human pack members weren't around.  Secondly, Stella has come home without several previous "habits".  She has stopped eating everything in site and chewing on certain favorite items that were off limits.  She has also lost her taste for cat droppings. I think that by being away from these things for two weeks she has just forgotten about them.  
   
   She lost her last baby tooth the day after we got home. I was throwing a ball for her and as she was bringing it back to me she suddenly stopped, gagged up the tooth and promptly ate it!!  I checked her mouth and it was the last to go.  I wonder how many of them she ate!  Both dogs seem to be calmer now with less fussing when we leave them and come home.  I imagine hours in a kennel with little or no human contact started to seem like the norm. I know the kennel staff play with them several times a day there but it is nothing compared to the time I was spending  each day with them.  They got out of the routine of expecting play times.  It  made me realize that even though I am not fussing over them too much, I was feeling the need to play with them all the time.  They really do just fine hanging out in the yard or sleeping in their beds.  We seem to think our dogs need to be on the go constantly to be happy.  Does it come from our own guilt about having a life without them?  Anyway, I am not getting into the old routines and I think that is a good thing. I was very worried about how their time at the kennel would affect them and I am happy to say I think it was a good thing. 
   
   Stella will be five months old in two more days. Wow!  Where does the time go?  She is developing a very sweet disposition and is a true joy to be around. The one problem we are having with her is jumping up on us. 
Kent and I are both being very consistent about saying "Off" when she does it and walking away.  She must learn that to get our attention she can't demand it.  So when she is getting it right she gets lots of positive praise and attention.  
   
   I am back to leash training again.  She is not ready for a walk out into the real world.  But I have noticed she is also more mature now and pays attention very well.  I feel we will make good progress now that she is older. 
   
   I posted a photo I took before we left on our trip of Stella and our cat Tinker sleeping together in Gordo's bed.  I know you might wonder why the bed says "THE BOY" on it when it has two females in it!  I have since bought another one of those cave beds so they each have one. They really like to get under covers and cocoon.  Stella and Tinker are great friends and wrestle with each other quite a bit.  They are fun to watch.

   On Tuesday, April 17th, Gordo and Stella spent a day at the kennel where they will live for two weeks while Kent and I are on vacation.  They seemed to do just fine and I think having been there once will help alleviate some stress.  I won't pretend that they aren't going to have some adjusting to do.  But I think change is good and they will learn to cope with various situations on their own.  I take comfort in knowing they will be very well cared for and safe.  Guilt is such a powerful emotion and it is hard to remember that they don't feel it and only reflect it if we are guilt ridden.  All they feel is our stress which is not a good leadership quality on our part.  If we are relaxed and happy they will not have any reason to fear a new situation.  Deep breathing helps as does not fussing over them when you leave them and pick them up.  

   We have had a couple of lovely walks down along the river in the last week or so.  They are able to run and explore off leash and they have a wonderful time.  Stella follows Gordo everywhere and they both are very good at keeping an eye on where I am.  Neither one of them wander very far off and are always within eye sight.  I posted a couple of photos of them playing with a stick. Gordo was showing Stella that it is OK to wade into the water to get it. I made sure we were near a back water that was only a few inches deep.  The absolute best part of these walks to the river is coming home and having Stella sleep for a long time!! I get so much done while she is down and out.  They say a tired puppy is a good puppy and that is true.  On days when I don't have as much time to play with her she does get bored and starts looking for something new to keep her attention, usually chewing on end tables or the books on them! I will say that she is settling down nicely and is really a happy fun loving little dog with very good manners.  She and Tinker the cat have become bosom buddies and get into wrestling matches with lots of playing and tumbling.  If Stella gets too rough Tinker lets her have it with a good bop on the nose.  
   She has entered into the jumping up stage and I am trying very hard to be consistent about either ignoring it or giving her the command "OFF!" in a voice that clearly shows I'm not happy.  She stops immediately and knows she is out of bounds.  I try to get other people to do the same but it is not always successful.  Over time she will learn and I never lose my temper or shout out of control at her as, again, that does not display good leadership. 
    I continue with leash work daily and she definitely knows "heel".  We venture out into the front yard and alley where there are many distractions.  She is very easily distracted and I must be patient and reward her for good behavior.  She is a long way from going for a long walk on a leash in public and this must not be rushed.  It would only set us up for failure and result in stress and frustration.  There will be plenty of time for that in the years ahead.
   This will be my last blog entry for a couple of weeks.  When we return I will resume with the adventures of Stella the Jack Russell.