A journal of Stella

Waiting for Santa on Christmas Eve. "Oh, I've been such a good girl!!"

Diane Myers — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 22:54:00 GMT

Pulling on the lead

Diane Myers — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 16:36:00 GMT

In Yesterday's entry I mentioned some behavioral issues I've had with Stella. As I said, any problems that arise are directly related to inconsistencies in implementing Amichien Bonding. For example: pulling on the lead. I had been very successful in teaching Stella to heel and walk on a loose leash in the backyard. However, I jumped the gun and took her out into the big wide world too soon and in my desire to take her to a park nearby I became tolerant of her pulling ahead to get there. She soon learned where we were going and that I more than likely had a frisbee in my pocket. What I failed to do is directly turn around and return home when she would pull ahead and dictate where we were going. Another mistake was taking both her and Gordo together and letting them both pull on the leads. Here is the bottom line: unless I am happy and in control and both dogs are calmly walking on loose leashes the walk is over.
So here is what I did to correct the problem. First of all, I backed up and did some more work with her at home in the yard. We did Stop,Start, Change Directions until she knew that I was in control and she was not making any decisions about where we were going. If I could approach the gate out into the front yard with her not pulling, we would go into the front yard and do some more work there. It took many times of not leaving the yard for her to realize she was not in control. The consequence of her action (pulling) was no walk to the park. We can now go to the park with her not pulling on the leash. Consistency and patience are absolutely necessary for the method to work. It is so easy to give in when I want to go to the park and play with her. However, more important is my being in control at all times. That's what true leadership is all about.

After a day of adventures in the snow a warm blanket and a bunny are just the ticket.

Diane Myers — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 16:25:00 GMT

Winter Fun!

Diane Myers — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 16:08:00 GMT

Still Here

Diane Myers — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 22:50:00 GMT

    Apologies to all five of my loyal readers for the long lapse in posting. Life just gets busy with other projects and the blog suffered. So now that the holidays are over and it's a new year I will try to get back into the routine of regular updates.

    Stella is just over a year old now. What a lovely little lady she has turned out to be. I'll start with all of her good qualities and work into the challenging aspects of her personality. In all fairness, whatever issues we have had and are having have all been a result of chinks in the Amichien Bonding process. One thing I know, if you are consistent and follow through with all four principles, it works. Every time we make a wee exception, there are problems.

    My last entry was in late July last year.  As bleak mid winter surrounds us at the moment it was bittersweet to look back over the photos of hikes into the mountains and swimming in the river. We did indeed have a glorious summer of fun.  Autumn was a wonderful season as well. It was a beautiful one with brilliantly colored trees, crispy clear days and cold nights. Winter arrived right on time and we have had some very good snowfall. Stella loves the snow. We have taken her cross country skiing, snowshoeing and just walking in the winter wonderland.  If she has a choice of staying above the snow in our tracks or plowing neck deep through the powder, she chooses the latter. Everything is a game and an adventure.

     Stella thought the Christmas tree was put up just for her enjoyment. One evening we came home to about a dozen ornaments from the bottom of the tree scattered all over the living room floor. One ornament she ate entirely except for the chimney on the dog house. We thought it was interesting that she chose a "dog related" ornament to eat. Because we have four cats we usually put soft ornaments made of cloth at the bottom of the tree. Unfortunately Stella found the few that were not indestructible. After that she left the tree alone, I guess she had shown it who was boss so no more need to wrangle it! Kent reminded me when I came close to blowing my stack when I saw the carnage that it does no good to get mad at them after the fact. Talk about the pupil keeping the teacher on track. He was absolutely right.

Brixon gets to the frisbee first but Stella keeps up with him...no problem!

Diane Myers — Tue, 24 Jul 2007 15:00:00 GMT

Stella cools off in the creek just because she can!

Diane Myers — Tue, 24 Jul 2007 14:59:00 GMT

Susan C. and Tilly hiking on Lost Horse Creek.

Diane Myers — Tue, 24 Jul 2007 14:56:00 GMT

July gets away from me

Diane Myers — Tue, 24 Jul 2007 14:19:00 GMT

   Well, another two weeks have gone by and I struggle to get an entry made on this blog. Company came and went last week and tomorrow more arrives. Stella, Gordo and I have managed to spend a good deal of time hiking and seeking out cool water to plunge into. Temperatures continue to scorch Montana....every day 90 degrees or more. I also spend a lot of time watering my poor flowers trying to keep them from wilting under the intense heat.
   Two weeks ago my little girl learned to swim. We took it slow and Gordo was a great teacher and example for her. Now, whenever we are near a river or stream in she goes, and not just to cross from one side to the other!
She swims in circles just for fun. She will walk up the middle of a shallow ripple in a creek enjoying the cool water. Last Sunday we went on a hike with our friend Susan B. and her three dogs. Brixon and Stella had great fun retrieving the frisbee from the creek. Brixon usually got to it first with Stella in hot pursuit.
   Last week another friend of mine named Susan C. and I took my two dogs and her dog Tilly on a hike. Tilly at one point became very stressed and we couldn't get her to stop harassing Stella. Stella tried so hard to be the peace maker...showing Tilly all sorts of calming signals to let her know everything was OK. Tilly was a rescue dog so we don't know everything about her background, but I think she was taken away from the litter and her mother too soon and didn't learn the body language skills that help dogs signal to each other that everything is OK and there is no need for alarm.  I sent Susan home with a book that explains these signals and helps dog owners teach them to their dogs. I know it isn't Jan Fennell method but it all fits into helping our dogs communicate with each other and humans.
   I will post photos from both of these hikes with my "Susans" and their furry friends. Kent and I are looking forward to the arrival of our dear friends Chris and Janet from Scotland tomorrow. I will be busy with them for a week and then Kent and I take a few days off to stay at a lake house north of us on Flathead Lake. We can take both dogs with us so that should be an adventure filled weekend with many stories to relate.

"Now here's a nice soft spot to rest my bottom! Thanks Gordo, your'e a real pal."

Diane Myers — Sat, 07 Jul 2007 19:15:00 GMT

Susan, Ace and Stella. The dogs obviously think the blanket was just for them!

Diane Myers — Sat, 07 Jul 2007 19:11:00 GMT

More outdoor fun

Diane Myers — Sat, 07 Jul 2007 18:01:00 GMT

Yesterday my good friend Susan and I did a 8 mile hike in the mountains up to a waterfall. We are so fortunate to live in a place where we can drive to a trail head and be walking in the woods in less than 15 minutes. We got an early start because record high temperatures were expected. We had my two dogs and her dog Ace along. The creek we walked along had a lot of water in it but the trail rose way above the creek at some point and followed the ridge. It did get very hot but our reward was a beautiful camping spot with a large pool of icy cold mountain water above the waterfall. We were all in the water at once! As hot as we were it doesn't take long for our legs to go numb from the glacial water. We sat and ate our sandwiches and gave the dogs some treats.
The hike out got very hot and the mercury did hit 103 degrees Fahrenheit. We stopped often along the way whenever the creek was close enough to get into. We hope that by next week's hike the temperatures will moderate.
Stella and Gordo both got baths when we got home. I think they were both half asleep in the tub. Gordo usually senses a bath is imminent and hides under the bed, but he just stood in the water and let me scrub the dirt and soot away. Stella likes bath time, especially getting rubbed down with the towel which, to her, is a great game. They both slept most of the afternoon away. I will post a couple of photos of our days adventures.

A family visit

Diane Myers — Wed, 04 Jul 2007 23:24:00 GMT

   We were very happy to have a visit from Kaylene, Stella's breeder, on Tuesday. She brought Stella's mom, Hilly, and litter mate, ZuZu. They have visited before and we even met up with them in Missoula in June. ZuZu is tiny and about half Stella's size. She has very short legs and black markings. After the usual dog posturing rituals, they had a wonderful morning of romping and chasing. I posted a photo of them playing with a toy. Gordo and mom Hilly weren't interested in playing but the two sisters had a great time. The only casualties were several of my young growing annuals. They bit the heads off of several of my marigolds. They didn't eat them, mind you, just pulled the flowers off, just for fun! Then I discovered later, an aster that was broken off at the base and a huge nasturtium bush that was pulled right out of the ground. I told Kaylene that I have learned through the years to plant lots of extra plants for just these occasions. If you have dogs you must expect some damage to plants. By the time Kaylene came by to pick up her dogs Stella was exhausted and happy.
We are having a serious heat wave. Temperatures have been in the 90's and are expected to soar into the triple digits over the next few days. Today. Gordo, Stella and I walked down to the river from our house and played in the water. I took the frisbee which is Stella's favorite toy and threw it into the shallow pools off the main river channel. Gordo was so sweet! He would swim out and get it, bring it back to shore and give it to Stella who would bring it to me. Sometimes they would play tug of war with it, Gordo not wanting to give it up right away. As the afternoon wore on Stella became braver about getting into the water. She still won't go in over her head. That's fine, she will do it when she has the confidence.
   This evening I was invited to my friends house for a 4th of July BBQ. Kent is out of town on a business trip and it was so nice of Brad and Laurie to have me over.  They have two mini dachshunds, both females; Isabelle and Olivia. Everyone got along just fine. Gordo and Olivia weren't very happy about the fireworks and spent some time under the bed. A dog's hearing is 100 times more acute than ours so the sounds can be very harsh to them. However, both ventured out eventually and joined us on the deck to watch the spectacle. It is important not to feed into their fear of loud noises by fussing over them or drawing attention to their fear. It only reinforces in their mind that there is something to fear. I made that mistake years ago with Stewart on a New Years Eve. He never got over it.

Sister ZuZu and Stella enjoying a good game of tug of war

Diane Myers — Wed, 04 Jul 2007 23:22:00 GMT

An evening in the muck! Note the difference between Gordo and Stella.....Gordo doesn't like to get dirty and Stella couldn't get enough of the stuff on her body.

Diane Myers — Tue, 03 Jul 2007 23:25:00 GMT

Summertime fun and outdoor adventures

Diane Myers — Tue, 03 Jul 2007 22:56:00 GMT

Well, the garden is growing and the hot days are upon us. June came and went and we have taken advantage of the warm sunny days by getting out into the woods. Stella absolutely loves the out of doors and for every mile I walk she runs three...in true Jack Russell fashion!
   We have several favorite walks near the river and she is getting used to water. She actually loves water but has not ventured into the deep pools that are over her head. A little caution is a good thing. The river was running very high in June and a little dog could be swept away in an instant. I put her on a leash whenever we were near the river bank during that time. We have gone on walks with many of our friends, both human and canine. Recently we walked with my friend Tori and her dog Ani, the Australian Shepperd whom you may remember from postings back in April and May. She is a big girl now and she and Stella got along just fine.  I have posted a picture of the two of them.
   We have also gone on walks into the mountain canyons near our home. My friend Susan brought along her dog Ace. He has his picture on my website. He and Stella mostly ignore each other but love to run up and down the steep path together.
   Last week we did a picnic dinner down on the river and found a nice spot where the river had been running high but had receded, leaving behind mud, muck and standing water. Well, Stella showed her true colors by digging into the goo and was as happy as I have ever seen her. A real terrier, that one! It also lead to her second bath which she doesn't seem to mind at all. I remember Stewart and Gordon and their first baths....sheer terror! In fact Gordon still runs at the mention of the word.
   Leash work is going very well and Stella has gone down to the river many times on a leash. She pulls occasionally if she catches the scent of something good but a gentle reminder to "heel" and she is right back at my side. Sometimes if she hears a sound she will freeze, which is exactly what a dog does when it encounters something unknown. I stop and let her check it out until she relaxes and realizes that it is no big deal. We then continue on. The most important thing is that I don't over react or "baby" her with too much attention at this moment. If I stay calm and relaxed, so does she.
   Stella is still wanting to jump up on everyone we come into contact with.  I try to keep her on a leash at these times so that I can control her behavior with a gentle "Off" and call her to me. She is stubborn and tries again and again....I must be patient and not give in. It doesn't help that some people say "Oh, it's OK, she is so cute and I don't mind."   I tell then that it won't be cute when she is older or if she were covered with mud.  They are very understanding at that point and help me out by ignoring her. I think she will get over it as she ages, especially if we can take away any positive response she may get by doing it.

My friend Ani...my, how she has grown!

Diane Myers — Tue, 03 Jul 2007 22:32:00 GMT

Mid June update

Diane Myers — Mon, 18 Jun 2007 14:30:00 GMT

   I have been posting a lot of photos lately. I keep catching Stella in some very unique situations. She continues to grow and change and still shows a growing fascination with the world around her. Last Friday she had her stitches taken out from her spaying. We waited in the exam room for several minutes and I got down on the floor with her to calm her and help her relax. By the time Dr. Boer came in she was lying next to me and had settled down very nicely. She still likes Dr. Boer and doesn't seem to have any fear of him or the place. She gets so excited just to get in the car and go somewhere. The minute she sees a person or dog or cat she wants to go to them and make friends. Unfortunately, in her excitement she also wants to jump up on them. I have been leashing her in these situations and let her know that this is not acceptable with a firm "OFF!". She is getting the idea and is slowly learning to settle down a little and then she gets to greet people.
   Her leash training continues to progress. We have been taking short walks around the neighborhood. We sometimes go for walks to the river and she does not have to be on a leash. She always stays right with me or a few feet away.
   She has been going through a barking phase for the last week or so. Every Monday morning the garbage truck goes down the alley next to our house. It is a very loud truck and makes lots of noise and rumbling. This morning she started barking frantically the minute she heard it. I took her to the window and we watched the truck pass down the alley picking up garbage cans and dumping them into the truck. I took lots of deep sighs and stroked her gently, keeping myself as calm as I could. She slowly relaxed and is now sound asleep in her bed at my feet.
   She has become a world class frisbee catcher! She tracks the frisbee as it flies over her head and takes a huge leap into the air to catch it. Depending on how well I throw it she catches them more and more. I'll have to get Kent to try to catch her in mid air with the camera some day.

I wouldn't want my nose stuck inside my slipper, but Stella is in love with shoes of any type!

Diane Myers — Mon, 18 Jun 2007 14:27:00 GMT

Showing off her shaved tummy and stitches...it didn't slow her down one bit

Diane Myers — Mon, 18 Jun 2007 14:24:00 GMT