eMails That Go Bump In The Morning...

From: Janice

To: Larrie

Subject: To Bark or Not to Bark

I have an idea that you might consider trying when Savannah barks in the middle of the night.  Get a metal soda can (empty, of course) and put some pebbles in it. Tape the top opening so it's securely closed.  You will then have a 'shake-can.'                                                                                                           

When Savannah barks in the night, creep down the stairs, shake that can and say "No!"   Do not go in and soothe her, just go back to bed and repeat that same procedure as much as you need to.  You may be walking up and down the stairs quite often at the beginning, and the shake-can will probably wake up Gary as well so be prepared for something along the order of "What the ----?!"

The pebble-filled can also works for excessive barking outside in the yard but one usually throws the can -- not at the dog, of course, just in the direction of the dog.  With the shake-can, I think a dog gets the idea that something bad happens when they bark too much and if no one comes to help they start to think twice about barking so much, especially if they're barking at virtually nothing.

One more thing--- don't let Savannah see you shaking that can and making that horrible rattle-sound! Have you got soft slippers so she doesn't hear you on the stairs?

From: Larrie

To: Janice

Subject: Pebbles and Pennies

I’ve heard of using a can filled with pennies or pebbles to stop dogs (and cats!) from doing something you don't want them to do.   

I tried that penny-filled-can with Gracie years ago when she kept chasing the cats around the house and it scared her so badly that she ran into the laundry room, jumped into her crate and wouldn't come out till Gary got home. Gracie looked at my husband with such huge puppy eyes when he walked in the door, and he said to me "What did you do to this poor puppy and why is she in her crate before dark?"                                                       

I did consider using the shake-can thing for Savannah but she’s so scared of unfamiliar noises already that I don’t know if that rattling noise will send her into puppy therapy. And yes, I do have soft slippers for creeping down the staircase, but the soles are so slippery that I just might end up in a pathetic heap at the bottom of the stairs, which could also prompt my husband to say something along the lines of "What the ----?!"                                 
Savannah barked after midnight last night again and I came down here to put on the porch lights and just check to see if everything was okay outside. Savannah just sat quietly in her crate and gave me those big sad puppy eyes. I unlatched the crate and she walked to her water dish and drank it all up, so I think she was just thirsty. Then I brought her outside to pee, which she promptly did, and then she was quiet for the rest of the night, back in her crate with that blue monkey of hers.

I'm wondering if I should stop giving her before-bedtime treats which could be making her thirsty in the middle of the night. Savannah could be sitting in that crate at three o'clock in the morning thinking "These dog-biscuits are making me thirty." --to paraphrase that line in one of the old 'Seinfeld' episodes. (With apologies to Jerry Seinfeld. I wonder if he's a dog-lover. If he is, then no apologies would be necessary because surely he would understand the sleep deprivation that comes with having a new puppy in the house.)