My husband and I drove into Houston yesterday, leaving Savannah at home alone for nearly eight hours. (We are two hours away from the city.) We had tickets to see Barry Manilow last night (his last concert in this area before his up-coming retirement) and being that we didn't buy Savannah a ticket, she just could not come with us and that was that.
We took Savannah to the dog park right after lunch yesterday so she had a good time running around and playing in the pool before it was time for us to come home and get ready for the concert. As we were going out the door, she was in her bed in the breakfast room and when she sees the both of us leaving, I think she knows that she'll be on her own for a while. I had left her treats and biscuits and a chew-bone, but when we got home after midnight, she hadn't even touched them.
Actually, when we walked in the back door, it looked as if Savannah hadn't even left her bed in all that time because her treats weren't even touched and the water level in her bowl was right near the top where I had filled it. I had put Sweet Pea into the TV room before we left the house, thinking that it was just way too long a time to keep both of them together, and if Savannah were to have an 'accident' it was better for that to happen on the tile of the kitchen rather than the carpeting of the TV room.
Nothing in the breakfast room or the kitchen was touched... not a pillow, not a towel, not a book or magazine... not a thing. Savannah got up from her bed when we walked in and just stretched and yawned and her tail started wagging and all I kept saying was "What a great puppy... what a great puppy you are..."
This morning, when friend Cindy came over, Savannah was extra-friendly with her and didn't growl when she came to the door, didn't run away from her, and seemed to want to stay near Cindy when she was in the kitchen. And that behavior also goes into the 'great puppy' category because Cindy has taken care of our cats when we go out of town, and I thought it would be nice for her to also take care of Savannah as well... but Savannah's past behavior with Cindy wasn't so stellar. Until this morning, and then again this afternoon when the ladies all came over for tea and crafts... Savannah put herself underneath the dining room table near Cindy's chair and JAS's chair... and that puppy just quietly slept there listening to all of us until she got tired of the conversation and then Savannah went into her bed in the breakfast room and went to sleep till everyone left.
Good puppy, great puppy, spectacular puppy. Considering Savannah is just ten months old now, I'm just as happy as can be. Not only has Savannah become more trusting of us and our friends, she also has learned how to give and receive affection. For weeks now, Savannah will walk up to either my husband or myself and stand by our legs, sort of leaning herself against either one of us... and she will stay there till we bend down and hug her, literally hug her with both arms, with one hand on her chest and the other around her front legs.
What's important about this posture is that when Gary and I took Savannah into town for the Christmas Parade back in December, she became very frightened of the crowds there and my husband knelt down on the sidewalk and hugged Savannah in the way I just described... and she calmed down immediately. And now, for whatever puppy reason in her puppy mind, Savannah has associated that particular hug with the showing of love and the receiving of love... and when she wants or needs to be hugged, she lets you know it, and she will stay there wrapped in your arms for as much or as little time as you're willing to give.
As every week goes by with Savannah, she is not only learning how to be a good puppy, but she's teaching us that she can be a spectacular puppy. I think mostly all puppies can be spectacular, if given the chance. When I think of how touch-and-go it was in September when we first brought Savannah home and she didn't bond with my husband right away... and now, Gary gets down on the floor with her and she literally folds herself into his body and just leans up against his chest as if they're one entire being, half man/half dog... such a difference. Such a spectacular puppy.
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