Have a lovely day!

I am back/ almost random thoughts

I am very happy to announce that Lola's scrapbook is back :-)

I wrote in Italian somewhere else for a while than I got fed up with that blog. I can't tell why. Well, I know why. 

1. I don't like writing in Italian as it makes me fell more "vulnerable" and even a bit "fake". I like writing my private stuff in English;

2. I don't like being read by some people that "surveil" me through the blog. They don't want to do it but I perceive it like a monitoring and I hate it. I know (?) Lola's scrapbook readers and I really like them so I'd better stick with my blog and my lovely readers.

3. Every time I'm up for a change, 5 minutes later I miss this little virtual space.

...

So, I am back.

It's been REALLY hectic lately and it's going to be like this until the summer break. However, I'm involved in things that I like so it's ok to be busy.

Orlando turns 1 this week and we're super thrilled about it. Unluckily, I'll be on biz trip for a couple of days AND I'll leave on his birthday which is a real shame. On the bright side, S. has planned a  dog party with Orlando's mum and his brothers & sisters in June. We're going to celebrate all together and it's going to be a huge mess (8 Irish Setters, OMG). 3 weeks ago we met Fenice (Orlando's mum) and 2 sisters. You should have seen Orlando: he was all over the place and had a blast with them. He is very social and likes a lot dogs.

***

Yesterday we saw La grande bellezza by Paolo Sorrentino. It's a great movie, don't miss it! One of the best movie I've ever seen.

Should get going now, buona domenica...

it's sooo good to be back

I haven't updated the blog

for a long time and I haven't replied to your comments. Sorry about that. It's been crazy with very little time for myself. 

Things are doing well and I feel less stressed than a few weeks ago. I am off today and tomorrow (thank God!) which is great because next week and the first week of December are going to be hectic. Next week I'll be stuck in meetings and workshops while the first week of December I'll be on biz trip for 4 days. 

I'm so glad I am at home today. I worked this morning and then I spent time with Orlando in the garden. He ran and played and had fun without doing stupid things except for eating a small branch. Obviously he prefers running free in the garden instead of going out for walks on leash. However, he has to be supervised all the time even though he has improved a lot. No more stones, just branches and leaves (sometimes). Unluckily there's a cat who poops in the garden and Orlando... well, you can imagine what he does. Bleah.

December is approaching and I still haven't given serious thoughts on Christmas, Christmas presents and New Year's eve. To be honest, I treated myself, namely I bought some gifts... for me ;-) I guess we'll spend Christmas day here and invite over my small family while we'll spend boxing day with G's family. New Year's eve has never been special to us but THIS YEAR is special because of Orlandino and we want to stay at home with the him.

Anyway, we'll see. We don't have plans yet.

Since Orlando is with us, I am happier and more "balanced", if you can see what I mean. Of course there are drawbacks but the trade off is worth it. We sleep less but we do have him :-)

On a different tone, I'm reading a very interesting book which I highly recommend: The Biology of Belief by Bruce Lipton. I promise I'll write a post about it. 

The Dog Behaviourist #3

We're on the right track: Orlando is improving. His trainer has spent a few hours with us and he was pleased to see that he goes less for rocks, socializes and plays with other dogs and -in general- he behaves much better. His blood exams are fine and the hypothesis of a compulsive behavior is less strong than it was anticipated. A compulsive dog does not improve and is more difficult to distract. So, things are doing well but there are still things he has to learn so... more work for us. It's ok though, I love working and playing with him. We tire him out a lot and apparently it works as he sleeps through the night without jumping on the bed. 

It goes without saying that I work more at home which is a real blessing as I spend more time with him and consequently I can train him and go out for long walks. My mum is also doing a great job with Orlando. G. plays a big role too but he is not a work-at-home dad so long walks with both parents are scheduled in weekends only.

To be continued...

The dog behaviourist #2

B. arrives at 2:30. Orlando barks and is allowed to go out to see who's coming. B. starts his observation right away and asks questions while we are outside. We stay inside for about 1 hour and a half. He asks lots of questions and observes Orlando and how we relate to him. 

He explains that eating non-food can be:

a) a compulsive behavior due to mistakes while he was learning (e.g. when he ate rocks the previous "mom" gave him something to distract him and he began to associate rocks with treats)

b) a genetic compulsive disorder (what about his siblings? As far we can tell, they do the same but we don't know to what extent so it might be genetic)

c) pica caused by physiologic problems (e.g. gastritis)

d) a non-compulsive behavior.

What can we do?

First, go to the vet to check that his digestive system is ok. Second, training him with sit-stay close to areas where there's non-food he usually tries to eat. The training with sit-stay is going fine AND, more importantly, he doesn't eat weird things if there's food. This is good because tough compulsive disorders don't go away if there's a distraction. Third, use a specific halter. 

We also have to work on other aspects and we've already started. He's learned to socialize with other dogs. At the beginning he is scared, but then he is ok. We changed our habit: instead of going towards quite areas with few dogs and few people, we now go to the main square. B. told to do that asap and things have improved a lot in just 2 days. He has to be more independent which is not easy for him as he is ALWAYS with someone. Furthermore, when we're on the couch I don't do anything to prevent him from sleeping ... basically on my belly and this is not good, according B. and to G. to be candid. I am aware I shouldn't do it and I'm working on that ;-) B. explained what to do and I'll try. Promise! 

Anyway, to cut this short B. stayed with us until 6!! We even went out for a walk. He'll come again next Sunday. He is very professional and we really like him. He is also quite well-known here and we've heard positive comments so... we're ready to work with him and with Orlando.

It's like having a second job though as it entails careful observation and training but we do love Orlando so it's not a problem at all. And we're learning a lot so.. it's good! 

On and Off

I'm off today due to the dog behaviorist ;-)

It's a long weekend for us which is great as I am pretty tired. Orlando attempted to jump on the bed every night (approx. every hour or so) of the week. I am sleep deprived and I do have all the physiological effects except for depression! Plans for the weekend include naps, naps and naps. Next week is going to be hectic, I have to get myself together before monday.
Plans also include: Sunday lunch at a lovely restaurant, housekeeping, Hallloween shopping on etsy (I LOVE IT), watching this, reading etc.

Have a nice weekend!

The Dog Behaviorist

We've arranged an appointment: the dog behaviorist, B.,  will come on Friday and will spend at least 2:30 hours with us in order to understand why Orlando eats non-food and, more importantly, how to correct him.

On the phone B. told me that he needs time to observe the dog in the environment where he lives which is understandable. He also told me that it's unlikely that he has an obsessive compulsive disorder as he is too young but -for obvious reasons- we need to stop this behavior as soon as possible. He knows of dogs who swallow more than 100 rocks per day! Orlando can't do it as he is 24/7 supervised but still, he has to stop asap. 

I hope we'll sort things out. B. is also a vet and a dog trainer so I strongly hope that he is the right one to call as we're a bit frustrated.

I'll keep you posted on that!

Eating Stones /Orlando's chronicles

now we're dealing with the "I LOVE stones, let me eat them"!! This is a real issue as is getting hard going out for walks with Orlando who eats small stones at (almost) every step. He is always on leash even in the garden, otherwise he'd have an intestinal blockage from eating: 

1. little stones
2. far too much grass
3. pine needles
4. leaves

I don't like using the leash in the garden but this is the only way  to deal with "the eating problem". I'm thinking of creating a dog-friendly space in the garden where the only thing to eat is grass. We could mark it off with iron/wood fencing and encourage him to use the area. This is just an idea but I can't come up with something better and he needs to exercise more without getting into troubles. 

I must admit that I am in love with Orlando Furioso. We are in love with this angel/devil and I'm glad that I'm not leaving. 

Play biting and more

Orlando is growing up. He sleeps through the night and knows more our habits. He also goes out for walks now but he is still quite scared of cars, other dogs and all the "moves" towards him. I think it's normal though as he's spent 2 weeks and half walking in the house and/or garden only. He needs to adjust to yet another environment which does not seem safe to him: cars, bicycles, noise. He is getting better but needs more time and walks outside. 

He is also improving (with us) as far as play biting is concerned but he behaved really badly with my mum yesterday night. We went out for dinner and he stayed with her. First, he knows her house but doesn't stay there after dinner. Second, he runs and plays a lot while we watch tv and our house is bigger so he runs around etc. To cut it shortly, he played biting with my mum a bit too hard and apparently he was so crazy that it was impossible to stop him (and my mum knows how to deal with dogs). My mum had cuts on her arms and hands and there was even blood on the couch! This is NOT admissible. 

Rough playing is NOT good at all. We're trying to figure out how to stop rough playing. I'm reading this and this morning I took Millan's advice: gently but firmly cup the neck with the hand curved into the "claw" shape that mimics the dog's mouth. Well: it worked! The only issue, as the author points out, is timing "don't overcorrect, don't pinch, don't hold on too long after your puppy has relaxed" because it could be interpreted as a further challenge. I'm still working on the timing issue, but this seems to be the right way to stop Orlando. We'll see.

On a different note, I'll leave on Wednesday. I'm going to Varna (on the Black Sea) and I'll have almost a full day to visit before throwing myself into work. It seems an interesting city, more than I'd thought to be honest. 

Perhaps I'll write from there. 

Buona Domenica 

The truth lies in the middle

And now we argue because I am too permissive (he thinks) while he is too strict (I think). 

An example: Orlando likes to bite hands and feet. He's just a puppy, it's ok. Sometimes he's too excited though and bites too hard. I'm aware that he shouldn't do it as play-biting is can be dangerous in the long run but still, he is only 3 months! G. thinks that he should stop biting my hands ("he does it with your hands but not with my hands...guess why?") and he is right but he's just playing and sometimes I let him play ... and stop him  only when he bites hard. He disagrees.

Sometimes it's difficult to calm him down and G. looses his temper because I'm not doing what "I'm supposed to do" (what?!!).

G. loves him but the fact that he's never had a puppy makes things a bit challenging. And Orlando is not a calm dog. Well, he is calm... when he sleeps! By the way, now he sleeps through the night which is a real blessing. From 11:30- 11:45 p.m. until 7 a.m. He wakes up a wants to play but we know how to stop him now. This morning he woke up earlier but 6:30 is fine, no problem. 

I've had puppies before even though they were not like him who gets really excited for everything and chews & bites all the time. I think he's funny. Very demanding but funny. G. thinks that he needs to learn that there are limits and boundaries but perhaps he is too small to understand. 

Anyway, he is adorable :-)

A question

Am I entitled for maternity leave?!!
After all, Orlando IS a baby.

Training

G. is training Orlando while I'm trying to get some work done. I'm terribly late, I don't know if I'm going to meet an important deadline but I'll do my best. So now we're training him to sleep in a specific place. It's not where we had in mind as he wants to stay with us. He shouldn't sleep in the bedroom, we're aware of that but we don't have another option. We bought him a dog bed and put it in our bedroom. Yesterday night we tried without the bed and it was a nightmare as he:

a) didn't know the room and got very excited about the new environment

b) he chewed every single thing and didn't sleep

We went downstair, where he usually sleeps, and immediately fell asleep on the floor but G. had to sleep on the couch again. 

He is now with G. in our bedroom and is taking a nap in HIS lovely dog bed. He needs to know the place in advance ... they'll be staying there at least until 7 p.m.

Fingers crossed!

It's very tiring and we look like zombies but if we  fix "the night problem" everything it'll get easier.

Earlier he met my dad and tomorrow he'll meet A. who is thrilled about the baby. Out of interest, no, I'm not back to my workout routine. Neither I have time nor I have energies.

Back to work now.

Chewing: his favorite thing on earth!

Jack Nicholson?!

Oh my God, his dad!

Orlando's chronicles

So he is here! He's sleeping now (thank God) and will eat in around an hour. We are exhausted! Wow. It's a first for G. and it's a first for a us as a couple: having a puppy is not so easy. He is wonderful but he does't spend 5 minutes alone. We always have to be in the same room which is fine... during the day. Yesterday I took F. advice and slept on the couch. Orlando was fine but he checked every hour or so in order to be sure that I was there. At 5:30 we went outside (he had to pee) and then he wanted to play a bit. We did play (poverina, as Andy says) and he got back to sleep. Lucky him, I didn't sleep at all. I feel a bit dizzy today. Orlando seems fine even though we've noticed that he sleeps more than yesterday which is a blessing. It's a big adjustment both to him and to us. Tonight I'll take A. advice and let him sleeping on his own in a room downstair. It'll be hard and he will cry a lot but he needs to understand that there are some rules, one of them being that he can't sleep with his parents.

Apparently he is very good with pee and poop. He doesn't "ask" to go outside but he pees and poops only in the garden. So... so far, so good.

We're getting to know each other and it'll take time. This morning I called him Duick....

Of course he is lovely even when chews my shoes or my books. By the way, he likes to chew everything, curtains and blackberry included. He is so funny, especially when he runs.

There are more things that I'd like to share and I'd also like to upload some pics but I really need a nap now :-) I feel like I've just had baby!