Tuesday, March 09, 2010

Trust Not the Dog

Oscar was especially rowdy yesterday due largely in part to just "play," and rough-housing. I suppose it's his "breed," partially, and who knows what latent wolf genes, but I think he was just worn out yesterday, and by the day's end, this happened:

Everything was hunky-dory one second and the next, Amy was bleeding profusely. I thought she might need stitches, but she said no, and by this morning it looks as if it will be okay. She's keeping neosporin on it.

Meantime, Oscar is bewildered, I'm angry, upset, crying; Amy's angry, upset, bleeding, crying. I leashed Oscar. This simple action keeps him very calm; he knows he knows he no longer has free reign and feels secure being tethered. It works every time. He's territorial and when he's tired, I suppose all he knows to do is lash out. He can't be "cranky," and tell you so, so he does this. He and Amy had become the best of friends so it's easy to forget he can be so snappy. She took responsibility for part of it - the rough play - and I was searching the Better Business Bureau for obedience schools. Where does one start? The thing is just to leave him alone. He's a sweet dog, but this is unacceptable.

This morning he had "that look" in his eyes as if he knew he'd been bad. I fed him, fixed my oatmeal and coffee and he settled down beside me. When Amy got up, he wanted in her lap, as if to say, "I'm so sorry. I know I was bad." And she, being the forgiving person she is, and animal-lover, accepted him. But she did keep her face at a distance.

We missed our art class last night, looked at time wrong. So we had our own craft session. (This was all before the biting incident.) Amy made the two on the outside. It's very calming to work with your hands, even a simple thing such as this. She also got out her knitting needles and cast on some stitches, knitted a few rows.


Today it is damp and has rained, but it's a spring kind of dampness without the bitter bite of ice.

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