A Face Only a Mother Could Love...

He is cute, just in a different way than Kiwi.

We are dog-sitting Riley while Jason's parents are down in the states for two weeks on holidays. I was just thinking about how looking after him him is sort of like looking after someone else's child. You can't expect them to automatically know all the expectations we have, but it would be nice if they listened when you tried to teach them the rules of the house. It is different with a dog because you can't just explain it to them. You have to teach them, and Riley is a stubborn dog. I know there is a smart dog in there somewhere, but we just need to find his motivating factor.

When he was a puppy he was VERY interested in food. I think because he was abandoned in a ditch and possibly lived on his own for a while before Jason's parents adopted him, he became very interested in food and would eat it as fast as he possibly could. As he has grown up he doesn't seem as interested. The first time we got him to go #2 out on the deck without someone having to take him for a walk (like he does at home) we praised him like crazy and tried to give him a treat. He sort of looked at us like we were crazy and was not at all interested in having the treat.

Tonight I let him out to go to the bathroom and when I checked on him I caught him trying to eat a poopsicle :P That is the last thing we need him doing. I guess tomorrow I will have to go out and clean up what is out there. I thought keeping a few out there might help him realize that that's what he is out there to do. Guess not!

Him and Kiwi have had some fun play times and I think they have been keeping each other busy, which is good since it's been too cold to take them out for a walk. Maybe on the weekend it will warm up a bit! I have thought about getting a second dog now and then, and I guess we will see how the rest of the two weeks goes. Right now, it's not looking good. However, I believe that if we started with a puppy again, that we would have the chance to mold it into the dog we want right from the beginning.