July 2007
Monthly Archive
Behavior30 Jul 2007 11:44 am
Of course, I don’t really know if they know, since they can’t talk and berate me for daring to leave.
Yesterday, I was using the “101 Things to do with a Box” to train the boys. I take them into the bedroom one at a time. Each one immediately made a beeline for the suitcase I’m in the middle of packing.
Now, mind you, the suitcase from my last trip (2 months ago), still happens to be on the floor. They completely ignore that, and go for the one I’m in the process of filling.
And then Simba came into the bedroom as I was bedding down with Chester & Lola and made himself comfortable. He hasn’t slept with us in quite some time. This was, in fact, Lola’s first experience at sharing the bed all night with him (they’ve all napped with me before).
She did pretty well. She get a little antsy & growly at first when he was grooming himself. They’re fine with the boys as long as the boys aren’t moving, which is admittedly much of the day. But the second they run around or jump on something, she runs after them growling. I haven’t figured out if it’s aggressive, fearful or if she wants to play with them (she growls fiercely while playing), but in either case, it’s something I’m working on extinguishing.
I had to remind Lola to “leave it” a few times when she became too interested in Simba. But Simba stayed with us until 4 am, which is almost my time to get up with the boys.
I assume Simba chose to sleep with us because he knows I’ll be leaving them. But who really knows?
Technorati Tags: grooming, growling, aggressive, fearful, play
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We’re going to be going on vacation in a while, and I was busy this weekend working on both catfood & dogfood. When I was finished, I was about to rinse out what was clinging to the side of the bowl of veggie puree, when I noticed four little doggie eyes watching my every move.
So I gave them the bowl to lick out, and you would’ve thought they got manna from heaven.
I am very lucky. I know that there are picky dogs out there. But mine, it seems, will eat pretty much anything I give them — with enthusiasm!
Now, Simba is a weird cat, admittedly. He will beg for red bell peppers and carrots. He once stalked me while I was eating a tuna sandwich — because I was having baby carrots with it! He wanted the carrots, not the tuna (altho he’d be happy to eat some tuna had I given it to him; he just wouldn’t demand it like he did the carrots). But even Simba, cat that he is, would most likely barely deign to clean out a veggie puree bowl.
Find the doggie! No, Lola isn’t spoiled at all.
Technorati Tags: picky dogs
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Knitting28 Jul 2007 04:50 pm
I did, indeed, finish my ankle socks last weekend. I just hadn’t gotten around to photographing them yet. They came out nicely (although you can definitely see where the seams are between my two circulars — or at least, I can).
I’ve worn them once. They fit nicely, but you can sort of “feel” them. It’s a relatively thick yarn; they remind of a pair of hemp socks that I have. I really like the Crystal Palace Panda Cotton, but maybe it’s better suited to clothes than socks.
Simba is guarding my socks, and you can see them in profile.
I have started another pair of anklets, which I’m again trying to design. Also a very simple design, although it’s not cooperating well with me. I actually picked a stitch out of a stichionary that should have been simple, but somehow either I screwed it up or it was screwed up. I ended up charting it on my own, and that seemed to work.
It’s funny, too, because the yarn for this next project is one of those self striping yarns, and I don’t like it in plain stockinette stitch. But with some texture it looks better.
I had to rip out the beginning about three times. I’m also trying short row heels for the first time, and I had to rip out the second half of that this afternoon. Somehow it got lopsided; I’m still not quite sure what I did wrong. I hope I don’t repeat it!
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Behavior26 Jul 2007 10:03 pm
Dogs can smell fear, so surely they must be able to smell other emotions as well.
Some days I have to live my life around the radar, waiting for a chance when it isn’t raining to take the dogs out. Today was one of those days. After I got home after being gone about 3 hours, I took them out. Lola did nothing. No biggie, I put her back in her crate & took my shower.
Just as I was about to take them back out, it poured. By this point I could watch her, so we just waited it out. When it stopped raining, I took them back out. By now it had been 6 hours since she’d last pee’d (a long time for a little dog).
There was a dog outside the yard, which of course set them off, but I calmed them down after a while & Lola went off to circle, circle, circle . . . and do nothing. I was annoyed. It’s one of those days when there’s no telling when it’s going to pour again.
I walked away from her, but she obviously knew I was annoyed at her, although she just as obviously couldn’t figure out why. I had my back turned to her, so she wasn’t getting a whole lot of physical clues. Still, she clearly knew I wasn’t happy with her. I have to believe that we must give off different scents with different moods.
Technorati Tags: smell fear, different scents, different moods
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Behavior20 Jul 2007 08:12 pm
Living in the moment is probably one of the most important lessons our animals have for us; and probably one of the most difficult ones to learn, too.
Chester seems to have realized that I go away for several hours every Thursday. Sure, I also go out on other days, but this is the only one that is regular and always at the same time — and he seems to know when it’s Thursday (don’t ask me how).
I always take the dogs out before I leave, to make sure they have a chance to go. Not only would no one go yesterday, all Chester wanted to do was run back into the house. He knew he was getting a chew!
I, on the other hand, was worried that it would be pouring when I got back, and he would really have to go (and they hate going in the rain). So I got mad. As it turns out, it wasn’t raining, thank God, because yes, he really had to go when I got back.
Chester wasn’t worried about whether or not it was going to rain. He only worries if it is raining. If only we could be so focused. Instead of worrying about what will happen in a few hours, what will happen tomorrow, and what happened yesterday, if only we could live in the moment.
Maybe animals are smarter than we think. I know I’d like to come back as one of my own animals!
Technorati Tags: Living in the moment
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Knitting17 Jul 2007 04:19 pm
Here is Gizmo posing with my next finished sock. I didn’t even realize I got him with his tongue out when I took the picture. Before I get into the details of the sock, let me just say I’m constantly amazed by some of the other knitters involved in Summer of Socks 2007. They have a contest for most socks knitted, for instance. I didn’t even bother entering, because unless no one entered, I knew there was no way I was even close to winning that category. I am not the fastest knitter. I keep thinking I need to teach myself continental knitting, but I always want to start the next project, rather than sit down with something that’s going to take some practicing to learn. Supposedly continental knitting is faster.
At least one person has finished five pairs of socks already. Five pairs! I haven’t even finished my second pair. It takes me a week to knit one sock (whether it’s an anklet or a regular sock, I’ve discovered). One person talked about finishing three pairs in one week, I think — on vacation, granted, but last time I was on vacation for 10 days, I still only managed to finish one pair. And some people are even knitting other things along with the socks . . .
These socks were inspired by the golf socks pattern in Knitter’s Magazine Contest book. I actually bought this book quite some time ago. I’m not quite sure what I was thinking, frankly. I guess that I wanted to knit socks. But it sat there in my library for years. And then this past year, finally, I discovered the two circular needle method, actually figured the darn thing out on my own, and the rest, as they say, is history.
So I have all these books on socks. I think I’ve got at least six or seven books just on socks in my library now. It’s funny how the subconscious works, sometimes. Several of these books were purchased before I really got bit by the sock knitting bug.
I do that. Things will languish in my stash or my library for years . . . and then, voila! They are used. So on to the sock.
- Yarn used: Crystal Palace Panda Cotton
- Needles used: Two #1 circulars
- Pattern: Inspired by the golf socks in Socks Socks Socks
I liked this yarn, even though it was a bit fussy to work with and somewhat prone to splitting. It has a nice, soft feel, and was thick enough so that I could actually go up to #1s, instead of my normal #0s. Why don’t more needle makes make #0 circulars? I want to try Addi Naturas, but they start at #2s!
Here’s an up-close look at the heel. I wanted to try and branch out and try some new things with this sock. I was tired of sl1, k1. I used the honeycomb heel from Nancy Bush’s Meida’s Socks. I like the way it turned out.
I also added a little ribbing underneath the gusset on the soles, but I don’t particularly like the way that turned out. I didn’t realize they’d end up on the sole side, frankly. I wanted to give the socks a bit more elasticity. I want to try another pair with ribbing across the top of the foot, but I’ll have to order another skein first.
I decided to try a star toe on this sock. I think I kind of like it. No kitchener stitch needed to graft the last stitches: just put the tail on a needle, and pull it through all the stitches, and weave in. Plus I like the fact that it looks rounder. Of course, I don’t know how it wears yet.
So many socks, so little time!
Technorati Tags: continental knitting, star toe, kitchener stitch
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We have, quite literally, had more rain this year then ever. Period. After it had finally stopped raining for a week, I took the dogs down to the hike & bike trail (this was after about 2 solid weeks of rain).
See how the trail ends in water above? Well, it doesn’t usually. In fact, usually we walk right under that bridge. There’s a bench not too far on the other side that we sometimes take a break at. Not today; the trail is closed at that section.
Usually these ducks & swans are hanging out at the rocks by the side of the trail, waiting for a handout. Oops, there’s no rocks! and no trail!
Ma, why can’t I go get those swans?
We went again today, and those areas of the trail are still under water. Plus it’s supposed to rain, on and off, all week long.
Lola is really coming along on her loose leash training, though. I am now mostly able to simply walk her by other dogs, when they are on the other side of us. I do have to remind her to “walk” and “leave it”, and I have to always be on the alert for other dogs. But even a month ago we couldn’t do that.
She did get growly when a dog came up from behind us, and then again when there was one in front of us while we had to wait for the light to change (because of the flooding, we have to detour and cross a street to get back to the trail).
So she’s almost okay with dogs several feet away now. Doesn’t sound like much, but for her, it’s huge progress.
Lola, after all this time, can still be so unsure of things. Whenever she’s laying on the couch and I walk into the room, she puts her head on the arm, as if to ask, “is this okay?”.
She’s also taken to laying on the bed beneath the utility cart. So now when I can’t find her, I know to look for her there. However, I haven’t been able to get any photos of her there, because the minute she realizes I know she’s there, she comes out. As if she thinks she’s done something wrong. When I bought that bed for the dogs in the first place!
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Photos14 Jul 2007 04:29 pm
I hang out regularly at the About Cats Forum, and have for quite a few years. Often when I travel, I try to find out if there’s anyone from the forum where I’m going, and if they are, we often try to hook up. Sometimes it works; sometimes it doesn’t.
I was in Denver a few months ago, and met with a couple of different members. Sadly, I was only able to meet the cats of one member, but I had a great time with them both! It’s really great to be able to meet people you’ve only “talked” to online in RL (real life).
Here’s one of the Denver kitties I met. Her name is Scout (the other cat is Atticus — how I love those names! I love “To Kill a Mockingbird”, one of my favorite books growing up, but then I have a lot of favorite books.
Scout, as you can see, is an all white cat. Many all white cats (especially blue-eyed or those with eyes of different colors) are deaf, as is Scout. And I learned some very interesting things about deaf cats while visiting with her.
For instance, I was told she loves kids. Because she can always feel them coming, since they have a tendency to run & stomp around. In addition, she loves thunderstorms. She loves the lightning, and of course can’t hear (but can feel) the thunder.
Now, luckily my cats don’t mind thunderstorms. Giz will get scared if he gets caught outside in one, but if he’s inside, he’s okay. Chester’s fine with them too. Lola, unfortunately, is afraid of them, and that fear seems to be worsening.
While the above photo didn’t really show off Scout well, I thought it was kind of a cool photo. And the last Scout story? Scout’s mom looked after her neighbor’s elderly dog, who was mostly blind, for a little while. Scout couldn’t stand the fact that the dog didn’t respect her place as queen of all the food in the house. When the dog would go to eat, Scout would puff up — only the dog, being blind, couldn’t see it, and walked right by, while Scout watched in bewilderment. Didn’t the dog know that Scout was a ferocious lion?
Here’s a photo of both Scout & Atticus together. When they were kittens, apparently, they got along famously. However, Atticus, apparently, had been intent on stalking Scout now that they’re older. Unfortuantely, it’s gotten to the point where their mom is considering rehoming Atticus.
I can definitely feel for her. The boys got along famosly as kittens, too. Around the age of two, though, Simba began to stalk and attack Gizmo. Luckily, despite being skittish, Gizmo always comes back for more. He adores his big brother, and his main aim in life is to cuddle up with Simba.
While Simba still attacks Gizmo occasionally, there’s a lot more cuddling these days. I saw a big change again around age six.
Sadly, Gizmo does not like the dogs, and the dogs don’t like Gizmo. And worse, Gizmo will run when threatened, which of course only entices the dogs to chase. We are working very, very hard on “leave it”. Mostly they tolerate each other. Mostly I can get them to stop chasing him immediately. But I’m not sure I trust them all together for any length of time. Simba’s not a problem; they like Simba.
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The roller coaster of training
There are days that the animals go back and forth between little angels and little devils so quickly that I swear all my hair will turn grey on the spot.
Today on our walk, the dachsund that sometimes joins us — and hadn’t in a long, long time — reappeared. Lola handled it okay; not great, not bad. There was a little growling and lunging initially, but she is much more controllable now and she settled down quickly. I even got in a few clicks for her calmly touching noses with him.
Then another small dog crossed the street to join the fun. That one didn’t want to get in her face, so we just moved on. The dachsund followed us for a while, then sat down and howled. I hadn’t heard it make any sounds before, but oddly enough, its howling didn’t seem to bother the dogs.
We also did a five minute down-stay about halfway through our walk. I was really surprised that Lola could hold it that long, but it is very hot and humid, even though we walk fairly early in the day now.
Then when we got home, both boys were in, so I decided we’d work a bit with the dogs and the boys. Maybe I’m on the wrong track here. So far I’ve been having the dogs in a down-stay, while I throw treats around for the boys. As long as the dogs stay in their down-stay, they get treats. That way they get used to the cats running around, but getting treated for staying while the cats are active.
Things were going fine at first. Gizmo got a little spooked for no reason at some point, and went into the bedroom. I continued on with Simba, but Lola snapped at him when he got too close.
Unfortunately I yelled at her loudly enough to scare Simba, who is actually generally rather unflappable, which I know is the wrong thing to do. But I’m not perfect either.
Maybe it’s time to consult with a trainer about Lola. I’ve made a lot of headway with her, but I’m still not satisfied with her reactions around the boys or other dogs. She’s fine with the cats as long as they’re just curled up sleeping, which luckily is most of the day, but if the minute they start moving she wants to chase.
What’s even worse is that the other day they chased Gizmo out into the kennel when as far as I could tell he wasn’t doing anything. They usually get along extremely well with Simba, who often hangs out around them because he’s figured out that treats tend to appear around the dogs.
They all tolerate one another 95% of the time. The last time I had a private session with a trainer, it was helpful, but ultimately I solved the problem on my own. But I think Lola’s problem is actually more serious.
Later in the day, however, when Gizmo started to run around, I told Lola to leave him & she came right to me.
I talked a bit with Chester’s agility instructor yesterday about Lola. I’d like to do agility with her, but am not sure whether or not she’d be a distraction in the class. She suggested that maybe doing a couple of private sessions first migth be helpful for her, so she’d be more relaxed during class. Maybe we can discuss dealing with some of her behavioral issues, too. I like this instructor a lot.
Technorati Tags: growling and lunging, clicks, snapped, trainer
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Training09 Jul 2007 12:05 am
Lately I’ve been playing 86 Things to Do with a Box with everyone. When I began training the boys, and Chester, I used a lot of luring: using a treat to lure the behavior I wanted.
The box game helps to teach them to offer new behaviors; i.e., think a little bit for themselves. I had tried it with the boys long ago, but didn’t get much behaviors — or so I thought. I probably just didn’t realize what I was getting. Or maybe I’ve just become a better trainer.
Simba & Gizmo actually offer quite a few behaviors. Of course they get right into the box; they’re cats, after all. I’ve been shaping a little turning around in the box with them. Chester will offer a lot of behaviors, too; you can just see the wheels turning around in his mind (although he does get frustrated when what worked before doesn’t work any longer).
Lola, predictably, isn’t quite sure what to do. She gets so excited when she gets a click, but she shuts down pretty fast when the next click doesn’t come fast or I hold out for a new behavior. Part of it is just her nature, but part of it is probably also the fact that I’ve had the least amount of time to work with her.
Speaking of Lola, here she is with Daddy. Almost every day when he comes home, she runs over to him, waiting to be told she can jump in his lap. She usually jumps up & sits there happily with a great big doggy grin, but I just wasn’t able to capture it (this time).
It’s only taken 6 animals, but we finally have one that just loves her Daddy! On the weekends, when I let him sleep in a bit, she’ll just go over to the shut bedroom door & lay down — and sometimes whine. She wants to go in & wake up her Daddy!
She is, at least, content to be with me also. She’s fine when he’s away on his frequent business trips. I didn’t travel often while I was still working, but I did have the occasional business trip. I shudder to think how Chester would cope if I were the one traveling.
Technorati Tags: 86 Things to Do with a Box, luring, behavior, behaviors
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