Hi, it's me again. I am really glad you came back to see me. I have been wanting to tell you about all the new things I've learned at my new foster home.
I was one heck of a bouncy girl when I got here. I was so excited when it was time to eat, that I couldn't hold still. I would leap into the air and twirl around while I was in the air. I thought I was dancing. My foster mom said I had to learn how to control my body better when I dance, though. She said it wasn't fair when I body-slammed the other dogs or her. She also didn't like it when I would land in the water bowl and splash water all over the kitchen. I thought it was FUN - but she taught me some ways to wait for my food so that everyone is happier.
First, she taught me to "sit". Of course, I knew how to sit before, but I didn't know what it was called. I never knew that it was the polite thing to do when you are waiting for your food to get ready. It was pretty easy to learn, once I got over being stubborn about it. Now I sit even when there is no treat - just for praise!
Next, she started to teach me "stay". This was kind of confusing. She would ask me to sit, and I would do it. Then she would say that "stay" word, and step away from me. I thought it meant that I was done sitting. But a quick "UH-UH" from my foster mom told me that there was something else to this trick. I noticed that my foster sisters always stayed sitting down whenever she said "stay", so I tried it, too. Voila! Praise! I'm starting to get it!
I thought I probably deserved a college degree for all that learning, but my foster mom said that there is actually more to learn. Sure enough, there was a HARD thing to learn: lay down. She says "down", and I'm supposed to lay on the floor???? when she has a treat in her hand??? Come on, I WANT that treat! Ok, ok, I get it. I'm supposed to lay on the floor and then I get the treat. As soon as it's in my mouth, I BOUNCE back up! Is that right??? My foster sisters do it differently. They stay down even after they get the treat, until she says "ok". Maybe I'll try that after a while. We'll see. I DO stay down for longer than 1/4 second now. Since I LOVE to eat treats, it has been pretty easy for me to learn these new things
I always thought it was cute when I Wooo-woo-WOOO'd when I wanted something. My foster mom says it's cute, but not so cute when I SHOUT it. So she is teaching me to ask politely for things that I want. Now I try to remember to sit for toys or treats.
Of course, there is learning to do outside, too. I am learning to walk next to my foster mom without pulling on the leash. This is EXTREMELY hard for a bouncy girl like me, and we work on it every day.
I still get scared at new things. One day on our walk, I saw something that terrorized me. I stopped dead in my tracks. My foster mom had to drag me beyond it, so we could go on with our walk and she could go to work. Even after we were past it, I had to keep looking back to see if it was following me. It was REALLY scary-looking. My foster mom said it was something called a "mailbox". What the heck????? It was going to get me, I know it was! Amazingly, it didn't follow us, so I was a little reassured. A few days ago, she took me for a walk by myself, and we went past the mailbox. I was not quite as scared, as it never did follow me the first time. She let me approach it very slowly this time, and I was brave enough to sniff it. It didn't smell like much. No food inside. After that, we went on with our walk Not too bad.
Feeling a little pensive, thinking about that mailbox
I was getting couch privileges all the time until I made a mistake. I mistook the couch cushion for a stuffy toy. Anybody could make that mistake, right? Well, my foster mom got pretty upset over that. She took it away from me, and wouldn't let me finish tearing it apart. Then she hid the torn part so no one could see my work. I got a time-out for that. Phooey. I think I understand now. I haven't done it again.
I've been here for about a month, and I'm starting to get along better with my foster sisters. I've discovered that sometimes they can even be nice! Here we are hanging out together on a warm, sunny fall day. I'm the beautiful one on the far right, closest to the fence.
Below, you can see me playing in the yard. I am really FAST!
One day my foster mom brought home some really strange things for us to wear. She said they were costumes. I don't know what a costume is, but I really didn't like it much. She said we were supposed to be stylish French Poodles in our curls and fuzzy hats and scarves. I didn't approve at all, and we all REFUSED to wear the hats. You have to remember, I am an ENGLISH Pointer (American Field-bred Pointer). I don't do French. My sisters put up with it longer than I did. Lots of kids came to the door, and my foster mom gave candy to the kids. I wanted some of the candy, but she gave me doggie treats instead. I liked the doggie treats just fine.
By the way, I have decided - don't call me Nutmeg. I like being called Meggie! Well, I'm off to curl up inside for a while. Stop back and see me soon!
Love, Meggie
