Dog Days of Summer

As I mentioned yesterday, Matt and I know own a second little doxie named Ozzie. He is incredibly funny: clutzy, floppy, and goofy. Just like Mirabelle took to potty training right away, Ozzie is already 95% crate trained for bedtime. His first night at home we tried just getting him into the crate, closing the door and turning out the light... which he did not like and began howling and crying. So, from just about midnight till 1:15 in the morning I was crate training (Matt had to work the next morning early, so he actually slept on the couch!). I'd get him into the crate and shut the door for a few minutes, treat him when he was quiet and give him the buzzer noise when he was crying. Over time, I'd leave him in longer, then eventually got up into the bed and kept treating and praising. I had the closet light on so he could see me, but it was still dark enough that I could sleep, and when I looked down at the crate and he was fast asleep I rolled over and got some rest as well.

Ozzie is not, however, taking to potty training like Mirabelle did. As a male dog (which I've never owned) he is prone to marking, but he hasn't had any full-on accidents yet. One of the hard parts is that he is not leash trained (his first time on a leash was on Saturday when we picked him up) so taking him outside usually takes a long time. My hope is that, as we take him outside with Mirabelle, he'll learn from her and will be just fine. He has his first vet appointment tomorrow, where we'll discuss his vaccinations (the only one he needs still is his rabies shot), his neuter, and microchipping.

The two doxies seem to like each other. Mirabelle is getting a little bitchy with Ozzie sometimes, but they are having fun too: they run around in circles around our kitchen/living room and chase each other. Ozzie has been stealing Mirabelle's toys, and she always looks at me with that look that says "Mom, what are you going to do about this?!" I think Ozzie is starting to teethe because he's been chewing on just about anything he can, but luckily he seems to know what is okay to chew and what is not. The two dogs manage to drag out every toy we own faster than I can put them away! I currently have three blankets, two crinkle toys, two Kongs, and a stuffed animal strewn across my living room floor. But I am thankful that they seem to get along.

I am, in a strange way, a bit happy to be unemployed right now, so I can take the time to work with and train Ozzie. He's been sleeping mostly during the day (he's currently stretched out at my feet while Mirabelle is sleeping on my side), but we've been trying to work on the potty and crate training. I did see that a nearby Petsmart is hiring for a training instructor, and I thought that might be an idea for me to do for awhile. If I have to work in a retail pet environment I can't quite decide if I'd rather train or groom. I enjoyed working at Pawsitive Animalworks when I was in college, but I'll just have to think about it.

I spent some time looking for jobs this morning, but it seems like everything out there is either highly specialized or incredibly low wage (yes, I know, that's all relative and any is better than $0). I found my morning to be highly ironic; I had a voicemail from a man I've been trying to meet with about his new shop and he'd been avoiding my calls since May. It's been a rough morning so far. I feel like a total waste of space, sitting here on the couch watching Animal Planet (Animal Cops is the saddest show on TV), searching for jobs on Craig's List, and forwarding my voicemails/emails from work to my former co-worker while feeling completely sorry for myself.

I'm thankful today though that the weather is milder than it has been. I heard on the news last night that yesterday was supposedly the last hot day of the season, and that today was going to heat up only to about 80 (as opposed to 97 like it was yesterday!) and tomorrow is only going to be in the low 70s. People think I'm weird when I say I prefer the cold weather, and that temperatures above 80 make me miserable, but I'm very excited for fall. Our AC hasn't really worked all summer (it blows out air just slightly cooler than the air outside) so it'll be nice to finally get some cooler air into our apartment.

... and now Ozzie is chewing on the toy basket...

So, I guess the rest of my day will consist of job searching, making sure Ozzie doesn't have any accidents, and trying to keep him from chewing the basket or the throw pillows.