Traumas and phobias

Continuing our Nightmare tale...

Where we last left off, we had just taken in the anonymous (back then) black dog in our home.

My husband said he would set up an inflatable mattress and sleep in the kitchen with her, while I would nap in the living room with Aschiuta.

Easier said than done, for my side at least. I kept tossing and turning, wondering what we were going to do. I was afraid the dog would be reckless or traumatised or not potty trained (actually that was the least of my concerns). I had all sorts of concerns, a new one on each side of the pillow.

In the morning, I decided to work from home and stay to take care of the dog while Scorp went to work.

First things first. The dog would need to go out and do her business, so she would get into the routine and not leave us any "presents" inside the house.

However, there was a problem that had shown up the night before when trying to bring the new dog home. The dog absolutely refused to go up the stairs. She climbed the few steps leading to the front door of the building and up to the first landing and then she simply tried to back up frantically, as if she were being hurt by the stairs. My husband had to carry her in his arms all the way to the 5th floor.

Now, I have myself been a dog carrier for a long time, carrying Aschiuta in my arms all the way to the vet when she was smaller or even lately, to pretend that I wouldn't let her make paw prints on the freshly washed floors, I would carry her up the stairs. But even that is only until the 2nd or 3rd floor.

The new dog was larger than Aschiuta, I would not be able to carry her up and down the stairs. Luckily, the elevator had been installed and working (most of the time), so we rode the elevator. She seemed almost used to this means of transportation, which makes me believe she had used it before.

She seemed to understand what the walks were for and left some "presents" for me to magically make disappear. I took her 3 or 4 times the first day, because she took so long to do anything and didn't do everything all at once.

I kept her shut in the kitchen while I worked and visited with her during breaks. I felt like a new mother and also a nurse. Because, besides the staircase phobia, our new friend also had a serious health problem... an infected wound on her forehead. But more on that later...

Bad booboo on such a sweet face...

Hello, Mr. Dog, Ms. Dam. Table for two?

Communication is tough when you don't speak the same language as other people. But there are some non-verbal elements, which are generally understood anywhere. You can raise a hand to call the waiter, shrug your shoulders to say "I don't know" and point to something of interest with a finger (though pointing is said to be rude).

What is it pooch? Hungry? Thirsty? Why are you barking?

I find it quite hard to find a common non-verbal communication standard with my dog. This is partly because I haven't had a lot of pets in my life and also because she can get moody sometimes. Why is she tugging on my sleeve? Why is she whimpering? Is she feeling bad? Hungry? Wants to play? Misses Scorpio?

You know how your dog wants to play now or go out or eat and you are hurrying to finish some very important work? It would be nice if you could strike a deal with it, saying "calm down, we'll go after I finish here". But it's not really possible. Your dog won't understand you. It will simply get the idea that the walk won't be happening any time soon, so it will keep bothering you.
 

Aschiuta and the case of the shredded sleeves

I get lots of tugs on my sleeves from Aschiuta because she needs to go out or wants to play. If I don't want her to get aggressive, I prefer to grab the tennis ball and play fetch with her a little. Letting her out in the kitchen also buys me a few more minutes to work peacefully until I can fully dedicate my time and attention to her.
 

She tugs on slippers too. All for a bit of attention.

 
I do keep wondering though, is there an easier way?

Mommy's little girl?

We've all heard about the Oedipus complex and how children seem to get  more attached to the parent of the opposite sex. It's a simple way of saying that opposites attract and that we admire the people that have what we could never get.

But enough philosophy. I know that I was always closer to my dad, but that's simply because I preferred his personality and attitude to mom's. He was always patient and he didn't treat me like I was a stupid kid. Dad was the fun parent, he read me stories, we played computer games and he forgave my little mischiefs. Mom ,on the other hand, was the one that had to make me do the boring stuff, like eating, baths and homework. So we were arguing a lot back then.

A panicking mommy

Aschiuta was my very first "indoor pampered dog". Before that, the most interaction I got with dogs was feeding and giving water to grandma's guard dogs. The only "making friends" with those dogs was not getting barked at when visiting my grandma.

They kept saying that getting a puppy would be like having to take care of a little kid. I didn't expect it would really be that way, but I was in for a surprise.

When we got her, she was about one or two months old and she probably ate anything she could find. She was sick, nervous and too curious. I was extremely nervous, not knowing how to take care of her and she wasn't potty trained and still not even over the "eat anything that looks edible" stage. I don't think she'll ever be over that one!

She kept me up at night, because whenever she rustled around, I would wake up, worried that she had made a puddle or that she was eating something she shouldn't. Needless to say, I was extremely frustrated and was thinking of giving her away to my grandpa, who lives in a house. But Scorpio convinced me to keep her and I'm glad he did.

The rebel Aschiuta

Since I'd been unemployed and now work from home, Aschiuta had to spend almost all the time with me. Scorpio has to go to work, so they don't get to spend a lot of time together. In a nutshell, I feed her (often make food for her), clean up after her, take her out sometimes and wash her up. Oh, yes, and I play with her too.

But despite all that, I also have to tell her off when she's doing a bad thing, which infuriates her and she bites me, which also leads to more "bad girl, don't do that!". She really has no respect for me and that makes me a bit sad. She's cute and soft and licks everyone else's face, but I get all the bites.
 

Cheeky little dog.

Now, do you see a resemblance here? I also act that way towards my mom. Well, used to at least. We've become better friends lately. But Aschiuta is exactly like me. Doesn't want to listen to what I say and hates it when I tell her off. But all that rebellious attitude won't stop me from being very fond of her.

Daddy's little girl

And, since she has to be so much like me, she will of course be all over Scorp when he comes home or when he plays with her. He's the leader of the pack and we're both aware of that. He's the fun guy who likes to play with the doggie a lot and get lots of doggie kisses.
 

Unbelievably good...

But when he gets angry at her doing something bad, she really stops what bad thing she was doing and makes the "sorry, I won't do it again" face. But of course we don't believe her. She's a rebel doggie after all... She's only a good girl when she sleeps.