I got the girls and went out to wally world to get the basics. You know the drill if you have pets; food, collars, treats etc. Found some decent prices on stuff so I can't complain. It was cheaper then I thought that part would be. No great buyers shock or heart failure at the prices for what I bought.
One thing I will not be purchasing again is the FunBites raw hide strips! They are supposedly packed with calcium which is good. They come in a resealable red plastic bag. That's not why I bought them. I bought them becasue dogs need something to chew on besides furniture and this looked like a reasonable cost effective solution for a month supply or a least a few week worth. I get paid once a month like many folks. When I go to get supplies, I look at over all cost very seriously. Getting enough of the regular style raw hide chews was more then I wanted to spend what with all the other start up cost of shots and flea and tick stuff.
The lady I got them from had thought she had found them a home but it didn't work out. They send Sandy back, then Abbey started chewing furniture so they sent her back. Logic said she was missing Sandy even though there were other dogs in house, so I got both girls. Every thing was fine on that end until recently. Dogs and raw hide are, in my opinion. just like air and sunshine. The two go together. Hence the chew sticks. Bottom line is they just do not last. Abbey is a very exploratory dog. If she does not have something appropriate to chew on she will find something to satisfy the craving. The FunBites just do not last. Long story short, I'm going to the butcher and get them some beef bones.
Another item I bought that has mixed results is the Ol'Roy lamb and rice flavored bone shaped biscuits. Sandy will eat them. Abbey buries them in her blanket. So much for saving money on that one. The lady I got the girls from said they were used to milk bone brand so I guess that is what I'm going to be replacing these with.
The good news is since I want to save the grilled strips for training and since they girls were spoilt into begging which is not something I put up with. I put a couple of the chew strips and lamb biscuits out for them while I'm eating. They are happily busy and I dot have that "please feed me" look staring at me while I'm eating. Every one is happy.
My son had a good idea the training to sit part of things. He has his dog get in his lap and tells him to sit. After the dog sits he gives him affection and every time the dog gets up he repeats the process. Me, I add treats to this off and on. Then there is the idea I got from pet finders. com. Scroll down for link for sit. Once you have their attention and they are standing in front of you, slowly take your hand with the treat in it backwards over their head until the butt is on the ground then say yes, and praise them while your giving then a treat. On Abbey that is starting to work!
With Sandy I have to take a different approach. She needs assistance getting into position. Once she is there I say yes, praise her and give her the treat.
Yesterday Sandy finally got the point which she displayed in a rather interesting way. I still have to help her into position but she finally gets it! The fumy part is once she is in position she will continue to sit with that look on her face that says OK I'm sitting , do I get another treat ? She will stay sitting until I tell her no more treat. At which time she is obviously not happy.
Looking at dog beds.
When I adopted the girls I knew beds were gong to have to wait but that's OK. I wanted to research this plus at that time we thought Abbey might stil have grow left in her since we thought she was less the a year old. As it turns out she is a Sept dog so that is not an issue but still I wanted to look around. Reviews is something I pay attention to. If I'm going to fork out 20.00 bucks or more per animal I want to know if the product is worth it. Results were I was just not impressed with what I saw on beds in my price range. I've beem playing around with the idea of pillows and pillow cases. Yes, primitive but it would work.
Decision is made pillows are just not large enough so on to idea 2. Make something. I was at walmart looking for remnants in what passes for a fabric department. Remnants no longer exist at our local walmart. I was walking by the pattern books and believe it or not the simplicity book was opened to pet patterns. Yes, I never thought of that ideas but it was sitting there staring at me like Providence had opened the page just for me to see. You know I had to stop and look. I won't tease pet lovers with the details but if your not impressed with pet stuff like clothes, toys, beds etc, go look at simplicity patterns.
Long story short, Simplicity has patterns for a no sew pet bed. It's cute. It's designed to work with polar fleece. Now if I can just find fleece in a color that I not only like but that won't show the dirt so much we are good to go. I'm thinking about seeing if that fabric protector spray works on polar fleece If it does the problem is solved. In the mean time I think I'm going to cover a couple of old over sized pillows with the old flannel sheets they are using now. It will work.
A cool snap has set in so working out side is now an option while it last. That's good . Maybe I can get hat fiberglass done I've been thinking about
Not a lot else going on.
Sail safe but sail!
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