Saturday, December 04, 2021

And Then There Is Trixie

 Trixie is about three years old.  She came to live here as a companion for the Bean.  I had second (and third) thoughts about acquiring a pet, especially a puppy, at my age and with physical limitations.  Some days I think I should have had a fourth thought.  But, I didn’t.

Trixie came with baggage that no 4 month old puppy should have.  I just didn’t realize that she would retain that baggage once she was settled in our home.  Now, Trixie isn’t our first dog by a long shot so you would have thought I would have known better.  But, I didn’t.

Trixie came from a breeder that I felt was a reputable woman and I still think so.  However, she trained her puppies to puppy pads.  I understand some of her puppies were going to top out at less than 5 lbs which creates a whole different situation when talking about potty training outside, especially in the winter.  Parents of small dogs, chihuahua’s come to mind immediately, sometimes have to create an alternative approach to the issue.  Apparently Barbara did a bang up job training her puppies to pads because the concept has stuck.  The situation here is Trixie is not a 5 lb. delicate Yorkie — she is topping out at close to 15 lbs. and while she is small, she isn’t THAT small.  I thought I could train the pad concept out of her brain.  But, I didn’t.

I keep telling myself that the pads get changed on a daily basis, sometimes more, and that it really isn’t much different than a cat box.  In fact, it probably isn’t as bad as an icky cat box — no litter to drag around and, of course, she can’t climb on the kitchen counters to walk around.  So, that is my story and I am sticking to it.

However, what I wasn’t ready for is so much of my time being spent trying to get the dog to potty.  We go out on a regular basis — she rolls in the leaves which she is allergic to, she tromps around in the flower bed, she stands stock still at attention while listening to whatever has her attention — but she doesn’t go potty.  She races in to the house and straight to the pad.  

So, clearly at age 3, Trixie isn’t housebroken and I am a bad puppy parent because I don’t know how to make it happen.  Seems to be an issue with Yorkies though as I have spoken to others about it and I just get the hopeless laugh.

I have also learned that Trixie is afraid of the dark.  We both have to go out with her after dark because she goes out, stands in one place and stares in the direction of the foxes.  Now, she has never seen the foxes but I am sure she can smell them and apparently they scare her.

Trixie is also off her food.  I have six bags of various brands of kibble and three brands of wet food and she turns up her nose on a regular basis.  She mopes around, gives me the poor sad doggy look and acts likes she is about to breathe her last — quite the drama queen she is — until we put the steak or chicken down for her and then it is a dance party in the middle of the kitchen.  Methinks she is a master manipulator.  

I love Trixie though.  I like it when she lays next to me and puts her head on my ankle.  I like it when she gives me “kissy face” which has mastered beautifully.  I just wish she would eat and potty.  Eat and Potty and repeat.  Ugh.

So, that in a nutshell is how Trixie is doing.




2 comments:

Frugally challenged said...

Thanks for the Trixie update. Have you tried putting the pads outside, maybe only just outside? I have to admit I've never come across pads: most dogs here seem to use newspaper when they are very young but go outside asap.

Boyett-Brinkley said...

I haven’t thought about putting them outdoors but I might give it a go. The reality is when it is storming or snowing or icing I don’t fine the pads all that awful. What does bother me is the going in and out to no avail. Sometimes I think she just does it to keep me amused!

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