Nearly Two Weeks In
We are just two days away from being two weeks in with Murphy joining the household. At this point, after getting past the sleep deprivation from having to get up three or four times during the night to take him out, I'm so glad I made the decision to add him to the family. It's not been easy, but it is getting easier. And we're not even two weeks in.
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Sleepy boys |
The first night I left Murphy in the big tub I used to transport him home. He settled in and slept for about two hours at a time. He didn't cry, which I had braced myself for, so that was a win, but the second night I wasn't so lucky. I switched him over to the crate, and he wasn't having any of that. I decided, against everything I told myself I was going to do with this puppy, that he could sleep with me if he settled in. He did. Immediately. He snuggled up on the pillow next to my face, puffing his little puppy breaths on me while he slept. Totally cute, but not real conducive to me getting any sleep. But he slept and I slept a little.
This went on until two nights ago. I really don't want a dog in bed with me again. I did this with Ado for five years and never got a good night's sleep. I was constantly tired. When I moved into my beautiful little house and bought a new bed, he found he couldn't get up onto the bed any longer. And I slept through the night for the first time in years. It was glorious. I'm not going back to not sleeping. Murphy, though, wouldn't settle into the little pile of cushion and blankets I had arranged in the crate. As soon as I put him on the bed, he snuggled right onto the pillow and fell asleep.
So I put the pillow in the crate. And Murphy now settles into the pillow as soon as I put him on it when we go to bed.
Last night he slept through, from 10 pm to 5:45 am.
A small thing but huge in giving both of us much needed rest to recharge and be ready to face the day.
Other things we're working on are going on walks, becoming housebroken, and sit. The walks are going well. I do have to carry him a block away and go around the corner so he can't see the house. He knows this is where he lives, and he's not a fan of leaving. Once we're around the corner, though, he's all about walking alongside Ado. The funniest thing about our walks is how Ado now struts right along out in front. He's notorious for dragging behind me on our walks. He really doesn't like having to go. Now, though, it's like he's suddenly all about being in the lead and paving the way. Murphy has to practically run the entire way just to keep up. His short little legs work overtime so he can be next to Ado.
The housebreaking is coming along nicely. Seriously, this little guy is smart. He has learned to whine to let me know he needs to go out, and yesterday, a couple of times he also went to the back door. He's piddled a few times inside the house, but yesterday I think it was only once and that was because I ignored his whining. He told me he needed to go out, but I was busy with something and thought he could wait a minute or two. Nope. He has no control over his tiny bladder, and I need to remember that.
With teaching him to sit, he's getting there. He is definitely treat motivated, so he gets excited when I have a treat in my hand and he jumps up to try and get it. He will sit, though, and this morning he even sat and waited. We ended the training session on that note.
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Playtime |
Tomorrow will be an interesting adventure. I usually do my grocery shopping every Friday morning. I'm not comfortable leaving Murphy home while I'm gone for two hours, so I placed my grocery order online for curbside pickup. I'm going to take Murphy with me to give him some car time and see how he does, which will solve the issue of leaving him home. Speaking of placing the grocery order online -- if the produce selected for me is decent, I'm going to do curbside pickup every Friday. Talk about easy peazy! And I love how I can see exactly how much I'm spending as each item is put into the cart.
All in all, 2020 is ending on a good note. Actually, despite the pandemic, 2020 for me hasn't been bad. I found my little house in a little village, I have a job that allows me to work from home, and Murphy came into our lives. I've stayed healthy, the kids have stayed healthy (though we did have the positive COVID scare with Funny Delightful Son), and we were able to gather for Christmas, which we all agreed was one of the loveliest Christmases we've ever had. |
From our house to yours: Happy New Year! |
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