New Doggie

[jzhousley]

Ok so something we didn't plan happened today. We acquired a Yorkie. She is 10 years old and belonged to my mother's fiancé's dad. Unfortunately my mother can't keep the dog and there is no one else that can take her. So we decided to take the girl in. It is something that is more emotional than anything else just because she has been in the family for 10 years and has a part of my mother's fiancé's dad and mom who are now deceased.

The problem or more of a progress that I am going through is the following:


Since she is an older dog there isn't that puppy play in her like it is with hercules... Hercules loves to play and I think it scares her. He doesn't know his own strength. What can I do to make both her life and Hercules' life so much better for both of them? So that she is not scared to death of him and so that he can be around her without getting terribly excited. I understand that it's not their fault they did not ask to be put in that type of situation but I am torn between the two.

I also have a working progress of having her understand where her bed is. She really wants to sleep in the bed with us. Unfortunately, that is not something we can do. Mainly because my husband doesn't allow Hercules on the bed and it's just not fair.

She also has a cataracts which will eventually make her blind . The vet has told us that as long as she gets familiar with the house she will be ok. I was wondering if Hercules will be able to adapt and/or are there things that I can be doing to help the progress.
We really want to make this situation work and would like everyone to be happy. It's an emotional roller coaster hopefully we can get some advice. I know of someone who would take her and offer her a wonderful home but we would really like to keep her. As long as Hercules and her are happy....

[Nicole]

May I ask, without being rude or coming across as the bad guy...if there is someone else that is willing to take her, why would you keep her? Here are the problems (mostly what you mentioned) as I see it...

1. Hercules is very young and boisterous. She's an elderly, ailing dog. Hercules, to this point, has been able to play and bounce around...she, to this point, hasn't had to be bothered. Why should he have to be told off for playing too roughly and why should she have to tolerate rough play?

2. She's used to a certain lifestyle...sleeping on the bed, etc. which she isn't able to continue in your household. Why should a 10 year old dog, who's already had a major change in her life, have to deal with this?

3. You know she's going to go blind and you're worried about Hercules being able to adapt. To what? He's not losing his sight along with her. It has nothing to do with him...only her. Are you prepared to live with a blind dog? It's not always easy and there are special considerations that have to be taken aboard...the least of which is not being able to rearrange your furniture for the next 5 or 6 years.

I can only assume by your post that if you had to, and were able to, choose a playmate/roomate for Hercules, this dog would not have been it. Why has this become your responsibility?

Understandably, you say that emotions are involved. You need to chuck those out the window quite frankly. Don't be the sucker. No one else is stepping up to take this dog on...you have a dog. He comes first. I don't know how big your family is or your mother's friend's family is but I'm sure there's more than just you. Out of all these people, no one else owns a home? You are THE only one that COULD take this dog or THE only one that WOULD?

You said, in your first paragraph that there is no one else who can take her. In your last, you say you know of a place where she can have a wonderful home. That alone tells me you're not thinking entirely clearly about the whole situation.

I think you need to take a deep breath, calm down and think about all this rationally. It's a sad fact that people die and leave behind pets. Most people don't make arrangements for these types of things and should.

If you had, at any point, said...we weren't really expecting this, but they're good friends, they love to play together, we'll deal...fair enough. All you listed were problems. Can they be worked through? Probably. That said, I don't think the situation, as you're describing it, is going to be fair to either dog.

Don't be selfish. (And don't take that the wrong way). Don't keep this dog because of some need to keep her in the family. She is used to a certain quality of life and so is Hercules. If you aren't able to or willing to give her the same life she's been used to, and if by keeping her you will have to inhibit Hercules and change his lifestyle, give her up...it's only fair to both of them. At the end of the day, this has nothing to do with what you want and everything to do with the emotional well-being of both dogs.

[jzhousley]

Well i figured and no you are not the bad guy you are the rational guy hehe... my dh and i discussed it and decided to try it out for a little while and if they seem miserable then we will let her go.

I miss-phrased myself when i said no one could take her in the beginning, what I meant was no family member could take her, besides us.

The person that I know of has already two dogs of her own and she is a friend of my husband. One of her dogs already has cataracts so I don't know how that would work out? She, on the other hand, enjoys to have her dogs sleep with her and all of that good stuff.

Although she has been use to sleeping in the bed, Buttons had no problem sleeping on the bed that was bought for her last night. In fact she didn't get up throughout the whole night which really surprised me, I thought for sure she was going to jump in the bed with us
Since yesterday, Hercules has not "rough" played with her.. He has only sniffed her .. which I am taking as a good sign... I guess his curiosity has settled a bit. We don't tell him not to play with her. When we see him getting rough we simply just sit by him and start petting him to calm him down... he takes advantage because he loves getting his belly rubbed.

So I think we are just going to see how it goes for the rest of this week and if it doesn't work out we will talk to my dh's friend to see if she will take the dog. If not, we have given our number to the Yorkie Rescue here in Houston.

As far as her cataracts go, I've been told by her vet that since she can still see fairly well that as long as she is able to stay at one house for the rest of the time being that she will be able to memorize how the house is laid out. I don't mind not rearranging furniture because (1) I really don't have time to do all that and (2) There is not much furniture to move =)

I guess it depends on the how both dogs react to their new situation throughout the rest of this week. I'll keep you informed.

At the same time I don't think the quality of life she was used to was necessarily good for her taking that she did get a yeast infection from the diet she was eating (human food) I was told yorkie's have a lot of allergies and that the human food she was being fed was not only rotting her teeth but not good for her health. She has been eating kibble reluctantly but she eats it.
I know it's a lot for her to get used to just because she has been used to the wrong things for so long (such as potting in the house and eating human food) but I believe she really has the desire to be a normal dog. She has not pooped or peed in the house since she has been here. Mostly because we take her out for walks every four hours and I think she might be getting the "bell" thing because this morning she tapped it after she saw hercules do it... so like i said we will do a "test run" for the rest of this week... and let you guys know.. thanks for being so blunt and upfront... it helps hearing it from someone else who is not attached.

[Nicole]

Well...if you've thought it out a bit more calmly, then you're making a good decision. :)

As far as petting Hercules when you want him to calm down. STOP! By petting him when he's doing something you don't want him to do, you're reinforcing the bad behavior. I understand what you're doing and why you think it's working but it's not. Look at it like this, in simple dog terms...

How To Get Cuddles Step-by-Step by Hercules

Step 1: Bug the little dog
Step 2: Bug the little dog a lot
Step 3: Bug the little dog so much that the humans tell you to stop
Step 4: Bug the little dog some more
Step 5: Sit back and get petted

I'm only half joking with you. ;) This really is how dogs think...without being scientific about it. He rough-houses with the Yorkie, you pet him. Cause and effect. He'll very soon learn that that's his reward and he'll begin to do it purposely. So stop.

If you want him to be 'nice', you need to teach him a word. Whether it's 'relax', (mine get told 'enough') or whatever. When he starts to get too rough, give him the word and remove him from her area until he's calm. Let him back with her once he's calm and if he starts to get too rough again, use your word and separate. What he'll learn THEN is that if he wants to play or have company, he has to be nice (or whatever your word is). Once he learns the word, all you'll have to do is use it for him to relax...you won't have to keep separating them.

Good gravy...what kind of food were they giving that poor thing? How much people food does it take to make their teeth rot?? That's too bad! You need to make sure that she can eat the kibble comfortably. If her teeth are that rotten, it may hurt her to chew hard food. What did the vet say about that?

I'm glad that she slept well for you. :)

Stop worrying so much about the cataracts. How will Hercules react? How will she do with another blind dog? 10 blind dogs in a house is no worse than one. Hercules won't care. ;) The only one that will be affected by a loss of vision is her and not even that dramatically if it's gradual.

If you decide to keep her, while she can still see, order some essential oils. Count the doorways in your house, and order that many different scents (or go to the health store and buy it). Put a couple drops of one smell on each side of every door frame, even with her nose. Once a month, refresh your dots.

You can also put different carpets down. For instance, if you always use one door for her to go outside, put a throw rug down in front of it. If there's one room where she sleeps, or where you normally hang out, put a different style rug down (different feelings on the feet).

Once she's blind blind, plan on keeping her crated if you leave the house for her safety.

Shelby has been blind for well over a year now. Mostly she does alright. The only times I pull a Homer Simpson (DOH!) is when she gets overly excited and starts pinging off the walls. :) She could care less. Ping, Ping, Ping...Ping! The only difference I've really noticed in her, since going blind, is that she doesn't like to take walks on leash. That's it. She still likes the car, still plays, eats fine, etc. If she's not all freaked out that I just came home or just woke-up, things like that, she walks pretty slowly so as not to crack her head. She's learned the words 'Turn' and 'Step' so I can guide her verbally (turn when she's going to run into something and step when she has to step up or over).

I hope it works out for you now that you've sat down and given it some good thought. Extend your timeline. Most rescued dogs take about 2 weeks to settle in. After that you'll have a good indication of how things will go. :)

[jzhousley]

LOL what you said about hercules is so true!... I will take everything in mind and will no longer pet him after he messes with buttons.

thanks so much for all your advice and encouragement....

My new thing now is feeding them at different times since they both enjoy to eat each other's food instead of their own.. =)
and no can do.. hercules is still on puppy food and she is on some food the vet advised us to get...

I really feel I have 3 kids now... my hands are def. full =)

[Nicole]

You're missing out on a really prime opportunity to teach Hercules some manners. If you have time to supervise feeding, feed them at the same time. Correct them when they focus on the others' bowl. This would be an invaluable lesson for later on (especially if you plan on dog #2 at any point).

You're welcome. :) You do have your hands full. I just want you to make the smart decision, not the emotional one. :)

[Apollo's Fan]

Curious if there has been any change in the behaviors. Are things still going okay for both dogs?

[jzhousley]

everything has been going great.. she is still a little shy but they both are doing fine... we, however, have been thinking to give her to my mom since she says she has the room now that she has gotten rid of a lot of things and also because she knows them better than she knows us... so we are going to be talking that this weekend over dinner and I will be telling her the things I've learned so far so that she knows what she is getting in to and so forth... thanks for asking =)

[Missi]

Also do not forget it will take Buttons a few weeks to adjust to the change in her home . One week will not be enough for her to adjust and settle in .

Good luck .