our dog is weird, which probably fits for her family, but can be quite annoying none the less. i'm sure her weirdness is just a dog thing or perhaps the perception of it as weirdness is a people thing, but it can be quite aggravating.

the transfer of "trainer" from saxy to me seems to be going quite well, for the most part. there are exceptions to the rule, of course, and days when she listens sporadically at best and not at all at worst. but we have more good days than bad in the department overall. the bad days seem to coincide with weather changes and my moods more often than not, although there are days when i honestly haven't a clue what her problem is. but there does seem to be this general correspondence: i get stressed and/or upset = she won't listen. she also gets very clingy and protective.

take yesterday. middle girl locked us out of the house and i had to sit one the cold cement step for over an hour waiting for the ex to get my message and go get key from oldest daughter. i was not happy. in fact, that's an understatement. the child has no observation skills, no wisdom, and less memory than i do. she's gotten herself locked out repeatedly by not checking the doorknob before she shuts the door and still she doesn't check. so i was very unhappy. add to that my disagreeable joints against cold cement, and yes, the stress levels were way up. gypsy's solution? protect mommy by laying on her. i kept pushing her off and she kept getting up and finding ways to sit, lay, put her paws over my legs and feet. listening was not part of her repertoire. very annoying.

i'm hoping finding her in the bed next to me this morning was just an extension of her concern for me and not the newest habit we have to break. i took a nap and she slept outside the door, so hopefully it is. nothing is more shocking than to wake up to a big dog face in your face when you're not used to it.

she is also still very, very, VERY unhappy with saxy. he's had his job for three weeks now and she still tries to hide under me and my desk or climb in my lap whenever he walks in the door. i've given up on trying to get her to face him and wait for him to have time to be nice-nice to her (he usually heads for the little men's room straight in for work, which gives me 5 to 10 minutes of quaking, disobedient dog to deal with), so now i just send her upstairs to her comfort zone: taz's room.

interesting side note: when daddy is here, she is less likely to listen to me and more likely to listen to him.

and last night i discovered you have to make sure to command her on certain things regardless. i didn't tell her to "leave it!" so she decided my bread and butter were fair dog food. sometimes i think she and jewel have quite a bit in common: they're zippy eaters who seem not to chew between bites and tend to argue a lot with their mommy.

taz can't wait to go with her to dog school and participate in her training. personally, i can't wait for her to be trained.