Then...Reilly got the bath he should have gotten yesterday. He does so well in the sink. This is an over sized sink, and he won't fit into it very much longer, but we'll use it as long as we can. He's learning what "stand" means in here. Kinda hard to wash a puppy who's sitting or lying down. So a bath, a flea combing...got three of the little nasties!...and then learning to love being toweled.
After the bath he went to get back in his bed, but I rang his bells and he jumped back up and came to the door. Then he went out and peed and pooped like a big dog. He got a few minutes rest before we all headed out to feed the livestock. He likes the sheep the best, I think. He always goes into the pasture now, and stays right with me...except when he's trying to see if sheep poo is edible. That stuff is attractive to doggies! Although they don't share parasites through that route, still not a good diet addition, so he must be discouraged from snacking on such things. Sometimes when I tell him no, he does the selectively deaf thing and ignores me, but if I touch him, he instantly changes back to his good self.
Our helpful teenager arrived at 7:30, got a quick tour, and we got to work. By 3:30 the hen house was cleaned out, the wisteria tamed into submission (huge chore there), all the rabbit cages pressure washed and extras stored, all the deadfall and what Chris cut off the fence this morning is at the bonfire pit, although we'll need a very still, damp day to get all that burnt safely. And somewhere in there we had lunch, too. Then a bit of time listening to old Eric Clapton and Skinner tunes (from a 14 year-old!), and now Chris and John are out at the pistol range behind the workshop, testing out some .22's. We did get permission from his parents, but Chris is a concealed carry instructor, so they were fine with it. Murphy was not. He hates gunfire, thunder, loud noises in general. He saw the guns come out, and ran to get in my lap as I was sitting in my chair spinning. He unceremoniously pushed my spinning wheel out of the way, and climbed right up. I ended up having to be rescued...and the guns were still in the house! Nobody had shot a single one. He parked right under my feet, while Jake was hanging out elsewhere, and Reilly was wandering around looking for something to do.
Chris filled up Jake's wading pool, and earlier today Reilly discovered him stretched out in it. He was fascinated. He likes the water, but as far as I know he hasn't seen so much at once. I talked him into stepping in, so I could make sure he was plenty tall enough, just in case he got near it when we weren't' there. It only comes up mid-back on him. Still, he shouldn't be around it alone for some time. We'll be driving to Boone to visit my son for the day tomorrow, so he can't check the pool out again, but Monday I'll take him back to it, and this time I'll take the camera. I'm bad about the camera, I know. I'm working on it! I'll take the camera to Boone, as Reilly is going with us. From now on he will go with me everywhere it is legal for him to do so. This will be his longest drive since his coming home day, but he'll get good rest in the middle. From here, it's about 3.5 hours one way. Piece of cake for our experienced traveler.
He has not been the Tasmanian Devil all day today, although he's had a couple moments. He's been learning "come" and "sit" very nicely, though. He's quite a quick study! He's mostly been playing in the back yard, through which I've been moving a lot, as some of my chores have been outdoors and others indoors. Each time I've come near, I've called him, using "come". He's so pleased to see me stop to visit that he does come, for which he gets praised. And when he arrives, he gets told to sit, and he does. Smart, smart puppy.
He did get his first startle today. Bob the tom turkey came out into the yard. Now, Bob would never be people aggressive, but he's taken to chasing the big dogs in the last year or so. (Bob is actually six years old...he's a fixture here at Hollow Oak Farm!) We are careful to have two of us when Reilly goes into Bob's pastures, simply because I can't move fast enough to protect Reilly. Not that Bob is super fast or really dangerous...we don't tolerate dangerous animals here. The big dogs can easily evade him; he's too big and fat to move fast. But a puppy could be in danger. And if I try to move fast, I fall down. Since I have a tendency to break on impact, I do try to limit my falling down.
Now, here was Bob, in the backyard, eyeing my little Reilly. And swelling, thrumming, and wing-scraping. All very threatening. And Reilly knew it. He didn't whine, or cringe, or show any real fear. He watched for a minute, but when Bob kept approaching and got louder, Reilly simply told me it was time to go in now, thankyouverymuch! And I told him he was smart, and we did as he requested. Sometimes, retreat is the best move. Not running away, mind; retreat. Two different things.
A good long later nap, and Reilly and I then had more specific practice on "come" and "sit" outside this evening. And he made a new discovery. Shadows. Shadows that move! His very own shadow that moves. it was fascinating to him. He watched it, he stalked it, he pounced on it like a cat. It was a distraction to our coming and sitting, but a funny one, and he did well on practice. Such a good puppy!
We're all packed and ready to go on our day-trip. I will have my purse and my knitting. Chris will have his wallet. Reilly will have his bed, a tie-lead, water, food, bowls, towels, toys, paper towels, harness and leash. Reminds me of when the kids were little! I will stick a crate in too, but he'll mostly be riding with a tie lead as he grows, so we'll start that tomorrow. My Honda Element has lots of cargo tie-downs, thank goodness, so it's easy to do a tie-lead. We do not want a puppy projectile if someone hits the brakes, nor do we want one when he's 200 pounds. Very bad for the windshield, not to mention the dog. And anything in between. So comfortable riding, but safe riding, is the goal. He can learn that young, while he's easily influenced.
After a long day, Reilly is heading to bed so he can be up and on the road early. We'll feed the livestock at dawn, and be ready to roll! See you late tomorrow. With pictures...I'd better go charge the camera!
Meg and Reilly
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