YES! We are teething!

Am I sure about this?  Why, yes. Yes, I am. 

I was suspicious when he chewed the threshold, but it had been chewed before, so was a bit rough and enticing.  Now, it's confirmed.  One puppy entering into the teething stage.

Proof?  You want proof?

Okay.

This is the corner of an antique dry sink that sits in my kitchen.  On a normal day, it does not have this rough, white, exposed wood.  Nor does it have little chips of wood lying about it.  Nor, I should add, do I get puppy poo with matching little white chips in it.  Sigh. 

Oh, well.  The sooner it begins, hopefully the sooner it's over!

So, we do not expand his territory into the kitchen just yet.  When I must be gone, he must stay in the mudroom, until we get his chewing focused on something.  He shows no interest in the giant rawhides, so I need to go back to the pet shop tomorrow and find a few items that might entice him.  I think I'll take him and see what he thinks.  (not Pets Mart....way too busy and full of animals)  Once I get the chewing focused, we will again expand his space.  He's not confined when I'm home, so it's only for when I'm gone.  Chris has sprayed pretty much everything in puppy range that can take it with the bitter spray.  And got it on his hands.  It doesn't wash off well, as he learned when he used his fingers to pick up a bite of his dinner. 

I did not laugh.

Today Reilly has responded well to switching over from "come" to "here" as a call word.  The first time I used it, he just sat and cocked his head and looked at me...until I added that hand signal we practiced with last night.  He got visibly happy when I used it, and responded properly!  He's a brilliant puppy! 

Chris went to let him outside this morning, and I heard him tell Reilly to not "just sit there," but hurry up.  I discovered that Chris needs to get his own list of what we're doing; he was unaware that Reilly has already learned to sit and wait for permission to go out an open door.  Once Chris said, "Okay, outside," Reilly went right out.  Reilly even got kinda run over/pushed aside by Murphy today, as Murph wanted out badly.  Reilly shook it off, and waited for his permission to exit. 

He understands "take it" pretty well, but getting him to hold on to everything we offer him is another story.  He needs to hold on before I can work on "bring it"!  We're already working on "drop," but he's not as happy with that one.  He'll learn.  At one time, we had Murphy carrying a single egg back from the chicken house for us each day.  I kinda wish we'd kept that up; he'd be an example!

Reilly also understands "Not for you."  He takes it a bit personally, however.  If I tell him something isn't for him, he leaves it, but then drops to the floor with a huge, heavy sigh and puts his head on his front feet.  And pouts.  But he leaves it alone.  Well, at least for then; he's still a baby.  It's like telling a two-year old.  They do it for as long as you're watching or as long as they remember, whichever comes first.  And they never remember if you aren't there to remind them!

I look at his legs all day long.  Sometimes I look and they seem perfect.  Other times they seem far worse.  Sometimes his rear legs look to be doing the same thing, but then next glance, they don't.  Just goes to show you that I have no idea what I'm looking for.  Puppy legs always look weird to me anyway.  I'll have to wait upon the judgement of others. 

I feel like I should have some large, grandiose Thing to report each day, when all we have are simple, every day puppy training days.  Nothing extraordinary, except the issue with his legs...and that may well end up being nothing to fret about.  So, boring is our normal around here.  It's all I have to offer!  I'll continue to try to compensate for that with cute puppy pictures.  Today, though...you just get not-so-cute puppy damage.

Meg and Reilly