Our tech team has launched updates to The Nest today. As a result of these updates, members of the Nest Community will need to change their password in order to continue participating in the community. In addition, The Nest community member's avatars will be replaced with generic default avatars. If you wish to revert to your original avatar, you will need to re-upload it via The Nest.
If you have questions about this, please email help@theknot.com.
Thank you.
Note: This only affects The Nest's community members and will not affect members on The Bump or The Knot.
So Proud of Baby Steps :)
Zoey has been crated since day 1. She's done really well staying in the crate when we're not home (minimal barking, if any at all, and none in a while).
Anywho: H left her out one evening when he ran to the store. She pretty much just hung out on the couch. So last night, when I got home from work and we had to go grocery shopping, I suggested we leave her barricaded in the dining room/kitchen (because the doorway between the dining room and kitchen is something like 5 feet wide, so we have nothing to block that with).
An hour later (maybe slightly less), we return home and....she's hanging out on her bed in the dining room!! She was perfect! Might have possibly ripped at the blanket over her crate some more (which is the one naughty thing she does when she's in the crate), but it might have already been ripped there from another time, I honestly don't know.
Made me such a proud puppy mom to know that we might be able to start giving her a bit more freedom at least when we have to run out to do errands. Definitely not jumping to leaving her out during the workday, but it's a start!
B/w 1/8: betas 17,345, progesterone 25.6
Re: So Proud of Baby Steps :)
Aw! Good job Zoey!
I tried doing something similar with my pups. Somehow, Chilly managed to get past the baracade. I need to come up with a better plan before I try again.
We put 2 chairs with a couple of throw pillows across the doorway from the kitchen to the living room. We need a second baby gate (have one already blocking her from getting into the guest bedroom where the kitties can get away) before the time comes that I try leaving her out all the time. For now, she doesn't try to get past things blocking her way. For now. Let's hope it stays that way!
B/w 1/8: betas 17,345, progesterone 25.6
Aww, good girl Zoey!
We left Bella uncrated in the bedroom for about 3 hours while we did some errands on Saturday. We actually set up the camera and videotaped part of it (dork alert lol). It was pretty uneventful but at one point she sits right in front of the camera, throws her head back and howls. Super cute but sad at the same time!
Awww! That sounds so funny, but I'm sure she was a little thrown/sad to be in the bedroom all by herself; she was probably wondering what the heck was going on! H's and my cameras (his is way better than mine, though) will both record video; I know mine is a really short amount of time though, and I don't know how long his would go for. We might have to figure out a way to "watch" her one of these times we leave her out and see just how she reacts and what she does.
B/w 1/8: betas 17,345, progesterone 25.6
We did this a couple of years ago when we moved into a new apartment and found that our dog howls too. We keep saying we are going to do it again since we are in our house now but it would be harder to see him since it's two levels. I wonder if he still howls though lol
She either had to jump the baby gate, which I find highly unlikely, or she weasled through the tiny holes through the cart, chairs & blanket... But didn't move anything out of place. Houdini.
Go Zoey!
Miko was 14 months when we left him at the IL's for vacation, and still not trustworthy alone in the house, but when we got back he was an angel! I'm not sure what happened while we were gone, but he hasn't torn anything up since then and we leave him uncrated all of the time now!
Good job, Zoey!!
I remember when we first got Chessie we did something REALLY stupid as first-time dog owners... we just gave her free run of the house when we had to leave because she hated the crate so much. Our apartment is really small and the doorways in between the different parts are too big for a standard gate. So we just let her do whatever. We put on a recording to hear if she barked while we were gone and we just left her.
Came home to a snoozing pup, a completely in-tact house, and a recording with not a peep on it. Stupid in retrospect, but now it's great because we know we can trust her to be out and about while we're gone (never more than 5 hours at a time) and she doesn't destroy anything. But seriously, I'd never do that again knowing what I do now about dog behavior!
MissusMcElroy: Yay for Miko's "overnight" transformation! That's so great!
LsbnLlama: You are so lucky! Hahahaha!
Zoey's "problem" room is the living room. She usually finds something in there to snag that she shouldn't: a cat toy that one of the furballs carried in and left for her to find; a pen, gloves, piece of paper, etc off the coffee table. Most recently, I left a heating pad on the sofa. Ugh. I got up and left it there to run out to the store, and H got in the shower. He got out of the shower to find her chomping on a corner of the heating pad...it's ruined. Thankfully she didn't bite through any wires, but it's definitely not safe to use anymore. Hello did I feel like a dumbass!
So, for now, no unsupervised time in the living room for the most part. She hasn't earned that room yet! Lol!
B/w 1/8: betas 17,345, progesterone 25.6
We really did luck out with Chessie's calm temperament... we could have been way in over our heads! Hah. So much the wiser now.
I hate to laugh at Zoey's antics, because I know they must be frustrating to you, but does she look up at you with those big sad eyes when she's done something naughty?! If so, I'm not sure I could resist forgiving her!
She absolutely does!! She gets this look on her face like, "Oh, mama, what'd I do? I'm sorry! Please love me!" It's REALLY hard to stay even remotely mad at her when she looks like that. I don't think she's ever been in the free dog box for more than half an hour in the 7 months we've had her. Let's hope as she continues growing she doesn't get naughtier! Hahaha!
B/w 1/8: betas 17,345, progesterone 25.6