Rob was doing a Fall cleanup project involving a ladder. At one point he leaned the ladder against the fence and went to do something else. I walked out the door in time to catch Bailey, also known as Houdini, climbing the ladder to see what was on the other side of the fence. Of course, I didn't have a camera in hand and couldn't leave her on the ladder to go get one. She was removed from the ladder and the ladder was put back in the garage.
Bailey
Everyone finally settled down to have a chew on a toy or a stick. I'm glad we spent so much time outside yesterday because last night we had a big rain and the ground is quite muddy today. This doesn't bother the pups, but I'm not crazy about playing in the mud.
Samba has always had trouble getting to sleep at night. She wanders around the bedroom and stands at the side of the bed trying to get me up. She finally settles down at my feet, but she wakes up early. She has learned that I don't enjoy getting up at 4 AM, so she now waits quietly until I'm ready to start the day.
Of all the things the pups might have inherited from Samba, they got her 'early rising ' gene. We like to say it came from her ancestors that worked the fishing boats and had to be up before dawn when the boats went out. The pups used to wake and start barking at 4 AM every morning. At first I had to get up and get them outside because their housetraining wasn't reliable.
Once they were completely trained, I tried to get them to sleep later. I was only partially successful. They sleep till 5:15, then start barking. When the time changed last week, they went back to 4:15. So I started working on a new plan. It involves shifting their schedule slightly, feeding a little later, evening outings a little later, bedtime yogurt a little later and last call an hour later than usual.
For the past few days we've had limited success, but this morning they slept until 6:30. It felt wonderful. I woke up alert instead of bleary eyed. I didn't stumble around getting everyone out and fed and pilled. I feel like I might even accomplish something today without first catching a nap.
I'm not the only one. Monty needs a nap most days due to the early wake-up call. As you can see a big dog needs a big pillow.
3 comments:
That's why I love the doggy door. You have a housefull, thankfully I only have 4. They sleep downstairs with access to the yard. Dudley hears me come downstairs at 6:30ish and then starts woofing until I get them out of jail.
Love your guys. Climbing the ladder! Too cute - that's why I think agility training is a mixed blessing. It's better for everyone if they don't know how their legs work! g
This time change is hard on the humans! My pup wakes up to go potty about 5:15 now instead of 6:15. We go back to sleep, but that last hour isn't deep sleep for me.
Gretchen and Sissy are early risers, but so am I, generally... Sissy is getting better about getting back in bed and snuggling, so I'm hoping her adult clock might involve sleeping in!
Post a Comment