Darla's Diary

It's a hard life.

Its hard to believe that she hasn't even been home with us for a week yet, but there is already a lot to report.

Obedience Training: Thursday evening was our first class. B and I attended without Darla to learn about what will need to bring and how we and our pooches will need to behave, etc. The class is pretty full and Darla will have the chance to socialize with 9 other dogs and their families, which should be really good for her since she is pretty much afraid of everything. We did have a homework assignment; "charging the clicker." Clicker training consists of task, click, treat. This week it is just click and treat over and over again, without Darla having to do much of anything. she seems to like that. She seems super smart so far, but needs a lot of help to become a "good" dog.

Vet Visit: Friday afternoon we took Darla in for her "free" 90 dollar vet check up. She has an ear infection and a bum knee, which will require surgery in the very near future. Basically, her knee pops out of place about 20 times a day. The vet said it isn't painful, but obviously annoying and will eventually lead to arthritis if not treated.The good news is that we can put off the surgery until we've saved up what will need and we wont have to put it on the credit card with Kitty, Chuck Norris, and Klyde's hospital debt.

Getting to know you: This weekend Darla met many of our friends, her godmother "in training," and her grandparents. She also got to meet my mom's dog Morgan at the river for a long walk. She is very nervous and mostly ignores everyone at this point. She does seem to like females better and is not really sure what to think of other dogs. She did well on the leash and I think she really just needs some time to get used to all of these changes.

As she is getting more comfortable with our home, she is getting herself into trouble; getting on the furniture, going through the trash, etc. I am a little nervous that she will be alone for several hours today. I do think it will be nice for her to have a calm couple of days without any visitors and then off to training on Thursday. As always, I will continue to post on her progress.

Puppy dog kisses!