Dog Diaries #3

Let the games begin.

Don't let that cute face fool you, because that adorable little guy nearly drove me nuts for the first two months. He was a holy terror. I even called him the Devil's Span as I was sure he was brought here to test me.

Our Midnight Rambler had a sketchy first few weeks. He belonged to a fisherman, who we believe owned the female. He was adopted by a family who didn't have the right household for a puppy (see my first dog diaries post). We refer to Rambler as a rescue. He wasn't mistreated (not that we know of), but he wasn't being handled properly, so he had some nipping issues and didn't like to be corrected. There were many times he'd growl to force his point. Had we been his first owners, things may have been a lot different. But, he was now ours and we had to deal with the good and bad...and this boy had a lot of bad.

As all puppies do, they are curious and get into everything. They think everything is theirs and want to chew what's in their path. This included his dog bed, the carpet, the kitchen towels, shoes, slippers, and so much more. The worst was us and our five year old lab's ears. However, correcting Rambler wasn't easy. He was extremely stubborn and had slight aggressive tendencies. There were many rough days. I was up early with him (4:30am) and stayed up. Thankfully, I work from home, but my husband and daughter don't, so I couldn't leave Rambler cry and bark all night. I would sit on the floor with him and play until he fell back asleep. But as soon as I would get up, he'd whine. He wanted me in his sight 24 hours of the day. At this point, he was a bit of a bully toward us and Keefer, who is a kind and gentle soul, so he didn't growl at Rambler to put him in his place. Keefer preferred to just go into another room to avoid having his ears bitten. 

I like to think I have a lot of patience, but Rambler tested me every step of the way. I had the bruises from his sharp baby teeth to prove it. 

Is it easy raising a puppy? No it is not. And don't let those videos of dog whisperers fool you into thinking it is. 

I watched lots of videos and did research. The Cane Corso breed is very intelligent, so training him to go outside to do his business was thankfully easy. He never once pooped in the house (knock on wood). He had a few pee accidents inside, but that's to be excepted with a puppy.  He learned how to sit on command quite quickly and he has great manners when it comes to his meals.

I felt I was gaining points. My husband called me a dog whisperer and some days it would look as though that was true, but then other days were complete chaos. It seemed like everything I tried wasn't working. Rambler was beginning to be a nightmare I couldn't escape. I've raised and trained many dogs in my life, but I wasn't sure I was cut out for this dog. I'm not in my thirties or forties anymore. I'm actually closer to sixty. Maybe I'm too old, but I was attached to the little guy and he to me. 

Unfortunately, my patience was exhausted. I was exhausted. The chaos couldn't continue. It was hard on me and my family. I kept looking for the light at the end of the tunnel.

Did I see the light? Stay tuned to find out!