Determined To Go!

I needed to run some errands, so with the cooler temperatures this season, I could take Rowdy with me in the car.  He was so excited to get to go with me as usual and jumped right in the car in his seat.  Well, for some reason the car wouldn't start or crank over.  So I had to let him out while I tried to figure out what was wrong with the car.  He didn't want out.  We hadn't gone anywhere yet and he didn't get his ride, so he didn't think it was time to exit the vehicle.  Finally he very reluctantly got out of the car and I proceeded to fix the problem.  After I got it started, he still got to go for his ride.  I could tell he was pleased that he didn't get left at home this trip.

What's He Thinkin' Bout?

When I was checking the oil in my car, I looked to the back yard and saw Rowdy sitting by the fence and watching me with his ears perked up.  That got me wondering what he was thinking about.  Was he waiting for me to come back to him, to give him attention?  Was he thinking that he hoped I would take him with me for a ride to wherever I was going?  Did he wonder or even comprehend what I was doing, or that I would be leaving him there for the balance of the day?  Was there even a thought process going on in his mind and was he just waiting for something to happen so he could react.

I do believe that there is some sort of thought process going on, although somewhat primitive.  He can't be running on instinct alone.  He does what pleases him and gets really excited at anything that is really pleasing, like getting a treat, or seeing his buddy Wrigley when he hasn't seen him in a couple of weeks.  He pushes limits, but minds when he is pushed back to his place.  He gets scared when a thunderstorm passes thru the area and wants to cuddle up to me for protection.  And, he would also have to have a thought process to have the dreams like he does, when his legs twitch and he lets out a muffled bark in his sleep.  With such limited activity in his life, he had to be dreaming about chasing a squirrel, cat or another dog in the neighborhood.  That is a thought process of an activity that he was involved in. 

I don't buy into the theory of people elevating the intelligence of a dog close to theirs.  I more believe that those people have their own intelligence lowered to a dogs level.  They could also be blinded by the love for their pet, just to give them the benefit of the doubt.  I do however believe that certain breeds dogs are more intelligent than others.  Certain dogs are easier to train and their intelligence level could be based on how much they can learn.  Their willingness to learn for receiving attention also plays a part.  Dogs that are attention needy, will tend to be more destructive if they don't receive the attention and I believe that they can be the more smarter dogs and will be able to learn more.  I have also read somewhere that a dogs human vocabulary is around 200 words and that is about the limit of what they can comprehend.

Most of this is based on my observations of dogs over the years.  I don't necessarily count Rowdy as high on the intelligence list, but what he lacks there, he more than makes up for being a very sweet dog and a great companion.  So I say again, what was he thinking, when he was watching me?     

Dog Fight! Dog Fight!

There are usually several dogs around the consignment auction that I occasionally go to and today there was a new one.  It was a black female that looked like part pit bull, but a little leaner and still part puppy.  She still was taller than Rowdy and we first encountered her when we got to the sale in the parking area.  They did the usual sniff each other greeting and then we went on.  The black dog followed us quite a ways into the yard and I finally got annoyed and shooed her away.

A couple of hours later it was lunch time and I had just got my bar-b-que sandwich and a coke.  With the sandwich in one hand and the coke in the other and trying to hold on to Rowdy's leash, I was having a hard time holding everything while trying to pull some napkins for a dispenser.  All the sudden 'growl growl snarl snarl bite bite, you know, the typical dog fighting noises and I looked down and the black dog was back and in a skirmish with Rowdy.

That pissed me off so I kicked at the black dog and stopped the momentary fight and the black dog disappeared off in the crowd.  I was having a hard enough time trying to balance the plate with the sandwich, the coke, Rowdy and get the napkins.  It was a miracle I didn't dump the sandwich on the ground.  I don't know which dog started the fight, so I don't know if Rowdy was being territorial with me, or the other dog jumped him.  Maybe Rowdy found a morsel of food on the ground and the other dog came up just at the wrong time.  Rowdy is hardly ever aggressive except when playing with his buddies and usually darts in and runs away in a playful attitude with other dogs, as he did earlier with this dog.  This is the first real dog fight I have ever seen Rowdy encounter.  He and his buddies get into occasional spats, but they are more of being annoyed with each other and are nothing like this. 

We went over to a flatbed trailer that was a few feet away and I set my food down, put Rowdy up on the deck and I sat on the deck and ate my lunch without further incident.  Rowdy wasn't the slightest bit shook up and everything was back to normal with him begging me for a bite of my food.  Yeah, he got a taste.   

Frightened and Confused

I badly bruised my leg on the lower calf area, right where Rowdy likes to sit against me.  There was 8 vertical inches of badly swollen area and it was very sensitive to touch.  Well, here comes Rowdy to sit against me for attention and I had to push him away and tell him 'no!'  The poor doggy got a scared and confused look in his eyes with his pupils dilated, as to say, 'What did I do wrong?  I don't understand!'  Feeling like he was being scolded for something, he wanted to push up against me for comfort, but I couldn't let him.  It made me feel bad that I had to push him away, but it hurt like hell when he is up against my leg.  I did allow him to sit close to get his attention, but would have to move my leg away when he tried to push up against me.

Dead To The World

The other night we had a storm roll in at around 4AM with lots of lightning and thunder.  Sarah was visiting with Rowdy's buddy Wrigley.  I usually don't let Rowdy up on the bed, but when there is a thunderstorm in the area, he gets scared, so I will make an exception and usually pull and old blanket up for him to lay on.  Thought this time I didn't get the blanket, I let him up anyway thinking he would lay down by our feet. 

Well the little rat nosed his way up between Sarah and I where there was just enough room to barely squeeze in.  Then, after a minute or so, he managed to wiggle onto his back for me to rub his chest.  I did momentarily rub it and then drifted back off to sleep. 

Next thing I knew, I woke up at around 8:30 and Rowdy hadn't moved a muscle.  He was still on his back, sandwiched between us with his feet up in the air.  I couldn't believe that he got that comfortable and just laid there like that for over four hours. Oh, and Sarah smuggled Wrigley up under the covers too.

He'd Rather Hold It!

I can't believe how long this dog can go without going to the bathroom.  As of the time I am writing this, he had been over 15 hours since he ate his dinner last night without going. 

When I went to let him out for his final break last night, it was raining.  He won't hardly go out in the rain unless he has to go really bad, so he didn't go.  He got me up early this morning like he usually does, leads me to the door to go out, but it was still raining and he wouldn't go.  Finally, a few minutes ago I conned him to go out, by telling him to go get the squirrel.  Then he went outside and did a very long number 1.  I quickly shut the door on him so he wouldn't get distracted and just stand at the door.  Then I watched him thru the window as he did his business and came back to the door, to be let back inside.  Whew!

There have been times when the weather is good and he still won't go out.  I guess maybe he really doesn't need to go, but he does have a bit of an established routine, so I wonder why he doesn't go.  Hummm, wish I could hold it that long!

Talk To Me!

Lately, Rowdy has just been a regular, good, obedient dog.  I probably harass him more than he does me.  I wish I felt better and could spend more time playing with him or taking him for walks and such. 

I have however been engaging him in conversation, or at least talking to him for a response.  Using key excitement words like Squirrel or Cat, which he loves to chase, gets his attention and he'll whine and shake his head around making a kind of wa-wa or continuous changing pitch wa sound.

Other key words, phrases or sounds get him excited, like pointing to my watch and saying, "Is it time?" referring to time to eat his dinner or 'chow'.  This riles him up enough to bark with the whining. 

His body language is so cute when he gets this excited as he wags his tail 90 miles an hour, squirms and wiggles around and raises up on his haunches to do a little begging act.  Put it all together with the whine and bark and he puts on the cutest show!