I was reminded this morning of some forgotten challenges that adopting an older dog brings into a household.
When we brought Sampson a 13 pound bundle of joy home, common sense told us how to puppy proof our house. It was easy because Sampson’s head barely stood a foot off the ground.
When Delilah joined our pack it was a totally different story. Delilah’s head was about 2 1/2 feet off the ground and while there were certain things Delilah couldn’t reach with all four feet on the ground, most things were easily accessible by standing on her hind legs.
I quickly learned that everything had to be picked up off the floor, furniture and counters; as nothing was sacred to Delilah. Thankfully she was never a ‘shoe-chewer’ instead she favored paper. Paper plates, paper towels, paper napkins and occasionally yes just plain paper. If you had a snack of crackers on a paper plate and forgot to pick it up, it would be destroyed when you came back in the room. If it had/has the faintest whiff of food on it; Delilah would/will find and destroy it.
It is extremely frustrating trying to puppy-proof your home from a fully grown dog; especially when you have Mr. Canine Good Citizen for the first dog sitting there watching. Many a day I came in and said to Sampson, “Can’t you be a role model?” Those were the days I wished I could communicate in a strait forward manner with my dog.
Now-a-days Delilah favors bounce dryer sheets, but on occasion she will still find a random napkin or paper towel. She also loves to greet you at the door with your gloves in her mouth.
I was reminded of those frustrating habits by my friend Laura this morning. You may remember Laura, she is the one with the animal sanctuary in her backyard. 😉
Here’s what she wrote. ” I SWEAR you and Delilah are in my thoughts CONSTANTLY these days. I’m thinking that Ginger is my Delilah. She’s into EVERYTHING and chews up just about everything.”
Ah yes, those were the days my friend.
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