April 8, 2009

Aaahhh...the Night Life





Like most newborns, Aly seems to have her days and nights confused. From what her original family told me, the puppies slept great at night, all curled up in a crate in a big pile-o-love. Since she now has to get used to having her 'own room' without any warm bodies to cuddle with at night, things just aren't as easy around here.
Every evening, Aly is called by her name. Well, we call her 'Aly' or 'Puppy' or even 'Baby Cakes.' Whatever endearing thing that comes to mind seems to fit her perfectly. I've been known more than a few times to call her 'Princess Alykins.' She is so cute that it hurts and it's amazing to hear all the mushy things that come to mind when I see her. Toward the end of the day, that is!
When morning finally arrives, we are pushed to calling her slightly less endearing things. 'Madame Yelps-a-lot' is one of them. She now spends all night making a fuss and very little time sleeping. Instead, she plays for about a half an hour during the day and then passes out for a good two or three to recuperate. She sleeps most of the day...so she can rest up and howl and yelp and bark and whine all night!
David was the first one up this morning and took her outside before he was able to jump in the shower to get ready for work. Since everyone else was still asleep and he didn't want to put her back into her crate, he locked her in the bathroom with him while he showered. I was just barely conscious enough to remember hearing the shower running, the dog carrying on as if her life was about to end, and him half-begging and half-scolding her to stop making so much noise. Personally, I don't bother saying things to creatures that won't listen. But, it was pretty entertaining to be able to hear him trying to bargain with a screaming 8-week-old puppy!
Eventually, she will get used to being alone in the crate. She will even find it her 'safe place.' We just have to keep doing what we're doing and stay strong. Had I not raised three human babies, I might find this a lot more difficult than it really is. The yelping doesn't bother me....not too much, anyway! Luckily, our family consists of pretty good sleepers and no one has actually lost any sleep over it. She does have a bad habit of napping right before we are going to bed. Then, she is waking up and ready to play when we are going to bed. I guess that there a few things we could be doing differently...and it does feel sort of like having a baby again.
And I'm happy to report that this is as close as I'm ever gonna get!

2 comments:

Unknown said...

My parent in laws are having a hard time with their boxer puppy. He's like 6 months old now and way bigger than normal boxers his age. We stopped going over there because I dont think they've trained him well enough and he is notorious for being obnoxious and knocking my kids down. Plus they get really frustrated holding onto the leash while we are over so the dog doesnt pwn anybody. It's stupid. They're too old for a dog like that.

chocolat said...

So so so cute, I see what you mean now. :)