Avi's Favorite Toy

Since coming home from Reading, PA, Aimee and I have established different relationships with Avi. Now, as our pup is a solid 11 weeks old, we are seeing the fruits of our labors.

I've been stern and "boring" with Avi. I pet him when he's at his sleepiest and when he's in a playful mood, I always make sure there's a toy close at hand.

Aimee, on the other hand, has been the "fun" one. She runs around with Avi. They play "chase". He barks. He totally loves playing with this girl.

Long story short... Aimee is Avi's favorite chew toy. He chases her around. He bites at her clothes. He bites holes in her skirts. Bite. Bite. Bite. Scratch. Scab. Scar. He completely goes after her like she is the best toy ever invented.

Aimee doesn't think it's so funny (although when Avi comes at her she always laughs hysterically)... but I know she cherishes the special bond she shares with our pup.

More bites. More joy.

-Matthew

Learning to Love a Crate

Avi vs. the Crate (Round 1)

So we're trying to crate-train Avi to be used to going into his kennel at night for bed... "trying" being the operative word here.

The first night we brought him home, we placed Avi in the crate, said "Avi, kennel. Good boy!", offering lots of praise in order to help reinforce the command, and then attempted to sleep through a little over 30 minutes of whimpering and restrained barks.

The good news, if you're so inclined, is that he woke me up at 4:35 the next morning to pee. He didn't pee in his crate!

Avi and His Powerful Back Legs (Round 2)

On the second night Avi learned how to backpedal and attempted very earnestly to keep the kennel door from shutting. However, his crying didn't last as long and, once again, he slept well through the night.

A Fight Then Goodnight (Round 3)

Two nights ago Avi put up his usual fight to go into the crate, but then immediately lay down and rested... as though giving up and realizing that crying is worthless if he thinks we're going to let him back out.

But being the loving new-puppy owners that we are, we were completely devastated to have to struggle to get him into his crate in addition to hearing his whiny sobs from inside the kennel.

How can we make this puppy like his kennel, his crate, his den (feeding into his pack instincts)?

Making a Kennel into an Enviable Hang-Out Place (Round 4)

A number of friends said we just needed to hang in there and Avi would eventually get used to the crate. Two weeks seems to be the magic number.

But our dog expert pals all told us we should be proactive by finding ways to make Avi want to spend time in the crate. Why would he want to do that, you might ask?! Well, here are the things we're testing out in order to win him over:

1. Dinner in the Den - We're working on luring Avi into the crate by serving his meals in the crate and, meal by meal, moving the dishes further and further back into the kennel.
2. Playtime in the Pen - We're also trying to get Avi to play with his toys (or at least retrieve the toys) in his kennel. We've placed his toy basket outside his kennel door, but he hasn't yet chanced the move to retrieve a toy (we only started trying this out tonight).
3. Treats in the Toys - We've also been placing one of his favorite toys in the crate and hiding treats in it to give him something to work at to wear himself out.
4. Wear the Puppy Out! - One of our best allies has been exhaustion because no puppy sleeps better than Avi when he's worn out from some quality play time.

Things are on the up-and-up. It's only been five days with Avi and already we've seen changes. He's adjusting to new owners. We're adjusting to having a puppy. And we're both growing closer together.

I love that dog!

-Matthew

Avi, Hurry!

1. Stand like a tree.
2. "Avi, hurry."

Thank you, Michele for teaching us "hurry".

Within the first hour of being home with Avi he peed twice on the carpet. But we followed our good friend (and CCI puppy raiser) Michele's advise and we scooped him up, took him down to the grass outside, laid him down, said "Avi, hurry", then PRAISE PRAISE PRAISE. And believe it or not, the following two times that he peed, we made it all the way downstairs to the grass and were able to give him the command! What great puppy progress!

And while we're on this note of thanks, Aimee and I need to extend our overflowing gratitude to the following people for the tremendous support they've already given in helping us prepare for our new Berner:

1. Michele, Lisa, and DeLea -
Avi loves his new toys, the treats, and his tasty food from Bark (where we will now be going for *everything puppy* we might need). Aimee and I love that his fur now smells slightly of lavender thanks to the shampoo you gave us. Well done!

2. Judith -
He's not absolutely keen on it yet, but the kennel you're letting us borrow is perfect for our little guy.

3. Mrs. D and Mrs. H's Kindergarten class -
The toys you picked out are perfect and our little guy seems to love tug toys... excellent choices!

4. Emma and Abby -
What a wonderful surprise to receive such thoughtful puppy housewarming gifts! Avi thanks you warmly with Berner kisses.

5. Wendy -
Over and over (in advance) for offering a home away from home for Avi to stay while Aimee and I are at school. I know he'll just love your abode and we already love that we don't have to be so far away while at work.

6. Everyone else -
What terrific love our new addition has already received, and you haven't even met him yet! Thank you for pouring out your love and support for us. It's always recognized and we're *always* grateful for it!

And now, it's time to catch a few Zzz's while the little one naps.

-Matthew