The Good, the Bad and the Oy Vey

It’s hard to believe that 7 months ago I didn’t know Stanley. He was only a mention in an email about his litter being born and he was part of a group photo. Now he has become a huge part of my life in mostly good ways and a few not so good.

 

Let’s get the oy vey out of the way first. The other morning I took Stanley hiking with my friend Mary. Except for his stealing Mary’s stick and stopping to sniff the ground every ten seconds, it was going relatively well. I was pretty proud of  the way he was strutting by my side.

Then we ran into Cooper, a Bernadoodle puppy who was like a walking ad for  obedience class. Instead of following his lead, Stanley got so excited that he started jumping around like a kangaroo who’s had too much caffeine

That was nothing compared to his reaction when we met children on the trail. He loves them so the leaping around was accompanied by high pitched barking.

ELBEE His range is impressive.

Apparently he also loves runners because every time someone jogged by, he pulled on the leash and tried to sprint off with them.

On the home front we still have issues like counter surfing and occasional peeing. And would someone tell me why he greets the mailman so nicely but acts like a lunatic when anyone comes in the front door.

Still, going into the new year I’d rather focus on the positive. Stanley, Elbee and Gus have made a lot of progress in their relationships.

ELBEE In the past few weeks he has barely chewed on my ears. Maybe now I can finally get them pierced.

GUS I can’t believe I’m saying this but despite his ridiculous size, I actually enjoy wrestling with him. And doing laps together is keeping me in shape.

Stanley has gotten very attached to me and my husband. It’s sweet except when he insists on pushing his way into the bathroom and gets stuck between the toilet and the wall. He also thinks he’s a lap dog. Now who doesn’t love a lap dog except when he’s three times the size of your lap. Here he is with Nicole, the daughter who likes the dogs.

Hopefully, over time, we can train away the goofy jumping, the high pitched barking and other crazy puppy behavior. There is, however, something Stanley has begun to do on his own that I would never change.

I was walking him the other day when some people stopped to meet him. As one man was petting him, he suddenly smiled and said, “he’s leaning on me.” Then I ran into a young woman who instantly fell in love with Stanley. As she was bending over to pet him, she looked up at me with wonderment on her face and said, “He’s leaning on me.”

The amazing Charley, my first therapy dog, was a leaner. It was like a comforting hug. Although Stanley is very different from Charley in so many ways, it would be beautiful to see him carry on the lean.