this how I was greeted at 8 AM...
[there had been some barking earlier...
of the "get away from my house, you cat you" variety...]
once we got on our way...
it was business as usual...
a lot of sniffing & investigating...
with a lot of "dog sledding"...
[being pulled along by the irresistible force...
"heel lessons" to commence SOON...]
so after breakfast, we went into the back yard...
and a cartoon came to life...
she stuck her nose inside the garage kitty door...
but the E-collar kept the rest of her out...
[she did this yesterday too...
today...I had the camera ready...]
then while I was gathering up brush from yesterday...
and moving some plants...
Molly found the balls from yesterday...
and started a spirited game of doggy soccer...
after wearing herself out...
we went inside....
I was writing at the computer...
when she seemed to be asking...
"WHEN...do I get this THING off ?"
remembering that the vet this morning had said...
that I could take the collar off before we came in...
but to watch her...
so....
and for the next 20 minutes, she was chewing...
NOT the sutures...but at the base of her tail...
Molly was one happy dog...
in between the bouts of chewing on her butt...
finally...it was time...
so off we went to the vets...
after taking the stitches out...
he gave her a steroid shot to sooth the itchiness...
after all... with that collar on...
she hadn't been able to wash herself for almost 3 weeks...
he expressed the glands at the base of her tail...
and cleaned the area...so that wouldn't be a problem...
he also strongly suggested a bath...
to sooth the irritated areas...
and clean the dirty ones...
so on our way home, we visited E at Discount Pet...
E is the manager and has sold me cat supplies...
and tropical fish supplies for about 15 years...
and he hadn't met Molly...
his greeting was similar to the vets...
I was looking for a training collar...
[I like the bigger link choke collars...
because they don't injure the dog...]
and as he approached, E was saying...
"I never thought I'd see YOU in the DOG section"...
we chatted about how I came to this major "lifestyle change"...
and he got acquainted with Molly who was being charming...
although I knew she just wanted to sit down...
and chew on her butt some more...
so we got a 20 inch, large link collar...
some beef-flavored pill "wrappers"...
an elevated food/water dish...
[so hers is "different" from the kitties...]
3 flats of Fancy Feast Cat Food[they were nearly out...]
and a bottle of Bio Touch Dog Shampoo...
that will NOT wash off the Advantix...
but will sooth the itchiness...
besides...
she was dirty from being on the road...
for who knows how long...
and she'd been in the dirt in the backyard...
she just felt dirty...
[and her tummy looked grimy...]
so when we got home...
I hooked-up my plant watering "hose" with the sprayer...
to the bathroom basin...adjusted the water temperature...
got Molly to hop into the bathtub...
got her wet with nice warm water...
and lathered her up...
I could tell she was enjoying it...
'cause she'd lean into whatever part of her I was washing...
she was very good & quiet...didn't even shake...
not until she was fully rinsed and got out of the tub...
then she shook herself...BIG TIME...
and I rubbed her down with a towel...
then we went for a training walk...
step 1... "sit"...
whenever you stop, they sit...
it took several commands each time but she would sit...
she also learned to "heel"...
walking on my right side...
NOT pulling... NOT in front...
NOT going from side to side...
she was doing VERY WELL...for the first lesson...
and trying to remember to "sit" whenever I stopped...
even if it was in the middle of the block...
and made NO sense to her...
I'll be repeating these lessons every time we walk...
she doesn't need to be obedience trial perfect...
but you have to be consistent...
or they are just confused...
[like dealing with kids...]
while she had that E-collar on...
I couldn't really try to train her...
that's why I got the "choke collar"...
so she would know that it was "different" now...
serious business...
but as smart as she is... it shouldn't take too long...
after her walk, she had a drink from her new dish...
then I put her purple collar back on...
I had to re-size it after taking off the E-collar...
and I took it off for her bath...
then she lay on the floor next to me...
to chew her butt...
and other places...
a bit...
I would say, "no"... and point at the E-collar...
the vet said that if she continued to chew on herself...
I had to put it back on for the night...
so she wouldn't make a sore spot...
the first several times I said "no"...
and pointed to it...
2 seconds later...she was licking...
or chewing something again...
finally...
we had a "longer" conversation...
where I repeatedly touched the E-collar...
and said "no licking or biting"...
OR... you have to wear it again...
since then...
she's just been laying quietly...
I think she's asleep...
I told you she was smart...
& now...
her fur feels soft...
& she even smells good...
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