Blog rhymes with dog

Last week, my wife and I adopted Ahboo, a handsome labradoodle, from the Spokane Humane Society.

We were worried that he wouldn't eat at first, but between the anastaesia from his surgery (he got fixed on Thursday), the new environment, and probably new food, that's not surprising. We're feeding him exclusively in his crate (using the "it's there for 20 minutes, if you don't eat, you miss your chance" method), and he finally ate a pretty good meal on his second night at home.

He's still adapting, but Ahboo seems to be very smart. After a few false starts, he'll go into his crate with a little coaxing. He's starting to pick up on "stay" -- I can open the door to his crate, say "stay", and as often as not, he'll behave. Sometimes I can even walk into the kitchen and get him a biscuit, and he still hasn't moved. We're still working on it.

Ahboo is also a very well-behaved boy. He walks very well on the leash, almost always leaving some slack unless something distracts him. Despite him coming to us as "some housebreaking", he hasn't had an accident since he's been home, either in the crate or in the rest of the house.

We're trying to stick to a regular schedule, while getting him used to his crate and knowing to stay near one of us at all times. When we put him in the crate after a bit of excitement (like a long walk or playing with his new favorite toy, the Squeaky Tennis Ball), he'll cry and even start barking when we leave the room. I'm sure it's just separation anxiety, and he calms down pretty fast. He's even going into the crate on his own now!

So, yes, we're pet owners. In the words of Dr. Sam Beckett, "Oh boy...".