Bennie is 4 today 🎂- the perfect dog age.

Bennie is 4 today. We don't usually remember on time to do anything but we got him right after I retired and we spent his first month with my Dad. Bennie is the first dog we've had that's gotten this old with only us for company. All of our others had companion dogs to keep them company while we were at work.

I say 4 is perfect because they're old enough for us to all understand expectations but there's energy and less illness - we're between the eating of random junk and organ failure. 

He's been a gift. He slept through the night from the day he arrived and is very solid on house training. We've always wanted a dog that we can just leave at home without setting barriers and he's it. We've never come home to random destruction.

For his birthday we got lots of treats and he got a bone...his first. I was expecting him to hoard it or maybe cover it to keep for later. Instead, he ate some of it, came to hang out by us with his bone while we ate ice cream, and eventually left it on the deck under the stairs when he realized it didn't get to come in the house.

Bennie had been a challenging pup in many ways. We'd forgotten what it was like to have a puppy when he came along and we forgot, oddly enough, how reactive cairns are to other dogs. I used to have two dogs tangle at the end of a leash when another dog looked at them funny and now I have just one. It's a little more manageable and there is less excuse for not being proactive and recognizing when Bennie's at the end of his tolerance; clicks and treats are the coin of the realm. 

If you have a challenging pup, take heart. They do grow up.

Bennie turns 2!

I've said this a few times before but I think Bennie is grown up and it's been quite the journey. Adding Bennie to our home was like never having had a pup before. It had been so long and puppy training has changed so much - with our first cairn, Rufus, I training in the manner of Monks of New Skete. The only obedience exercise I didn't do well was the recall and that was because we didn't use treats.

Fast forward to Bennie and the more collaborative way of training. Where are we now? One thing identified early is Bennie is hesitant in new situations and his default is to bark. Lots. So I walk him at times there are fewer people around. Luckily he likes Cheerios so they're easy to carry. He heels when he's in familiar areas and he can be attentive even when just dragging his leash. Some days he's just wound up though so leash and quick walk it is.

I think Cairns are barky dogs so we've got someone who comes to the house to look after him if it's just a couple days. We had taken him to a local kennel for a test day and that's where he'll be going when we get to travel again.

He's certainly the most attached pup we've had. He really enjoys sitting with us but also has his spaces in the house. One thing I really appreciate is when we call his name, he comes to see what we want. The is is NEW experience for us with cairns. Not sure if it's because we're home all the time or if that's just the way he is. 

I think this is the way things will settle until he gets old. A long time in the future I hope.

Bennie at 22 months

Bennie's been maturing but we're still expanding experiences and working on behaviour modification.

Winter walks with Bennie

Bennie continues to grow up and surprise us with new...things. I think I'm helping him build some bad habits - rats.

Bennie may be leaving puppyhood. Maybe.

New happy place

I have a bunch of Bennie photos and I haven't updated for a couple months and Bennie has changed quite a bit OR we've settled into a routine we can live with. I have to admit, I wondered if it would ever happen.

Random retirement stuff

Today was gorgeous. Warm and sunny with a light breeze to speed the drying out of fields that farmers desperately need. Crops are a good couple weeks behind (heck even our apples are) so things could get dicey in Ag.

In spite of  being well funded for retirement we do talk about whether we're paying for something we're not using. Today it was cable TV. I know a lot of people have cut the cable but I still watch TV. The bundles are really annoying but the cheapest way to go. We almost upgraded our hardware but the channels proposed were not the channels we wanted so...no. We also have CraveTV, Netflix and Prime🙄 Since we can't agree to do without them they're staying but I will be taking over Prime so I can get the books part. I canceled my Spotify; I like the service but I'm ok with ads and shuffle. Madison is keeping me on SiriusXM.

Next we spent quite a long time chasing a 100W power leak. Our baseline consumption is quite high. We thought it was the fridge but finally did the breaker thing to try to pinpoint it. Surprise - it was in the garage. Apparently the battery charger for the electric yard stuff keeps cycling. We agreed it can be unplugged most of the time especially since we're at the end of the season. We can always plug in to charge in the morning yard work is planned. Did really well with solar in spite of missing 2 panels. One has a defect and the other needs a cable extension. We switched away from our 18.75¢/kWh plan to the 6.5¢/kWh plan for the winter. With the shorter days there is no use getting premium price on solar exported to grid. We're on track to produce the 5200 kWh the system was sized to produce even with the cloudy summer. 

Took Bennie on a lovely walk. He met a bulldog named Daisy. First he barked ferociously but I asked if she was friendly and closely monitored the interaction - she was very docile. I offered her a treat then gave Bennie a treat from the same slobbered on hand. Then he quietly sat a little ways away from her and looked at me. Lots of treats for being a good pup. He also encountered some reclining bikes, scooters, strollers dog walkers and a guy teaching a young girl to fish. Rods are scary so I headed over so he could see them too. He also did some deep wading. Bennie's socializing is coming along. Yesterday was Fall Fest. I had planned to take Bennie last year as part of his socialization but it was canceled due to cold and snow. Better late than never I hope.

End of summer this and that

September 1 and Labour Day weekend must mean the end of summer. We can finally stop waiting for the hot spell that never really came and appreciate cooler sunny days. I've been baking crisps from our earlier ripening apple tree and Fred's been busy making pepper sauce from the greenhouse harvest. I got a bit of a break from contracting so I have to pick up those threads again.

A tale of three slippers...and barking

We went on a short road trip with Bennie and visited both sets of parents. We've been working with him on guarding and he's been working on getting shoes and socks and parading them in front of us for a response.

Bennie's Bootcamp

So innocent looking

After the last time Bennie bit me I looked back and realized he bites us a lot and it's moving beyond a puppy thing so we got a behaviourist recommendation. One behaviour to address is him barking when he hears other dogs and becoming uncontrollable when they actually get close enough for him to notice them. People walking differently, either because of disability or accessories (like strollers) can also prompt barking. The larger problem is Bennie has a strong sense of ownership - the source of bites. Our neighbours love to visit with him through the fence. They are unlikely to trigger an episode but ...

Bennie's first Kayak

It seems like project and kayak weather didn't come together until now. Last year he was really too little; this year I've been working with him on swimming (he's great at wading). The weather was forecasted to be nice so we tested Bennie's tolerance to life jackets. We each have a different colour so it's easy to know if they're all there*. Today the weather was nice so off we went to a nearby lake. Bennie wasn't in a kennel for the short trip. He sat on the backseat and took awhile to relax but he doesn't seem to mind motion. If Duffy wasn't in a kennel he curled up as far under the driver seat as possible.This was looking good for kayaking.

Bennie is just over 1 year old!

Bennie's personality is totally different than other dogs we've had and it's really blossomed as he gets older. I'm struggling between enjoying the bouncy dogo that lets me brush his teeth and dealing with the thief that gets aggressive so we're going to some personal training.

The main problem is he growls if he get's an object too long (aka becomes his). We recognized with awhile ago and I started interrupting his eating more and hand feeding. He sleeps in a kennel and we make him sit or do something for rewards but I've been really bad at daily training. Still he was showing improvement until we got to my Dad's. They aren't used to keeping doors closed and Bennie is having a field day grabbing slippers and socks. But the other day I was taking a paper towel from him and he turned and snapped at me. That was it, he was in his kennel for a time out.

Since I'm getting help, I want to stop with the barking at other dogs. Milo and Duffy used to do that; Milo stopped once we were walking just us but I think it was because he couldn't really see the other dogs. Bennie starts carrying on from quite a ways away and I can't tell if he's under or over confident when approaching new things.

This timing will work perfectly for us. We'll be home all summer and Bennie's eager to learn. Traditionally I've taken the pup to obedience training. With Bennie we went to a puppy class before Christmas but I missed the structured spring classes. Now we'll both be getting instruction at the same time.

Bennie's almost Eleven Months

Time for another Bennie update.  He's passed through adolescence mostly...I say as he has an area rug flipped up to play with.

Update on oldster Milo and puppo Bennie

Things just haven't been great for Milo lately. It's been cold so hanging outside has been minimized and walks rare. Milo was at the vet because he looked like he was in pain. He's now on urinary health food and I'm keeping him on Metacam because he's a lot less mobile when he's off it. He's been off in his own world quite often and unfortunately means he's now forgetting that inside soft surfaces are not grass. He's inherited Duffy's pee pants. Luckily he doesn't care😀

Bennie is starting to leave his adolescence. He's not as bitey as he was last month so my hand is healing and tissues are a little safer. I've been doing a lot of take it/leave it with his food at meal times along with patting him and hand feeding. He has active times - chewing the carpet is pretty appealing after breakfast - but I put that down to cabin fever. He's still out in the sun during the day but it's hard to be out playing with him for more than 5 minutes. We're learning stuff as well! Bennie reminds us daily that dogs have a very strong sense of fairness and status.

Now that Milo is feeling better he's playing with Bennie for short periods. Milo mostly barks at him and does some stiff legged chasing while Bennie will take a very long path so he burn off some energy before bumping Milo from behind. Most of the time they just hang out. Warmer weather is coming and more outside time will be appreciated by everyone.

Bennie is definitely in adolescence

What a cutie. He's almost full grown as you can tell when he's by Milo. He's also gained a B-U-N-C-H of undesirable traits. From excessive barking to jumping on people (we were getting to sit for pats) and simply not doing anything unless there's a treat involved.

What do I mean about excessive barking? He barks in the middle of the night after he's been put in his kennel. If Milo has dreams, Bennie hears them and barks (sigh). There's also the wind, leaves, people across the road that he can see from the deck and other random things.

Thankfully he loves peanut butter. When Milo went through this stage he didn't like treats and didn't play with toys! Time to get back on the daily training horse. He was doing so well I drifted away from it. Bad me. Now I really have to work on not repeating the command and having yummy treats before I tell him to do anything so we can build back that success.

#BookofBennie

Bennie and the Glove

Now that Bennie is over six months old and is pretty solid with his house training, we've decided to make his space a little larger. This introduces new training spaces because what applies in the kitchen may not - in his mind - apply any where other than the kitchen.We continue to be lucky as he hasn't really figured out he could jump over the barrier. He's our first dog we haven't encouraged to jump up on chairs or the bed. Instead we use "up" and lift him up. All his jumping is getting down.

Bennie is a very picky eater. Today he foraged his food from top of hiskennel then ended up eating from Milo's bowl when Milo was done.

Bennie is a very picky eater. Today he foraged his food from top of his kennel then ended up eating from Milo's bowl when Milo was done.

Bennie is a Cairn Terrier named after Korben Dallas - who wrecked welcome havoc and saved the world in the movie The Fifth Element. His registered name will be along the lines of Korben the Fourth Element of Herzcairn.

Bennie is a Cairn Terrier named after Korben Dallas - who wrecked welcome havoc and saved the world in the movie The Fifth Element. His registered name will be along the lines of Korben the Fourth Element of Herzcairn.

He's getting a very different start to life than any of our other cairns because with retirement I have the time to start his day with a grooming. We brush teeth, comb hair and check toes for haggy nails. It's nice that it's summer. Milo came to us in October and Duffy at the end of November. House training is harder on the human in colder months - pups do their business quickly but all the coat stuff means it's easy to be late.

Since we picked his name early Judy could call him Bennie from the start and Bennie mostly knows his name. He has no idea who Duffy is which is ok since at this time we only use that name when Bennie is doing something undesirable LOL. We are really trying to do the positive training where we treat and praise; we do some "sit", "flat" and recalls with treats. We're also at Dad place for a month before going home to the big yard. Both Milo and Duffy spent their lives in one house. Bennie's getting is start at Dad's house; home will be big change with a larger yard and wider open spaces. He'll still have a wire kennel with his smaller home attached. We'll see how that works out.

Bennie's ears are starting to stand up.

Bennie's ears are starting to stand up.

And he's also suspicious of the phone 😁

Bennie is big enough to come up the stairs.

Bennie is big enough to come up the stairs.

And his ears are starting to prick up a bit.

This is a magic kennel. All the dogs have liked hanging out in it. Bennie got a really great start from his breeder. He almost knows his name, went outside and peed on his pee mat on the deck and is learning to sit when he comes over. As a bonus he styles my hair (with his teeth) while I'm doing push ups.

This is a magic kennel. All the dogs have liked hanging out in it. Bennie got a really great start from his breeder. He almost knows his name, went outside and peed on his pee mat on the deck and is learning to sit when he comes over. As a bonus he styles my hair (with his teeth) while I'm doing push ups.