Ziggy Tails: A Challenging Week S1 E3

I am now Twelve weeks old. I had a great week last week. I found my voice even louder than last week. I can bark really loud, ear-piercing loud in fact. My mouth is getting stronger, I bite harder, really hard sometimes and as often as I can. It is really fun. No heel, hand, bare toes, or pant leg escapes me. I have a lot of fun grabbing, nipping, and heeling.

We went up in the woods everyday for a walk, I love going up there. I hear Mommie say, one day we will go for a longer hike some place far away when I am older and stronger. That sounds fun.

I weigh 14 pounds as of April 12.

I helped Mommie a lot this week. anything left on the floor, I encouraged her to pick it up or else I tried to take care of it. I helped in the garden excavating. I found her old compost pile, there was some yummy treats in there. After eating that, I left big piles of treats for Mommie to pick up.

I had so much fun this week, I don't understand why I saw Mommie sitting on the steps crying. I guess she will have to tell you. From my point of view, my third week here was awesome.

Mommie's version.

There are two sides to every story. Ziggy may have had a fantastic time but I did not. I knew he would be challenging, but I had no idea it would be this difficult. His biting and heeling was non-stop. The barking was deafening and his eating made it hard to do anything. I will admit after one sleepless night and the next morning having my heels and pant legs constantly bitten, I sat on the front step and cried.

I was just tired but I also knew I needed help. Our first appointment with the trainer wouldn't come fast enough. The morning I sat down and cried, would you know, Ziggy came over to me and lapped my hands briefly as if to say, "I am sorry."

Even though the week was hard, I kept up with his training the best I could. But it wasn't until Saturday when we went to our first appointment with our trainer. It was just an evaluation, but he gave us one technique that changed everything. It didn't solve the problem, but it taught us how to let Prince Ziggy, he in fact, did not run the house.

He is such a cute boy, so full of fun and adventure but a handful. When he is sleeping though, he is an absolute angel.

He is just like any other challenge or journey I have faced. There is the honeymoon stage where everything is blinded by love and infatuation. Then reality sets in and struggles arise, and for a moment you loose site of why you committed to the relationship. Sometimes you can fix things on your own, other times you need professional help. This time I need a pro.

As I write this my feet are up on the island out of biting reach and Ziggy is teathered to me so he doesn't leave an unwanted pile of pooh somewhere out of sight. It is almost time to go back out and play, but I cannot give into his demands, just yet.

All good things are worth the effort, I just have to keep the end goal in mind like all my other adventures. In the meantime, puppy classes, torn clothes, and a scratch here or there are in our future.

Happy Hiking,

Emily and Ziggy

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