Wednesday, June 10, 2009

Prong collars, bark collars, and crates, oh my!

{I know it looks horrifying, but I tried it on my arm and it really doesn't hurt. It's just a bit uncomfortable, and we only use it when we take her on walks. And we were taught how to use it appropriately. So it'll be ok.}

Tulip’s life has been turned a bit upside down since our meeting with the dog trainer, and the results, I must admit, are nothing short of stunning.

No longer do we have a howling cage-fighter puppy. Now we have our floppy-eared, cuddly puppy back who magically seems to enjoy obeying commands. It’s really remarkable. She sits when we tell her to sit and grins so proudly at us when we praise her. Her little buns practically hit the floor before we’re done giving the one-syllable command. Sometimes. Other times, she still needs to be reminded how the physical motion of sitting is accomplished. But she's improving so much!

And the barking? That epic, ear-drum shattering all-night barking? Thanks to the most expensive mosquito repellant on the market, also known as a citronella bark collar, the barking has been abolished. We put the collar on her last night around 8:00PM and proceeded to make dinner. One bark. PSSSFT!!!! Right into her face. She had absolutely no idea what had hit her. While hard to watch her be uncomfortable, it was actually pretty funny as she circled the area, trying to figure out where the stinky stink came from. A bit later, bark! PSSSFT!!!!

Then came the true test, bed time. We put her in her crate, tucked her in with our tshirts for added comfort and shut the door.

Bark! PSSSFT!!!!
Bark! PSSSFT!!!!
BARK BARK! PSSSFT!!!! PSSSFT!!!!

And then she slept until morning.

1 comment:

Unknown said...

Totally happy for you, J and Tulipe. This will give you all a great new start and more fun then you have before. The collar does look intimidating. And, the bark spray collar, what mastermind came up with that idea. So cool.