2 posts tagged “dog”
As I mentioned earlier, Fermilab is essentially my back yard. And while there may be a particle accellerator worth hundreds of millions of dollars on that land, there is also a nature preserve. I grew up riding busses to the property to study natural prairie land.
But a part of that means there are coyotes. Six dens at last count. That's a lot of coyotes. During the day they are too frightened of the cars to cross Kirk Road into the subdivisions. At night, however, they roam everywhere.
I encountered my first coyote when I was six. I was chasing lightning bugs with my cousins when down in my coul-de-sac, right below the street light, I came face to face with one. I had somehow managed to get about 6 yards from one. It just stood in the light and stared at me before bounding away. Four years later, we would find one on our deck during the daylight--a very unusual occurance. Our golden retriever didn't stop barking for hours.
They get braver every year, and this year, they've taken to stalking my neighborhood nearly every night, leaping through backyards and knocking over trashcans. When I take Lexi out at night, there is always one nearby.
As a dogowner, this is very worrisome. Coyotes are notorious for attacking dogs, killing them half the time. My dog weighs six pounds today, and while she is growing up fast, she is still small enough to easily be taken away. During the day, Lexi loves to lay in the grass and bound about in the weeds, but at night, the coyotes scare her. She never wanders far, and often times their scent chases her back to my feet. Sometimes, she crashes into our porch stairs.
So this would be my brand spankin' new puppy, Lexi. She came home on Friday and has been learning so much since. She's semi-potty trained already and has learned the game of tug. I'd say she's a pretty smart cookie considering today is the 9 weeks mark.
Lexi is very playful and loves attention (what puppy doesn't?). She's not too sure about the whole collar and leash thing yet, but she's slowly getting used to it. She just needs to learn that the big scary monster that makes that clanging sound against her food bowl isn't going to eat her. She's still taking the food and running away to eat it. Which is fine for now, but my mother won't be okay with it for mush longer.
She did very well at her first check up yesturday. She was so good with the vet and all her technicians/assistants. She even met a rescued old grayhound named Bill. Bill kind of scared her a little, especially when he stepped on her crate.
Oh! I guess I should mention: Lexi is a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel.
