Stewie

Well, this is going to be a difficult post to write. The topic is just sickening to me. Stewie was killed by a car on Monday morning. He ran off when I neglected to watch him closely. He just never went anywhere, so I had become complacent. My house sits a good half mile back from the road. He ran a couple of miles down the road and I was about fifteen minutes behind him, but despite walking all the way to the end of the road with Rip, I couldn't find the little guy. I asked all the neighbors and someone had seen him running, but for some reason I was not able to locate him. I did call him, but since he doesn't negotiate sound very well, it may not have helped. He may have picked up my track, because he found his way all the way back before he was struck right in front of my mailbox.

At least it was quick, and he didn't suffer. He's buried by the big rock in my front yard, right by the burning bush and the crabapple tree.

I've had a tough time dealing with this, because not only did I love the dog, but he had a most comical way about him and managed to make me laugh during one of the most difficult times in my life. I feel that losing him is just very bad timing. It's extremely depressing.

He had many funny habits. He used to attack his food, snarling and growling and throwing it around. Even though I tried to desensitize him by dropping bits of chicken into his bowl, that only excited him more. He never offered to bite me -- he would step away if I tried to handle the food. He just wanted to kill it before eating it. So I finally gave up. It was hysterical to watch him.

He had toys that he would savage the same way. The bigger and heavier the toy was, the more he liked it.

When he walked on a leash he would grab the nearest part he could reach, and tug on it, then swing around and flip like a fish on a line.

He was so feisty and yet such a good boy. He came when I called, and tried hard to do everything I asked of him. When I picked him up he would grunt and snort while trying hard to lick my face.

He was only eight months old. He was born with a disability but he was bright and it didn't slow him down a bit. He had a mighty spirit. He brought me much joy during the five short months I had him.

Here is a link to his YouTube video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o40yad5PNgc

What a great little guy he was. I've been crying for days -- I wish that his story had a happier ending.

Stewie

For the second time, tonight he jammed himself between the slats in the table legs. He can't get out of this by himself. He just sits there and waits to be rescued. I laughed my head off at him last night, and I think that's why he repeated the performance.

Stewie Update

Someone named Anonymous asked how Stewie's doing. He's on meds to get rid of some urine crystals. He is still having bouts of peeing, but not as excessively as he was. His accidents are fewer now. It also helps that I'm watching him more closely.

Today he played in a friend's rock garden and, as usual, spent some time beating up on Rip.

Stewie Beef

Yeah, I know, he looks so sweet and innocent! He comes when I call him, loves riding in the car and likes to sit by my feet. But what is up with the sporadic and indiscriminate peeing? Sometimes he holds it, sometimes he doesn't, even in the crate! He's on his second course of antibiotics. How long can this go on?!

Equine Art and Cliffy Pics Are Fine, But....

Word has it what I REALLY need to blog about is Stewie. Check out those choppers! GRRRR.... He's not chomping on me quite as hard as he used to. It's like he learns everything that a normal puppy does; it's all just coming later.



Yesterday he actually came running when I called him! Housebreaking is still a challenge. He's going on five months old, but I have to keep in mind that bladder-wise, he is currently in the stage of about an eight week old puppy. If I take him outside every fifteen minutes, he does okay. He gets really excited about praise. His eye contact is getting better all the time and recently he just started looking up at me from the floor, and he looks me right in the eye when I talk to him. I can't tell for sure if his vision is improving.



He still loves to beat up on Rip! He's happy all the time and has a real sense of fun. He weighs over seven lbs now! He's gained over three lbs since I've had him.



I got him a rope toy, which he LOVES! He swings it around, growls and snarls and shakes it! It's hysterical! I really think he's going to be okay.

Stewie's Sit-Down Strike

I gotta admit, I'm stymied. What dog doesn't love to take a walk? The Lakeland Trail is pretty innocuous -- it's just a long, flat, paved, revamped railroad. I carried Stewie a good distance from the road. Then I set him down on the ground and expected him to follow along. Here's what he did.



I put a leash on him to try to coax him to follow. He simply flattened himself on the ground, with his legs stretched straight out behind so that his body resembled a bear rug. He allowed himself to be dragged along the pavement on his belly.

I ended up carrying him about a mile and a half. Finally on the way back, he decided to come to life. He ran circling around me, barking and yapping, the rest of the way.

I guess I will have to scrap any plans for him carrying a backpack.

Stewie *IS* Batman!

Two days ago, I noticed for the first time that Stewie is beginning to make eye contact with me. He was riding in his crate on the seat next to me, looking out as usual, but I noticed that now when I speak to him he looks up into my eyes. He still seems to be extremely nearsighted. I've been trying to orient his gaze more and more, up toward my face. I do this by tempting him with boiled chicken liver. YUM!



He still has the bladder infection so we're continuing antibiotics. Housebreaking remains a challenge.



He's actually running in the pic below, and it shows his odd little head tilt. He sometimes runs or sits holding his head at an angle like this.



Note the priceless expression on Rip's face, below. This is what they do all day long. He usually can spot her -- he must lock in on the black and white blob pretty easily.





I like the picture above because it shows his Batman tag. The back of the tag reads, "I AM BLIND AS A BAT"!

Two Stews Forward

So I catch him out of the corner of my eye, heading for the spot where he usually pees. I don't say anything but he suddenly doubles back and comes over to where I am sitting at the table. He does his little alternate sit/down/hop, like he does when he is begging for food.

"Do you want to go outside?"

He starts to spin, wagging his tail and making it clear that yes, that is what he wants. We go to the door and he runs out and immediately squats.

I am ecstatic. "STEWIE! GOOD BOY!!!"

He comes back in and I run to the fridge and get him a big piece of chicken liver. He gulps it down happily. I scritch his belly and hug him and squeal. He wiggles and snorts in appreciation.

After we calm down, I go back to my project. As I cross the room, I step in a puddle of pee.

A Dog Story

As we walked down the driveway in the slanted evening light, I felt a bit sad watching Stewie come to terms with his disability. For a pup that was born with a hole in his head, he's really not dumb at all. His poor vision is an impediment. He is working on honing his other senses, but the way sound tends to bounce is often confusing to him. When a situation gets beyond his control, he makes the choice to just sit still and wait for rescue. I find this incredibly wise, especially at his tender age of four months.

Though he possesses a generous helping of terrier bravado, he has enough sense to know he's not immortal. Tonight when we were walking we met the neighbor's new German shepherd pup, who is about Stewie's same age, but an elephant by comparison. When he saw her, he immediately had to run up and say hello and offer to play -- but then quickly realized she was going to be way too much dog for him.

The GSD, named Celine, thought Stewie must be her own personal squeaky toy. She wasn't biting him as much as wanting to flatten him with her paw. Stewie could see well enough to tell that I was crouching down, and he made a beeline for me.

But he was never in any real danger, because Big Sister was there. Ripple helps me in puppy classes, as she has a terrific sense about how to put a stop to inappropriate stuff. She was on this German shepherd like a bullet! It was amazing to watch.

Celine tried to rassle with her at first, but that went over like an anvil. This wasn't a game. That pup was going to learn some respect, and that was that. When Celine flashed around in a game of dodge, Rip simply outran her. She body slammed her and sent her rolling. Every time she hit the pup, she snarled. Pretty soon Celine decided that her best option was to bolt for home! Once again, that was not an option! Rip ran her down and hit her again, this time circling to drive her back to us. Finally, the pup learned that her only acceptable recourse was to lie flat in submission.

Once Rip had established the rules, they got along just fine. They even sat together for treats, and Rip even played with her! Who knows... It could be the beginning of a beautiful friendship!