Thursday, December 15, 2005

The Joys of Boys, or "Insert Euphemism Here"

No photos to illustrate this post, for reasons that will quickly become clear.

As an intact male dog, age 14 months, poor Lomax continues to race around this world with hormones coursing through his little body.

Why still "fully equipped," you ask? Well, Lomax -- along with most of the other pups from his excellent litter -- is still being considered for GDA's breeding program. Fortunately, according to the head of the GDA puppy department, they're working right now to schedule his breeder evaluation dates. I'll be sad to leave him at the school for the three weeks of testing, but relieved to finally have an answer with regard to his test...es.

Things get nuttier (?) as the weeks pass. The little yellow dog who once relieved perfectly on command is now the little yellow dog who leaves little yellow drops. He'll still go when asked, but he does a "non-committal piddle," preferring instead to keep a reserve in his tank for important messages he wants to leave for his friends around the neighborhood. A potty break can take forever; every blade of grass must first be sniffed, even in the spots he knows. I do my best to correct any ridiculous behavior (like marking, or gluing his nose to the ground in one spot), but I also don't want to tell him to go then yank on his leash, sending him mixed messages.

His man-status doesn't help when we're working on dog distraction issues, either. How is one person's upper body strength supposed to triumph over the instincts of a girl-crazy teenage canine? "Gosh, she's purty...you didn't need that arm, right?"

And here's one for the memoirs: lately, Lomax has been very much "on display" as a fully locked and loaded love machine. He likes to roll onto his back when people are petting him, which I let him do when he's out of jacket. But, man alive! All he needs is some bad dialogue and some "wakka-chikka-wakka-chikka" background music....

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

I concur with David and Nancy.

Thank you for bringing smiles my way through your story telling!!

Lisa and Foster Puppy Lyric

JuliaR said...

Jenny, thanks for the words of wisdom and warning. Rockwell is only 6 months and I have not noticed any male dog behaviour but I have noticed his testicles are getting a bit bigger. Having only had a female dog before, I am not entirely sure what to expect and I will be reading your blog for updates and tips!

8675309 said...

Thanks, everybody, for the encouragement! I'd love to write a book or maybe a column in a dog magazine about my puppy raising experiences. Anybody out there know a good agent? ;)

Joanna -- I'll keep you updated for sure! Yes, wouldn't he just LOOOOVE to be a breeder? I don't usually go to the Sylmar meetings because I wouldn't get there in time after work...but who knows, he might actually be up there for eval when you go. We should figure something else out soon so you can visit with our little man. E-mail me whenever!

Julia -- they're all so different, who knows what anyone can expect? Yes, Lomax is...interested, but at least he's not a humper. My friends have a FEMALE dog that's been humping her toys and the air (!) since the day they brought her home. Puppy raising is a humbling experience, no? Quite the character builder...and sense of humor litmus test.

*~Amy~* said...

Luckily for me, my male puppy, Ice (out of a litter they ended up choosing a stud from) had an overbite. I never though a defect like that could make me so happy! He got neutered at 6 months after JUSt starting to get a little nutty. I always felt bad for the others struggling with there intact boys. It didn't help that a foster family brought our boys "in heat" sister to our puppy class. Just wait until you get a GIRL breeding prospect if you keep fostering! Mine's in heat and its brutal! She refused to wear the stupid underwear! Oh well, its only 3 weeks, instead of the however many months, you have an intact male!

Buhbye, Amy and Winter

8675309 said...

Hi, Amy and Winter!

I don't know if I could foster a female...don't think I want to deal with doggy diapers. I think, though, that when our girls go into heat, we leave them up at the school for the whole time, just in case.

Lomax and his hormones can be a handful at times, it's true, but he's such a sweetheart it's totally worth it.