It's just a phase, it's not forever; It's just a phase, but I still might have a ways to go
Having Kermit has drastically altered my previous enthusiasm for having kids.
That's not to say I'm put off the idea entirely, but from the time Brian and I came back from our honeymoon in the fall of 2012, I thought I was ready. I thought I was equipped, that we were ready as a team to raise a child. And when we were doing research about rescuing a puppy, I thought we were ready to train it and ease into "pack mentality" fairly quickly.
Now I know raising a pup and raising a human child do not have the exact same list of challenges. Having never raised a child myself I can only draw from relatives' and friends' experiences. But I do believe there are some similarities- you have to establish/provide regular feeding times, you're responsible for their health, cleanliness, and nurturing, and of course, house-training. Going into the process of adopting a puppy, I felt confident that I could do all of these things.
House-training Kermit shattered that illusion almost immediately. There was no rhyme or reason to when/where she'd choose to pee in the house (thankfully she only pooped once, and she was sick at the time), and we tried every training method suggested to us to encourage her to only pee outside. It took us months to finally work out a system (with the assistance of a set of bells that hangs by the door for her to ring when she needs to go) for her to signal to us that she even needed to go, because every accident came without warning. She never cried, whined, barked, or acted any differently in the moments leading up to an accident.
This week, all of the horrors of the first few weeks are coming back thanks to a medication prescribed to her by our Vet. Kermit had been coughing for a few days last week, and since she was already due to get a booster for one of her vaccinations by the end of the month anyway I suggested we simply bump up the appointment. The biggest concern was that she might have somehow contracted Kennel Cough or Bordetella, which can be fatal for dogs. But the vet checked her over on Tuesday and didn't think her symptoms matched that disease, and so he gave us a little over a week's worth of Prednisone tablets just to be cautious.
Little did we know (and thanks a lot Vet for not saying anything >:O ) that a common side effect for this pill is increased thirst and, as a result, urination. Kermit has had three accidents in the house since starting the Prednisone, and we've easily gone through four giant rolls of paper towels. Thankfully, we keep a nice stock of some cleaning products specifically designed to remove pet odor and stains so we're fairly confident that there hasn't been any damage to the areas she's sullied. Still, it's been infuriating to not only have to spend time cleaning up after her, but to have been in the room with her each time and she didn't give any indication she even needed to go! It's as though she doesn't even know she needs to go, and then all of a sudden BAM - she's going. I'm not sure if she'll develop that awareness someday, but for now, we're stuck.
Normally puppies are supposed to be able to hold their bladder for however old they are in the equivalent of hours. Kermit is almost 11 months now, and we've definitely seen in the past few months that she's more than capable of comfortably not going for at least eight hours. It's not something we make a habit of; since I work from home I'm able to let her out midday during my lunch break on top of her getting a morning walk and evening walk after work. But in rare cases where we're out for more than her average four hour stint in the crate, we feel pretty good that she won't have an accident in there if she's in for a few extra. Since the accidents started I've dialed this timetable way down and have taken her outside every two hours, but something may come up during the work day and I may not be able to leave precisely every two. I hate knowing that I'll inevitably be preoccupied if I can't get to her, constantly worried about whether or not I'll turn the corner to see her crate covered in pee.
Brian suggested we put her in day care tomorrow to give ourselves a break. PetSmart offers a program that allows you to drop your dog off and they play with other dogs for the day, and Kermit loves it. I was hesitant at first (why?????) but the idea of her being somewhere else and having the ability to pee wherever she wants is pretty damn awesome. And we'll get to enjoy football instead of constantly having to watch her/the clock.
Needless to say, we will both be the happiest of campers when she finishes the Prednisone regimen on Thursday. I have a feeling that it will take at least an additional 24-48 hours after that for the meds to completely clear her system, so we're looking at another week's worth of potential accidents.
I love having Kermit. I love being a puppy parent. But some of the stresses that having her as part of our family has really shed a different light on the realities of parenting, and for once, I'm happy we didn't jump into having kids as soon as we said "I Do."
That's not to say I'm put off the idea entirely, but from the time Brian and I came back from our honeymoon in the fall of 2012, I thought I was ready. I thought I was equipped, that we were ready as a team to raise a child. And when we were doing research about rescuing a puppy, I thought we were ready to train it and ease into "pack mentality" fairly quickly.
Now I know raising a pup and raising a human child do not have the exact same list of challenges. Having never raised a child myself I can only draw from relatives' and friends' experiences. But I do believe there are some similarities- you have to establish/provide regular feeding times, you're responsible for their health, cleanliness, and nurturing, and of course, house-training. Going into the process of adopting a puppy, I felt confident that I could do all of these things.
House-training Kermit shattered that illusion almost immediately. There was no rhyme or reason to when/where she'd choose to pee in the house (thankfully she only pooped once, and she was sick at the time), and we tried every training method suggested to us to encourage her to only pee outside. It took us months to finally work out a system (with the assistance of a set of bells that hangs by the door for her to ring when she needs to go) for her to signal to us that she even needed to go, because every accident came without warning. She never cried, whined, barked, or acted any differently in the moments leading up to an accident.
This week, all of the horrors of the first few weeks are coming back thanks to a medication prescribed to her by our Vet. Kermit had been coughing for a few days last week, and since she was already due to get a booster for one of her vaccinations by the end of the month anyway I suggested we simply bump up the appointment. The biggest concern was that she might have somehow contracted Kennel Cough or Bordetella, which can be fatal for dogs. But the vet checked her over on Tuesday and didn't think her symptoms matched that disease, and so he gave us a little over a week's worth of Prednisone tablets just to be cautious.
Little did we know (and thanks a lot Vet for not saying anything >:O ) that a common side effect for this pill is increased thirst and, as a result, urination. Kermit has had three accidents in the house since starting the Prednisone, and we've easily gone through four giant rolls of paper towels. Thankfully, we keep a nice stock of some cleaning products specifically designed to remove pet odor and stains so we're fairly confident that there hasn't been any damage to the areas she's sullied. Still, it's been infuriating to not only have to spend time cleaning up after her, but to have been in the room with her each time and she didn't give any indication she even needed to go! It's as though she doesn't even know she needs to go, and then all of a sudden BAM - she's going. I'm not sure if she'll develop that awareness someday, but for now, we're stuck.
Normally puppies are supposed to be able to hold their bladder for however old they are in the equivalent of hours. Kermit is almost 11 months now, and we've definitely seen in the past few months that she's more than capable of comfortably not going for at least eight hours. It's not something we make a habit of; since I work from home I'm able to let her out midday during my lunch break on top of her getting a morning walk and evening walk after work. But in rare cases where we're out for more than her average four hour stint in the crate, we feel pretty good that she won't have an accident in there if she's in for a few extra. Since the accidents started I've dialed this timetable way down and have taken her outside every two hours, but something may come up during the work day and I may not be able to leave precisely every two. I hate knowing that I'll inevitably be preoccupied if I can't get to her, constantly worried about whether or not I'll turn the corner to see her crate covered in pee.
Brian suggested we put her in day care tomorrow to give ourselves a break. PetSmart offers a program that allows you to drop your dog off and they play with other dogs for the day, and Kermit loves it. I was hesitant at first (why?????) but the idea of her being somewhere else and having the ability to pee wherever she wants is pretty damn awesome. And we'll get to enjoy football instead of constantly having to watch her/the clock.
Needless to say, we will both be the happiest of campers when she finishes the Prednisone regimen on Thursday. I have a feeling that it will take at least an additional 24-48 hours after that for the meds to completely clear her system, so we're looking at another week's worth of potential accidents.
I love having Kermit. I love being a puppy parent. But some of the stresses that having her as part of our family has really shed a different light on the realities of parenting, and for once, I'm happy we didn't jump into having kids as soon as we said "I Do."