[Dailydrool] Nicknames, etc... (Sorry, this is long!)

[Dossey, Gwen]

I, too have a bunch of nicknames for my girls:
Teddi was the Princess, the Tedster or Run-Run to me and my husband, and Speedbump to all of my friends at the Niles Dog Show because they would have to step over her to get to the good seats during meetings.  I'll never forget the time I asked one of our members to keep an eye on her after the dog show so I could help transport the huge tent back to the people that loaned it to us.  When I got back I asked how she did and was told that she started walking down the path and "I was calling and calling, but Speedbump wouldn't stop"!  I said, you do know her real name is Teddi, right?!?!  And the lady said, well that would explain why she wasn't listening to me!! :0)
Casper was The Baby and later Bubba
Sasha is Sashi, bonehead, doofus and when she was little, The Tasmanian Devil
Marshmallow is Marshi or Mushroom (the DH came up with that one!) and she may take over as the new Tasmanian Devil at our house
Tatum, Sadie Jean and Sundae are the only ones without nicknames, but Sundae is still new, so that may change!  I did hear the DH call Sundae & Marshmallow the Terrible Twosome this morning as I was getting ready for work... ;0)

One of my non-paying jobs in the past was to arrange play dates for my bassets and their friends.  I even had a meetup group list and put out a calendar each month of where & when we were hiking or playing including Easter Egg Hunts, Halloween costume parties and Christmas gift exchanges!  Once Sasha caught the house on fire, she changed and didn't like being around dogs that weren't part of "her pack" and would attack for no reason at all, but would definitely do so if snacks were involved, so we had to stop those big bashes and even going to the dog park!  We did go on hikes with members of her pack up until about 2 years ago when my knees and now my back make it too difficult for me to walk!  We would go at least a mile 3 or 4 times a week and let them run off-leash!  There is nothing like the sight and sound of a basset running and chasing their friends!! :O)  I just *loved* knowing where they were just by looking for the white tips on their tails!

Our new little Marshmallow is quite the little spitfire, especially when she thinks snacks may be involved or Sundae does something when they're wrestling that makes her mad!  This morning as I was getting ready for work, the DH went into the kitchen and we could hear the crinkling of a wrapper.  Sasha and Sundae were already in the kitchen hoping he'd drop something, but Marshmallow was watching me.  As soon as that wrapper crinkled, she ran as fast as those little legs would take her and I just had to laugh at how comical it was and I wish I had gotten that on video to play whenever I'm having a rough day!  Just thinking about it now makes me smile!

And yes, bassets CAN be trained!!  My Sadie Jean was a therapy dog and she would go to where we hung their leashes when I asked her if she was ready to go to work!!  My girls all knew to wait to either leave the house or the back of the BUV or when we are crossing the street, they know to step down to get down curbs or steps, to the right (or left), and far enough - these all came in handy when we were out hiking and the left, right and step down came in SO handy when Madden went blind!!  Wait nearly got Sasha flunked out of puppy school!!  She wouldn't stay, but she would wait and the instructor nearly failed her for that!!  Teaching them go left and go right came in handy one afternoon when I took my 3 girls and my friends 2 boys for a walk along the trail.  We were on the paved side, so we had to be leashed at all times, and whenever a biker was coming up the path I'd tell my girls go left or go right and they would bring the boys over with them.  I actually had several people stop and ask me how I did that (move 5 hounds at once) and I would just say Training!

They all know how to sit and the babies actually go to their spots and sit before I put their dinners down (Sundae is 16 weeks old and Marshmallow is 11 weeks old!!)!  And they know to stay just outside the kitchen when I'm cooking, but are right under my feet if I'm making their dinners!  Now if I could just train them to either go ON the papers (not just near them) or better yet, outside, that would be wonderful, but they are getting better!  They all know how to use the doggie door already, so that's one step closer!!

My favorite command was Timeout!  We could be at the park and Teddi would be chasing a dog who I could tell was threatened by her speed, so I would yell Teddi, timeout!  And she would stop dead in her tracks and give me this look like Oh, Mom!  And Sasha, when I tell her she's on timeout, it's usually because she's being bad, so she'll lay there looking up at me with those big sad eyes until I tell her OK and then she'll jump up and go back to playing!  Most of the time I'd just ask them if they want a timeout and they'd stop!!  That's another one I need to teach the babies!!

My Tatum and now Sasha would "Find It" which means to use your nose to search for a treat!  Teddi, Casper and Madden used it to an extent, but for whatever reason, they instinctively knew to hunt for the Easter eggs - probably because they usually had beefy-bacon biscuits that I had made inside! LOL!!  You see, the rule of the hunt was that a person could ONLY pick up an egg when their dog put their nose on it first!  Some of our non-basset friends were rather frustrated with their sight dogs because they would literally walk right over an egg without putting their noses on them!!

As for bark collars, my friend adopted a basset from LVBHR and she was a barker!  They put a citronella collar on her, but soon learned that they had to take it off because their other basset would walk up to her, bark and run away so that she would get sprayed!!  Who said bassets are dumb?!?!?  Personally, I've never used one, but have thought about it for Sasha, especially when I come home or someone comes over!  She's so excited, she wants to let everyone in the neighborhood know and nothing shuts her up except for ONE thing... tell her to F___ off!  I swear!  That is the ONLY thing that works!! LOL!!  I found out on accident one day when I'd just had enough and she wouldn't stop to No bark, enough, quiet, none of them... then I just blurted it out and she finally stopped barking and it's worked ever since!!  For Molly, the foster, you might try only putting the bark collar on before she goes outside, so she knows she can't bark at the fence, but she's fine to do her mini bark inside?  Just a thought...  I tried using a spray bottle years ago when Teddi was a puppy.  I woke up one afternoon to find that she had knocked it off the table and chewed the spray nozzle until it no longer worked!  I can take a hint! LOL!  When Sasha is barking in the backyard  for more than 30 seconds, I'll look out front to see if there's anyone out there, and if not, I'll go to the backdoor and call her in.  However, now that the 3 hounds have started playing a lot in the backyard, I find that they are barking more at each other than anything else.  Not sure how to keep them from barking when they're playing!  I don't want the neighbors calling CPS on my when I yell at them to F___ off all the time!!  LOL!! :O)

For those with back issues or weak back legs, I tried Yucca Root Powder on Madden and Teddi back in 2015 when they became shaky in the back and I thought for sure they wouldn't make it through the winter!  However, a friend told me about YRP and I thought what harm is there in trying and they responded beautifully to it!  1/4 teaspoon in their dinners each night and they had another 2 years with us without further instances!!  I started Sasha on it at that time because halfway through dinner, she and Madden would swap bowls, and now the babies are getting it, too!

Well, I guess I better get back to work!  Healing drool to those in need, especially Kacy & Ru, Tucker, Reggie, Millie and Bugsey!

~Gwen, Sasha, Sundae & Marshmallow~ (:>
(o_
// \
V_/_ <=penguin
gdossey at te.com<mailto:gdossey at te.com>
Being happy doesn't mean everything's perfect. It means you've decided to see beyond the imperfections.


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