She actually didn't even want to get in the truck to begin with; must be a testament to how much she really was the favorite at the shelter--she didn't want to go anywhere her popularity was unknown. Her classic refusal stance is to lay down, front legs first, so you have no way of scooping her up. She enacted this mode upon reaching my truck in the parking lot of the shelter.
However, once we got home, she didn't immediately bounce out. She sat there as I shut things off, not really understanding that this meant freedom from the car. She couldn't get down on her own, but in her defense, if this was her first time in a vehicle, it's a long way down from the seat from the ground. Much like how she got in, she got out via me lifting her awkwardly.
I don't believe she's ever been in a home before. She has however, had toys. She's a huge fan of the squeaky toys, preferably the plush ones/woolly ones she can rip the stitches out; the point of a toy is to destroy it. She really liked an old beat up fish plush toy I had and she carried around for a while then tried to bury it--in the carpet! I explained it was a futile effort and that despite the color, the carpet was not actual dirt. Also, no one would take her toy--except me when she started taking the stuffing out--which was about twenty minutes later.
She is a bit untrusting of this strange noisemaker we call a television. I turned it on last night and she looked at it with curiosity, sprinkled with fear. Then as I changed the channel, she turned and tried to burrow through the back of the couch. I turned it off, but she still felt the need to leave the room. It was just too friggin' weird for her.
She does like her alone time, whether or not a television is involved. She slept a bit in my bedroom alone on the floor in the dark last night and this morning. I retried the television this evening, giving her a treat while I turned it on. She chewed on the treat, all the while eyes wide open staring at the television. Once the treat was consumed she once more buried her head in the pillow of the couch, then when I entreated her to watch, she simply left the room and is currently lying in the hallway.
Despite her independence, she has this little chirpy noise she makes like a high-pitched growl when she's feeling ignored. At least it started like that. Now, 24 hours later, she's comfortable enough with me to voice her opinion loudly in a gruff, unladylike bark.
Last night I thought she'd sleep on the floor on the towel I lay down for her. She had been sleeping there hours before. However, once I was on the bed, she too wanted the bed. I had to lift her the first time. She didn't seem comfortable, though. In the dark she rocked the bed facing one way, lying down, only to stand up a moment later move 45 degrees to the left, and lie down again, repeating this until she came full circle. She was panting heavily and drooling, and of course, making sure her body never hit any part of the towel I placed on the bedspread which marked the area I wished her to sleep on.
I put her down off the bed and she lasted on the floor for about ten minutes--or exactly the amount of the time it took for me to fall asleep--before she rose up and stuck her nose in my face. I told her to lie down. To my surprise, in one giant leap she made it from the floor to the bed. She really doesn't "jump" as much as "climb" on things--including getting on the couch, getting on me, walking on the curbs--so the jump shocked me.
She discovered that the most comfortable was to sleep was just like I was. Screw the end of the bed. These pillows are lovely! First she lay on her side and placed her big head on my chest and then burrowed it into my neck. My miniature dachshund used to do that, but she fit a little better, seeing as she had a long nose and her head is smaller than mine, unlike Lilly, whose square head tried to knock my cranium off to make room on my shoulder.
She eventually settled on pinning my arm down with her legs and neck and resting her head either under or on the nearest pillow and snoring loudly. I actually preferred it when she buried her head since it muffled the sound and was far better than when she was just breathing heavily in my face. I'm glad she has decent dog breath. Through the heavy breathing and snoring, I didn't sleep much last night. I'm hoping tonight is better.
Lilly is a big personality, very intelligent, and VERY stubborn (the smart ones usually are, aren't they?). She definitely needs some training. She's usually fine on the leash except when we disagree on which direction to head or the fact that she feels like standing there and I think we should be moving on. She doesn't tug so much as stand her ground, and if that doesn't work, simply lowers her center of gravity and lays down.
I did discover today that she is not housebroken. Lilly has the distinction of being the first dog to ever pee in my apartment. I thought she was housebroken since she had made it through the night and had gone outside the night before. We went out in the morning about 8:30 and a little before 2pm after she had a nap I told her we were going outside. She looked perplexed, grabbed her toy, and headed for the bedroom to romp and play. She really can amuse herself on her own. I put on my shoes, went to the bedroom to tell her come out and she walked into the hallway, dropped her toy and starting peeing. I told her No, Stop, and tapped her butt to get up (since having her walk while peeing didn't seem like a better option). She just turned her head to me while she finished her long pee like she was saying, "What? I'm peeing." No remorse. No notice she had to go. No idea that it was wrong at all.
I'm going to start taking her out every 2 hours just to make sure she gets the idea to go outside. This afternoon she did alert me twice that she wished to go outside and both times she went. We just need to learn each other's language. And now that I have dog treats, I can actually start to reward her when she does right.
Today she also got to experience a pet store. I didn't take her to a big PetCo; just a small local pet store. She didn't want to get in the truck to begin with. She still hates riding in the car. But one more, when we got to our destination, she refused to get out of the truck. This time it wasn't how far away the ground was. She actually climbed over to the driver's side when I opened the door. I had to pick her up and remove her. Then she refused to walk through the doors of the store. The automatic doors were open, but she again stood her ground, refusing to go inside. I gave her a bit of time to change her mind, and finally on her own she opted to follow me. She didn't pee on anything or steal toys out of the toy aisle. She was great. However, back at the vehicle, she didn’t want to get in again. I keep telling her I'm more stubborn than she is, and the human card generally trumps everything else.
This time when we got home she did get out of the vehicle herself. She just needed to come out through the driver's side. Perhaps like sleeping, she figures she might as well try my way.
I don't believe she has kennel cough. I truly think the panting and heavy breathing are from anxiety and the snoring is from having her head in awkward positions in relation to her chest. She is a loud breather, but I'm not concerned she's ill. As for the Murphy's Oil, for her skin, I'll give it a try tomorrow.
She really will make someone an awesome dog. She's incredibly intelligent and stubborn; I think the only way she'll be trained is to really respect her adopter. She's got a lot to learn about humans, and I think she's doing mighty well considering the circumstances.
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