Reiko's Journey

Jinsei No Tabi

A life’s winding path and all the experiences along the way…

人生の旅

Recent Stuff

Boring

Nothing to do. Guess I’ll just go and get into trouble.

For those of you wondering why there have been no recent posts, the answer is that nothing is going on right now that would interest you.

So there.

I’m busy on project work and Reiko is bored. She sits under the small couch in my home office and watches me at the desk.

Only a couple of new discoveries on Reiko’s part:

1, Dried leaves are great, especially the big ones like magnolias, which can be brought into the house and shredded, leaving tiny pieces in every conceivable nook and cranny.

2. When pooping, it’s no fun to stay still; it’s much more entertaining to adopt the Grouch Marx walk and “spread the wealth” over a significantly larger geographic area.

3. DogDads can be driven to distraction by randomly changing preferences for dog food; today, chicken is good, tomorrow it’s hated — rinse and repeat with every food group.

4. Since going outside to pee gets me a reward, I may as well act like a jack in the box, popping in and out every three minutes and then seeking a food treat.

Life goes on at Chez Roommates.

Discover more from Reiko's Journey

Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.

Posted in

34 responses to “Boring”

  1. Xena and Lucy Avatar
    Xena and Lucy

    Let us know if we need to visit you in a loony bin. The last dog I got my mother when she retired from nursing always stayed under a living room table. She came out to potty and eat. She was a young dog from the shelter. Her habits never changed during her entire life. Hoping, really hoping that won’t be the case with Reiko.

    Reply
    1. Reiko's Journey Avatar
      Reiko’s Journey

      Oh geez, you really know how to encourage a guy. But it’s possible that your experience is what will happen to Miss R – a lifetime running away. Her fave spot is to sit on the dining room table chairs while they are tucked under the table. I guess it’s like a little cave and she can run around the perimeter of the table without having to come out.

      Reply
      1. Xena and Lucy Avatar
        Xena and Lucy

        Sorry, I realized I wasn’t being “encouraging” but I was being realistic. I had gotten the dog to be a companion to my widowed mother, and even though it turned out as it did, the pup was still company. I really hope that Reiko will get turned around and learn to trust you without any fear. There is a chance that will happen, especially with the patience you display with her. Have a good evening!

        Reply
        1. Reiko's Journey Avatar
          Reiko’s Journey

          No, my bad for not putting a grinning emoji on my comeback. I didn’t take your comment as negative; in fact, you may be right about Reiko’s tabi, her path. I certainly don’t know what will happen but I figure it this way: with a shelter doggie ya pays your money and ya takes your chances. IF she never warms up and is always a roommate, well, I’ll be disappointed but I’ll be happy in knowing this little dog will never go hungry or be hurt or abused. She’ll have her best life even if she doesn’t know it. So, no worries, always post your true thoughts – it’s all good.

          Reply
          1. Xena and Lucy Avatar
            Xena and Lucy

            Oh, I do. 🤣 And wasn’t offended (I’m still a Northerner at heart). Anyhow, I think that’s what my Mom thought about her pup, too. BTW, I’ve aways been a realist, leaning toward optimism.

            Reply
  2. Helen Devries Avatar
    Helen Devries

    So she’s found a new fun occupation – shredding leaves. Two of mine enjoy that enormously – cleaner not so chuffed.

    Reply
    1. Reiko's Journey Avatar
      Reiko’s Journey

      This is new for Reiko. We’ve always had leaves around but now they seem to be irresistible and the debris is impossible to pick up by hand or vacuum only – one has to do both making clean up a chore. I can almost see the spite and glee in her little Mauzer face as she quietly exits my presence to go and shred leaves in another room.

      Reply
  3. lois Avatar
    lois

    Well, since she completed redecorating the house, what else is a girl to do but bring a little bit of nature indoors! What a clever one she is.

    Reply
    1. Reiko's Journey Avatar
      Reiko’s Journey

      The funny thing is that her redecorating has two levels. The first is due to the stuff she’s destroyed and the second is due to me moving all the stuff I don’t want destroyed out of her reach. That second one is the one that burns because as a crochety geezer I am set in my ways and I want my stuff where I want my stuff, not on some shelf out the Mauzer’s reach.

      Reply
  4. marthadilo3 Avatar
    marthadilo3

    oh my gosh that sounds like Chester. He does everything except the leaves. I don’t know why he has to walk when he poos. It just makes it harder to pick up. Oh hey, maybe that’s why! They are so smart and so bad!

    Reply
    1. Reiko's Journey Avatar
      Reiko’s Journey

      I’ll bet Chester does the Groucho Marx walk, too. They look so funny hunched over and straining and trying to walk at the same time, ya gotta laugh. Then you see the floor and cry.

      Reply
  5. Bizzy Avatar
    Bizzy

    I won’t suggest that you get rid of Reiko; in a weird way, she does seem to be making progress. But maybe, just for yourself, maybe an additional dog? One that’s friendly and is, or can be, house trained?

    Reply
    1. Reiko's Journey Avatar
      Reiko’s Journey

      Do you hate me, Bizzy? So your evil plan is that I keep adding dogs until I get one that’s normal? I don’t think so. Unless it comes with an iron clad guarantee of performance, I’m starting with the belief that another dog would only add to my miseries.

      Reply
      1. Bizzy Avatar
        Bizzy

        😂No, no evil plan, I’m not that organized. Worst case it would add to the excitement.😂

        Reply
        1. Reiko's Journey Avatar
          Reiko’s Journey

          I would be cleaning up the excitement. That’s the problem.

          Reply
  6. Bitey Dog Avatar
    Bitey Dog

    I’m seeing such progress in Reiko! She is interested in watching you. She plays with her toys. She knows about “good girl” treats for going potty (or at least pretending to). She has learned several hand signals. Keep working with her. Exaggerated facial expressions go a long way. It’s going to take a while, but the friendship you two create will be invaluable. 😊💕

    Reply
    1. Reiko's Journey Avatar
      Reiko’s Journey

      Come here, let me show you an exaggerated expression. Nah, just messin’ with you. Thanks for the positive feedback and constant encouragement. I have this feeling that if I can breakthrough to the point that touch is possible and I can ever get her into a harness, that walks and exercise and such will help settle her in. There is progress for sure, albeit glacial speed.

      Reply
      1. Bitey Dog Avatar
        Bitey Dog

        Seriously, do you think one of these might help?

        https://www.amazon.com/ZHEQOGZH-Catcher-Control-Stainless-Animals/dp/B0CSYMG7RV/ref=sr_1_6?crid=I8JQB6JTXMIE&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.WndX4n9GpyyMtI9f8K9F5sqi51eiZYCLt0Tg87dER_reWusgDTggriIKdY-kgVXb9-dAEAE2wIl1OVQGAtR8OBKJdvEvmgruT4rH1KR2MIhEuwlY9cF-nsj5FYxr6qKbjEa6yEI1GOtwdbeubkHvx9T52c6Z88shZ_9YKxdmRCxtbIiFzX-ptvF5S_62Wpq_c4KqSLJru4D9mLTOb01dRj4fdtyu8-ZNLaY4r_q2fSg1yQhJ2AIq2qajhPjf8vKY1C5OB1DggRroEdaL8h85qptZkZMkcDww-DjMaNSyp34.EfSnyAYBLJStwIlirwB2o7GyzkDw3khFVlaTgwQffZ8&dib_tag=se&keywords=animal+catch+pole&qid=1769842649&sprefix=Catch+pole%2Caps%2C281&sr=8-6

        Have another person there to be the bad guy. I just have a feeling that if the two of you could work together, things would click for her faster. She’s a smart girl. She just needs her “W-a-t-e-r” moment.

        Reply
        1. Reiko's Journey Avatar
          Reiko’s Journey

          I found that weirdly hilarious for some reason I can’t explain. But I question its efficacy because the rod is 30″ long and I doubt I can get within a 10m foot barge pole of the little Mauzer. Plus, she is very, very fast and I alas, am not so fast. I’ll keep in mind but I think I need to close the distance a bit before I can snag her with a pole. Or a Hungarian even.

          Reply
          1. Bitey Dog Avatar
            Bitey Dog

            Find a Czech! We’re efficient!

            See if maybe one of the rescues can help you. The sooner you get a leash on her, the sooner and faster her learning will be. A leash is more of a communication tool between pup and human than a means of control. Once Reiko realizes that she can communicate through it, she will start saying other things as well. I’m anxious for you all to do well!

            Reply
            1. Bizzy Avatar
              Bizzy

              I can’t comment on the specifics, but she does have a point, that some way of communicating the situation to her is important. I know, duh….. I’m just thinking of my first dog. It was war until my terrier and I went sheep herding. Not a natural fit, I know, but she learned that if we worked together, life was good and a lot more fun. So, lateral thinking. What could it be, what could it be…

              Reply
              1. Reiko's Journey Avatar
                Reiko’s Journey

                Maybe I’ll take Reiko sheepherding. How baaaad could it be?

                Reply
              2. Bitey Dog Avatar
                Bitey Dog

                For Geordie, it was me lifting him high enough to watch agility from above instead of 12” from the ground. Since you can’t lift Reiko, that likely wouldn’t work. Maybe bring a vermin in the house so you could both chase it? Maybe she learns by watching.

                Reply
                1. Reiko's Journey Avatar
                  Reiko’s Journey

                  I could use the pole to catch the vermin.

                  Reply
                  1. Bitey Dog Avatar
                    Bitey Dog

                    Set up the vidoe camera if you do. 😆

                    Reply
            2. Reiko's Journey Avatar
              Reiko’s Journey

              Leash as a control mechanism! That explains why everyone always said I should be kept on a short leash. Anyway, I could probably corner the young lady dog and get a leash on her but it would be at the cost of maybe traumatizing her a bit. That’s what has made me reluctant to push the issue even as I admit at dome point I will have to leash her.

              Reply
              1. Bitey Dog Avatar
                Bitey Dog

                Make someone else do it. Then she’ll fear them and run to your for comfort! 😆

                Reply
  7. doesitevenmatter3 Avatar
    doesitevenmatter3

    Well…girls just wanna’ have fun…and smart girls, like Reiko, figure out how to fun-up their life. I’m sure watching you is absolutely positively fascinating…but she needs other fun stuff to do, too. 😉 And apparently she’s finding it! 😁

    Ha! Love “the Groucho Marx walk”! 😀

    Hey! Know what? I see progress that she’s making. I’m proud of her and I’m proud of you! Keep keepin’ on! Always bestest wishes coming your way, for you two, every day. 🙂
    (((HUGS))) ❤️❤️❤️

    PS…Coop never shredded leaves, but weirdly he liked to shred corn husks. If he saw me headed outside to shuck some corn on the cob he ran out like a flash…I always dropped a couple of the green “leaves/husks” for him. He would carry them back in the house and then proceed to shred them into tiny pieces. He had a blast. He never ate them, just shredded them…and then looked at me like “Someone should pick up that mess!” 😉 😀

    Reply
    1. Reiko's Journey Avatar
      Reiko’s Journey

      You have to wonder what goes through their little doggie brains that makes one thing fun and good and the other dull and unappealing. What’s the criteria, are there criteria? Maybe they just wander around living instant by instant and don’t think about any of this stuff at all. Just a dull buzzing punctuated by “food!” and “walkies!” and “pee!!.

      Reply
      1. doesitevenmatter3 Avatar
        doesitevenmatter3

        I’ve always believed dogs have selective hearing and when we talk they listen for the words they like, like “food”, “walks/out”, “pee”, “treat”, “ball”, etc. 😉 😀 Otherwise, I think we sound like the adults in the Peanuts cartoons…”wah-wah…mwa-mwa-mwa”. 😛

        Reply
        1. Reiko's Journey Avatar
          Reiko’s Journey

          I’m sorry…did you say something? I wasn’t listening.

          Reply
  8. doesitevenmatter3 Avatar
    doesitevenmatter3

    PPS…I tore up some leaves on Saturday and I found it WAS quite fun and satisfying! 😉 😛 😁

    Reply
    1. Reiko's Journey Avatar
      Reiko’s Journey

      I sent you some corn husks.

      Reply
      1. doesitevenmatter3 Avatar
        doesitevenmatter3

        Thanks be! 😉 😛

        Reply

Love to hear from ya

Discover more from Reiko's Journey

Subscribe now to keep reading and get access to the full archive.

Continue reading