Birthday: May 29th 2010 Likes: Chewing and sleeping on our laps Pet-Peeves: Socks and Shoes Favorite Toy: Anything he can chew on Favorite Food: Whatever we happen to be having for dinner. Favorite Walk: Around the yard for potty-time. Best Tricks: Sit, Stay, Lay Down, Up, Come, Go Poopie? Arrival Story: My wife and I were window shopping in Mesquite, TX when we happened on a pet store. There he was just playing around in a pen behind glass. He looked at us and did a little head tilt and we were sold.
The kids (9yr old and 7yr old boys) were with their grandparents for summer vacation when we brought Chuy home. We had him for 2 weeks before they arrived to acclimate him to our home atmosphere. Within 48 hours he was housetrained, with the occasional accident, and knew the commands, sit, stay, lay down, up, and come.
The first vet visit was nice. She looked him over and commented on how cute he was. He got his first round of shots and checked for worms and checked out ok. He was 3lbs. We brought him back to the vet for the second round of shots about a month later and he was a hair under 9lbs. It has been a month since then so he is probably around 12lbs at least right now.
Since he was growing so fast, we had to get him a new collar. We decided with a harness so it wouldn't strain his neck. We got a walkabout with the retractable leash and he loves it. He can go 16 feet with no problem and now has the liberty to run around the front yard without fear of going in the road. Bio: Chuy was adopted at quite a young age, 5 weeks, which is less than what I heard was an acceptable adoption age for puppies. This, I believe, has manifested in his insatiable biting. He feels that playtime = bite fingers. He does not always bite hard but every now and then will draw blood. We are weening him off of this habit with some techniques our friends at pugs.com have suggested. They are working to some degree but it may take some time to get the bite out of him. He goes into what we call cerberus mode (Cerberus: the three headed dog that protected the entrance to hell) where he goes nuts biting and running around jumping at noses, fingers, hair, ect. Other than the few times a day he goes into that mode, he is well behaved. Forums Motto: I came, I saw, I chewed it up. Thunderbutt: I was struck by lightning that came through our living room fireplace. It burnt the hairs on my leg but did not cause any other problems. I now am terrified of storms. My pack nicknamed me Thunderbutt.
Got back from the vet this afternoon and he checked out ok. He only had s teeny bit of his fur on the back left leg singed that I didn't notice before. I wasn't sure if he was really hit or just scared but the vet confirmed it. The vet checked his heart, eyes, and lungs to see if everything was operating normally and she couldn't find anything wrong with him. I'm so glad he is ok. He was acting fine all day and yesterday evening so I figured he was ok but I'm glad to now know from a professional that he is. Chuy appreciates all the support from you wonderful forum members.
He has already more than doubled in weight and size since we first brought him to the vet. He was 3lbs first time and now he's nearly 10lbs. In the next week or so we'll have to get him a new collar (probably a harness this time). He is still as active as ever and loves to chase the kids around in circles but still likes to bite the living tar out of us when we are playing. He likes to chase his tail but is rarely successful unless we help him.
I was working on my laptop sitting on the couch and Chuy was chewing on his bear by the fireplace. A storm was just rolling in and it didn't seem that big. All of a sudden, a blue flash and a LOUD popping sound. I heard Chuy yelp like he'd just been stepped on and he made a mad dash for the bathroom (where he sleeps) yelping the whole way. A hat that was sitting touching the metal fireplace grate caught fire which I put out before checking on Chuy. I picked him up and he was shaking. I calmed him down and gave him hugs and talked to him trying to comfort him and gave him some treats we had just gotten from Petsmart today and he stopped shaking and seems fine now. He's actually sleeping in my lap right now and he does not want to be alone anymore. I stepped outside to see if the bolt caused any sort of fire on my roof and he started crying for me and he has NEVER done that before. I've NEVER seen anything like this. The darn bolt came right through my fireplace and the flue is closed! Poor little guy. I'm going to see if he needs to go to the vet but certainly seems fine right now, apart from some separation anxiety.
Something strange is that I was struck by lightning nearly 10 years ago while photographing a storm. The bolt went down through my hand and camera ruining the film (pre digital) and left a scar on both the top of my hand and my palm. How wierd is that? We have something in common now.
The first day home, Chuy quickly decided to poop on the carpet. Nothing we did not expect. We started training him to go outside and was surprised at how fast he learned to warn us about needing to poop. Within 24 hours, he was wimpering at the door for us to take him outside to go potty. He is fully housetrained now. He knows the tricks: sit, stay, up, and fetch. He knows his name but still has some issues with playful biting. We are working on that.
Dogster Obsessions: The Starter Kit for Dogs by Wildebeest
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