My daughter's dog is a hoot! We have been dogsitting this week as Debi has seeded her lawn and is awaiting the arrival of new grass. To keep her doberman, Akkadian, from rolling around in the mud and muck, Dorothy and I took him in for the next two weeks. I have to say that this dog is a wonder. Named after an ancient culture, he has all the traits of greatness.
We often think that dogs do not understand what we say. They do. And through Pavlovian conditioning, we have taught him a number of habits good and bad. And through his own initiative, he has come up with his own.
Since this dog was a pup, he has been a character. When Debi first got him and brought him home, he chewed everything in sight and pooed everywhere, like all pups will. When he finally got his bodilly functions undercontrol, we really started having fun. He would go around the house following anyone who would pay attention to him or just look his way. This often made for some funny instances when we would plan to walk around the house, passing each other. AK would start with one person, then in mid step follow another, then another, until he finally would sit down because he was confused as to who he should follow.
We have a big pool and a nice sized yard. "DingDong" as I call him, will not go near the pool on a dead run, but does like to sneak up on the dog in the pool and bark at him. At four years of age, I am not sure if he realizes that he is barking at his own reflection! He does not like the pool, or water for bathing or sprinklers. Probably due to his incident falling into the pool when he was only about 5 months old, and I had to rescue him because he could not swim.
He does have some tricks which Dorothy (his "grandmother") says are cruel. He loves to play "Dead Dog" and "Undead Dog" but we are working on "Dead Dog" and "Zombie Dog". He also sits, lies, puts his head down, and waits, but is struggling with walk and fetch. He rarely gets out of the yard, so walk is foreign to him. He does take me for a drag around the block, though. Fetch is really foreign to him. He likes to get the toy, but won't give it up and prefers to get close and tease, then run away. He knows how to give sad eyes for part of my lunch and he puts his nose on my chair when he wants my attention. When it is time for us to leave to go somewhere, he goes outside and waits for his treat through the doggie door. But the funniest thing is when he eats off a fork and gently takes the morsel and puts it in his mouth. One night, we had the TV on and were sitting on the couch. We realized that each night, we did not watch the TV, but watched him wrestle with himself and his toys! Who needs Cable when you have a dog?
When he first arrived, Dorothy would not have anything to do with him. She did not want him. Now, she talks to him, pets him, shares breakfast with him, and even put a sleeping area in our room so he could sleep next to our bed. She hates to leave him alone at anytime and often will leave the TV on for company and if we are out at night, will turn lights on in the garage and house so he can see.
And talk about a great watchdog! Dobermans are known for keen hearing. He can hear the neighbors get into their car with windows and doors shut. He can hear and respond to the garage door opening. Open up a bag of potato chips in the pantry with door closed, and he will be there when you open the door up, be sitting, and have sad face on.
I don't have grandchildren. I have a grand dog. And that he is.
Doughnut
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