Life with the dogs is always a lot of fun, when you put things they do into preceptive. You have to be patient and figure them out when they are doing something totally irritating and annoying. When Lee and I moved into our house we barely ever let the dogs into the house. We went the whole winter enjoying their nightly howls after dinner and morning wake up.
Until we were told by a neighbor that we were the "Neighbors from Hell" and that if we didn't do something about all that howling they were going to sue us. So, the dogs moved into the house! I had never intended to have 9 house dogs but I do and it has worked out.
The dogs come in from their kennel each night to the walk out basement, they eat dinner inside, have their after dinner howl and then have playtime either supervised outside or through out the whole house.... They sleep in crates and on the weekends have to stay in past 9am. With all the restrictions on noise it makes life interesting. The dogs periodically wear bark collars ( when I can afford the batteries) and I cannot go out after work, because the dogs have to be inside at a decent hour, since I don't get out of work until 6 and it is an hour away, I have to go straight home. But as Lee says if you don't adapt and over come you will be no where in life.
Dogs helping me with leftovers
But now the dogs are spoiled, they have learned that if they cry in their crates or outside I will come running immediately to see why they are making noise. Causes a bit of stress for me! The dogs love being inside the house and days that I am home and force them out so I can clean they often just sit by the basement door waiting to be let back in. I have to remember that they are social creatures and they just want to be with me, their Owner.
They often chew or dig their way out to come sit by the basement door.
This particular incident allowed 5 dogs to break free!
With all the extra work involved in having so many house dogs the benefits have out weighed them. I have a strong bond with each dog, I can have everyone off leash and can recall them with out treats, they are experts at watching my body language and can pick up any change of my mood.
The last has helped us the most, especially on the trail. When I am freaking out they calm down, when I get excited and want them to go faster they pick it up. When something is serious and dangerous they look to me for extra guidance. They are fun to have around and are often more entertaining than the latest "Must see TV."
Munchkin was very small in size then but had the makings of a big heart!
The also have helped Lee and I learn a lot of valuable life lessons, humility, patience , understanding. Research shows that dogs are really good at detecting human emotion and I have seen it first hand, it is true that they are Mans Best Friend no matter how loud they are.
Dubs on Mount Mansfield
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