Keeping a Happy Puppy

Image and text by Amelia Willows     

     I put all my love, time and attention into my puppy Khaleesi to give her the best life. I want to be able to instill all the love and happiness I can for her.

     Enjoying time with Khaleesi is so easy to do. I do get upset with her chewing on people or myself. I try to remind myself she is just a puppy. It's just a stage she is going through, it's teething. Teething can be painful.

     After Khaleesi and I finish working and playing hard all day in between her naps, we always find a treat for us to share. Sometimes I get her a pup cup at our local ice cream stand with little puppy bones on top. She really loves them.

     She uses her mouth and nose to learn new things and places. Having to learn new or relearn things is hard but worth it.

     Car rides are always fun. She gets the backseat all to herself, with a big body pillow on the seat so she can be comfortable. We try to take one car ride a day.

     I have two cats that are now brothers to Khaleesi. They are really grouchy, but she still loves chasing them. One of them tries to get her in trouble all the time. He always runs to tattle on her. The other one is really scary and doesn't play games, but Khaleesi still chases him, too.  

      There is a mirror in the dining room. Khaleesi loves to jump and play with the puppy in the mirror.

     I am teaching Khaleesi sign language so she can be given orders to focus on what I need. The first sign language she was taught was, “No.” She didn't like it much. Now when I tell her “No” in sign language, she starts growling and barking until I let her know I am being serious

     She seems to enjoy making me happy and I love making her happy.

     At my home in the yard, we have a lot of flower beds, a vegetable garden, a rain barrel and trees. There is also lawn furniture that tangles up Khaleesi. Together we both weed those flower beds and the vegetable garden. Then I mow the lawn as she rests. 

     We make a pretty good team. We both love digging and we both find peace in it. I love rocks and Khaleesi loves to chew on them.                                

     She tries to help me inside the house, too, but one of the cat brothers always seems to find ways to take her attention away. 

     Khaleesi always steals the show when we are out at stores or wherever we go. It's because she is so beautiful and smart. She really is a sweet puppy. She tries to be on her best behavior

     . I took her to go play with another puppy in our family. She is a Great Pyrenees. She is really Big.

     Khaleesi doesn't like going to the vet much because there are a lot of Bigger dogs there. However, I always hold and pet her, telling her she is okay. I won't let anyone hurt her and she won't let anything or anyone hurt me.                                         

      It's funny how I try to always create a safe environment for Khaleesi. Yet it's Khaleesi giving me a safe environment and a community that I can join now that I have her.

     She helps me know if people are behind me or anything else that I may not hear. I do notice, since getting Khaleesi, I wear my hearing aids less.

     Khaleesi and I love to explore and find new things to get into.