Thursday, May 14, 2009

Pet or Daughter?

It was me, I brought Sugar home as a pet, but after these few weeks, I think I shouldn't treat her as a pet..I should bring her up as my daughter but not a dog.

I've struggled long enough, whether to teach her things like (command) sit, stay, roll over etc or anything related in dog training. I know training is very important to discipline dogs, so that they would not cause any inconveniences to guests or people around us.

But, there was a little voice in my heart..asking me to forget about dog training. They are living creatures and have their own feelings/thinkings, as long as they don't cause any troubles, we should set them free.

This was why, after 45 days of being a mother of a puppy, she only knows the word "Hush"
I say hush to calm her down, it didn't mean she bark a lot, in fact she HARDLY bark, I only heard her bark 4 times in 45 days,
1st time: She barked because she wanted my attention, now she won't bark to get attentions (not anymore!)
2nd time: She barked the time her vet gave her her 2nd vaccinations, which scared her off!
3rd time: She barked when she saw the pipe water flowing non stop and mum was somewhere else (mum called me when I was working and told me about this! Mum was really happy and said Sugar is a clever girl)
4th time: Which was yesterday, strange voice coming out of nowhere, she barked because she was scared + frustrated

Sugar is a good girl I know, she wouldn't bark although I forgot about her dinner. That was 2 weeks ago. She was hungry but she stayed! I realized it after about 2 hours of her normal dining time, and I was like "OH MY PHUCKING SHIT, I was 2 phucking hours late!"

I rushed to her and checked her condition,
I asked "Why didn't you call me?
You didn't bark..."
she looked at me, and licked her mouth implying me about her foods. I felt very sorry and I fed her instantly. She was all fine :)

You see, that was why I would never want to train her. Until recently, I found it hard to clean her ears and eyes, because she is too active, wouldn't want to stay still in my arms and let me clean it. I gave her some treats, she pauses for a while then she jumps again. She will only listened to me when I have treats in my hands. SIGH!

I thought about my previous decision again, I think proper training is crucial and should start not later than 6 months old. Otherwise I might have bunch of troubles in our future...If you think I know nothing about dog training or know nothing about dogs you are probably wrong, because I read a lot, surf a lot and ask a lot since I brought Sugar home (it doesn't mean I'm a pro, I just meant I know what I need to know), it was only me who was stubborn, reluctant to train her. Again, I love her so much and I hope I'll be a good mother :)

So, I'm going to teach my daughter from tomorrow onwards, not dancing class but some basics like asking her to listen when I talk or stay still when I want to clean her eyes and ears, LOL!
Wish me luck ^^

P/S: Not train a puppy ;)












-<3

3 comments:

CathJ said...

Well.. you can practice to be a good mom with sugar tho'.....when you have your own...I am sure you'll be a good mummy! ^ ^

Its not wrong to train sugar... I think its a good idea as well.. :-D

Dr V said...

Now you have a taste of what it must be like to be a parent. Teaching children that they cannot live in this world alone, is one of the most important lessons a parent can teach a child they love. If you don't love them, then you can let them go out in the world and discover that other people don't bend to their wishes for nothing in-return.

Parents must teach the child to want to be polite to others and still maintain their dignity. Teaching that lesson to a dog is virtually impossible. You can teach your dog that appropriate behavior is rewarded, and inappropriate behavior is not. Dogs live in social groups, but the rules in those groups are very different from ours.

Keep that in-mind when you're teaching Sugar to be a family-member that everyone can enjoy...not just you. Remember that it's not just you who has to live with Sugar, but all the other people who may be called on at some point to deliver care to her. If you cannot clean her ears, neither can a vet or groomer. And there's a medical reason for her ears being clean...not just cosmetic. Sugar must learn that, like it or not, she must submit to certain rituals...without protesting. You as her care-taker must deliver that message to her.

You must agree with what you're doing, or you may not keep-up the training. When you see the results of not training, it becomes easier to visualize where Sugar would be headed without discipline.

Lastly, teaching Sugar manners does not mean that you don't love her any less. Reward and punishment are the tools you must learn to use fairly. As long as you're fair, then you should have a clear conscience. The goal is always to help Sugar live in a world that's totally opposite of all her instincts. That means patience and consistency on your part.

Hope that helps.

violetmay said...

CathYeah, maybe I will record it and post online once she understands some basics, hehee :)))

Dr VThank you very much for the long advices my friend, I really really appreciate it. You made me re-think this issue again and I think you are right. Wish me luck Dr V... Thank you for once again! ^^