About the dog. . .

Bob and I are both getting to the point where we just don't think that taking in Louie is working out. Yes, he's learning. He now sits for his supper, and is starting to listen better in general, although it is obvious when we slack off on working with him as he doesn't obey as well. The problem is finding time for the training among all the other things I have to think about. Housebreaking had been coming along well, until he got into the habit of eating the fallen mulberries and this messed up his digestion. : / I think that as long as we can keep him away from the berries he'll be fine.

The pup has caused some problems – most notably digging up all the gardens that Bob had prepared and planted this spring. More than that, he is just one more thing for me to worry about. He chews stuff, he grabs the kids' toys, he steals food off the table (Fenja has NEVER stolen food off the table). We could take care of all these problems, they are definitely fixable with training and supervision, but finding time for the training and managing the constant supervision seems to be more than I can handle when I'm also trying to train and supervise four kids. ;) This is really too bad, as I really like Louie. A lot. He's an adorable terrier mix and I think he's got a great personality hidden under the puppiness. He's just so much work. Of course, so are the kids. . .