Owen, again

[Bonnie and Kona]

UPDATE:

We have regrouped and now Owen is under new management.

1.  He is no longer allowed on the step as pictured below. We figured out he uses it to enforce his dominance... he wouldn't move for people or Kona to go up or down the steps. I don't know why we never figured that out before... guess it has to do with cuteness. 

2.  He has to sleep in his locked kennel at night, no free access to her bed. He was free to jump on or off her bed all day and night. Now he is not allowed on the bed at all. 

3. Owen is being trained in the recall description by Sherri and Sophie, Winston and Kitty with the high-value treats and excited puppy-puppy-puppy command three times a day. 

4. He is getting out more than just in the mornings with DH. DD is trying to take him out daily. (She has debilitating migraines every day so this is difficult but she is doing it much more frequently.)

5. One day DH brought the dogs home from a park that he drives to. When Owen left the car he dashed down the sidewalk to look for squirrels at the neighbors. DH was able to get him to come much more quickly than before your helpful suggestions.

6. Tethering has been part of Owen's daily existence and has made a difference in how much he looks at us.

7. I took the dogs out into the front yard with me on Saturday. Owen on the long lead and Kona free. They both did really well. Owen didn't even try to move beyond the length of his leash.  

We are all a work in progress, but we are seeing progress. Thank you for your help!

You know if you have read my blogs that our doodle-boy Owen is quite a busy guy. He has been our dog of the decades, and I don't necessarily mean that in a good way. From very early on he has left us open-mouthed and wide-eyed with his unique choices. 

1. He managed to drag branches into the house every chance he got. He could bring a tree branch five feet long and four feet wide through the doggie door. We do not know how! 

2. He has found objects on our property and brought them into the house that we do not own.  ei) a Birkenstock. We don't own nor have we owned Birkenstock sandals. A marrow bone. I have never bought a marrow bone. ???

3. He has no sense of personal space. All of our dogs have respected that some areas are off limits, and if crossed, show remorse over the intrusion. Owen will drink out of anyone's glass in reach. He will try to get his whole 70 lb body into visitor's laps even though he has never met them before. He never ever shows remorse!

4. While we have had many dogs who want to greet our homecoming with a toy in their mouth, Owen will stuff an entire bath towel (that was lying on the floor to wipe his muddy paws) into his mouth and wag his whole body to say welcome home! I am not talking about a hand towel. I mean bath towel size. 

5. He has managed to systematically rip out and our entire raspberry patch and both blueberry bushes. sigh.

Now, I do not expect any of the above behaviors to stop soon, but this week my DD and I have both noticed a difference in our wild and crazy guy. He looks at us more. 

Every evening I feed the dogs and every evening since Owen was a puppy, he is required to sit and look me in the eye before I will put his food down. This past week he has been looking at me at meal time without the command, looking at me at cuddle time and just randomly looking at me. My DD has noticed he is much more cuddly. We feel like he has been so enamored with his big brother Kona that he may just be noticing we live here, too. He has worked very hard to establish himself as the dominant dog and until he turned about 14 months old, Kona let him (much to our dismay).  In the last few months, Kona started putting him in his place. Shouldn't this have started at 8 weeks? I am thinking perhaps with Kona taking control, Owen is seeing himself as less than the master of his fate and captain of his soul. Thus he is looking around and noticing he has some humans to enjoy, too. It's a thought?

While Kona is the best dog in the universe with a gentle, measured approach to life who understands full sentences, Owen is the dog we talk about all of the time. He is our entertainer... exasperating? yes, hilarious?... most definitely. 

This is where Owen naps daily... on the step where he no longer fits.

[Jennifer,Chloe & Myla]

I love Owen! What a hoot! Great picture!

[Kaytlin and Cooper]

oh that photo is just so cute!

[Donna K & Quincy]

OMD, Owen, I think I love you! He sounds like such a wonderful goofy personality and that picture is a riot.

[Lori, Rooney & Zuzu]

What on earth?!? Is he hanging off of a bottom stair step? That is hilarious!

I think you might be onto something...maybe Owen is one of those dogs who wants to be a dominant dog but will be more mellow if he is lower on the totem pole? Just relax and enjoy the good life, Owen! These people are your ticket to all things wonderful! :)

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

That photo cracked me up!

Owen, I was prepared to make excuses for all of your sins listed above - "He's a free spirit!" "He has such joie de vivre!" "He marches to a different drum!" and so on- until I got to # 5. Now I must say to you, "For shame, Owen!" They may just be a collection of sticks and leaves to you, but to us, they are delectable treats, and at $4 per tiny box, tearing out those bushes is nothing short of juvenile doodlinquency!

I think Kona has revoked his puppy "license", Bonnie. LOL

[Anna and Achilles]

Owen is a hoot!!! Adorable too!