Another poopy day

In my last post I talked about how amazing Billy was yesterday. Well, today was a new day! Billy had a horrible day. This is typical of him though. He is super amazing one day and the next day a nightmare. So the bad day started out with a trip to the vet for shots. I took Billy and Goose at the same time, which was probably not a good idea since they both need work and attention in this area. That was mistake number 1. Mistake number 2 was not bringing any food or treats to divert their attention or reward for good behavior. So when another dog came into the office and Billy reacted by barking there was not too much I could do to help him. Of course Billy reacting to the other dogs caused Goose to bark as well. Billy really only reacts to other dogs when he is on leash, which is pretty typical. It would have been an awesome time to play the "look at that" game but instead, I just did my best to keep him quiet with no food, which was almost a lost cause. Beside the waiting room fiasco, both dogs did great with the exam and their shots. Goose had to get his rabies shot early because we are going on vacation to Canada in a woodsy area, so he needed it before we left. They said there was a possibility he would have a reaction from having puppy booster and rabies at the same time, which freaked me out. They gave me steroid pills and the vets cell phone in case he did. So far he seems perfectly fine though. Currently humping Billy's bed.

So I don't know if the experience at the vet stressed Billy out a lot or what was wrong with him, but after that we went to the barn, where I ride and Billy continued to be super annoying! I usually leave him in the car in the shade while I'm there and if its really hot I'll leave the car and A/C on. He loves the car and is super comfortable being in there by himself, but today he barked practically the whole time. He has a really obnoxious high pitched yip that he just never gets tired of yipping. For a while, I thought there was something wrong with him like he had to go to the bathroom or was hot or thirsty, so I took him out to potty, gave him water, and made sure it was cool in the car, which it was. I put him back and he continued to bark. Hmm. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that I took Goose out of the car to leave him in his crate in the tack room. I just don't know. Anyway, when I was able to finally let Billy out he was super revved up and did some awesome heeling and jumps in the barn. He was super super motivated to tug. He's so much fun when he is motivated!

The doggies in the tack room (Billy really likes chairs and couches so he made one out of a trunk)

On the way home I had to pick up my little sister from the fair, and apparently I had to pick up 2 of her friends as well. So all of us and Billy and Goose were all squeezed into my little car. After I dropped off her friends Goose started to get really whinny. I figured he might have to potty, but I was praying that he could hold it the 10 minutes to home. I usually have him ride on the floor on the passenger side (which is what I learned from raising a seeing eye dog) or have the person in the passenger seat hold him on their lap. However, Goose was in the back tonight because my sisters friends had been cuddling him on the way to their house. So, Goose was whining in the back and I was telling him to hang on because we were almost home. Well, when we finally got to my road, I looked in my rear view mirror and what did I see? The lovely silhouette of a hunched over Border Collie puppy above my trunk. (I have a hatchback, so there is like a cover that you can put over it.) It wasn't long before my sister and I were gagging over the smell and Goose (who had of course stepped in his poopy) was trying to come and sit on her lap. Needless to say, when we got home Gooey got his first bath. He wasn't a fan. I should have taken my time and helped him realize baths are not a bad thing, but it was an emergency de-pooping bath so he didn't get to enjoy it. He looks very silly when he is all wet!

A wet Goose

A fresh and clean Gooey with my brother