Meet Reggie!

I must like getting dogs in August. As I was writing the title I realized that it was a little less than a year ago that I wrote, "Meet Buck." This also means that I have been living in Idaho for over a year! It is hard to believe how quickly it has passed. Reggie is a soft coated wheaten terrier. Despite living in northern Idaho, there is still a bit of the high maintenance city girl in me. Reggie is a pure bred. Believe it or not, he was flown to me from Nebraska.

I had quite a time trying to get him out here. The forcasted temperature of the final destination has to be 85 degrees or lower. Reggie was set to ship out during one of our many heat waves. Twice, his flight got canceled. Jon and Noel were kind enough to pick Reggie up at the airport once they dropped Maggie off. I came home from work last Tuesday to this little guy covered in pee just dying to be loved. And of course, I loved him, regardless of the pee.

Time to be honest. Reggie is a handful. There is a huge difference between getting a 4 month old puppy and a 10 month old house broken puppy. Reggie had trouble pooping when I first got him. I used Kendra's home remedy of pumpkin pie filling to loosen things up. Sure enough, things started moving. One day he pooped on the deck and as I went to clean it up I realized why Reggie was having trouble pooping. Reggie eats rocks. A lot of dogs like to pick up rocks and roll them around in their mouth and might accidentally swallow them. Not Reggie. Reggie eats rocks and dirt. I did some research and apparently pica is very common in puppies. Unfortunately, it is also very dangerous as he could require surgery if he eats a rock that his little intestines cannot pass. As a result of Reggie's interesting appetite and the large amount of rocks in my yard (the house is on an old river bed...) he must be supervised at all times to help him break the habit. I am hoping it is in relation to him cutting new teeth and will pass in time. It is beyond frustrating to watch someone you love repeatedly hurt themselves. It brings up all too familiar feelings which has left me particularly emotional lately.

The good news it the pumpkin pie filling is a great home remedy for constipation in dogs. The bad news is that I think I gave him too much. Being woken up in the middle of the night solely by the smell of puppy poop is by far one of the most disgusting things I have experienced in my life. Poor little guy cannot hold it in. If you have not noticed, I spend a lot of my time researching, and talking about poop now. It takes up a large portion of my day. I have had minutes taken off my life by three simple words, "Do your business, do your business." Speaking of poop. Reggie needs a bath.