This and that

Yes, the days are getting shorter... and not because it is getting dark earlier, but because Wesha is sleeping longer nowadays! I am back to my normal sleeping pattern (on week days that is!): to bed around 23.00 hrs and getting up around 07.00 hrs. When Tina has to start school at 07.30 hrs, we even wake up Wesha when we go downstairs!



Of course it is also getting dark earlier and that is not so much to Wesha's liking, because she is afraid in the dark outside! She will sometimes hardly go out in the garden when it is dark. And when we go for a walk, there is a lot of whimpering from her side. So we stopped going for walks in the dark a while back. When she gets more confident in the dark, we will start taking walks in the dark again. Yesterday evening, she seemed fine in the garden, so maybe it is already getting better.

This morning, I went to get the newspaper (meaning: me leaving the house for about 20-30 seconds) and Wesha didn't even whimper or bark. She had just woken up, so maybe she wasn't quite THERE yet. Because later this morning, I put her in the bench so that I could vacuum. (If I don't put her in the bench, she tries to eat the cable all the time.) However, when I had finished vacuuming, I walked downstairs to put the vacuum cleaner away and she started barking immediately. So we really have to train the being alone.



She really enjoys being in the black chair and she often sleeps in it now. Unfortunately, that doesn't mean she doesn't jump on the couch anymore. It is very difficult in the evenings. As soon as someone is sitting on the couch, Wesha starts her "terror". She jumps on the couch until someone chases or carries her off. She will repeat this infinitively if we don't distract her for a longer time (one search game is not enough, she will jump on the couch as soon as the game is over) or put her in the bench. I really try to not use the bench as a punishment and I always give her something to chew when she goes in the bench. But it is a good way to calm her down. So when she starts jumping on the couch, she often goes in the bench to calm down.
I have started feeding her the "meaty bones" meal in the evenings. Because this meal often keeps her busy for 30 - 60 minutes. And in that time we can sit on the couch and watch television in peace.

At least she never asks for attention when we are at the dining table. That is worth a lot! I instructed the kids before she came into our house that as soon as we sit at the dining table, they are no longer allowed to look at Wesha or talk to her. That really paid off. Sometimes, I even sit at the dining table to watch TV now. That usually stops Wesha from jumping on the couch too.