Habits

I think Elli is perfection.

But, there are a couple things she does sometimes that I don't want to become bad habits.

She has always been really great about sleeping through the night, even when she was a puppy. But every now and then she seems to go through a faze where she wants to go out in the night. I don't mind taking her out if she really has to go. In fact I'm quite impressed with how good she is with letting me know. The problem comes in when she wants to get up just to play or see what's going on. This is where I get a little frustrated and a little worried that it will become a habit.

I've been trying to determine whether she really has to go, or just wants to play, by talking to her in a stern voice. Usually she will either settle back down, but if she really really has to go out she will quietly tap my arm with her paw. It's strange the way people learn to communicate with their animals. It's also facsinating how much can be communicated.

My second concern with Elli has to do with a common problem. Often when I walk Elli we will hear dogs barking at us through the front windows of their homes. Elli isn't the type to bark a lot, not even when people come to the door. She is the type who has taken to having naps in the front living room of our house. I think what happens is that every once in a while she will hear something or someone outside and it startles her awake. She has a very unique "scared bark" as I call it. She won't do it for long. Often I end up bringing her down to the basement where I'll be sitting. It's hard, but I'm trying to break that habit and not allow it to get any worse.