Jan tried to scoop Chili up on his lap when we got home from agility class on Monday and she screamed. We knew she was a bit tired and sore from the weekend, but had assumed it was her legs or shoulders or.... When Jan scoops her up, he picks her up from under her chest and holds her upside down on his lap. She usually relaxes into it and sprawls out for a tummy rub. We are guessing that all the muscles in her stomach/truck are really sore and strained. We've been giving her some mild pain medication for the last two days, which seems to help, and encouraging her to move around enough to keep from stiffening up too much. She was very sore when I got home from work yesterday, because she had likely been sleeping all day. She's not been jumping on and off the furniture like usual and has been slow to go up and down the larger steps around the house and yard too. She is wagging and happy as always and is eating fine and even playing with toys. She seems less sore today and I always used to find that the second day after a running race was the most painful for me, so hopefully she is on the road to recovery.
Since I was gone all weekend and Jan golfed for most of the day on several of the days, Ecko got to go on adventures with friends Jessi M and Leah. Here is Jessi's fun report:
So I thought I would let you know what little Ecko got to do while she was with me Friday to Saturday.
We came home from Pup and she ran the Bassets around the backyard. Chasing them and barking up a storm, having a blast. They think she is just the most exciting pup they have ever met. They obviously remembered her from when she came to stay before, however they seemed surprised at how much bigger she is. She can now stand right over the top of them, which she seemed to enjoy doing. Ecko and I played some fetch with the tennis ball in the backyard and then went in the house for a few minutes to relax and wait for it too cool off a bit.
She then proceeded to raid the doggy toy box, taking out all of the toys and then taking them one by one and hiding them around the house. She put one under each pillow on the love seat and on the couch. She stuck a couple under the coffee table, and took one and put it under the desk. Then hid one under one of the rugs in the kitchen. I don't know if she does this at home but it was quite amusing to watch, if only I had the video camera handy.
Once it cooled off we went on a walk around the neighborhood. She was very alert the whole time we were walking, looking at me often to make sure she would be ok and receiving praise, as she did seem a little nervous of the new surroundings. She sat nicely at the intersections while we waited for cars. We walked past the community center where the square dancers were playing loud music with the doors open. A couple people were standing and sitting outside, creating sort of a tunnel of people she had to walk through. She was obviously concerned about it and wasn't sure if she should continue walking. So cookies in hand we proceeded to walk towards the tunnel of people and stopped to talk to them for a few minutes because they were asking questions about her. She visited with the ladies sitting on the ground and received lots of yummy salmon treats from them, and soon thought they were great! They were fascinated with her markings and "lovely curls". She visited with the others who were outside and then we continued on our way. We passed by the fire station and she received a nice scratching from a cute fireman who mistakenly thought she was a "doodle-something". So we educated him and continued on our way.
We walked through the park where some nice younger children asked to pet her so I gave them some cookies and Ecko made friends quickly with the kids once she realized they had food and lots of hands to pet her. We left the park and headed home, meeting nobody else on the way, as the park is half a block from my house.
We got home and she had a big drink of water and took a nap by the fan in the living room. Apparently as we were walking through the park she picked up some sticky leaves and tree debris on her legs. So I brushed her and she looked nice and fluffy, quite cute in my opinion. Soon after we went to bed.
Ecko entertained my mom during breakfast as she just chomped down on her thawed chicken wings. My mom was impressed by Ecko being able to just crunch the bones. After breakfast I loaded the crate back in the car and Ecko and headed back to Pup. We stopped to get gas in my car before leaving Newberg and the guy at the gas station amazed me, because he took one look at her and said, "Oh a Portuguese Water Dog! Don't see many of them around here." I was impressed, never thinking that this guy would have known what kind of dog she was, since there are none that I have seen in Newberg and most people often mistake the breed. He said she was gorgeous, so I bragged about her being a show dog. (I couldn't resist)
So she seemed to have a great time. Meeting about 20 new people, and romping around with the Bassets.
Ecko stayed with Leah on Saturday night and 'til Sunday afternoon. Ecko played nicely with PWD Gibson as always and enjoyed following Leah around, but was a bit naughty barking in her kennel during the night. She is used to sleeping in the kennel right next to our bed and apparently thought that being kenneled downstairs while humans were sleeping upstairs was not acceptable. It was a good learning experience for her and Leah was great to not let her out while she barked. She settled down for the night at some point. This is a good indicator for us that we should work on crating Ecko in situations other than she is used to, so she learns to be comfortable when kenneled "no matter what".
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