Still chewing after all these months

Rope Chew

Born: 1:00 PM

Died: 2:00 PM

He loves his rope toys. We found this one at of all places, Albertson's in the dog and cat toy section. Only $4.99. We started buying them about 6 months ago and found that of all his tows, he loves these the best. We originally got him a few pricier ones at Petco but he wasn't as enamored with them as much as the Albertson's brand, pictured above. When we bring a new one home, he knows instantly that his favorite toy is in the house. OK, maybe all dogs do this but it's still pretty cute when he does his little "oh boy a new toy" dance. 

At first, the ropes would last for weeks. Recently, his chewing gusto has reduced them to tow knots in a matter of minutes. There's a collection of single knot toys around the house that he still loves to play with. 

Here's a picture of him with another rope toy.

He sometimes gets into a little trance playing with them. He'll roll on his back and with the rope toy in his mouth, he'll stay there for several minutes. It's like he's savoring the fine taste and smell of it. Maybe it's like catnip for him. 

Probably his most favorite chews are bully sticks we buy him. These are a God-send when it comes to keeping him occupied and away from mischief. They cost $29.00 for a package of two 12-inch sticks, quite a bit in my opinion!  I cut them in half with my circular saw to get 4 6-inch chews. The picture above is a recently released 6-inch one I was able to pry away from him for a picture. They are so precious to him apparently that we have to block the dog door when we give him one or he'll immediately take it outside and bury it for safe keeping. Eventually, he'll settle down and slip into chewing nirvana. They will occupy him for hours sometimes. You can see that their braided. Once he gets them down about halfway, they split into three chews which is a bonus for all of us. We can put a chew in almost every room in the house. 

Like his rope toy, he has become more accomplished at chewing these. We're lucky if we can get a package to last a week now. As he's grown his chewing has intensified and gotten stronger. But he's a big boy now and has what seems to be endless amounts of energy. So we learn to adapt trying to keep the right things in his mouth and the wrong things out. He is changing and we're changing too. What he'll want to chew on next is anybody's guess. Just as long as it's not us!

Is he awesome yet?

Well here we are again. Almost six months have passed since Gumbo turned 1 year old. He's an adult now by veterinarian terms but if his behavior is any guide, he's still a crazy puppy. He's now almost 19 months old and still full of puppy energy. His breeder assured us that when he was 18 months old, he'd "be awesome". What that meant we weren't completely sure although the notion that he could slow down a bit and be a bit less rambunctious was exciting to us. He's kept us in a constant state of motion since we brought him home. Maybe he'll sit and do like other dogs do. Maybe he'll fall asleep on the couch, maybe in our lap. Maybe. Maybe not. 

Maybe it would be good to start with what hasn't changed in 6 months. He still loves to chase a ball. Any ball. Tennis balls are now a special favorite since he was able to convince me to part with a few from my lower-back therapy supply. Chewing. Boy can this little dynamo chew! Nothing is off limits for his teeth! Our vet does his best to reassure us when we mention his chewing habits saying, "it's normal, terriers interact with the world through their mouth." Barking. He has a nice, strong voice. It's shake-you-to-the-core strong. If we're sitting, quietly reading (despite what I say, we do have these moments) sometimes he'll hear something and instantly rise and let out a room-shaking bark. It's a wonder either of us haven't had a heart attack. 

I know it sounds like I'm complaining. After rattling off a list of what he's doing may sound like he's not changed at all. But he has. He has turned many corners and surprised both of us almost daily.  Are we looking too hard for progress? Perhaps. But perhaps he's just growing and changing as a normal terrier does. Sure, he's not on the same track as our other Jack Russell, but that would be boring wouldn't it. He has his own personality and it's truly a joy to watch him grow and adapt to our world. 

Well, that's it for now. Stay-tuned as there's a lot more to say in the coming weeks. Watching Gumbo grow into his second year will keep us all young!