Rusty Update

Maybe I should change the title of the blog to Eva and Rusty’s World, because it feels like Rusty has absorbed an awful lot of my attention and the spotlight since his arrival.

I am very pleased to report that he has matured greatly and adapted to his world with us. But there were some really touch and go moments there for a while. He began to turn a corner in late June and then when we returned from Whalen Family week in mid-July, he seemed really “at home.” That’s not to say he doesn’t still have accidents in the house (argh), but he is so much more comfortable with other people. He likes our babysitter now, and I have been able to line up a dog-sitter/walker. He still doesn’t like the cleaning people, and I am going to stay home the next couple times they come, so he can hopefully acclimate himself a bit more. In early June, I tried to enroll him in doggie daycare, but it was clearly too early and he “flunked” the admission screening. I am hoping he’ll get to a place where he can do that. It will allow for a lot more flexibility.

Our biggest challenges at this point are the occasional accidents (especially in Eva’s and my rooms; I am convinced a dog lived in the house previously and the carpets still have the dog’s scent) and his tendency to nip at people clothes (which sometimes means skin). He mostly does that with new people and particularly those with dogs! We’re working on it, but it is hard. I think that once he came into his own in terms of socializing with humans, he started really living into his puppy-hood!

The photos are of Rusty after his first grooming. I hadn’t realized just how shaggy and scruffy he was until I saw him without so much hair. His coat had gotten matted, so they had to go pretty short, but I think the shorter cut has helped him weather this ridiculously hot summer.