Confinement is over

Faith and Trevor came out of "confinement" on 4 April, and it seems like that ought to warrant an entry. And it does, except that it's been raining non-stop since then, and every time we've gone out, the other dogs in the neighborhood have been in-doors. So I'm left with no photos and a quick update. Which seems like a pretty lame excuse, but there it is. Lacking llamas or ducks to ship out, we're pretty boring around here.

Sheena (Food Lady) observed that Border Collies somehow contrive to end up in charge. It's true. Right about the time Faith crossed the 30 day mark, she (a) started verbalizing, and (b) decided she was part of the pack and should establish herself. It's like she flipped a switch, decided this was home, and that she ought to do something about it. Which is terrific, but sometimes amusing.

Up to this point, Trevor would try to hump Faith, and she would sit, and that was that. Nothing overtly assertive, but a clear sense of "yeah, try to hump that big boy!" But suddenly Faith has developed teeth. Nothing inappropriate, but a readiness to snap in Trevor's direction when he crosses the line. In the past, the "established" dog in my house has come out ahead. In this case, I'm watching a 32lb newcomer sort out a position that is likely to dominate the 60+lb incumbent. And it's all good, and it's all normal, but it is still a new variation on things I have seen before. Food Lady warned that Faith doesn't know how to back down once she decides to engage. Neither does Trevor, but each seems to respect the other.

And it's interesting to watch, because the line is moving. At first, it was "you're encroaching on my space, back off." And then it was "hey, don't lean on me like that." And then it was "hey, he's our little boy, and you're playing too rough." As Faith becomes more confident, she is progressively more willing to define the line for Trevor, and to assert her right to equal time and equal attention. In parallel with this, she has transitioned from "cuddle all night" to "cuddle until I'm done and then define my own space to sleep" on the bed. Meanwhile, Faith has worked out that curling up on my son's bed helps him sleep, and has taken this on as (part of) her job. She and Snickers (the cat) also seem to have come to a working truce of mutual non-acknowledgement.:-) And in the meantime, Faith and Trevor chase each other around the pool table and do their share of licking each other, all of which is part of proto-pack bonding.

My son has developed the habit of asking if he can walk Faith. Which (considering he's six) is great from several angles, not least of which is that Faith doesn't pull. Somebody went to real effort to "civilize" her, and I wish I could convince myself that the methods were humane. In this I think I share some of Sheena's (Food Lady's) nascent misgivings. But he loves the illusion that he is walking her, and she goes along. I feel a bit guilty, because you get what you put in, and I haven't invested sufficiently in Trevor. But for all that, Trevor isn't Faith, and it's fun to watch the relationship between Faith and my son evolve.

Life proceeds, and next time I'll have pictures.