At 7:30, Grace got up and whined softly. At 7:45, I took her out. It was wet and drizzling. Grace went straight for the Estatoe Trail. Once we got there, she went about 500 yards, turned around, and headed back. We went back up aroumd the credit union grounds before returning home at 8:15.
Togetherness
Betsy who was just finishing up, switched off and took her as I did my breakfast. When I returned at 9:00, Grace was anxious to see me and again gave me the royal welcome. Grace definitely preferred both Betsy and me to be with her and would whimper if one or the other left.
On the Go
At 10:00, we made it to Bryan Center. Grace did not last long in Betsy’s mom’s room before she needed to go outside. She found a small piece of her sock toy lying on the ground where she had severed it Saturday. I took it to the car, grabbed a tennis ball, and returned to the room. Grace played shortstop in the room the rest of the time we were there.
Fast Food Lunch
At 11:15, we left for Tore’s Place. After saying good-bye to Betsy’s dad, we headed for home. At 12:30, we stopped for lunch at Wendy’s. The lady at the take-out window asked if it was okay to give Grace a dog biscuit. I told her, “Yes.” After a short walk in the grass with her, I shared french fries and hamburger with Grace. Grace then had her lunch. At 1:00, we headed on for home. Grace napped most of the way but did get up a few times and looked out the window.
Home, Sweet, Home
When we finally approached home, Grace began to recognize landmarks and became excited. At 4:05, we arrived. Grace then took me to Grace Beach. After about a half hour of fetch, Grace’s heat-seeking radar locked in on some people walking on the path. She raced to them and then returned. Some of the kids thought it was fun to have Grace run toward them. Fifteen minutes later, they tried to bait her again, but she didn’t go for it.
At 5:10, we returned home. I gave her a bath, but she had to be given physical encouragement to come. I expect this will resolve in a day or two as she becomes more comfortable with her surroundings and my giving her showers. Grace then had her supper and went out on the balcony.
While I unloaded the car, Grace watched and whimpered from the balcony. I reassured her. At 5:45, I finished and gave Grace a peanut butter jar to clean out. She was sundowning. I gave her a cardboard box to shred. Then, as I ate supper we played shortstop. When I finished she approached me with a remnant from her tug toy. We played with that for fifteen minutes.
At 6:30, Grace went back on the balcony. She barked when she saw something different or a dog. I went out to quiet her. At 6:40, she was back inside playing with the sock toy. After another half hour of sock tug play, Grace returned to the balcony to watch for friends. When she came in to play tug again at 7:45, I took her to Borador Park.
After twenty minutes, Grace spotted a couple of creamy English Labrador Retrievers that moved in a few days earlier. She barked to get their attention. Their owner brought them in and they played for ten minutes. Shortly after they left, Beckham came and played with Grace a few minutes.
As we returned home, we met another new dog just moving in. It looked similar to a Border Collie or perhaps an Australian Shepherd. At 8:45, we came inside and Grace went straight to the balcony. At 9:15, Grace came in and curled up in the living room chair but immediately moved to her sofa. That’s where she was when I went to bed at 10:00.
Monday
Grace got up at 6:30 and lay in the master suite hallway. It was wet and raining lightly. Grace went to the office ottoman to watch out the window. The window is higher than at the other apartment so the ottoman is not high enough for her to lie comfortably and look out. She was sitting up there when I first saw her. As I looked in, she looked back at me. That’s always a cute pose.
Different Day
The rain seemed to be letting up, so I took her out at 6:45. We went to Borador Park. After a half hour, Olivia showed up. Grace was happy to see her despite the lack of interaction between them. As we returned home, Betsy was leaving for her first day at a new job. Grace watched her go. We then returned to the apartment. Grace went to her sofa.
We had a clogged disposal drain. At 9:15, in the process of trying to fix it, I banged on the pipe with my hand. That sounded like a knock on the door and concerned Grace, prompting her to bark softly. I showed her I was the cause of the noise. She decided to move to the office floor to sleep on the plastic carpet protector rather than deal with the commotion that I was causing.
At 10:10, I left to do some errands. Grace indicated she wanted to go with me. Off we went. First, we picked up some drawings. On the way, I noticed a strong odor like electrical insulation burning. I thought it was from outside, but when I made it to my first destination, I realized that it was from inside the car. I regretted taking Grace with me. Grace went with me to pick up the drawings — up the elevator and down the hall. She handled herself in her usual mature way.
Our next stop was to deliver the drawings. I tried to keep the windows open a bit, but it was also raining. We went together to make our delivery at the builder’s office. The lady commented on how Grace was such a big help. She actually did help me retrace my steps around a few winding halls to the car.
Next, we went to a number of grocery stores for a few items each. Grace waited patiently, usually sitting in the driver’s seat. I kept the windows cracked open as far as I could without making a break-in trivial. Each time I returned, Grace moved from the driver’s to passenger’s seat as I opened the door. I did not have to tell her to move. I gave her a treat when I returned.
When we stopped at the auto repair shop, Grace came in. She saw a plate from below a flower pot and investigated it. As I talked about my car problem, Grace waited patiently. We stopped at a few more stores before returning home at 2:00. She had the leftovers from an ice cream container, followed by her lunch and a dental chew.
Time to Recharge
When she finished, she jumped up on her sofa and went to sleep. Having gone without her morning nap she was obviously tired. At 4:30, I went running and told Grace bye-bye. She understood. I returned a half hour later, and Grace greeted me. She had been shredding some of the cardboard boxes I placed in her toy box.
At 5:15, Betsy came home. The weather began to clear. Betsy gave Grace her supper as I went downstairs to get another load of groceries from the car. When I returned, Grace made it clear she was ready to go outside. She led me down to Grace Beach. We played fetch as well as catch along the shore. She’s getting very good at catching the ball when it is thrown to her.
When we returned at 6:30, I ate supper. Grace did tricks for chicken scraps. She now has roll back solidly. At 8:00, we headed back to South Cary to drop off the car. Grace rode in the passenger seat of my car looking very human as she sat upright, calmly looking forward. When we returned home at 8:45, Grace went to Borador Park. While she met up with a number of dogs who were outside the park, none joined us inside. Grace was disappointed with each lost potential opportunity for a playmate. Grace played fetch and shortstop, but it really isn’t the same as roughhousing with a friend.
When we returned home at 9:30, Grace went straight to her bed. When I went to bed at 10:10, Grace was in our bed.
Tuesday
Grace moved between her bed on the floor to our bed during the night. When I got up at 6:40, she lay quietly on the master suite hall floor. She was in no hurry to go out despite seeing Olivia in the dog park. The morning temperature was a very pleasant 68 degrees as she lay on the balcony lounge chair. At 7:15, Grace had waited long enough. She was ready to go. I applied some paw wax to each of her paws, and we headed for Borador Park.
Routine Morning
Grace had her normal playtime with Sadie at the usual time and otherwise just enjoyed her freedom and the fresh air in the playground. We left the park with Sadie at 8:10, made a round to attend to business, and returned to the park at 8:15. I really didn’t want to stick around, but Grace did, so I relented. We stayed fifteen minutes more before returning home.
Once home, Grace had her breakfast and lay on the living room chair. I did a few exercises inside, dressed for my run and left at 8:55. I told her “Bye-Bye.” Grace knew the routine. When I returned at 9:30, Grace was lying on her back on the sofa. We did our usual tummy rubs and kisses. Grace had a nutritional pill treat and resumed her nap.
At noon, Grace had her lunch followed by a doggie treat. While I talked on the phone and then ate, Grace played shortstop. When I finished, Grace returned to the living room to rest on the sofa. At 2:30, Grace let me know that Grace Beach awaits. We left at 2:40. Before we got there, Grace found a tennis ball in the rocks.
Duck!
At the beach, there were 26 ducks. As we approached, most swam off. Grace chased a straggler in the water. It immediately took flight. Grace found the ball that I normally use to play fetch with her. The first time I threw it, she took it out of sight as she saw something and chased it. A couple minutes later she came back.
We used the ball that she found, but she wasn’t as interested as usual in playing fetch. She dug the biggest hole I’ve seen so far. It was large enough and deep enough for her to crawl into. When we returned home at 4:00, Grace went straight to the shower. When we finished, I trimmed her front claws with the grinder. She eventually came when I called her for that, but before I completed her front paws, she was resisting fairly strongly. When we finally completed the job, I gave her praise and a treat.
Evening Playtime
She went to the office, and I began vacuuming. When I was doing the living room, Grace came in and passed me to go to the balcony. After I finished, Grace stayed there until she saw some friends at Borador Park at 5:45. When she arrived, two of the dogs left. Reggie stayed to play with Grace. They were fine with each other, but each wanted to be chased, so they were out of sync.
At 6:00, Olivia and Rascal showed up. That caused Reggie to start snarling so he left. Grace played with Olivia’s owner and me until they left at 6:10. Then Hannah and Miley (the two tan English Labrador Retrievers showed up). Their owners brought an oversized tennis-type ball. Grace was the only one who would fetch it, but she had trouble gripping it because of its size. When we returned home at 6:30, Betsy greeted Grace.
The balcony door was open. Grace went out on the balcony and sat in front of it. At 7:15, Grace spotted friends at the park. We rushed out to meet Abby. Grace and Abby played for a few minutes before the caretaker of Abby took her in. We made a loop and met up with Olivia and Rascal. The three dogs went to the dog park. Grace then played with onlookers and with me. At 8:10, when we returned home, Betsy had the balcony door open. Grace went back out there and resumed her watching and waiting.
Grace came in and stretched out on her sofa at 8:30. I went to bed at 9:00. Grace joined me there when Betsy came in at 9:20.
Wednesday
Grace slept on the bed most of the night, but did get down on the floor for a while. She was in the master suite hall when Betsy’s alarm sounded at 6:10. I got up and gave Grace tummy rubs for kisses on the floor. She wanted to play shortstop in the living room. We played with her orange ChuckIt! ball. At 6:45, she spotted Olivia at Borador Park. We rushed out the door to start our day.
Grace was happy for friends to be there at the park, but she played fetch mainly with Olivia’s owner and me. After ten minutes, they left. Grace took her short circuit walk to do her business and return to the park. Grace saw Reggie. He came up to the door of the park but was not allowed in. Grace put her neck through the only opening in the park that is wide enough for her head to get closer. After a minute, Reggie’s owner took him on. I felt bad for Grace as she tried so hard to have another friend to come and play with her.
Safe Place
At 7:45, Sadie came in. They remained relatively aloof to start. Then Grace started to use the bench as a safe place. Grace is a little bit smaller than Sadie and can maneuver under the bench more easily. Sadie did bite Grace’s ear once enough to evoke a soft whimper from Grace, but generally, they played well together. As they left at 8:10, we left with them. As Grace entered our building, she caught up with Ellie-Mae. They interacted a little bit but mainly wanted to be petted by owners.
Napping
When Grace came home at 8:20, she went to the balcony. It was cool enough to leave the balcony door open for her. After eating her breakfast, she returned to the balcony. At 9:15, I told her bye-bye and left for my run, leaving the balcony door open enough for Grace to come inside. When I returned, she was lying on the loveseat. I greeted her with a treat and praised her as usual.
At 9:30, Grace moved to her sofa for serious napping. She stretches out there sometimes and changes positions often. In particular, she likes to lie stretched out on her back. It’s very cute. At 12:20, Grace had her lunch followed by a doggie treat and dental chew. She then returned to her sofa. At 1:10, the phone rang. Grace went out on the balcony. A half hour later she came in out of the heat to cool down on the foyer floor.
Swimming and Running
At 3:05, I finally took Grace out. She led me to Grace Beach. We played our usual fetch game, but I added a catch in the sequence also. The hole the Grace Excavation Company dug the day before was still there, and she dug two more on either side of a log that she merged into one. She demonstrated her intelligence by moving a piece of wood out of the way as it interfered with her work.
At 4:10, we headed home. Grace wanted to go off of the leash. It’s always a little scary, but I trusted her. She ran up and down the grassy hills and into a level field. She too the opportunity to do her business there as is becoming her routine now. She wanted to head past our sidewalk up to the apartment. Although she ran out of sight down the path, she came back and let me leash her as we went up the walk.
When we returned home, Grace obediently and almost directly went to the shower. She had no fear. She even helped by lifting each leg to allow me to rinse the bottom of each paw and moved over to give me better access to the undone side. I’ll mark this as a milestone for her moving to aid her shower. After the shower and a treat, she went out on the balcony and watched the rain from a sheltered area.
Lazy Evening
At 5:15, Grace came in and ate her supper. After supper, she wanted more. She had a doggie treat followed by a dental chew. At 5:40, she returned to the balcony. At 6:00, she came in and camped on the sofa. Betsy and I left her home alone at 6:10. When we returned at 8:50 Grace was in her spot in the bed. In my haste to leave, I left on the closet light which left the room lit up and a bit less conducive to her sleep. We greeted one another in the usual manner.
At 9:00, we went to Borador Park. After staying a half hour and no friends coming in, Grace returned home and went to bed. We followed her there at 10:00.
Thursday
Grace spent most of the night in bed but did move to her bed and finally to the floor. That’s where she was when the alarm sounded at 6:30. We gave her good-morning tummy rubs, and Grace returned the affection. At 6:50, we headed off to Borador Park. As we entered, Olivia and Rascal came in. Olivia actually played tug on the rope toy with Grace. After about ten minutes, they left, and Grace did her usual short walk in the grass to take care of business.
Spirited Play
After fifteen minutes, Beckham came in. While Grace excitedly greeted him, that was about it. Close behind came Sadie. Today the energy level had returned. Grace and Sadie went at it enthusiastically. Grace did less hiding under the bench and more being chased. Sadie seemed to be getting the upper hand lately as she had her collar off and cheated by biting Grace’s ears and legs (against the roughhouse rules).
Spooky
At 8:00, Sadie left. After Grace caught her breath, we returned home at 8:15. Grace then had her breakfast and followed up with napping on the sofa. At 8:45, I left to go running and told Grace, “Bye-Bye.” When I returned Grace was still on the sofa napping. We greeted with our usual gestures. I told her, “Good bye-bye” and gave her a treat. As I sat across from her in full daylight, I was shocked that for a moment, I could not distinguish her body from the black leather sofa and wondered where she was. She was six feet away directly in front of me.
At 11:50, Grace stretched off of the sofa and went to the balcony lounge chair. Her shiny black coat glistened in the bright noonday sun. After five minutes, she was panting to stay cool. At noon, she came in and lay on the foyer floor. At 12:15, Grace had lunch followed by two types of doggie treats, followed by a dental chew. Worked on shredding a cardboard box and then wanted to play with her tug sock. Finally, she moved back up on her sofa for more napping.
Swimming and More
Grace again stayed home alone as I left to pick up my car at 1:15. When I returned at 2:30, Grace went to Grace Beach. The water was warm. Grace obviously enjoyed it. She even turned after fetching the tennis ball and swam with the ball in her mouth out into deeper water before turning and returning to shore. Grace ran off for a few minutes. I lost sight of her and walked to where I suspected she headed. Finally, she came running toward me, and we went back to the beach. Later, she did more swimming with nothing in her mouth. She just seemed to enjoy the feel of swimming and felt confident of her ability. I’ll mark this choice to go swimming as a another milestone.
After about a half hour, a couple of people were walking their Whippets. One was leashed and the other was running free. Grace turned on her dog-seeking radar. The owners caught Grace by the collar and told me that one of her dogs is potentially violent as a result of being attacked by a Rottweiler. The Grace Excavation Company did more digging. She found a nut in its outer shell an played with it before eating part of it.
At 3:45, we started back. I leashed her, but I could tell she wanted to do one more romp through the high grass as we went home. I unleashed her and Grace darted freely up the grassy hill, back down, into the level field and back out. Once we made it to the sidewalk to go back to the apartments, she came reluctantly and I leashed her. We had a package to pick up at the office.
Watching for Friends
My hands were full with two packages, normal things I carry, and Grace. She wanted to stop at the dog park. I got her to move on. She then planted herself in some lush shady grass. After a few minutes, she got up and we returned home at 4:20. Grace went straight to the shower. After we finished, she went out on the balcony. At 5:05, she came in and returned to her sofa. When Betsy returned at 5:20, they greeted.
At 5:35, Grace had her supper. At 5:45, I took Grace out to meet Miley and Hannah. Grace liked hanging out with the other dogs, but basically played fetch with their owner. Betsy took over at 6:00. When they returned at 6:30, Grace out on the balcony to watch for friends. At 7:20, I noticed Beckham was out there. Grace didn’t bother making any requests to go back out there.
At 7:50, Grace spotted Loki and Abby. We raced to Borador Park. Abby and Grace played some of the time. The two dogs left at 8:05. Olivia and Rascal came at 8:20. Grace played fetch with the rope toy. At 8:35, we returned home. Grace went directly to the balcony to continue enjoying the pleasant night air.
Grace came in at 8:55 and stretched out on the sofa. At 9:10, I went to bed. Some time later, Grace jumped up in bed but immediately jumped back down. It could be that she couldn’t find an open spot and did not want to disturb me. Betsy said Grace moved between the floor and her bed. When I awoke at 3:35, Grace was lying in an uncomfortable position next to my side of the bed. Later, when she was in her bed, I patted at the foot of the bed where she normally sleeps, but she wouldn’t budge.
Friday
At 6:30, the alarm clock sounded, and we got up. At 7:00, after applying some pad wax to Grace’s front paws, we headed out to Borador Park. There were no friends there, so Grace did her walk in the grass first. Shortly after Grace returned, Olivia and Rascal came by. Olivia continues to make progress with playing but still mainly just walks around. Sadie came at her usual time and Grace and she gave each other a good workout.
Special Delivery
I had found a letter that someone had dropped in the grass. We left the dog park and delivered it. As we headed back home, Grace heard Beckham barking. He was in the park. Grace joined him until he left after about ten minutes. When we returned at 8:20, Grace curled up in the chair. Grace stayed there as I told her good-bye and went out for my morning run. When I returned, Grace was on her sofa. I greeted and praised her as usual and gave her a treat.
At 10:10, I tried putting some lotion on Grace’s pads. When I finished, she proceeded to lick them for about fifteen minutes. Grace had her lunch followed by a doggie treat. After the treat Grace gave me the chomp-chomp gesture, which usually means she wants something to chew. I gave her a dental chew and told her I had to go bye-bye. She understood and went to the sofa for another nap.
Afternoon at the Beach
When I returned home at 2:30, Grace took me to Grace Beach. On the way, she met a German Shepherd and Australian Shepherd. They all went to the beach. Their owner threw sticks into the deep end. Grace was by far the best swimmer and fetched every stick except those much closer to the German Shepherd. When she tired from the swimming, I switched to throwing the ball in shallow water. When she was rested from that, I switched back to throwing the stick out in the deep.
When we finished, I let Grace come home off of the leash. She ran up and down the hill as before. Then, she met a dad with his two young boys and followed them. She followed them back to Grace Beach. They didn’t know to throw a stick, so nothing much happened. Grace followed them back. Eventually, I tore her away from them and we returned home at 4:15. After her bath, Grace went to the balcony to watch.
Fun with Friends
At 4:45, Grace saw Abby. We raced to meet her at the park, and they played roughhouse for about twenty minutes before Abby left. Betsy joined us at 5:15. We went back home at 5:30, and Grace had her supper. At 6:30, Betsy and I left Grace home alone as we went out for pizza. It turned out that the place we went had dog-friendly outdoor seating. If we had known, we would have taken her. Next time, we will.
When we returned home at 8:00, we told Grace “Good bye-bye” and gave her some pizza crusts. Grace then wanted to play. She started with her puppy. She tends to play with it when we are gone. I told her to get a ball. She got one but not the one we usually use. We played shortstop with that before switching to her normal ball. I played shortstop with her until 8:40. Then I went to the bedroom to work on my writing. Grace brought a sock to play with. I tried to explain to her that I had other things I needed to do, but she persisted.
I took the sock to Betsy, but that didn’t work. When Grace returned, I invited her onto the bed. That satisfied her as she lay peacefully at my feet. I ate a snack and Grace followed. She had three types of treats. At 9:45, Betsy took her out for the last time. When they returned at 10:00, Grace came to bed. I joined her ten minutes later.
Saturday
Grace got down from the bed in the middle of the night and slept in the master suite hall. I got up at 6:30. We left for Borador Park at 6:45. Beckham left as we approached. After taking the water in, we went for our walk to relieve her before returning to the park. Grace lay there patiently in the cool air on the wood chips for about thirty minutes. Then, Otis came.
Park and Beach Play
Otis was remarkably better behaved. His owner said she was doing specific training to reverse aggressive behaviors. He was back to his old playful self. Grace mainly played tug-of-war with the rope toy with Otis. Grace always won. At 8:15, Betsy joined us. I left fifteen minutes later. When they returned at 9:35, Grace had her breakfast and then curled up in the living room chair as I went to the bedroom to study. At noon, Grace had her lunch. I went to another room and shut the door to study.
At 1:40 Betsy and I went out to a pool party to get a bite to eat. Grace wanted to come, but she understood bye-bye. When we returned at 2:15 Grace was asleep on the carpet protector in the office. We gave her a treat. At 2:30, Grace took Betsy to Grace Beach. When they returned at 4:30, Betsy lamented that Grace ran off for about five minutes after her swim running in the big level field.
Building Inspection
After her bath, Grace went out on the balcony. At 5:30, she came in. At 6:00, Grace whimpered at my shut door. I thought she was wanting my attention. After about five minutes, I realized she hadn’t had her supper. I fed her. While Betsy and I ate at 6:45, Grace wanted something. Betsy finally satisfied her with a dental chew.
At 7:15, we went off to look at a house. Grace rode in the front seat with the dog restraint. Grace stayed outside but liked it enough to stay there. She behaved very well as we traded off holding her leash. Grace rode in the back seat on the way back. When we came home, Grace went to the park. No friends showed up, but Grace did spot a cat and barked at it.
When we returned at 9:15, Grace wanted a treat. I finally gave her a piece of a hamburger for tricks. Grace was very responsive with her tricks to earn that treat. After that Grace jumped up on the sofa. I went to bed at 9:40.