Bon Chien Good Dog

05/30/2026

What kind of sploot does your dog do? Stewie style or Moshi spread?

05/16/2026

I hesitate posting this because all I see is how big I've gotten. But one of my worst regrets with Boss is that I don't have many pictures of me and him together. I had bought a photoshoot package for two shoots with and only did one because I wasn't comfortable in front of the camera at my size. I wanted to lose weight before doing the second one. I didn't lose the weight. Boss died. I missed out on having pictures of Boss and me. I also don't have many pictures of me with the dogs I walk or care for. I also don't have many (if any) pictures of me and Rocky, me and Romulus, me and Georgia, me and Chloe... all dogs I loved (and still love) and cared for who have crossed the rainbow bridge.

You might think I'm posting these because there's me and Stewie, but nope, this is me and with Stewie looking on like "that's my mom" And Willow saying "I knew her first so she's mine, not yours. We are in love and are running away together." 😁

I can't believe Willows mama got photos of Willow NOT licking my face!

05/04/2026

Have you heard of the "3 days, 3 weeks, 3 months" guideline for when you get a new dog?
It states that for the first 3 days the dog is fearful, after 3 weeks the dog is starting to settle in, and after 3 months the dog is fully comfortable.
This is false. Not even close to what it's really like.

The reality is it'll take the time it takes and you should be prepared for it to take a year, maybe more. Even if you keep your routine the same, the environment is always changing. There are so many things out of your control.
New variables are constantly being introduced which can cause stress. Maybe after 3 months road work begins on your street, or a neighbour begins home renovations. That introduces new sounds, new smells, new mouvement, New people, new objects, and more, into your dog's life. So no, your dog wouldn't be fully comfortable, they'd be faced with an overwhelming amount of decompression disruptors.

Month 8 and Stewie snuggled on the couch with me asking for pets for the first time.
He does ask for pets often when we're outside; he'll jump up on a bench and "demand" his small chuck it ball, then nudge me for pets, while holding the ball in his mouth. We'll sit there for a long while, at times an hour easily.
Now he's doing it at home.
He's communicating that he trusts me more and feels safer around me.

I know a lot of people don't want dogs on their furniture because they place a lot of value on those items. But if I placed those restrictions on Stewie (or any dog), I'd be hindering our growing bond by creating distance, a limit to how close he can get to me physically and emotionally and as a result, I'd be hindering his decompression. Also, I wouldn't be seeing the full picture, I wouldn't have known that he IS cuddly and affectionate. I wouldn't have seen how relaxed he could be and because of everything I wouldn't have seen, I wouldn't have known he's still decompressing.

I wonder what more there is to see if Stewie.

04/22/2026

It's been 8 months since I adopted and guess what? He's still decompressing. He's still discovering his environment and still learning about the world around him.
Decompression isn't linear. It moves forward and backwards, up and down. While getting used to one thing, something new is often introduced. Stewie is from California, so what is one huge new thing he would encounter in Montreal that would change almost daily? The weather! I mean winter alone, the snow, the cold, the ice... Then comes the spring revealing all the smells and textures hiding under the snow.

Stewie bites when overstimulated, overtired, anxious, excited, and when touched or handled in ways he doesn't want to be. He barks a lot. He destroys things I don't want him to destroy (all of the dog beds I had. They were Boss'. I cried) . So I've often felt overwhelmed, frustrated, annoyed, and doubted my decision to adopt him. It's often led to me considering an e-collar (shock collar) because it would have been easier to have an "off" button than to work through Stewie's not so fun behaviors.
But the thing is, punishing Stewie for adjusting to his environment wouldn't have helped. Punishing Stewie for things he "knows" or "should know by now" would be like expecting your child to get 100% on every single quiz, exam, project in every class and shocking them when they get less than that. Imagine the stress they would feel every day? Imagine the anxiety they would feel when having to answer a question?

Stewie isn't the dog he was 8 months ago. This past month alone he has
- chosen to sleep in my bed instead of the chair in my room
- cuddled up to me on the couch instead of curling up in a corner or laying on the floor
- barked less (we've been working on it)
- biting me less often
- he hasn't destroyed anything (aside from the things I give him to destroy)
- he's more calm and more focused.

Using punishment would have made him and his world smaller because it would have made him scared to do something "out of line". Giving him room for "mistakes" and time to adjust has allowed him to flourish and has opened up his world.

04/17/2026

I swear Stewie isn't that much bigger than Theo.

04/12/2026

04/08/2026

If you could hear how loudly she snores...

03/15/2026

Moshi doesn't believe in personal space.

03/08/2026

This is why one of Stewie's nicknames is Taz (short of Tasmanian Devil)

He's somehow becoming more and more like Boss everyday.

I started playing tug with him as a way to redirect his biting/mouthing. Now "demands" we play tug every night, just like Boss did. And it's always after the last walk of the day.
And just like Boss, he's very vocal when he plays!

02/24/2026

The Pest went home today.
Stewie immediately went to lay down and fell asleep. 😂