I Hear the Wheels of Progress!

Today we had some major breakthroughs with the dog-peed-in-the-hallway-again issue and the baby-gag-and-vomit problem.


First, the dog. As you might know, our bull terrier, Meeko, pees in our hallway. A lot. He is marking his territory, even though he is the only one who pees there and it can't possibly smell like anything but his own urine, but anyway. We know he knows it is wrong because if he does the deed while we are out (which he most likely will do), when we come home he is usually hiding with his head down in one of three places...his bed in our bedroom, a completely wide-open corner of the kitchen (does he think we are blind and can't see him?), or under the table behind our couch in the den.


Only a handful of times has he dared to pee with us standing next to him. Once, while my husband was petting him in the office, he got so excited or relaxed (I'm not sure which), he just started peeing. Didn't raise his leg or squat or anything. Just peed standing there.


So, early this morning, my husband was in the bathroom peeing with the door open (as men seem to always do) and Meeko was staring at him in the hallway. All of a sudden, Meeko starts peeing! Raised his leg and peed on the wall and the floor, like he wanted to be just like Daddy or he couldn't help it or I don't know what.


Now, keep in mind, Meeko hates to take baths. He loves water, but feels like he is being punished in the bathtub. We have to wash off his feet in the tub EVERYTIME he comes in from outside because he kicks up dirt in the yard with his hind legs, I guess burying his pee and poop. Punishment! I really wish I knew what dogs were thinking.


After he peed in the hallway, Meeko looked scared, knowing he is about to be punished for his compulsive need to mark the hallway. So, I guess he just decided to save us the trouble and punished himself...




He jumped into the bathtub!

He is hanging his head in shame...

He stayed in the tub for about thirty minutes. He eventually stretched out on the bottom and fell asleep. After that, how could we punish him? My husband and I just laughed and laughed. Smart dog. Punish yourself and then your parents will look on you with pity.

Next, as you might know, we haven't been able to get our son to eat anything but Stage 2 jarred baby foods (yackety-yak and oh my pasta stars!) He will be ten months old in six days and hasn't been able to eat anything I puree, yogurt, finger foods, stage 3 foods, without severe gagging and projectile vomiting. Our pediatrician told us that if he wasn't able to eat solids by ten months, then we would have to do a GI tract test to see if something is wrong.

We definitely don't want that. The test doesn't sound too pleasant for an infant or his worried parents.

But, finally, this morning, our son actually ate part of a rice Mum-Mum and he didn't throw up! Last time, we tried the finger foods, he threw up. This time, he gnawed and sucked on the thing till he could swallow it! I was so freaking proud of him! Then, he ate mashed up bananas for breakfast and didn't throw up! The last time I tried to give him mashed bananas, he threw up all over himself and me. I smashed up two chunks with a fork and he ate it like a champ! So, I decided to mash up two more chunks. About halfway through that bowl, he started gagging. I had to resort back to the jar baby food. I didn't want to press my luck and have him puking again.

This afternoon I tried to get him to eat another Mum-Mum and he looked at me like, "What am I supposed to do with this?" He never ate it, he just squished it and threw it on the floor in distress.

But, hey, we gotta start somewhere, right?