Lottie Update #6: The Schnauzer has Landed!

Well, Lottie has now spent over 24 hours in her new home!

Yesterday I left work just after 3 pm, then picked up Julian from school.  We bopped out to the airport and arrived at about the same time as Lottie’s flight, Qantas 1019.  We actually were able to see her just after she’d come out of the airplane and watched her be chauffeured to the shipping company.  We were impressed with how calm she seemed; she kept sitting or lying down whereas the German Shepherd next to her was pacing his little cage.  We walked back to Australian air Express, and it wasn’t long before a quarantine person checked her out, gave me some worming tablets for her, and we were allowed to take her.  She was a bit TOO relaxed – I was worried she’d jump out of the cage as soon as it was opened, but instead I had to lift her out.  Once out of the cage she was quite happy to walk on lead with Julian and I, but again hesitated and seemed very unsure of things when these strange people she’d just met attempted to get her into their car!  I lifted her in, and she shivered for a little.  However she is a dog after all and quickly relaxed once I opened the window.

Julian and I made our way back across the bridge and to the city (I looked at the road occasionally between looks at my pretty new girl).  Scott was enjoying work drinks, so we lifted Lottie out of the car.  She walked happily on lead but didn’t seem to like the stairs up to Scott’s building, so we phoned Scott to say we should just go home instead of taking her in.  So Scott came downstairs and carried her into the building!  Once up the stairs she seemed happy to walk on lead again and wasn’t phased by the lifts.  So she did attend drinks and met some of her future favourite people (and had a little cheese).  We gave Kaye a lift home, then made our way home.  Lottie again needed assistance getting out of the car (just wasn’t interested in more changing and travelling!).  Then it was into the house and time to sniff around.

Poor Lottie wasn’t really sure of herself.  I’m sure she thought she’d landed in the den of some evil dognappers!  I put her blanket onto the downstairs dog beanbag and she was content to stay there, perking up occasionally to listen to the birds outside.  She was VERY enthusiastic about the gourmet snags from the Wursthaus though!  However in general she seemed to prefer being under the dining room table, so after a while I moved her beanbag there.  And we spent the evening trying to be around her but not in her face – letting her start to acclimatise.

After much sniffing and checking out the room, she slept upstairs in our bedroom.  She slept VERY well after her big day – I was woken at one point by some loud dog snores!  At around 6 am I took her out into the back garden to do her ‘morning things’, then came back inside and caught some more sleep.  I closed the back door but left all internal doors open, and she seemed happy to sniff around for a few hours, even venturing up and down the stairs – which she had been too timid to do on her own the evening before.

When Scott went downstairs to make coffee, he opened the back door so Lottie could come and go inside and out as she wished.  She was quite content for a long while to hang out in the shade of the espaliated pear tree, sniffing the air and no doubt plotting against the avian population and wondering where all the other dogs were.  But after some investigation she decided her favourite part of the back garden was the ‘wilds’ of the geranium bushes in the most neglected bit of the garden.  Sigh.  Today as it happened we had two BBQs to go to – it’s that time of year – and each time we left we had to retrieve her from under the geraniums.  When we would leave, we’d ‘catch’ her, put her on the lead (she walks very nicely and willingly as soon as she’d on the lead), bring her inside, and spend time inside with her (plying her with treats) before leaving.  Both times when we returned home there were puddles, however that’s to be expected: she’s grown up at a breeder with other dogs all in outside accommodation.  Our house must be an enormous shock to her – we’re expecting her to be an inside dog and there are no other dogs!  So we both have a lot to learn about each other.  And we have some training to do.

For me the most exciting part of the day is that after we returned from the second BBQ and Julian and Scott went to take our friend Tim home Lottie did not seem to want to leave me.  She followed me around and even let me hug then cuddle her in my lap.  I actually had to evict her from my lap!  A nice change – however I suspect it’s because she’s tired.  It’s probably well past the bed time she had at her breeders’ place!  But it’s nice to be able to snuggle her!