MORE ADVICE TO THE DOG-WORN

DEAR HOWLING HOOLIGAN,

The neighbors decided to use the corner of our yard as a parking lot, and yesterday, our dog, Ruger decided he was afraid of the one and a half cars that were parked half in our yard and half in the street. (Yesterday morning, there was food, or something, in the street near where one of them had been parked. My husband Mark said it looked like cake and ice cream. Whatever it was, he took the hose out and washed it down.)

Now Ruger doesn't even want to go out the front door. Once I get him out the door, he won't go near that area of the yard, even though the cars aren't there. He'll walk west, quickly, with his butt tucked. But coming back home, last night and this morning, when we get four houses from our house, he sits down and absolutely refuses to move. Last night, I started playing with him and got him running and ran him past the next door neighbor house. This morning... no go. He'll pull backwards until he hurts himself with the prong collar, then do it again. So I carried him, all 60 pounds of him, until we got to the neighbor house, then set him down in the middle of the street. He immediately tried to go into the yard across the street, then finally rushed past the neighbor house and home.

<sigh>

I've walked the area over and can't see anything, like a snake or wasp's nest, that would make him so afraid. And if it was the cars...they're in their yard today. Where the food was smells bad, so I'm going to take vinegar out there and wash it again, but...since when does a dog mind the smell of rotten food?

Any advice?

Veronica

Dear VerRoNIca,

YOUR NEIGHBORS ARE RUDE.

First of all, you need to go over there and ask them NOT TO PARK IN YOUR YARD.

Then, go get some kind of permanent structure to put in that corner so that they cannot park there.

Ruger thinks that part of the yard belongs to someone else, that it's not his property anymore. Someone may have thrown up or urinated there, who knows? But that's what's probably going on with him. Mark may have to go out there at midnight, take Ruger with him, and urinate in that corner. Seriously. Let Ruger watch him do it. Of course, Mark should stand with his back to the neighbor house so that they don't see him doing it <grin>.

And he may have to do that several times before Ruger gets the point. You can also take a chair over there and sit in that corner with Ruger and read a book for awhile. Don't make a big deal about it, just do it.

Wow, your neighbors must have really unpleasant body function odors to make a tough dog named Ruger too scared to even go past the house.

Sincerely,

The Hooligans

AAARRROOOOOOOO!