Saturday, June 15, 2024

An ill-advised trio

I started out planning to walk Della and Elvis this early this morning. It was cool, still in the 70s, but it wouldn't be for long. I couldn't get Paisley back in the house, as if often the case, and was planning to just open and drive through the gate with her loose in the yard. I wouldn't do that with any other dog, but as odd as she is about everything, Paisley isn't about to walk out the gate. She very much sees this place as her home and sees it as her job to protect it. 

She was hovering around the van so I opened the side door and offered her the chance to get inside. I've tried many times to take her on walks but she'll never come to be leashed or even to get in the van. This morning she did, so I wrangled a rope harness onto her and went off with the three of them up to the park.

Things started off well enough, but then Paisley started wondering out to the right, into the roadway. There were no cars around but still I make it a point to keep the dogs to my left as much as possible, out of the roadway. Paisley freaked out when I tried to get her to move and started screaming like I was trying to kill her when all I had done was drag her over by the leash. Della went over to her and went at her in a way I've often wished she would at home when Paisley is nipping at her or other dogs, but it really wasn't called for here. I had trouble getting Della off of her and when she finally did let go Paisley had a nice tear in her skin, although she wasn't bleeding.

Everyone calmed down and we continued our walk and really had quite a nice one although I made a point to keep Della away from Paisley as much as possible for the rest of the 2.5 miles. When we got home I got Paisley by herself and looked at the wound. It could use some stitches, but again, she wasn't bleeding, just torn skin and it will heal. I cleaned it up. 

Of course later in the day when Paisley was outdoors on her own, it looks like she found some dirt to rub and roll in and she extended the tear and got it dirty. I will clean it up again and put her on antibiotics. She will not be accompanying us on any more walks. 









The tear in her skin is on her right shoulder. It barely shows here. The self-inflicted extension of the tear that she did later is much more obvious. She also mangled up her nose again later. She doesn't seem bothered by it, she still acts normal, or "normal" for Paisley anyway.

That's Paisley on the far left, then Elvis, and Della on my right.


We did about 2.5 miles today. 


2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Interesting that _this_ is the setting in which Della took action—was she
upholds if your honor and position as leader? Was it that decorum on a walk is more sensitive than in the house? Or?

Brent said...

It surprised me. I'm not sure about her motivation. She puts up with a lot worse from Paisley at home, maybe she just didn't want the walk to be disturbed.