For a few weeks now Bell has been getting her collar stuck in her mouth. I have no idea why she does this but I'm glad Nicki isn't doing it. Perhaps she's trying to chew it because the collar has a pink (I need my dogs to be color coded for identity) material woven through the metal loops. Bell loves to chew cloth....and eat it. And she doesn't stop there. She's also developed a fetish about the small decorative stones in my house plants. I've often caught her clicking them around in her mouth while she trots through the house. And the lawn deposits she makes are extremely colorful too!
It's second nature for everyone in the house to ask Bell what's in her mouth and then open her mouth and take it away from her. It happens almost on a daily basis. As soon as someone asks her what she has in her mouth she becomes a statue. She never fights it...just stands there and waits to have it taken away. At least she's docile about it. But come on! Does it have to be the collar too??
I bought these metal collars for the dogs because Bell was grabbing Nicki by the collar and leading her around the house. Then it progressed to chewing on Nick's collar until it came off and she'd eat it. She ate everything but the buckle!! When I changed to metal choke chains (large so they are not restricted by them) I bought them with cloth woven in the middle to make it easier to tell who was who. Within a week Bell had eaten the cloth out of Nicki's collar so hers is now just plain metal. I thought it would stop there but NO, Bell decided she wanted the cloth in her own collar. And now she regularly gets it stuck in her mouth and around the back of her head. I've taken to putting her in her pen at night 'naked' for safety reasons.
I'm beginning to wonder if Bell is trying to make it difficult to tell her apart from Nicki. It's already not an easy task. Bell has a white streak on her chest but it can't be seen when she's standing...or getting into trouble. They are sisters but not exactly 'identical twins'. Nicki looks more like a hound; long lean body and head with long ears; howls when she has something to talk about. Bell looks like the Lab part of her parents; slightly shorter and thicker than Nick; shorter nose; and will bark rather than howl most of the time. But when one of them is doing something wrong I often just call them Dog because I can't tell who it is from every angle. Believe it or not they know themselves as both 'Dog' and 'Girls' (for when they are both engaged in wrongful deeds).
I've often said I don't really understand Bell. She's a sweet dog and a great watchdog for the house. But she seems to think following through with a command (sit Bell...sit...sit....sit....oh come on just sit already!) is a punishment or at least something that should be done in slow motion. She's all about food all the time or she has a desire to learn to cook because she's always in the kitchen. Nicki would always rather play. Bell is more aggressive in her play also and I often have to keep an eye on them so Nick doesn't develop any more bald spots.
I guess in time I'll have them all figured out. After all I haven't even had them for a year yet. But for now I think we'll all just go take a ride. Bell loves to drive!
It's second nature for everyone in the house to ask Bell what's in her mouth and then open her mouth and take it away from her. It happens almost on a daily basis. As soon as someone asks her what she has in her mouth she becomes a statue. She never fights it...just stands there and waits to have it taken away. At least she's docile about it. But come on! Does it have to be the collar too??
I bought these metal collars for the dogs because Bell was grabbing Nicki by the collar and leading her around the house. Then it progressed to chewing on Nick's collar until it came off and she'd eat it. She ate everything but the buckle!! When I changed to metal choke chains (large so they are not restricted by them) I bought them with cloth woven in the middle to make it easier to tell who was who. Within a week Bell had eaten the cloth out of Nicki's collar so hers is now just plain metal. I thought it would stop there but NO, Bell decided she wanted the cloth in her own collar. And now she regularly gets it stuck in her mouth and around the back of her head. I've taken to putting her in her pen at night 'naked' for safety reasons.
I'm beginning to wonder if Bell is trying to make it difficult to tell her apart from Nicki. It's already not an easy task. Bell has a white streak on her chest but it can't be seen when she's standing...or getting into trouble. They are sisters but not exactly 'identical twins'. Nicki looks more like a hound; long lean body and head with long ears; howls when she has something to talk about. Bell looks like the Lab part of her parents; slightly shorter and thicker than Nick; shorter nose; and will bark rather than howl most of the time. But when one of them is doing something wrong I often just call them Dog because I can't tell who it is from every angle. Believe it or not they know themselves as both 'Dog' and 'Girls' (for when they are both engaged in wrongful deeds).
I've often said I don't really understand Bell. She's a sweet dog and a great watchdog for the house. But she seems to think following through with a command (sit Bell...sit...sit....sit....oh come on just sit already!) is a punishment or at least something that should be done in slow motion. She's all about food all the time or she has a desire to learn to cook because she's always in the kitchen. Nicki would always rather play. Bell is more aggressive in her play also and I often have to keep an eye on them so Nick doesn't develop any more bald spots.
I guess in time I'll have them all figured out. After all I haven't even had them for a year yet. But for now I think we'll all just go take a ride. Bell loves to drive!
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