Adolescence

Cowboy’s hair is getting longer and thicker, and feathers are beginning to form on the back of his legs.  He looks less like a puppy and more like an adolescent.  The tips of his ears are finally folding over, but only the tips and I have to wonder if he will ever truly look like an Aussie.  But of course he’s beginning to lose baby teeth and growing permanent ones, so the ears will change on a daily basis (just please don’t let him have prick ears!)

He’s beginning to show signs of dominant behavior and is becoming more of a watch dog than I had anticipated.  He is rather wary of strangers as well - not that it’s a bad thing. It means he would be less likely to be stolen, and I do feel much safer with a dog that is protective of his “territory”, but I definitely don’t want him to be aggressive toward other people.  He is being socialized at puppy playtime, but once winter starts to fade away and we can get out and walk more, the real socialization will begin; I just wish I could have done that sooner. 

He can jump into the car all by himself now.  He can also jump onto the bed, and does so at every opportunity and is quite proud of himself for being able to do that. The problem is that he believes it is his playground and he gets send down onto the floor when he gets too rambunctious. Last night however, while I was lying on the bed watching TV, he jumped up, curled up between my feet and went to sleep.  Good boy!  For that he was allowed to stay up there for about an hour but was sent to his crate when it was time to go to sleep. No freedom at night until he stops trying to play with Kizzy, his toys, my feet, or the blankets in the middle of the night.