Walter update

Surprise - I'm totally in love with Walter.  He's very sweet and affectionate, and the fact that he's tiny and adorable probably helps his case, too.

My biggest reservation about adopting a puppy was house training.  I've never had a puppy and never house trained a dog, since Jordan and Marvin were both house trained when we adopted them.  I feared that he would pee and poop all over the place and our house would stink in no time flat.  But my worries now seem highly exaggerated.  We been taking Walter & Marvin outside about every 2 hours (give or take) and Walter has really gotten the hang of it.  He's had very few 'accidents' and one of them was my fault.  He has the benefit of seeing Marvin 'go' outside, and we've been using verbal praise and petting to reward his success.

Since my office is only a couple miles from home, I have come home at lunchtime each day and taken the dogs outside, eaten my lunch, fed Walter, and taken both guys for a short walk around the house/yard.  Once Walter is older and able to 'hold it' longer, I won't need to come home in the middle of the day anymore.

Walter is a good eater.  He eats about 3-4 times a day.  We can't leave food out for him to eat at will because Marvin will eat it, and its too high in calories for him.

Walter is dying to play with Marvin, and often tries to engage him in some sort of play.  Marvin on the other had is just tolerating Walter at this point, and is probably wondering when this "house guest" will go home.  Occasionally he will growl at Walter who gets the message and leaves him alone.  We've been careful to spend equal time petting and tending to both dogs so Marvin doesn't feel replaced, and we try to encourage them to be together and not just sit on the other Daddy's lap. 

 We're sure that with more time Marvin will recognize and accept Walter into the family.  

Sometimes when we're watching TV at night Walter and I will play with a toy on my lap until he gets tired.  Then he will fall asleep on my arm, or he'll climb up my chest and get comfy on my shoulder.  I'm fine that.

Yesterday I took Walter to the vet for his new puppy check-up.  He did really well, riding in his carrier in the car, as well as being handled and examined by the vet and techs.  While they may say it to all puppy daddies, they couldn't stop talking about how cute Walter is.  Of course I didn't fight them over it.