Bella

 5/4/2018

What can I say about Bella?  Come to think of it, I could actually say a lot about her.  I picked her out from the litter being rescued.  And, I don't remember why I picked her, over another puppy in the litter.  Maybe, it was her beautiful honey colored fur, and black whiskers.  By the way, that's a winning combination.

For the very longest time, two years give or take, Bella would take and destroy EVERYTHING.  She knew no boundaries.  You can't really discipline a dog after the fact.  So, there was no use chasing her around the back yard trying to retrieve an absolutely chewed up a  a slipper or shoe.  I think I would be less mad, if she would take both of the slippers and/or shoes.  I mean what am I going to do with one shoe?  Nothing.  Oh, but Amazon loved sending me more slippers!

Bella is food driven.  She's not particular, she'll chow down on people food as much as dog food.  We do try and keep her away from people food, as much as possible.  Trouble is, Bella is faster than we are, and just this week, after we went to bed, Bella stayed downstairs.  She woofed down the pork chops that Jeff had cooked for dinner.  The plate was just a "tad" to close to the counter's edge!  Leftovers the next morning, not so much.

Jeff left early today.  He and another partner are going to Pennsylvania to bring the plane home.  Planes are required to have routine maintenance, and our plane is no different.  I'm not going to bother you with the details, but when you own a plane or a boat, even regular maintenance can be costly.

Jeff was very helpful, as he always is, and left the two bowls of dog food on the counter.  After I woke up, I would feed the dogs.  Bella, had another plan in mind.  When I go to the kitchen, I found Daisy's bowl untouched.  Bella's dish, on the other hand, was tipped over on it's side, and that was strong evidence of her trying to get to her food.  Jeff always adds a little milk to their food, so the milk had slipped out onto the counter.  But, as they say, there's no reason to cry over spilled milk!  

Before you make a rash and harsh judgement of Bella, I want to tell you about her good side.  We have a harness for her that says she is a dog in training, and she seems to know the difference between just a leash and her harness.  She just behaves differently.

Most of the when we go somewhere, we take her along.  We are trying to get her used to smells, people and noise.  Our biggest problem is that everybody wants to pet her - even though she has a patch on one side of her harness, that says "don't pet".  

While we were at my doctor appointment yesterday, Bella laid down on the floor, and didn't even flinge (sp) when people walked by us.  Her performance was fantastic and flawless.  Jeff and I are so proud of her when we take her out.

Long story short.  The good part of Bella, certainly outweighs anything that of her negative behavior.  I will tell you this though.  Somewhere between Bella being a year old and today, she "gets" it.  No slipper or pillow destruction, and provided that Bella can't reach any food, paper plate, napkin, or paper cup, there is no problem!

So there you have it.  Bella, a wonderful dog.

P