The Devil Wears…a Maid’s Uniform (Part II)

       New maid, new reasons. Same damage.

      Whatever your lifestyle, if you have household help like we do, your dogs will spend more time with them than with you.

      You may bring home the dog food but they are the ones who will feed them.

      You may buy them their special shampoos but they are the ones who will bathe them.

      You may buy them good quality leashes or harnesses but they are the ones who will walk them out everyday.

      You may strive to bond with your dogs every weekend -- long walks in parks or in the countryside -- but your pets have bonded with your househelp earlier.

Here We Go Again

       Spot is the dog I took care of personally and my household is aware of this. Thus, they keep a respectful distance, as if to say, ”This is the boss’s dog.” So they spoil the other two dogs.

      Consequently, I find the other dogs faring badly (from my point of view, not from theirs). The two have formed a bond with our new maid, Lourdes. They also sleep in her room.

      Lourdes took over the care of the dogs after our other maid, Ching, left after my dad died. I didn’t need that many people in my household anymore. We prefer middle-aged women as househelp because they are more mature, have better managerial skills, better judgment, and don’t need meticulous training. But midlifers have a disadvantage: their ways have settled. Their minds are in the comfort zone.

New Maid, New Handling

      When it comes to Lourdes, it seems our pushy little Dachshund named Packy has taken over. Packy has taken it upon himself to train Lourdes. The result is bedlam with Packy and his partner-in-crime, Toby, having their way. These two dogs, in contrast to Spot, require constant supervision when we are all out together. They prefer to obey Lourdes.  

      But does Lourdes discipline them? She does not. Their wild antics are largely left to run free; she does not reward any good behavior either. Her reason for the doting tolerance is commonly seen in all uninformed dog owners.

      Dominic, Lourdes’ teenaged son, observed amusedly, “Mama treats Packy like her own grandchild.”

      At bedtime, I hear baby talk as Lourdes plays with Packy before they turn in for the night. Sometimes when Packy goes to bed earlier I catch him sleeping on Lourdes’ bed. I order him down.

      But -- I found out later – Lourdes lets the dog sleep on her bed during the night. Even though Packy has his own cozy little canine basket with pillows, he prefers Lourdes’ bed.

      I warned Lourdes, “This is a dominant  dog. If you let it sleep on your bed you are putting it on equal authority as yourself. You will not be able to make this dog easily obey you.”

      But did that concern Lourdes? It didn’t.

      Indeed. Dogs are any dog lover’s delight. Its antics amuse dog owners no end, especially with an assertive little Dachshund giving Lourdes endless surprises. But with a dog comes responsibility. A spoiled pet is an untrained pet.

      I would hear Lourdes chide Packy (or Toby) in a high singsong voice, “Hey, what are you doing again? Stop chewing that plastic! I’ve told you time and again you’re not supposed to do that!”

      Or, “Packy, you’re so noisy. Quiet down. I told you again and again you’re too noisy! If you’re noisy I will not take you out.”

      I used to correct Lourdes with her manner of talking to the dogs. “They don’t understand anything you say,” I’d warn her. “Your sentences are so long they don’t hear any one familiar word. Just use one word to command the dog.”

      One day it dawned upon me her high tone of voice actually mimics praise to the dog. She makes the dog believe his unruly behavior is right!

      No wonder she was getting nowhere.

      I’ve told this to Lourdes time and again. But like Ching, I felt I wasn’t getting anywhere with her either. Once, I got so fed up I exaggerated her singsong “doggy talk” so she can hear how she sounds. I didn’t hear the doggy talk for several weeks as she kept quiet.

      Then one day, I heard it again, “Packy, what are you doing here? You’re not allowed to go here. I’ve told you time and again you’re not allowed to enter the kitchen!”

Packy the Trainer

      I used to take everybody out for a walk along the river during the Christmas season to enjoy the lights and cool breeze. Packy enjoys himself to the hilt. The dog barks at any other passing dog, lunges at stray cats, and competes with Spot for the leadership position as they all walk along the lane. I’d watch Lourdes allow herself to be dragged by the small dog. I’d correct the positioning, admonish Lourdes for allowing Packy to lead her instead of the other way around, and things go right for awhile. Then I hear the patter of determined little feet behind me and I know. Packy is racing to position himself beside Spot. Lourdes is dragging behind him again.

      To discourage this competition, I would transfer with Spot to the lane across the river while Packy and Toby are walked on their side. Regardless, even though Spot and I pass by high bushes or a grove of tall trees, I hear that screaming dog’s voice travel over the waters from across the river, barking at other dogs or cats, and God knows anything that moves.

Packy, typical of his breed, was fearless and easy to train for the contact obstacles of agility sports.

      Once, I got Packy’s leash to prepare him to walk with me because I had a plan to review his old training. The dog had long learned his basic commands from me when he was younger. But succeeding maids (like Ching) had tolerated Packy’s misbehaviors.

      Packy refused to go out with me. He got on all fours and refused to get up.

The Price of Brattiness

      Unfortunately, all this boomerangs on them. When the handler is tolerant, the dogs are taken out less and less because of undisciplined behavior. On weekends as the dogs see signals for a ride in the car and a walk to a new place they circle the car excitedly, waiting for the cue for them to jump in soon as the door is opened. In the end, they find themselves barred from hopping in and watch with confusion as only Spot is allowed to enter the car and we drive away leaving them behind. It’s easier to just take Spot.