Week 2

Don't worry, everyone. I have zero intentions of posting week after week just to tell y'all how Cedar and Willow are doing. But I thought I'd do a general post this week because we've had so many changes!

At first I thought that Willow was going to rule the roost with Cedar, but this week that idea is somewhat shaken. Cedar has really come out of her shell, and now I'm waiting to see what week 3 will hold. Cedar will steal from Willow now--toys and food. They actually got into a bit of a scuffle when Cedar stole what was left of Willow's pig ear. It was the first sign of any real issue between them, and certainly the first angry response I've seen out of Willow (not counting her mirror-barking :roll: ). All the did was growl and bark before DH stepped in and admonished Cedar for stealing. He took the ear away from Cedar and gave it back to Willow, and all was resolved. Cedar sulked like a scolded toddler.

Aside from that one incident, Willow and Cedar divide their time between napping and running around playing with each other. They've gotten more physical in their play. Cedar is starting to paw more at Willow, and Willow is nipping at feet. I even saw Cedar bite at Willow's tail once! They get rambunctious and then get sent outside. They only stay out for a few minutes, though, as the temperatures have been near 100 (and will be the rest of the week!). When they come back in, they get drinks and then settle for a nap before starting the process over again.

Willow's barking at night has ended. Not because she's gotten more comfortable being alone, but because we caved in and let her sleep with us. :? And, since we cant let Willow sleep with us and leave Cedar in her crate, both dogs have been coseying up with us at night. DH, who wasnt so fond of the idea of sleeping with the dogs every night, prefers this arrangement to Willow's constant barking. So now we are all nice and cosey at night. With three spare bedrooms, and four spare beds, all four of us are crowded together in one bed at night. :roll:

So we are still in the adjustment period, but things are going really well. Willow and Cedar are still working out their relationship, but they have agreed to be friends, at the very least. DH seems to enjoy the dogs more now that their are two of them. I'm not sure why how that happened, but I'm happy to see it. Willow loves to follow him around, so I suspect he likes the special attention. I'll have to be more on the ball with the camera so I will post pics later this week.

thanks for reading this far!!

I knew you were gonna cave in and let Willow sleep with you!! :rotfl: When we first got kosmo we lived with Avi's sister and only rented a small room. If he barked all night then they would stay up so I had to cave and let him sleep with us too! Not that I mind it Last night since he was sick I let him have my pillow. :lol:

That's funny that Cedar is a thief! I bet she didn't know what to think when daddy took it away from her and gave it back to Willow. She probably felt betrayed, lol.

Does Willow mirror bark often? That's so funny. Kosmo occasionally does reflection barking, but he's more into barking at the broom. One time he barked at it and it fell on the ground. He got so scared he ran in between my legs with his tail between his. It was the funniest thing ever. He's scared of the broom now, but he'll still bark his lungs out at it.

It's fine that you post about cedar and willow after a few weeks, I know for myself, I enjoy hearing about how they are getting along.

Men don't want to admit it, but your hb probably is more fond of having a little snuggle puppy then you are! Sometimes at night I will wake up and catch Avi's hand walking ever so slightly up to Kosmo and taking him off of me and putting him on him, lol. :roll: I am glad your HB likes willow so much though That's good for both of them. Take care

That's typical for rescues -- often they are on their good behaviour for the first two weeks as they are uncertain, and it can be quite hard to get a sense of what some dogs are really like! As they gain confidence they come out of their shell more, as you have seen, but this is also when some behaviour problems can begin, and certainly, scuffles and also, the working out between them of who fits where in the hierarchy. The latter they will sort amongst themselves and may be so subtle that you will never really have any clear idea on who is 1 and who is 2 -- I've noted before how often people get this wrong because we tend to judge by human standards but what is 'dominant' in our terms is often not 'leadership' in dog terms, so watch for the small signs of what might be happening; it is always very interesting.

It's a good idea only to give things like pigs ears and chews where they are totally separated with no ability to get at each other. Chews have been the source of some drawing of blood in my house despite how close Jaspar and Leo seem and this was especially true for the first few months after Leo arrived. If they eat them at different paces this is prime material for a serious confrontation that isn't worth risking. The best idea is to only offer treats when they are very far apart and someone is sitting near each dog to react if things go wrong, or in crates, or on either sides of a baby gate for example.

Even two years on I have to be very careful with all long-lasting treats like chews or bones.

Other than that it sounds like she is settling really well.

By contrast my boys aren't much interested in Lily though they are indifferent to rather than unhappy with the fact that she is here. It's taken a month for her to stop acting very jealous if I pick up one of the boys, and also for them to be willing to lie on the same couch with her. They'll all run and sniff around at the beach together as a group, and chase their fetch toy together at the park, but there's little interaction, thoiugh far more with Lily and Leo than Lily and Jaspar. It underlines how different situations get different reactions and different dogs and group dynamics have different results.

Moviedust, please don't stop posting about them. I for one am enjoying reading about how Willow is settling in & how her and Cedar are getting on.

I also think it's good to have posts about rescues and how they settle in for others considering a rescue to read. Some people who want a cavalier would never consider a rescue but after reading about how well Willow has settled in, might change their minds

I'm glad your hubby has taken to Willow - it took my hubby about a week to really take to Charlie. Now he's a real Daddy's boy :lol:

Oops, realise you were posting about Cedar coming out of her shell, not Willow! Though the same points still apply. Cedar's realising Willow isn't going away and is having to make adjustments accordingly. It's funny how they all tend to go thru a phase of being miffed then usually become best friends.

Leo was quite forward with Jaspar -- from the start he wanted to sleep in the same dogbeds and play; but Jaspar was very put out and put upon! he is very docile though and accepted the changes and tolerated Leo and they were firends fairly quickly. Lily has been completely different probably because she isn't very pushy with the boys amd doesn;t play with them (but plays around them) so they don't feel threatened by her and she's easy to have around in that sense, but neither have they integrated very much. icon_nwunsure

Oh don't ever stop posting!!! It is always interesting to see how they are going. Willow is such a little cutie and it is lovely to hear how they are settling in. I thnk two cavaliers are just so wonderful and they sound just like my two with their playing.
Julie and the girls

Thanks, everyone, for the replies. I'm glad you arent annoyed with my obsession with my dogs. I'm not sure how typical the situation is with bringing a rescue into the household. If it is, I'd say that rescues are easy to incorporate. I'm hesitatant to say that, though, as I suspect some dogs have more issues than our Willow. Karlin can probably give more information about how "standard" our situation is.

ARASARA: I wish we had been more successful with Willow's independence. Perhaps after she's been here longer and had some obedience training, we'll try weening her off the bed. For the time-being, though, her feeling safe (and our need for sleep!!) is more important. She has decided that her "place" in bed is curled up in the crook of my arm. She always has to sleep with her head up. Cedar likes to sprawl out on her back, so she generally finds the most room on the bed down towards our feet. For a while Cedar was a bit put off by Willow's place near me; Cedar used to like that spot. But I think Cedar's realized it is cooler and more comfortable elsewhere, so Willow gets to stay in the crook.

KARLIN: Yes, we have to supervise the dogs when eating. Generally, they have not had issues. In fact, the other day I put down two bowls with cottage cheese. Rather than going their separate ways, they both went into one bowl, then shared the second. ( I was watching closely to see how they would handle eating both on the floor). I was surprised that they had no issues with both heads in the bowl. Generally, they are fed separately. But Cedar has become increasingly daring, so we continue to keep a close eye. Her leave-it command is pretty solid, so if she goes in Willow's direction, that's generally all it takes. (Willow, on the other hand, has no clue and has to be physically controlled or coaxed away with something more enticing!).

Sounds like things are going great. A simple plan to solve the not sleeping at night. I certainly wouldn't worry about it as long as you all are able to sleep with her in bed. The most important thing for her right now is feeling safe and you have accomplished that! Bless you!!!! :flwr: