Tough Love Valentine

I need to work with Duncan on coming into the house from the back yard. Although I always manage to get him in, propping the door open isn't doing any favors for my gas bill. Not to mention the fact that it's not really doing anything for Duncan's development either. He runs away from me when I go into the yard and point for him to go into the house, and play's peek-a-boo with me around the shed. I don't want to encourage him running away from me. For awhile if I propped the door open and went inside he would follow me in (after making sure I wasn't anywhere around) but he's taking longer to do this now as well, standing at the door and peeking in. If he sees me, he's off, back out into the yard.

So last night, I started using a new approach. When it was time to let him back in, I opened the door stood there and called to him. He of course came running, but stopped when he realized I was not going to move from he door. He walked around the shed and looked at me from one side, then walked back around and peeked from the other. Then I went back in the house and closed the door. Ten minutes later I offered it to him again, with of course the same response. He is just certain that if he comes in past me, I'm going to eat him up like the predator that I am. Actually, it's more likely that he's afraid that I'm going to strike him. But, I again closed the door and went inside. I knew this was going to take some time, and may not even work the first few times we tried it. This went on for about an hour. (Don't worry, I'm not going to let his little tootsies freeze, I promise!) Finally, I opened the door and called to him, and he barked at me! Just one single bark, but he actually did bark. You have to understand that Duncan has not made a single solitary sound since I got him; not a bark a whine or a whimper. And although I know this bark was to express his frustration that I would not let him in the house the way he wanted to come in, it also meant that he is comfortable "talking back" to me. I had to laugh. I shut the door one final time, and the next time I offered it to him I went ahead and propped the door open and stepped back inside. He came in a few minutes later.

Later that night, I walked into the living room to find Duncan laying in my chair. He has always sat in "his spot" on the sofa until now. He looked up at me as if he knew he had commandeered my seat. I laughed at him and told him, "Duncan, that's Momma's spot!" He just looked at me. He's got to be gaining some level of comfort if he knows he can get away with stealing my seat!