Fostering Lexi: Bath Time, Breakfast and Sliding Around the Kitchen.

It may only be just after 12 p.m. on Sunday, but I'm ready for a nap. Lexi is taking a nap, sprawled out beneath my feet under the kitchen table.

So, here's how day two (or really, a full day one) is starting out with Lexi.

I woke up around 7:30 a.m. to my mom chatting with her after they'd stepped outside for a stroll and bathroom break (and Lexi finally used the bathroom! Plus!). Please note my mom is by no means a morning person, so I was super surprised she was already up.

Lexi had already eaten her breakfast - two more cups of food - by the time I got downstairs, and then we went for a walk just before 8 a.m. Lexi made a new friend, Lily, another labrador while we were out.

One big thing about Lexi: she loves to be outside! We were stopping all along the way to the park so she could sniff everything and just take it in. I'm trying to teach her the difference between "parkway" and "private property" but not sure it's sticking yet! In any case she's great on a leash - doesn't pull, doesn't dart after other dogs (even though she really wanted to say "hi" to a jogger early on) and we haven't put her in her harness yet. Unlike my previous dog, Psi Chi (pronounced Sigh-Kigh), she's quite content to amble along.

During her walk she kept pausing to scratch, so when we got home it was straight into the bathtub to clean her up. Lexi fortunately likes water a little more than Psi Chi ever did, but she still wasn't overly fond of the bath. Her favorite part was getting out of the tub and shaking water all over me and my mom! 

We introduced Lexi to an ice cube today (she'll only lick it if it's in your hand) and a bone. She didn't seem to know what to do with it at first, but she was carrying it around for a few minutes.

We also heard Lexi bark for the first time today. It was a quiet bark when she spotted a neighbor's dog out the back window. We're trying to teach her to "speak" (amongst sit, stay, and come) but haven't had much luck. Only day one though! 

Lexi also isn't too fond of the hardwood floors in the kitchen. She loves to come up to us while we're sitting at the table to be pet, but one second you're scratching her head and the next there's a "thump" as she loses traction and hits the ground. Oops! We've put some carpeting squares down so she won't slip quite so much.

Stairs also aren't Lexi's thing. She tried to follow me upstairs this morning, but only made it about 5 steps before she got stuck and eventually turned around. That might be okay for now though, as I've been sneezing and hoping I haven't developed allergies! Having a dog-free upstairs might be what the doctor ordered, if that's the case!

But Lexi really does want to follow you everywhere. She loves people - she always wants to be near us, even if it's just lying down on the floor. You can see her in one of the photos chilling next to me while I was on the couch and another where she's lying next to me while I'm working (was working on a police blotter, to be specific!). 

The one thing Lexi does not seem to love is toys. We've tried to entice her with a ball, squeaky rope animal toy, her plastic water bottle toy and even cardboard tubes (my aunt and uncle's chocolate labs go nuts over those!) but no luck. Has anyone here ever had a dog that doesn't know how to play? How do you entice him or her? 

Lexi's also disliking her stitches from being spayed a few days ago. We're keeping an eye on that and she's going to be getting a little dab of Neosporin in a bit just to keep any infection away. 

We're having a blast though and it's so nice to have a dog around the house again. We're hoping not to be "foster failures" for our first foster, but Lexi certainly has a way of touching your heart.

Stay tuned for later updates, when we try to teach Lexi how to do stairs and play with toys!

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