Jonah My Shih Tsu

Jonah's best friend is Rosie, my daughter's Rottweiler. Well maybe second best friend. Jonah really really loves my daughter. Rosie is also a rescue doggie. My daughter had had a Rottweiler for almost 10 years when it died suddenly a few months ago due to complications of surgery. So my daughter found another Rottweiler through an animal rescue service. Shortly after that she found Jonah for me but not at the same place. Sometimes when my daughter comes over to my house, she brings Rosie along.

When Jonah first arrived his coat had been trimmed very close to his skin. My daughter had taken him to be groomed before bringing him to me because his coat had been in such a badly matted condition there was no choice. He also had sores on his skin apparently from digging and scratching at himself. He hasn't shown any signs of having fleas. My daughter took us to see the Vet to make sure Jonah is healthy and get treated for whatever might still be a problem. The Vet did an examination and found a bad ear infection as well as an infected tooth. Jonah was put on an antibiotic for the tooth until we can have it pulled. He also got an ear pack antibiotic that made his ears very waxy and greasy. They have to stay that way for three weeks although now they are looking a bit less greasy. Further tests showed an intestinal infection that he is being treated for and also whip worms. He had some strange behavioral reaction on the first night he received the medications for the infection and the worms. The reaction started about 4-5 hours after he got his meds so we are not totally sure what caused it. After a quick call to the Vet, the medication for the whip worms was stopped temporarily and we had to give Benedryl to Jonah hoping it would settle him down. His reaction was more than a bit overwhelming for me and my daughter came over to help with him for awhile. All in all, his reaction lasted over 7 hours before we both finally were able to get some sleep. The reaction was mostly a very high level of hyperactivity along with clumsiness and falling over, and vomiting, as well as an almost constant need to relieve himself. Needless to say this was not what I expected from my new pet, but knowing he was sick and that whatever he did could be cleaned up, we dealt with it. It took two doses of the Benedryl 4 hours apart for him to be able to relax and finally sleep. Thankfully he has not had another reaction since we stopped the one medication.

Jonah appears to be doing well with his adjustment to living with me. When he first arrived, he never left my side and slept with me. He sleeps most of the time. The Vet is guessing by the condition of Jonah's teeth that he is about 8 years old which is mid-life for a Shih Tsu. So I guess we are just a couple of middle agers getting to know each other. Now after a little over two weeks here, he is feeling more freedom to roam and explore, although most of the time, he still just sleeps. He loves the little blue striped doggie bed my daughter got him. He sleeps there most of the time, but occasionally will sleep on the floor at my feet or up on the couch. He seems to be like me in that he appears to have achy joints. He doesn't like jumping up onto furniture but he will do it. He is very hesitant in jumping down again. We have worked out an arrangement when he wants up with me in my recliner. I will lower the foot part just enough that he can use it like a ramp and climb up to join me in the chair. That way he doesn't have to jump so high.

When he first arrived he was very quiet. Now he is getting to be a little more verbal and will bark once in awhile when he hears someone outside the apartment or in the apartment next door or upstairs. He also barks at the sounds on the computer, especially certain computer games, and other dogs he hears if I am watching YouTube videos about dogs. If I have the television on, he wants to try to climb the entertainment center to get up to investigate where the sound is coming from.

I don't know what his past life was like before he came to live with me, but, even though he is house broken, he doesn't really "tell" me when he wants to go outside. Most of the time everything is okay, but once in awhile there are the accidentals when we did not get outside when we should have. He also still wants to mark his territory which I hope he will eventually stop doing once I can get him neutered. Right now the only time he marks is when Rosie comes over. Last night he marked after my grandkids were here so he must think he has to let them know also that this is HIS house and not theirs. Other than that, marking has not been a problem since the first couple of days he was here. If it continues to not be a big problem, I might not worry about getting him neutered since he is already middle age and isn't going to be misbehaving around female dogs as long as he lives with me.

Overall, Jonah is so far a quiet dog. He lets me know when he is hungry by waking up from his slumber and jumping on me all excited, and leading me into the kitchen. I wish he would do that when he wants to go outside and lead me to the door. Maybe one of these days as he gets more comfortable with me.

UPDATE: Jonah is playing more and more each day, and he is telling me now when he wants to go out...at least somewhat.

Jonah doesn't play. I don't know why. He ignores all his toys. I am guessing that his former owner didn't really play with him. Also, his infected tooth may be part of the reason he doesn't want to play with his toys. The only thing he has even showed an interest in playing with was a homemade toy that I made from knotting a pair of my socks together. My mom taught me when I had my first inside dog that giving them knotted socks that had not been washed and had my foot smell would help the dog recognize "home" and if the dog ever got lost, that scent would lead him/her home. So I made a sock toy for Jonah. The first time he ever really played with it was just shortly before he had his hyperactive reaction. Later I thought about the socks and wondered if medications I take could leach out into the socks somehow and maybe that was what he had his reaction to. I took those socks away and washed them good before retying them into knots and giving them back. He hasn't shown any interest in them since I washed them. He also got hold of a kitchen towel once and was playing with that. Other than that, I can't seem to get him interested in playing any kind of doggie game including any light wrestling. Maybe this, too, will come as he feels better from his medication and gets more adjusted to being here.

We were told that there was one family who took him quite temporarily just before my daughter got him for me. They did not keep him because they thought he was aggressive toward their 4 year old child, and "food aggressive" with their other dogs they had. So far Jonah has been around 6 of my 8 grandkids and has shown no aggressive behavior. The kids all know not to crowd him and when he does feel crowded he gives them a little growl and they know to move away. He has not shown any aggressiveness with Rosie as far as the food issue either. I don't know what the situation was that this other family had these problems and decided to give him back, but I am glad he is being such a good dog for me.

UPDATE: Jonah plays with his toys now but not a lot. He has some favorites among the toys he has including a large stuffed milk bone with rope coming out both ends. It's almost as big as he is but light enough he can pick it up and carry it up onto the couch. He also now has some rawhide chew toys that he really likes. He will play sometimes with me but usually just by himself. His previous owner/master apparently was not home much so Jonah was left alone a lot. I guess he is still adjusting to having someone home with him all the time.

According to the American Kennel Club, the history of the Shih Tsu goes back as far as possibly the Tang Dynasty. Art objects and documents dating back to 624 A.D. have been recovered apparently showing that a King Vigur gave a couple of the dogs from the Byzantine Empire to the Chinese Court. To read more about this visit Shih Tsu History.

For more interesting historical theory about the Shih Tsu you can click here and read how it is thought that the Shih Tsu came about from cross breeding the Lhasa Apso with the Pekingese, and how the Shih Tsu apparently first appeared in Tibet before being given as gifts to the Chinese Court.

One of the most interesting articles about the history of the Shih Tsu can be found here and gives a more complete story, whether it is fact or fantasy. Either way, it is a fascinating historical account of where we get the Shih Tsu dogs we have today.

Wednesday (Feb 8th) Jonah had multiple medical treatments done. He had surgery to remove a cyst from his lower back near his tail. He also had dental work taken care of and still requires more dental work that will end up removing 14 teeth. Also during these surgeries today, Jonah was neutered. This last one was something I wasn't too sure about it being necessary but my daughter thought it is better for Jonah's health if it is done even though Jonah is an indoor dog and hopefully in his furever home so won't be out looking for female dogs to mate with. I am not one who believes in doing unnecessary surgeries on people or on animals. However, Jonah was her gift to me and she has been paying for all of his medical treatments so far as well as a lot of other perks for Jonah and me, so I read up on the procedure and let it be done. So now Jonah was able to come home later that same day but still groggy from the anesthesia. I've been through so many surgeries in my lifetime, I sure know how that feels to be coming out of the anesthesia. All you want to do is have everyone leave you alone so you can sleep.
He came home with a temporary pressure dressing on the incisions, pretty much both the one on his lower back and the one from his being neutered. After a few hours that was removed and he had to have one of those cones or e-collars put around his head to prevent him from licking his wounds which could cause infection and/or pull out stitches. Poor Jonah has to wear that collar 24/7 for the next 2 weeks until the stitches are removed.
Aside from being so groggy and tied up with the pressure dressing, Jonah got around pretty well the first evening. After putting the cone collar on him, maneuverability became a challenge. Going outside was the first challenge because it meant 6 steps down and back up again. He did great going down but going up was at least a temporary problem. He could not lift his head high enough for the cone to go over the step. So I was able to pick him up and carry him to the top of the steps and then let him walk into the house from there. Eating and drinking became his next challenge although even with struggling, he managed to empty his food dish each time he has eaten since being home. His appetite is good. He's enjoying getting outside even though it is cold out. He shivered hard until the last trip out tonight at about 11 pm. Tonight he did a little of his prancing and it was nice to see a bit of his old bounce in his steps. But he did wear down after a few minutes and stood looking at me like he was saying, "Mom, help me, I am stuck." So we got back into the house and got him settled down for the night. Inside it has been a different story with the walking. Inside he is taking one to two steps only then lying down for awhile before getting up to take one or two more steps toward his goal, whatever it is at the time, and then lying down again. It takes him half an hour to get to his food or water dish which are no further than three feet away from him. He has circled himself around the whole living room today in this method so he is getting some exercise. But it is not by choice. It's been obvious that he is not comfortable in any position he tries to lie down in. He's settled on keeping one position and that of being on his belly rather than on his side. But he is getting up every couple of minutes out of discomfort.
In the morning he goes back to the vet just to make sure he is doing okay and not in too much pain or torn any stitches. He fell down a couple of the steps the first night when he first tried to climb back up which is when I started carrying him up the steps after that.
The first night home he had the anesthesia to help him sleep. Tonight he is having a much more difficult time of it since he is so uncomfortable and moves around every few minutes. He tries his bed and his blanket he has in another place in the room but mostly he just seems to prefer the carpet for his bed. On a normal day he would get up and walk in circles until he got my attention to tell me he wants to go outside. Tonight he inched his way over to the front door and layed down with his nose facing the door. I took that to mean he wanted to go outside. Tonight he barked for the first time at a stranger walking up the street past the house. His bruising where he was neutered is very red today so that's why the trip to the vet in the morning, just to make sure everything is okay. I'll keep you updated.

Jonah's and my biggest challenge is the training. Jonah is a very stubborn dog and whether it is from fears from his past or who knows what, even simple things like getting him to obey the command to "Come here" is difficult. Usually if I have one of his favorite treats in my hand and he sees it, he will respond. But most of the time, and sometimes even when I have the treat, he will sit with his back toward me, sometimes looking over his shoulder like he is saying, I will come when I am good and ready and not a minute sooner. And that is exactly what he does! This presents a problem for me mostly when we are relaxed, I in my recliner and Jonah somewhere below the foot rest or even inside the base of the recliner. I really think Jonah thinks he is a cat. I've never had a dog that wanted to hide in the base of a recliner before. I've forgotten a few times to make sure he is out where I can see him before I get up and have slammed him with the foot rest. Thankfully he never seems to be hurt, although his "feathers" seem ruffled at the rudeness of me expecting him to just get up when he doesn't want to. It's the worst at night after his last trip outside when he has gone to sleep. He's worse to wake up than a teenager on a school day. (All you mothers of sleepy-eyed teens know what I mean.)

No-barking training is progressing slowly as well. The back yard is still easier to deal with than the front yard since there are not as many people to see back there. I thought after 5 months of working with him and getting to know him, we would have progressed beyond this point. I've owned a lot of dogs in my life as well as cats. I've never had such a difficult time training a pet before. I don't know if it is because of his past life before I got him, his age, his breed, or a combination. His stubbornness continues with the no-barking training just like with the "Come here" commands. As long as I remember to fill my pockets with his favorite treats, he will pretty much keep from barking unless approached in our yard, even by other people who live in the building. But even when he is being good, he eyes me and my hands to see if I have a treat ready. There are times when he will start to bark at something, remember that I might have a treat and turn to me to check. If I have the treats he stays quiet and comes to me without my even telling him to. If I don't have the treat he goes ahead and barks. Stubbornness I tell you! Pure stubbornness!

There are times when I think that this dog is just too much for me to deal with. He's been too expensive for my daughter and I have no way to pay her back. He still has his teeth to be taken care of (pulled out). Training is so difficult. And on top of that, he's not the cuddly lap dog I expected him to be. Oh he does love to cuddle when he is in the mood, and loves to have his ears scratched and his belly rubbed. But once he's had enough, he repositions himself at my feet on the foot rest of the recliner or somewhere on the floor either under my foot rest or close by.

Jonah is playing more and more with me and with his toys. He plays tug o' war with me but as soon as he wins, he will take his toy out of my reach and lay down and chew it, refusing to continue playing with me. He still doesn't fetch and usually doesn't even seem to notice that I have tossed anything for him to go after. He just keeps his eyes on my face instead of watching what happened to his toy. He feels better. I can tell that by his play as well as other behaviors. He's also gained some weight. Even though I end up throwing away much of his food every day because he won't eat it all (and I keep it measured according to his weight and breed) he seems to be getting a bit overweight. When I focus more on training, he doesn't want to eat his food because he likes his treats so much. He waits most of the day into the evening before he even goes for his food because he is hoping for handouts from me which I rarely give him. So I am watching what he gets to eat so he doesn't gain more weight. It could be that in his old life before he came to live with me he got more exercise than he gets with me.

The best thing by far about Jonah, and makes it worth all the effort involved in these daily challenges, is that he keeps me active. He has me outside four or five times a day at least. He has me walking outside, going up and down the steps to my apartment (not full flights) and he has me beginning to work on the flowerbeds as well as other plantings in the yard and containers outside, along with help from my daughter and grandson. He motivates me to keep from staying stuck in my apartment all day and evening. He's helping me as much as I hope I am helping him. It's difficult enough to be disabled without a car to go places but now that I have Jonah, I am feeling alive again after going through the medical issues I've dealt with the past six years. Although I am not physically where I used to be, it's progress and I owe a lot of that to Jonah.

So Jonah and I will keep working on basic training. Yes that's what it is and I tell him he's in boot camp for dogs. I don't know if this is what life is like with all rescue dogs. My daughter is having her training issues with Rosie as well and Rosie is several years younger than Jonah. Sometimes we both wonder if we just have dumb dogs. More than likely it just comes from neglect by former owners and these dogs WILL learn. Anyway, for Jonah and me, we aren't going to give up. So what if Jonah isn't what I expected him to be. I'm not in the best form myself. We are quite a team, Jonah and me.