Post by siobhan on Aug 23, 2016 13:27:04 GMT -5
Hubby is reluctant to let Rocky onto his arm because Rocky has bitten him badly several times. However, he still wants to interact with him. I suggested a T-stand, and he built one and drilled a hole in a table on the porch to set it into so Rocky can hang out with him on the porch when I'm otherwise engaged.
Then he built a second T-stand, with a long handle. To go with this T-stand, he built a base that it sets down into and that we can move around the house so Rocky can be with us but we don't have to hold him -- for example, yesterday when I changed the bedding, I set him up in the bedroom doorway so he could watch. We set him next to the table when we have supper so I can eat (and share bites with him) without his having to be on my arm. This makes eating much easier for me, as his favorite arm to sit on during supper is also the one I use to eat, so I was having to eat with the other hand and that was awkward. Hubby also drilled a hole in a carved bear we have, to put the long T-stand into on the porch, so Rocky can gaze out the window, and a hole in the floor next to my chair on the porch so Rocky can sit by me when he's not sitting by his daddy.
Having places to park Rocky all over the house like this means that Rocky can go where we go and feel a part of things, yet we can still do things and don't have to listen to him screaming for us, or try to do things one-handed (ever changed bedding one-handed? It ain't easy) so we can carry him around. He's quite fond of his stand and doesn't mind sitting on it at all, as long as he's with one or both of us.
It doesn't mean I no longer carry Rocky around on my arm or have him on my lap. It just means when I need to do something else, or when his daddy wants to hang out with him or move him from place to place, that can happen. This has resulted in a much happier 'too, and much, MUCH less screaming. We can even park him on his stand on the porch and go outdoors to do yard work or take dogs out or feed the birds, and as long as we're in sight, Rocky is happy.
Then he built a second T-stand, with a long handle. To go with this T-stand, he built a base that it sets down into and that we can move around the house so Rocky can be with us but we don't have to hold him -- for example, yesterday when I changed the bedding, I set him up in the bedroom doorway so he could watch. We set him next to the table when we have supper so I can eat (and share bites with him) without his having to be on my arm. This makes eating much easier for me, as his favorite arm to sit on during supper is also the one I use to eat, so I was having to eat with the other hand and that was awkward. Hubby also drilled a hole in a carved bear we have, to put the long T-stand into on the porch, so Rocky can gaze out the window, and a hole in the floor next to my chair on the porch so Rocky can sit by me when he's not sitting by his daddy.
Having places to park Rocky all over the house like this means that Rocky can go where we go and feel a part of things, yet we can still do things and don't have to listen to him screaming for us, or try to do things one-handed (ever changed bedding one-handed? It ain't easy) so we can carry him around. He's quite fond of his stand and doesn't mind sitting on it at all, as long as he's with one or both of us.
It doesn't mean I no longer carry Rocky around on my arm or have him on my lap. It just means when I need to do something else, or when his daddy wants to hang out with him or move him from place to place, that can happen. This has resulted in a much happier 'too, and much, MUCH less screaming. We can even park him on his stand on the porch and go outdoors to do yard work or take dogs out or feed the birds, and as long as we're in sight, Rocky is happy.
