Rambo Answers my Question

Whenever we travel and stay in a hotel with a big bed or sofa and even when we are camping, Rambo is quick to seize the opportunity to jump up and sit or lay right next to me.  He seems to love to be close and enjoys the extra attention he gets by being so near.  He will stay next to me until one of us decides we need to get up for a drink of water or whatever necessity comes upon us.  I like it when he's next to me as well.  I love to feel the soft fur around his ears and just generally be in contact with him.  At night when he jumps in bed with me, if I am up to it, he gets a massage and some good scratching.  I find this especially important after a long working day.  I can tell he appreciates how good it feels and he will often fall asleep quite quickly.

He likes to sleep close to me.  Close as in he often sleeps with his head on my chest.

Rambo snoozing with his head on my chest.  He snores too!

Even when I'm driving, Rambo will push his all-weather bed I put in the back seat up against the front seats.  He ends up building up extra space over the things that I keep in the back seat (more on that in a dog travel necessities post).  Then he lays his body against the back of my seat and curls his head around to lay it down on the center console.  Its a great spot for him to get some occasional ear scratches.  On hot days I have two a/c vents sending cool air directly to the spot between the front seats.  Rambo will bask in the cool air the entire trip.  The only way he could get any closer to me is if there was no front seat.

At home I have a single recliner in my tiny living room.  There is absolutely no room for him in the chair when I am sitting in it.  He is way too heavy to be a lap dog even though he tried it out a couple of times.  Neither one of us was comfortable and he has since decided not to ever get up in my lap even when invited.  He will, however, always find a spot where he can sit right at my feet or by my side.  I have learned to look first before I put the foot of the recliner down or move my desk chair back so as to not step on or hit my dog with the chair.  Since Rambo is all black he often gets stepped on or accidentally kicked simply because he is invisible in a dark room.  This does not deter him from being as close to me as he can.

It dawned on me one day that it would be really nice if I had a loveseat or sofa so he could sit next to me while I'm watching tv or reading.  So I did a little shopping, found a loveseat that also reclines and had it delivered.  I donated my trusty recliner to a less fortunate veteran (who LOVES it!).

As soon as I got the loveseat in place and sat down, Rambo was immediately poking his nose at my leg looking for an invitation to jump up.  I gave him a little wave and up he jumped.  Keeping mind that this is a loveseat and not a sofa, by time he gets up and lays down there is just enough room for him to curl up and be comfortable.  He quickly learned that he could get a little extra room along with lots of extra love by laying his head in my lap or on my belly.  So that night I relaxed on my new loveseat with my dog keeping me company and I don't think either one of us moved for a couple of hours.  It really was a comfortable and intimate time for us.  I was really glad that I got the loveseat so I could share my space with Rambo.

Rambo relaxed with me on the loveseat.  I suck at selfies.

A couple of days later I got to wondering about what Rambo thought about the new loveseat and being able to sit next to me.  I'm always curious about animal behavior and I try to understand what motivates my dog.  There are always questions about what or how my dog thinks that will never be answered due to our vast language barrier.  Does Rambo understand that this is a new piece of furniture or does his brain just see what is in front of him at the moment?  Does he like the idea that he can now sit next to me while we're at home?  Does he understand and appreciate that I got the loveseat on his account?  (Ok, so that sounds a little eccentric but I love my dog and spoil him to no end, as he well deserves!)

I figured that since he actually got up and sat with me that was about all the answer I was going to get and had to be satisfied with it.  Whether he was aware and appreciative of the fact that the loveseat gave him the opportunity to snuggle with me when he couldn't before would remain a mystery.

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At every meal time for Rambo I run him through as many tasks as I can under the circumstances.  I'll make him heal, cover, fetch something and, if he is learning a new task, I will focus on that.  Rambo is highly food motivated and will perform with a bounce in his step knowing that his dinner is waiting.  

A few days after the loveseat came home to roost, it was breakfast time and I was running Rambo through tasks.  I try to vary them up as he is very good at anticipating my commands if I do them in the same order every meal time.  At this particular meal I was running out of different tasks to throw at him so I told him to "go to bed."  He has a big bed made with a thick orthopedic cushion covered with simulated wool and it is very comfortable.  When I tell him to go to bed he will trot over, make his snake-proofing circle then lay down.  He loves to stretch out on this bed for his afternoon nap (if he's not napping with me).  He will sleep in his kennel as well but eventually will move to the open air bed so he can stretch out.  Not to mention that this bed is right in front of the a/c and is the coolest spot in the house on a hot day.

This time, when I told Rambo to go to bed, he looked at me and I could see the gears turning in his head.  As soon as his doggy brain figured out what I wanted him to do he took off at a run.  As he took off I bent down to put his food bowl down.  When I looked up, expecting Rambo to be on his bed, he wasn't there.

A little glance to the right and there he was on his side of the loveseat, looking content and waiting for his next command (dinner is waiting you know!).

After all my wondering about what Rambo thinks about his new piece of furniture, Rambo found a way to give me an answer.

Rambo claims his spot on the new loveseat

Now we enjoy our evenings watching tv together and I don't think either one of us could be happier!