I was a little skeptical/nervous about the entire idea. I had always loved the thought of and wanted a dog like the movies. You know, when you come home and a little dog is sitting there, patiently waiting for you? Well, when my parents had dogs, they were crate-trained. It works very well. I can't say anything negative about it, if of course the people are doing it right. Winston LOOOOOOOVES his crate. He has a nice and comfy purple plaid bed (he's in touch with his feminine side lol) and he loves to lay on it when the tile flooring is too chilly or when he gets too hot snuggling on the couch with me.

Whenever I would get ready to leave the house, Winston practically flies into his crate, eager to get a doggy-cookie. (I have never, and I do mean NEVER, witnessed a dog that wasn't underfed be so food-motivated... But I gather that this is a common corgi trait :D I wanted to train Winston to be a house-free dog that could chill out of his crate while I was gone, but I wasn't really sure how to do that. I read that I needed to buy a baby gate and start small, but other than that, I wasn't sure. I also heard that I'd have to suffer ripped interior or destroyed items and I wasn't sure I was prepared for all that.

Well, as some of you may or may not know, I am a college student. Which means that life can be a little hectic and sometimes I'm kind of brain-dead when I rush to get to class... Well, on Saturday (ugh! don't ever sign up for a course that meets on Saturday ever again!) I was in a huge hurry. I didn't get enough sleep the night before, my coffee pot was broken, and I was kind of in a crabby-I-am-so-tired-and-need-caffeine kind of mood. Well, running behind schedule, I was rushed out the door. I didn't think I had done anything unusual and went to class as always.

When I returned home about three hours later, I was quite shocked to find my beloved little Winston sitting on the welcome mat, eager to greet me inside. He yawn-barked and arooo'ed at me and I took him out to potty. I was nervous about the apartment though. Did he eat something? Chew the walls? Tear up the rugs? Eat my cords? I was kind of panicking and I don't really know why. Winston has never done anything remotely like that. As a puppy, he showed no interest in my laptop cords, the tv cables, or the rug edges. He did scratch a paw-sized hole into the wall through his pen once, a few months ago though...

Well, we went inside and I surveyed the apartment. Astonished, I realized that Winston had not done anything, except empty his toy basket completely. I mean, every single toy was on the floor in various spots. And his fish was in the bed, which is a no-no. (No toys in the bed because he starts acting too rowdy.)

Needless to say, I was stoked! So I tried it again. Same results. The only difference was that I closed the door to my bedroom. I am so excited. I've been calling Winston my big boy doggy for the last few days and I'm so happy. So far, we haven't had any problems. I'm keeping his crate, so if I need to enclose him for any reason, but also because Winston really does like his crate. It's like his little den of privacy.

I just wanted to tell everyone how grown up my little Winston is becoming, haha!