Sunday, March 5, 2023

Progress on Boundless Quilt

 

I have been quilting the Boundless quilt which I am making for the Dust Off an Old Quilt Book blog hop. It is a baby size quilt that should fit on the curtain rod above of my couch. I am very happy with how it is turning out.

2023: 15 Minutes to Stitch Week 9


I focused on Boundless for this week's stitching so that I can be finished in time. The photo is the back of the quilt. I did cut some scraps for Unallocated so I can make progress on cleaning out the fabric room.  My separation anxiety book is due at the library so I had to finish reading it which limited some quilting time, but blog hop deadline kept me sewing every day.


 
15 minute days this week --7 out of 7
15 minute days this year -- 63 out of 63 days
Success rate  = 100%
 
 
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Zoey Update


 

I have been asked to provide updates on Zoey's communication, and I want to keep records of her progress. Here on the blog is a good place to do it.

She started out with two buttons, "Love You" and "Go Outside". One day it clicked to her that she could communicate with me using them. I definitely respond faster to what she wants when she pushes the buttons because I know what she wants, and because I want to make sure she understands what each button means to me.

Since then, I have added other buttons. And also some foam holders that helps keep the buttons in the same place. They move around so I will need to tape them down to the floor. One button is lost (I haven't taken the time to look for it), so I opened the new pack and only used one out of a pack of 6. Currently her buttons are:

1. Love You

2.Go Outside

3. Settle

4. Go Potty

5. Play

6. Eat

I moved the Go Outside button from the door to the foam. So now all the buttons are in one place, but there are two types of containers because when I bought more buttons, this set was cheaper. She didn't have any problems making the change, as far as I can tell. If she accidentally hit the wrong button, I may not know, since I have to respond as if it was on purpose so she knows what they mean. I pushed all the buttons and she tested all the buttons so she would know which one is which.

I am not sure she fully understands the Settle button means. I take her to the couch and tell her down and pet her when she pushes it. She may have thought it means "couch" since a couple of times she was way too excited to be settling. It turns out that there were balls that had rolled under the couch. But the last couple of times she pushed it, it was my bedtime. The first time she did,  I told her Yes it is time to sleep. It took me some time to get upstairs since I had to put the clothes in the dryer and dishes in the washer so I am not sure it was fast enough for her to make a connection. Last night (Friday), she pushed it again and I didn't realize the time, so I watched TV with her on the couch. It seems like I need more training than she does on how to use that button.

I don't think she knows the difference between the Go Outside and the Go Potty buttons. But it is something I want to know since I can tell her "Later" when she clicks the Go Outside button when the neighbors are out, but I don't want to say "Later" if she has to go.

I just put out the Eat button Friday afternoon, and she knows exactly what it means already. This morning she kept pushing the Eat button after she had already eaten breakfast. I kept telling her "All Done." Then I remembered that she needed to take her anxiety medication. So she was right, and I was wrong.

She doesn't push the Love You button much, maybe because she doesn't need to. She gets pets and attention if she just walks up to me.

It is very tempting to add another set of buttons, but I wanted to make sure she has enough practice with these first before adding more. As work gets busy, I am not going to have time to respond to every button push to train her on what it means.



6 comments:

loulee said...

So interesting to read of your experiences with this system, I have heard of it, but didn't know anyone who uses it.

Kyle said...

Very interesting with the button.

Kate said...

Congrats on all the stitching time this year, you've done really well there. I love the buttons, I've seen some videos on tic toc, but wasn't sure how well they really work with dogs. Very fun stuff.

Queeniepatch said...

The quilt is growing beautifully.
I have never heard of or seen such doggy buttons before. Very interesting.
Queenie

Susan said...

The dog buttons are amazing. I love hearing her progress, and yours. LOL It's better to go slower, I think, and really make sure these are cemented before adding more, you're right.

You've had awesome success with your stitching time!

Tanya said...

The way your communication is going with Zoey is amazing! What a breakthrough that would be in our house if we could get some things across to our dog, and vice versa!