Another thing you'll find when you get your dog his backpack is that he won't appear as threatening to those folks who are afraid of dogs just at the sight of them or even those are somewhat apprehensive. I found that with Parker in the hospital it made him much more approachable and even had a couple of woman who had been terrified of dogs eventually warm up to him.

Sorry...this is wordy. I do appreciate all the help. Still floundering I guessÂ. I've actually been thinking and rethinking this kitchen remodel for 3 years, maybe I just havenÂt been paying attention to the real details like zones and functionality. Originally (3 years ago) I had 5-6 different quotes and almost all were for the very last layout I posted or similar. My mom then had a heart attack and a 3-week hospital stay, so my mind wasn't into it and some of the budget got depleted with helping with medical expenses and travel. So we redid a master bath and haven't gotten to the kitchen yet. I guess like loves2cook4six I may be puzzle fitting...but I thought I was following a good plan and utilizing prep/cook/clean zones. I was figuring the peninsula as a landing zone, food into the pantry and into the fridge, minimal steps to take. I have counter space between the fridge and oven. Cooking zone at the cooktop area. Cleanup along the sink. Prep zone on the peninsula. I could put the DW on the peninsula. I can easily rethink the cabinets above the peninsula. Super large pantry for storage of anything and everything that doesnÂt fit in the kitchen. Mixer, break maker, crock pot, etc. Part of the problem is the kitchen has two funky wall juts (one on the deck side ~22.5 inches out and one on the garage side again ~28.5 inches) that doesn't make it quite square and dictates the space. The space along the garage includes a load bearing wall so there isn't much I can do to push a wall into the garage or make it a good idea to place the cooktop on that wall. I do not want a cooktop on the peninsula. That isn't a look I'm partial too. Just for looks I like the cooktop on the wall where it is to make it a focal point, view from the FR. I don't want to be looking at a fridge. I don't seem to have quite enough space to put in an island where I could put a sink and DW. Or utilize as a prep area. I have an island now with a cooktop and I hate it. Mainly because it is 2x7 and in the way. I seem to run around it all day long. So more than anything I know what I donÂt want. The exterior wall is brick, so it really isn't easy to move the window over the sink. And I think it is the sink and window that are driving the placement of the other items. In a perfect world, I blow out the wall at the deck and push it out 8-10 feet. This however, would entail building out the basement and the bathroom/bedroom above. Granted the bathroom above needs work and the bedroom above is the smallest and would benefit the size increase, but blowing that out would take up my entire kitchen budget plus some:)

When Sheltie's were really popular they suffered from questionable breeding. I would suspect that one of the parents is very timid. Purebred means you can check their lineage and have some idea what they look like. Saying that, my middle sheltie, was just like her mother. I knew it was questionable breeding but my son was determined to get another dog. He went along and viola we had a puppy! Her mother was very timid and her dad was a goofball. HA! So I knew we could have a shy dog. She was very shy/timid. She was also one of the smartest dogs I've had. But she was my dog and only really minded me, and did not like going with anyone else. You need to make him look forward to going outside. Buy a harness so you are not choking him while he struggles when he's out. Then I would get some kind of food that he will just drool over, such as rotisserie chicken. Shelties aren't nose driven (i.e. hounds) so it takes something really good to keep their attention. My shy sheltie was a very picky eater. She hated dog treats and was very picky about what human food she would eat. So before feeding I would put both dogs on a leash to go outside. The idea is you want them hungry. Before going outside I would make a big deal about going out to have a cookie, bite, whatever you want to call it. Then take them out and take turns feeding each one a nibble (very small bites) of food. Start with the other dog. You want to keep his mind on the fact that the other dog might get more than him. Plan on feeding them quite a bit. Each time you feed say your "word". Example: Lassie, do you want a cookie?!! Be upbeat and when they are done, pet them, telling them "what a good dog" and bring them back in the house. You want him to associate "the word" with the food and actually look forward to going outside. Don't try to make him do other things. Just do this one simple exercise then return to the house. Depending on how he is doing, you can probably take just him out around the fourth day. Once you have at least a week, maybe more, depending on how he's acting, then put something else in the mix. Just have him at the state where he wants to go outside and eat his "cookie" before you add anything else. You should find that shelties can easily pick up tricks in a few days with very little effort on your part. Just be consistent and use the same hand motion and word for each trick/command. Start with the "cookie" then feed a few bites and then walk him around. Use the "cookie" as enticement. You're trying to keep his mind focused on you. Don't let him pull at the leash. STOP and make him sit. Use your "cookie" to get his attention. Each time he pulls stop and go back through the sit routine. The goal is to make him like going outside. So use the harness to take him out to do his business. But don't mix the two together at first. So for now just harness put on a leash and stand out with him kind of doing what you've been doing. Eventually when you get to the walk, stop, treat session, then you can throw in going to the potty. Hopefully, he will be less stressed by then and it will get easier for the dog and you. If he does happen to go, I would definitely praise the dog. You'll always have a timid dog, but he if you can get him to look to you it will help with his fears and help with your problems. By keeping him on a leash when he's "doing his business" you can keep him from running off at every little sound he hears. The goal is to eventually change the running behaviour so you won't have to leash. With the weather being what it is, I feel for your predicament. Saying that, my first sheltie was a prima dona. She didn't like getting her feet dirty. She didn't like the rain. So it was always a problem to get her to go outside when the weather was nasty.

Maybe you could do one whole wall in bookshelves and storage cabinets? It could look like a library/living room. If you put in some full length cabinets you could use as closets, you would have a place to put coats, shoes, and things you want to keep away from your dog. Take a look at Ikea cabinets-- you could configure a whole wall any way you wanted to.