Kids and Dogs: Some Unsolicited Advice

So where did the month of October go?
I'm sorry.
Where have I been? Right here, writing -- just not writing in my blog. I have been in over my head with a curriculum that is due Monday. It looks like I'll make the deadline, but it will be close. Besides that, I've been teaching a New Testament class, but that is over, thank you. Even with such excellent excuses, I still feel a little guilty, so I'll let you have just what comes off the top of my head today.
Two signs of winter's approach happened to coincide last night. The Chicago White Sox won the fourth and final game of the World Series, causing great rejoicing in my household and ending the baseball season. And the second sign was our first frost -- not a killing frost, but a fair warning, a shot across the bow to indicate that it is time to get whatever remains to be gotten out of the garden. What remains is two fine heads of broccoli.
The frost also meant I had to scrape ice from my windshield today before driving to work. I didn't have time to check the broccoli at that point, so I worried about it all morning, but it was fine when I took the dog out for her lunch time walk.
Speaking of the dog and frost, the onset of cold weather means that it will be even harder than usual to get my kids to take the dog out properly. "Properly" means that they should walk with her to the end of the yard where she is supposed to do her "business," and not just let her out by herself. She gets confused when you don't go with her and if she doesn't need to go urgently, she won't go. Then, in the middle of the night, she'll sneak downstairs and make a mess.
Part of the problem is that none of my kids has a real sense of ownership. When Kathy and I were young and foolish, my father offered us this puppy and my kids promised to "share" the responsibilities. We agreed to a rotation -- 3 kids, with each taking responsibility for feeding, watering and walking the dog for two days a week. (I handle Sundays.)
This turned out to be a very bad idea. The kids kept their promise for about a month. Then they started trading "dog days" and arguing about whose day it was. The dog, simple creature that she is, expects to go out the minute she wakes up. But if the child who is "on duty" isn't awake yet, the others wouldn't dream of helping out. So again we get a mess.
We probably would have been better off getting three dogs and assigning one to each child. At least then there would be no question about who was responsible to take a dog out. At this point, however, I am simply trying to be more vigilant, to enforce the rules when I can and to take the dog out myself when I have to. And this is my advice to all the other parents out there: never let your kids "share" a dog.