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There's ample grass. Green. Clean. Fresh smelling spring grass. And yet, where do they play?
In the dirt, of course. If you look closely, you can see the slight green haze of newly sprouted clover, now being mashed unmercifully back into the soil from which it sprang. Oh well. At least they're having fun.
Okay, she's not really a monster, but Whimsy is about to hit the two year mark, and she still jumps on people, pulls when on-lead, and doesn't have even the beginning of a reliable stay. She is, in one little word, spoiled. It's not that she doesn't know ANY commands. She knows the things we need on our daily walks - "wrong way" (handy when she goes off the path to sniff something, and I don't want the leash to tangle around a tree), "not there" (no peeing on other people's front lawns), wait at corners, sit, "out of the street" (she is fascinated with storm drains). It's the basics she doesn't know, but really, I have a very good reason.
Although Whimsy is about as happy as a dog can be these days, she arrived at my door a 4 month old puppy with a poor prognosis for survival. Her first few months were hell, and I frequently wondered if by saving her I had really done her any favors or if the thought of putting her down was just too much for me to bear. I'm glad we soldiered through, because it's only been the last few months that she's grown hair and been doing really well, Whimsy is now a friendly, confident girl who loves everyone and is probably the smartest, most willing dog I've ever shared my life with. Ah, yes, the world is her oyster.
This week I finally followed my own advice and put Whimsy on a training program. We're starting with the things that are the most annoying - pulling on lead and jumping on people. We'll probably work a few sit-stays in, too.
I have a friend coming over, and more waiting in the wings, to help with the jumping. She's all prepped on what to do. Cross her arms and turn her back, no eye contact, no talking, until Whimsy is standing politely, at which time my friend can say "Hello". The minute she jumps, my friend will turn her back again. Tomorrow we'll start over with a different friend. Good thing I have lots of friends willing to help! Eventually, Whimsy will learn to sit politely and offer a paw when asked to say hello. For right now, keeping all four on the floor is plenty good.
We're also working for 10 - 15 minutes at a time, three times a day, on leash walking, with a few sit-stays thrown in to mix things up a little. Eventually we'll work on "Heel". Right now, I just want her to walk nicely without pulling. That's a lot to ask, with squirrels, and birds, and interesting trash here and there. Oh, and all the wonderful people to say hello to! Right now, it's slow. We walk, with lots of praise, until she starts to pull. As soon as she does, I turn, tapping my leg and encouraging her to follow. These aren't the kind of walks where you actually get anywhere. We have yet to make it around the block. But she is learning. I need to do far less turns, and she's starting to keep a bit of an eye on where I am. Until she has this down, I'll be using my flexi-lead more often, since it has a very different feel to her than her regular lead. I'll use this when I actually need to get somewhere and would like to take her along. Since I rarely leave the house without at least one dog in tow, this will be happening a lot in the near future. The reason I do this is to lessen her confusion. I don't have the time or the inclination to turn every walk into a manners lesson. For now, when she's on the flexi I won't worry too much about what how she's walking. Once she has a clearer grasp of what I expect of her, and walks nicely at least 80% of the time, the flexi-lead will once again be relegated to its former role of handling the walks in the park, for now, it's indispensable.
I chose this particular method of polite leash walking because Whimsy is a happy, willing dog who, unlike her "brother", Tug, really wants to do what you ask of her. I just want to channel the happy energy, not quash it, since it's not over the top. And really, it's hard to be firm when you're looking at a face like this:
So many animals, so much care needed, so little time and, especially, money. Well, there's an easy way for you to help, and you don't even have to move from your seat.
At the Animal Rescue site, www.theanimalrescuesite.com simply by clicking the "Give Here" button, sponsors will donate food to shelters.
But you don't have to stop there. After you click to feed, why not take it one step further and help your favorite shelter win their fair share of $100,000 in grants to be awarded? You can vote once a day from now through July 26th (my mom's birthday!). It only takes a minute, how much easier could it be to do a little something for animals in need? You can access the voting site easily from a button on theanimalrescuesite.com's website from the link above, or you can simply click here to vote.
So go ahead, bookmark this site and try to remember to click to feed, and click to vote, every day.
The beautiful image above is the work of Andreas Holm. He was kind enough to give me permission to use it here. To see more images and view his blog, please visit his website at http://www.shelterdogs.net/index.php.
Bruce is one of my day care dogs. He's sweet and easy to get along with, loved by people and other dogs alike for his great vibes. After weeks of ignoring the other dogs, both my own and those who come for day care and boarding, Gully has finally chosen Bruce to be his buddy.
I keep a baby gate between the dog room and Gulliver's space, taking it up and down at varying times because Gully likes it, it makes him feel like he can control contact, but I also don't want him to be shut off. The other day, Bruce pushed the gate open and went in. Knowing Bruce, it was probably because one of Gulliver's bones or toys was calling his name, but somehow, in the few minutes they were together, Gully decided he liked Bruce. Better yet, he copies Bruce. He really couldn't pick a better role model, since Bruce is pretty imperturbable. Wagging his tail and taking treats, Gully didn't run back to his bed to eat them, but crunched them up right there and stuck his nose out for another one. Luckily, Bruce is here often. It's been a very good thing for Gulliver because their friendship has stuck. Bruce will be back tomorrow, and I'm looking forward to watching them together. I just hope Bruce doesn't teach Gulliver how to carry my slippers and shoes around, dropping them in obscure places so I have to search them out!
This is pretty typical of the way things go with fearful dogs. Just when you think they're never going to get any better, boom! They take a big step. Bruce has made overtures of friendship to Gulliver since he arrived, only to be met with complete indifference. Gully just wasn't ready. When he was, Bruce was there, ready to take Gulliver under his wing.
People have been e-mailing, asking for an update on Gulliver. I wish he knew just how many friends he has, from people all over the place. I haven't written about him much lately, because we hadn't introduced anything new and I didn't want to cover old ground. The improvements he was making, such as eating while I was still in the room with him and finally taking care of all his "business" outside on a regular basis just weren't very exciting. This, though, I thought was worth writing about!
So the snow was wet and mushy. Buddy and Lila didn't care. Racing, leaping, and just generally having a great time, they couldn't get enough of winter's last appearance!
Olive is pretty much obsessed with her big purple ball. Using her nose, feet, and body she sends that ball flying from one end of the yard to the other, with barely an "excuse me" to the other dogs whose games she's so rudely interrupting.
Normally Olive is a beautiful brindle and white, with clean, crisp markings. Before, that is, she and her ball make tracks across the yard and through the garden. Guess who's getting a bath?
For your viewing pleasure, here are some great videos I've seen lately. Dog related, of course.
Extreme Sheep Herding:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D2FX9rviEhw&feature=player_embedded
Nine Habits of Effective Clicker Trainers
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oWR-Z8gCMIk
A New Take on an Old Trick
http://www.videosift.com/video/Letterman-Stupid-Pet-Trick-Play-Dead
Dr. Ian Dunbar on Training
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wTkYvn1HjrI
Dog Escape Artist (I'm so glad she's not mine!)
Who do you go to when your world falls apart? When you're scared and need some comfort? What would you do if that person, when you came to them, greeted your fear with "Oh, get over it" or maybe "You're being silly, you don't need to be afraid"? And yet, for years, that's what has been drummed into our heads, emotional dog lovers that we are.
There's a big difference between reassurance and praise. "It's okay, that noisy thunderstorm will be over soon" is vastly different to your dog than "Oh! What a good dog!". So don't worry about reinforcing a fear in your dog by giving her some kind words of comfort and reinforcement when she's afraid. Don't worry that you'll make the fear worse by a little cuddling and some appropriate sympathy. You won't. You'll just let her know that you are the person to run to when something is amiss in her world. And you'll reinforce something good: that she can trust you no matter what. That you are a safe port in a storm. That not only do you make delicious meals and tasty treats appear as if by magic, entertain her with silly games and wear her out with a walk or some fun at the park, but that you are worthy of being the center of her world.
In an otherwise confident dog, a phobia, especially to something like a thunderstorm, can be hard to correct. There are many things to try, from dog appeasement pheromone (DAP) which comes in both a spray bottle or an atomizer, to homeopathic formulas such as rescue remedy, to exposing your dog to the feared object slowly, gradually increasing closeness to it, meanwhile giving lots of treats. For thunderstorms, you can play a tape, gradually increasing the volume. To be honest, thunderstorm phobia's are one of the most common and very hardest to correct. They encompass so much more than noise; air pressure changes, wind blows, rain falls hard and fast, windows get shut and sometimes lights flicker. They can be pretty overwhelming to a poor dog. Frequently, management is the best option. My own dog, who started fearing the dreaded storm after we moved from the country to the city, usually runs to his crate when it gets to be too much. I cover it with a blanket, and make sure he feels as safe and secure as he can until it blows over. I'll be writing more about correcting a phobia in the future. Maybe, in the meantime, I can find something that works for my sweet Tug. For now, when your dog looks at you with fear in her eyes, keep the gentle words flowing, make yourself the "island in a storm", and keep your dog's trust in you high.
Every day with Gulliver is an adventure. You never know how he's going to feel. Is this a good day or a not-so-good day? Will he make a teeny-tiny baby step forward, maintain, or seem to have a setback? It's all part of rehabilitating a fearful dog.
Gulliver is full of little surprises. Some big, some not-so-much. I had been told he hated confined spaces and was terrified of crates. Well, I'd already figured out that he doesn't mind, in fact, seems to enjoy, confined spaces. He likes to ride in the car, and his very favorite spot is a corner under a countertop where he feels nice and safe.
I hadn't tried crating him because if he truly was afraid, I didn't want to traumatize him. This weekend I had him in the dog room after our walk, which is when he seems to enjoy getting some attention the most. A few feet away was a plastic airline crate with its door open. Usually I keep crate doors closed, but in this case I'd washed it out, put some new bedding inside, and had forgotten to close the door. Gulliver, all on his own, walked over, went inside, and curled up. Happy as a clam. I left him there for awhile, since he seemed to enjoy it, but it's a little on the small side for a dog his size. Eventually I asked him to come out, it took a few minutes, but out he came.
This is an excellent discovery, since it means that if, for some reason, Gulliver needs to be somewhere else for a little while, other than on his bed in the corner, he has a portable place he feels safe. It also means, if he feels comfortable enough in it, that I can put it in the house and give him a place where he feels secure but can still watch the activity going on around him, maybe eventually feeling safe enough to come out and join me and the other dogs.
I've ordered a crate big enough for a Gulliver to be comfortable in, and also gotten some new bedding to put in his corner so that when the crate arrives I can put the quilts he's been sleeping on inside it. Then I'll keep the crate around, door open, to see if he uses it. If not, I'll try tossing some treats inside. Whether or not he goes in is a decision he'll have to make. I'll be keeping my fingers crossed.
I've also been playing around with the baby gate that goes into the office doorway. I've found that Gulliver likes it up during the day, down at night (mostly, I think, so that he can go poop by the door. Gulliver won't poop when it's dark outside and for the foreseeable future, that's the way it's going to be. It's easy enough to clean up, so I'm not worried about it now. He's housebroken, so when he's not so afraid, it won't be an issue). It gives him a way, in his mind, to control contact. With the gate up, he'll come to it, tail wagging a little, for some pets. When he's had enough attention, he walks away. It makes him feel secure. That's a pretty big deal for him.
