Daisy: End of Week 2
Daisy made good progress in Week 2. She’s still struggling with reactivity towards Violet, but the two can quietly be in the same room at the same time for at least a minute, now, without one or the other starting a fight.
Daisy’s leash manners continue to improve. She still puts the brakes on when I change direction and she cowers and shakes in fear [the fear response is baffling me] but when I softly cluck at her and tell her “this way”, she moves fine. She does still tend to want to move ahead, but her pulling has decreased quite a bit.
Last night was a bad night. She was up for most of it, demand barking. My husband had come home just after supper, and she wanted to be with him. She disagreed with having to wait her turn for his attention, she disagreed with not being allowed to follow him everywhere he went, and when her bedtime came, she very loudly disagreed with that, too, by refusing to go into her crate. It took me a good couple of minutes to get her into her bed. I expected her to settle once we went to bed – she settled nicely the first time he came home overnight – but she wasn’t having it. She screeched and pitches high enough to shatter glass, she got hold of the cover over her crate and tried to destroy it, she even tried to force her way out of her crate by pushing hard at the crate door. This behavior went on for well over an hour before I finally broke down and medicated her. It continued off and on all night, until about 45 minutes before my alarm went off and I had to get up. This is the first time since she’s been with me that I’ve had to medicate her.
NOTE: Daisy has anxiety medication to be given “as needed”. Both her owner and her veterinarian gave me permission to work on helping Daisy cope with her triggers without medication. Until last night, Daisy was doing really well without it.
As we begin Week 3, my focus will be on continuing to work on leash manners, continuing slow exposure to Violet, and working to recover Daisy from the intense fear responses she still exhibits with hands, feet, and direction changes on walks. I’m also going to be continuing to try and engage her in play; to date, Daisy has shown no interest in play, even when Glimmer has invited her. This bothers me, as her owner has told me Daisy loves to play.
In this third week, I’m also continuing to focus on building trust and confidence with Daisy. She has started to relax in the back yard – yesterday, she surprised me by laying down, then flopping over onto her side, and then, closing her eyes and totally relaxing. It’s important to build on this so that she can be this way outside of her normal, quiet routine. For example, when people come to visit, when she and her owner are out and about, when they’re out on walks together… Essentially, when life is happening.
Aside from last night, Daisy has been making progress. Sometimes, it’s significant; other times, it’s slow but steady; and still other times, it’s in fits and starts. However big or small each step is, we celebrate it with joy and encourage it to continue. Setbacks are normal and to be expected; when they happen, you just have to stay calm, be patient, and work through them, for as long as it takes. Every dog is different; some dogs take longer to recover, others recover quickly. Daisy requires ongoing help, and that’s okay. I’m here for her and her owner.
Have a great day, and remember to stay calm and lead on.
One Comment on “Daisy: End of Week 2”
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Happy Dawgs Obedience Training 
Last night was unfortunate for Daisy. She wanted attention too and didn’t know why she couldn’t have some.
The night is over and today a new beginning for her to show she is learning new skills.
I am sorry the family has a visitor that made Roger’s homecoming so noisy and chaotic.
Have a great day and another week of Daisy’s positive progress.
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