Ben has been with us 15 weeks today. He’s made excellent progress in most areas, and he’s still working on other areas. Greeting at the door is one area he’s still struggling with; despite how well he’s been doing with the “place” exercises, when people come over, he gets so excited to greet them and smell them that he forgets everything he’s learned and he rushes them. We are continuing to work on this.

I was told that Ben cannot be around small animals – which includes small dogs. To date, I haven’t really seen for myself why that is, but I accepted the information and thus, I have not tested Ben.  When we were at the vet the other night, an opportunity arose in which I could.  A gentleman came in with a pack of five (maybe six – it was hard to tell) small Pekingese dogs. Two of them were highly reactive and started barking and growling at us. One of them was lunging at the leash trying to get to us. Ben’s response was to stand calmly and quietly beside me. He didn’t even lift his lip. He kept his tail down and his body relaxed, and his ears were alert but back to show the other dog he wasn’t interested in fighting. He even looked to me for direction, and I rewarded that behavior with verbal praise and touch.  When the man walked his pack past us to leave the clinic, his dogs lunged, barked, and growled at us… and Ben just remained calm and quiet beside me and watched them leave the building. I was very pleased with Ben and rewarded him accordingly.

Because of the current situation (see this posting), working Ben is proving to be very challenging. I can’t work him in the house because Violet loves to participate in those exercises, and it’s too cold outside right now for him to do anything other than potty. But, while the search for a safe placement for him continues, I am continuing to try to find ways to alleviate the stress he’s carrying.

Thank you for your continued support and encouragement. Ben is a very special case, with very specific demands and needs, and we are doing everything we can to help him move towards a more balanced state of being.

Yesterday, I noticed a large lump on the side of Ben’s penile sheath. I immediately called Kathy at DINO for a visit to the vet.  The visit was quite informative. The lump turned out to be the bulbous gland, which is responsible for the protrusion and contraction of the penis. Apparently, in some dogs, the gland does become enlarged like that when it has to work. Thankfully, it’s nothing to be concerned about; I just have to make sure that when Ben does get a bit of an erection, it doesn’t get stuck outside the sheath. I don’t relish the idea of having to massage him to get it back in – which is the only way…. ::blink::

Ben is a perfect 47 lbs. now. He is also no older than 2 years – in fact, after carefully examining his teeth, the vet believes he’s actually a little younger than two. I knew he was too puppy-like to be a 3- to 5-year-old dog!

Aside from the enlarged pad on his back foot – which he was born with – the vet said that Ben is in excellent health. She was also very pleased to see fur growing back in most of the areas where mange left its mark. Some scars are still visible and they probably always will be. But for the most part, she said, Ben’s coat and skin is in excellent condition.

We are still in forced separation and isolation status. A placement for Ben has not yet been found. If nothing is found for him by the end of the week, he will be meeting some people on the weekend who have been following his journey here.  However, they can’t adopt him until the middle of April…. and we can’t keep the separation and isolation going for that long. Ben must find a safe placement until such time as he can be adopted.

While we waited our turn to see the vet, I worked Ben on some of his basics. Considering where we were, he actually did a really good job. I had to use food rewards to help him focus, but it was his first time working around so many distractions, and I wanted to set him up for success. He did an awesome job of it, too. I was very proud of him.

Because of the current situation, I can’t work Ben in the house at all – and it’s too cold outside for anything other than a potty break. My husband is in the process of booking some time off work to help me.

Have a great day, everyone, and remember to stay calm and lead on…