Max the Peanut
Max (a.k.a. “Peanut”) is a 7-month-old, male Chinese Crested puppy with the spirit of a lion and the heart of an angel. Max belongs to my niece and nephew-in-law. He is best friends with our cat Violet, and he is proving to be a true Therapy dog to our dog Glimmer, who is insecure, fearful, and nervous around other dogs as a result of previous, negative experiences. He’s only a puppy, but when Glimmer invites him to play, he seems to know how much excitement she can handle, and he responds accordingly. Self-restraint in any dog is awesome; for a naturally high-strung puppy to exhibit that kind of restraint, however, that is extraordinary.
Max will be with us for the next few days. During his stay, my niece and nephew-in-law have asked me to work with him on his basics, and, if possible, do some kennel training with him. He is an awesome little dog in his own right – as mentioned above – but he has acute separation anxiety issues that need to be addressed, especially with kenneling. I’m looking forward to spending the next few days working with him.
Pictures and videos will be shared when possible.
Have a wonderful day and a fantastic weekend ahead – and remember to stay calm and lead on… 🙂
Back to Basics
Sometimes in life, we find ourselves having to go back to Square One. It’s nothing unusual – it happens to a lot of trainers. Because, every dog is different, and sometimes, going back to basics is what has to happen in order to help the dog. But there are also times when it happens in life; when we find ourselves at a point where we either have to start over completely, or we have to almost start over completely. This is where I am at now: Starting over completely.
Last Friday’s scheduled training session with Chucho did not happen. I got a call that morning from the client, who tearfully told me that she had to return the dog to DINO. Without going into detail, Chucho bit two children – one of them was the client’s youngest child – and then went after another dog. Chucho is in a rehabilitation center now. I hope the trainers are able to help him become happy and balanced, and I hope he finds his forever home.
Then, there is Lacey, who I have been working with pro bono for the past few months. Late yesterday afternoon, I got a call from my client telling me that things were not going as she had planned and she didn’t know when that would change. We talked about the situation, and we came to a mutual agreement to suspend Lacey’s training until things improve. She has a reasonable idea about what to do with Lacey, and if she has any questions, she knows she can call me. I wish her the very best of luck and hope things will get better for her sooner rather than later.
What this all means is that I am back at Square One. I’m not happy about it, of course, but experience has taught me that when things like this happen, it’s usually because an important challenge is about to arrive and I need to be able to respond to it.
So, while I wait, I am going to work with my own dog, honing her skills and teaching her new ones. I hope you’ll continue to follow me as I take this side journey with my own dog while I’m waiting for the next challenge to arrive. 🙂
Happy Dawgs Obedience Training 