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Another 4th of July

Another 4th of July
by
June 21, 2016
in Main
1 Comment
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another4th_bl_1Hey everyone! I know it’s been way too long since my last blog but to be honest with you I’ve had writers block ever since Sully got adopted. But with baby Camden coming soon I’m sure I will have plenty to write about. But today, I want to share a story with all of you…

So it’s fireworks season around here and last week a noise went off and Penny reacted but because she was so close to nervous Fletcher, her and Fletch go into a little scuffle. Neither of them got hurt as I was able to separate them pretty quick and calm them both down. And ever since that day, fireworks have been going off more and more frequently. Instead of getting mad at something that was out of my control, I decided to take this as an opportunity to teach Penny. The School of Dog Psychology has taught me that if you don’t want your dog doing something, you have to give them something else to do. So Penny’s job is to “relax” on this dog bed. Not next to the bed or around the bed but on this specific dog bed. And when she gets up from it, I simply guide her back to the bed. And we work on it when fireworks aren’t going off so that when they do go off (or something that sounds like them) she has a better understanding of what it is I want from her. And if she could understand English I would tell her this, “Look, Penny Pasta I’m not telling you to NOT be scared of fireworks. I’m asking you to lie on this bed. “So last night, it sounded like someone threw 3 sticks of dynamite in my backyard. Penny was good on the first but by the third one she ran off the dog bed and went straight for Fletch. Fletcher reacted by trying to hide. I kept my another4th_bl_2emotions in check, got in front of Penny so she couldn’t move forward anymore. She barked, growled and resisted and every time she moved forward I claimed the space right back. Once she calmed down, I guided her back to her bed and all was good. And as they went off through the night, she did exactly what I wanted her to do, not what I didn’t want her to do. If you’re wondering what the other dogs do, they don’t react at all. It’s only Fletch which is why Penny reacts to him.

I always get people telling me that they wish their dogs got along as well as mine did which I totally take as a compliment. And don’t get me wrong, they get along like 98% of the time but what I usually end up telling people is my pack probably has the same problems as yours at least to some to degree. But instead of getting upset, embarrassed, sad, or angry, I’ve learned to use each experience as an opportunity to learn. I’ve always told people that having a dog is like having an 8 year old forever and if that’s the case, the learning and teaching will never stop. There will always be setbacks and disagreements in ANY relationship but the sooner you let go of the past, the sooner you can focus on the present. Why am I telling you this? Because my life isn’t all just cute pics on social media, I want you to know I go through it, too.

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Comments

  1. Allison : June 29, 2016 at 4:36 am

    Thank you for sharing these tips. I have issues with my pack not getting along as well. I adopt the hard to “adopt” dogs with issues and we haven’t been able to get all our dogs together. We have small packs within our packs that we have to rotate in and out. Some of our dogs have their own rooms in our house. We try to set them up for success in all situations, so if we are confident in how they may react we don’t put them in an uncomfortable situation. I found your blog by Kasey’s article. Thanks for sharing what you go through as I definitely can relate. I appreciate you sharing the positivity and training tips through your personal experiences.

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