It’s been a while, I know…there’s been a great deal going on in my personal and professional life. Some of it is stressful, but most of it GREAT. Today, however, was one of the best moments in my dog-life.
A little re-cap first…if you’ve read pasts posts, you know that I don’t lean toward “easy keepers” in terms of dogs that choose me. And I wouldn’t have it any other way most days. Most training days are challenging, mentally, for both me and my canine partners – either Jake or Mollie.
This weekend we had a fun match here at 4 Paws. It was an Obedience / Rally match, and admittedly I don’t train much in either sport with them. That said, ring time is ring time and it’s a great opportunity to work on basic skills that should transfer between sports.
Jake did really well, considering I don’t work with him much on these activities. He’s my nose dude, but he will do virtually anything I ask of him.
Mollie has been more of a challenge. Months ago, we determined it boiled down to a lack of confidence. And that’s on me. I didn’t do enough foundation work with her, so last November, I started over. Not from square one, but with Confidence Building 101. One of the latest exercises we’ve started is “squishing.” It’s not as ooey-gooey as it sounds.
The basic premise is this: I ask her to “get ready” and she squeezes between my legs in a nice sit, looking up at me. I hold her close and rub her chest, indicating to her that I’ve got her back. Literally.
“Get Ready” took me all of 15 minutes to train in my house, where she is comfortable.
For some of you this sounds silly, or fluffy, or easy. It is none of those things for Mollie. This is a dog that would not let me step over her when she was lying down. She barely tolerated me towering over her in any fashion. She really didn’t like being stroked or petted, unless it was on her terms – it made her uncomfortable. The prospect of this was a little intimidating to me and I wondered how she would react. To my joy, she LOVES it. You can visibly see her relax when she gets to the position.
So, I have been transitioning this to class. And it’s been nice. I used it this weekend in the Fun Match…and her performance was AWESOME.
What I didn’t realize is how this could affect her outside training or working. Well, as you may have guessed, I found out (otherwise, why would I write about it)!
My husband was taking advantage of the nice weather and pruned our apple tree. A branch hit the house and apparently startled Mollie. She actively sought me out for comfort…now, here comes the really interesting part: I was in the shower at the time. SHE HATES THE SHOWER. She came into the stall with me, seeking reassurance. Holy moly.
I quickly dried off and she “got ready”. I saw her face soften, and felt her pulse slow a bit. I took further advantage of my time with her, and worked her while the scary chainsaw was blaring.
This was a breakthrough to end all breakthroughs. I actually had tears in my eyes. Because now, in me she trusts.
