Blue has made great strides in settling in and gaining self-confidence. Her anxiety is no longer constant and out loud, but can still be seen time to time in subtler ways. As she has become more comfortable in her own skin, she has become adventuresome. She will leave the room I am in to find another family member, go for a nap in a dog bed in another room and explore when we are outdoors without constantly checking to see where I am. We continue to practice nervous system calming & grounding with somatic touch and compressions.
Blue’s favourite place is on her bed with her human watching TV, curled up between her human’s knees with a Benebone at hand. We’ve introduced a mat in the kitchen as she likes to curl up on our feet when we are prepping meals. The mat allows her to be close and see us, but not be a trip hazard.
She is an easy-going, willing-to-be-touched little girl. Her ears, eyes and paws can be cleaned without issue. She was challenged with a bout of Giardia, itchy ears and mucky eyes. Her patience with the cleaning and willingness to take her meds by mouth made it easy to care for her.
Blue settles lovely in restaurants, coffee shops and theatres. Usually preceded by 5-6 minutes of restless rearranging herself before finally getting comfortable. Just recently, at a Canucks game, she gave in to a nap. A goal was scored, yelling crowd, horns blowing, siren screaming, she slightly raised her head, cracked one eye open and looked at me as if to say, “What’s all the noise about?”
Blue has had a variety of experience outings and has aced them all, inasmuch as can be expected of a 4-month-old puppy. Burnaby Lake Museum, vaccinations at the vets, veterinary examination of ears, vulva & rectum, off leash romps with other PADS pups, Hospital, chiropractors, a family counselling session, White Rock beach, Canucks games, Christmas theatre production and a Christmas Eve service. She has been introduced to bi-weekly extended family get-togethers with a half dozen children who know the PADS drill and eagerly wait for permission to sit with her.
She has also discovered the other dog that lives in our house and will sit and watch that ‘other’ dog in the mirror for quite a while.
She is beginning to walk lovely on lead, some surging ahead, but responds nicely to a gentle leash tug. Unless there is another dog around, or if we are heading for the entrance to the off-leash park. Then all bets are off!!
Blue is a bit limited in understanding and executing the basic cues. She sits lovely for her meals, comes to her name (in the house), understands sit, down and just recently bed & kennel. We are working on recall, heel, side, here, wait & release. She is eager to work and happy for the training treats that go with it.
Submitted by: Heather DeVries
