Dogs, dogs, dogs

I have been working diligently with Thomas and Smokey to rehabilitate them and re-train me so that they can become better citizens. Smokey was always pretty easy to work with since I got him very young. Thomas has been more of a challenge since he was six months old when I got him and gone through some rough times. Anyway, six years later, I was still having problems with his social skills around other dogs and with him jumping on people and with his walking.

I have been watching The Dog Whisperer Caesar Millan and studying his techniques. Gradually I have tried them out with Thomas and Smokey. His work is based on Dog and Pack Psychology and not on Human Psychology. It starts when you get up in the morning. Never let your dog go through a door before you. I started there and that immediately helped with their walking. They began to look at me more as a pack leader and not at themselves as pack leaders.


Gradually, I have added, studied, added more. Thomas now carries a pack with water bottles in it. This serves the dual duty of giving him a job to do and having water along to drink when it gets hot. He never fought the pack and seems quite comfortable carrying it. He stopped pulling and panting so much on walks and seems much more relaxed from the moment I put the pack on. Both dogs are now walking on simple slip chains. No more pinch collars.

Today, my friend Mike came to walk with us. He has been walking Smokey but I asked him to walk Thomas since I need to get both dogs used to someone else handling them so that, after my surgery, other people can walk them. I also asked him to take them out of the house since they have a tendency to rush the door, pulling you along behind them. We worked for a while with the open door until he was able to get through the door ahead of them. That was an accomplishment.

We then headed off for our walk. Mike did pretty good with Thomas, giving him corrections as he needed them. We walked down to Starbuck's and got coffees and bacon/egg muffins and sat outside for lunch. It was really nice sitting out in the fresh air and sunshine with the dogs laying at our feet. The dogs got up a couple of times when people came by but we soon got them to understand that was not allowed and then people could come and go without them noticing. Then, the real challenge came. A man came and brought his poodle and sat at a table not too far from us. Thomas jumped up and started barking. I immediately and in a calm, assertive manner made him sit and then lay down and then stop barking. I had to do this over and over until he realized that I was not going to allow that behaviour. All-in-all, it took only about 5 minutes but it felt more like 1/2 hour going through. Patience and consistency are key. I know that everyone has heard that before but I hadn't been successful for six years. With Cesar's techniques of dog psychology, I was able to learn what to do and how and when to do it. It really worked. Finally, he was laying down in a relaxed state with another dog at a nearby table. I was so proud. Success!

We got up and continued our walk home. Everyday gets better and better and I am hoping someday, there won't be any issues with other dogs at all.