Sometimes you've just gotta let the dog lead

The roads were snow packed and were suppose to turn icy sometime during the evening.  I was in a dilemma about who to walk and how many at a time.  My sciatica had been acting up all day and the pain was always less in the evening.  Back and forth with my decision, when I finally decided to walk Chance and Blaze, but separately.  I could use the reprieve on my back, but it meant two walks.

I hadn't completely given up on walking the Back Dog Trio, when Blaze and I started out, but I wasn't sold on the idea either.

The evening was misty, foggy and glowed in white between the overcast sky and the snow on the ground.  The soft white brightened the walk and gave a warm and cozy feeling.

Blaze set a quick pace, just enough for me to keep up with her without totally losing my breath.  There was a difference in her tonight, she was relaxed and comfortable and for once we didn't feel at odds with each other.  She didn't pull or tug or dart but kept her path forward.  With each step I was letting go of the day's worries and letting Blaze lead the way.

She walked with confidence without being dominant or demanding as we went this way than that.  When we met our turnaround spot, Blaze gently led me forward.  She wanted this time with me and our special walk together.  So we carried on along the path, just her and I in a quiet, peaceful manner.  Enjoying every step that didn't lead to pain radiating down my arm that held the leash to my lower back.  This was wonderful!

Somewhere half way through I realized the Back Dogs were going to have to wait until tomorrow for their walks.  This was too precious to give up.  I wish I really had the words to describe it.  With Blaze, I have always been intimidated by her wit and smarts.  So I have always went into many walks with her trying to outwit and control her.  It has only lead to her painfully pulling me every which way, especially in the winter time when she has that Husky energy.  The battle of wits leaves me exhausted, frustrated and in severe pain.  Tonight I just went with her.  Followed her. And she proved her trust and maturity, as well as love.  This isn't the first time this has happened.  There have been a handful of other times we have walked with her in the lead, but this was the first time that she didn't try to take advantage of it and that was truly heartfelt.  Blaze spoke of her trust loud and clear.  If I let her, she will guide me.

The power of this evening's walk was tested a bit as we got closer to home and Blaze tugged me the opposite direction.  She wasn't ready for the walk to end and I obliged her.  We walked a little ways downtown, then turned around to come home and that seemed to prove I was listening and heard her.  Such simple blessings.

Maybe if I don't lead with so much fear when it comes to Blaze, we will have more walks like this.  I know we can walk further this way, which I would really love.  I was so amazed by the definition she gave me of herself, that I was truly blown away at how much she took care of me on the walk.  Peace, understanding and simple unconditional love.  All a girl could really want.  Especially when it goes both ways.

Aren't dogs beautiful?

Miracle on 24 Paw Lane

Brut and I had a miracle happen on our walk the other evening.  After eight years of being confronted by loose dogs on our walks with my dog aggressive Brut, a dog came barreling towards us and when Brut growled, the dog turned and ran away.  That my friends was a miracle.

Let me tell you why:


I can not tell you the countless times we have run into loose dogs that either would confront Brut or worse, would want to be friendly.  I have been lucky with theses confrontations never to have a dog fight on a walk, but the ones who were completely oblivious to Brut's warnings were the ones who scare me the most. They just insisted on getting closer and closer to Brut while Brut will lunge and growl at them.  I could never understand this behavior and it was pointed out to me that these dogs are under socialized in the comments of a post I wrote HERE.  Never once has Brut hurt or even come close to touching these dogs, but there is a lot of effort on my part to make sure that didn't happen.

But something different happened this time while Brut and I were out that night.  And I can't even begin to tell you the amount of awesome it was.

I took Brut through a part of the neighborhood that he's never been before ever and he was doing really good.  We were coming up on a house that I knew had a loose dog and just as we made it to the driveway, the dog come barreling at us with the owner yelling.  I was pulling Brut away from the dog before the dog actually reached us, when suddenly the dog stopped and crouched down. It was obvious this dog was of a submissive natural.  Brut was under complete control, he growled just once and the dog turned and ran back home.  It was that simple. Brut finally got someone to listen to him.  All he asked is that the dog go away and this one did.  It was awesome.  We wasn't being rude or mean, he just warned the dog to stay away and the dog did.  That has never happened before!  And just like that Brut and I carried on our way easy as pie!  I still can't believe it happened.  Simple dog language that they both spoke and it was wonderful.

If that wasn't enough awesome, we ran into a small group of teenagers after that and Brut didn't flinch an inch.  Which was completely incredible!  He had quite a night and I couldn't have been more proud of him!

 

Dog Socializing Catch Ups

We've had some great socializing going on around the 24 Paws of Love and I thought I'd catch you up on it.

So proud of this guy!!

First up is Brut.  The bad boy of them all let my friend walk Silver while I walked him and it went great.  We walked a couple of miles and when we went into the garage for treats and undressing their harnesses, Brut was friendly to my friend walking right between her and Silver.  Mr. Territorial didn't pay any attention to the fact that she was on his property, in his garage, he was just ready to go out in the backyard like after every walk!!  It was so awesome!!

And if that wasn't enough, we walked all the dogs that night, my friend walking one while I had the other, in their respective pairs.  So Zappa and Blaze were walked by my friend and did great!  Blaze was a little worried at first, but she got right down the sniffing and didn't look back!

I don't want to be nice!!

Then last night my friend and I walked Silver with her dog Callie.  Silver was pretty ruffled about it for about half of the walk, but eventually started to settle down.  When Silver was able to turn and look at Callie without making a bee line towards her, we were doing good.  

Callie girl

And if it wasn't for my good friend and her nonchalant dog Callie, we'd have never made it this far.  Dogs can sense the difference between a real dog lover and a dog owner and this friend is definitely a dog lover.  It is obvious by the way all the dogs have instantly took to her.  And I want to let her know how valuable her friendship has been to the dogs and I.  She'll never know what a chance she took on that first walk with Fiona, her dog Callie and me.  It's like having a live version of all of you dog lovers out there who have been there for me when I didn't have any dog loving friends and I thank you for that.

Brut Magic

I had one of the best walks ever with Brut today!  We were both so calm and lucid we just flowed together.  With a little bit of treats and a short leash we passed by a gentleman on a bike, two older children playing, and the grand daddy of them all, my neighbor down the road going up to her house with her dog! 

It was fantastic!  Brut didn't even try to lunge and make any inklings to do so!  No dirty glares.  No lowering of the head and getting in attack stance.   HUGE progress!!

He was being such a sweetheart.  He was being the dog that he is when we are alone.  Which proves he has it in him to do it. 

I'm so proud of my boy!  He made my whole day.  ☺

 I'm just full of surprises!

The Next Step of Our Challenge!

Thank you so much for your comments, suggestions and own personal stories with your dogs.  Just that alone makes me feel better and it is nice to know I'm not trying to figure this out on my own.

No one has ever asked to pet or come close to Brut.  (Gee, I wonder why!  lol)  But I want to be prepared for the possibility.  I'm using winter walking as a way to springboard for summer when more people and dogs will be out.  Plus Brut and I are working on our leash manners.  I've let him slide for the most part and have always kept tension on the leash and well, it's just getting to be too much on my shoulder and lower back.  And I'm horrible about giving in with him.  I know, if you've followed me for a me, you know I've said these words before.  lol  But really I've worked out most of the kinks with all the dogs except Brut.  And he's been responding well.

Since there are so few people out in general where we live and Brut is not socialized, it becomes a BIG deal when someone is out.  95% of the time I deviate away from other people and dogs.  Neither of us can handle it, but there are those few times where I can't and those are the ones I want to work on especially while we are having this pause of people and dogs because of winter.

I'm not expecting to change Brut, but I'd like to find a way to gain more of his attention when he's around others and maybe, now this is a long shot, but maybe find a way for Brut to tolerate other dogs just a little. A little.  Still a long way's down the road, but I can dream!  :)

This all centers on the suggestions you gave me for helping me find a way to say, no, if someone ever asked to pet or come near Brut.  I didn't realize I didn't need to give a reason.  I always felt the need to explain and I didn't know what else to say.  So now that I can take your suggestions and roll them into something I can use for Brut's sake and mine, because Lord knows I'm not going to change over night and Brut and I can work on our anxieties together.

Just your suggestions of what works for you has cut the anxiety rate and my problem in half.  Your answers make my next step workable and doable.  Thank you for responding.  I really needed to hear your words.

And I think this is what I'd like to do for Pamela's Training Challenge.  Work with Brut on better walking manners and running into people and dogs.  It's not only going to challenge him but me as well and we are quite a team when it comes to anxieties and being around people, so it will be a test for us both!

January is National Train Your Dog Month.  If you haven't heard of Pamela's Training Challenge, click on the link above to find out how you can train your dog and develop a stronger bond between the two of you.  The link will give you all the info about the challenge.      

I need suggestions, please.

Brut's actions walking on a leash while passing people usually deters anything more than maybe a wave or a nod from other people while I do my best to settle him down as we pass.  Even though running into people is a rare occurrence, when we do, Brut will lunge toward the person.  He doesn't growl, bark, or snarl, just lunges and jumps directly in that person's direction.  While we've had some minor improvements on his behavior, there have been a couple of times he totally caught me off guard and was calm, cool and collective, with little action from me.

My question is:  If ever asked, what could I tell people who ask to pet or say hello to him?  Especially children without scaring anyone?

I tend to get anxious around people as it is, but I'm doing much better at being calm.  But I panic when I see someone up the road that they will want to get close and/or pet Brut.  I understand that I'm not helping out Brut's behavior and that he is likely reacting on my fear to protect me, but I think it would help to be able to have an assertive, yet plausible line to tell someone who would like to get close.  It would really help me calm myself down.

My backup plan was saying that Brut was in training and couldn't be petted.  But here's my problem, I can't lie, it only adds to my anxiety.  The days I may be really training him, I could say that, but out for a regular walk, I don't know that I can do it.  What can I say that is the truth, without having to say he's aggressive or reactive or something along those lines?

What do you say when you don't want someone close or petting your dog when you and your dog need space?  How do you handle situations like that?

Thank you, I could really use all the suggestions I can get.  I am plum out.
          

Our "Darling" little Blaze

We had a pretty dreary weekend with lots of rainy skies.  It would downpour for several hours and then the sun would come out for a couple.  Well, it was during one of those breaks that decided to walk Blaze as she was next on the walking list.  Well, we weren't the only ones ones who decided to take advantage of the sunny skies, it seemed like the whole neighborhood was out walking their dogs and Blaze isn't good with other dogs.  I thought she was going to jump right out of her skin!  And I completely caught off guard.  Who would have thought in the middle of the afternoon people would be out dog walking??  A rare sight in this neighborhood. 

I tried my best not to get frustrated and trying to stay as calm as I could.  I kept correcting her not to pull but it was difficult because she was wound up like top.  Blaze is so hard to control once she gets that high strung, so actually we did pretty good together under the circumstances.  The worse part is she doesn't seem to calm down once she gets razzed up like that.  So the walk really becomes a challenge.  At one point two dogs were behind us and once she knew that I had to cut into the woods and get them out her sight path.  Then I made the mistake of coming back out to the street, where the dogs had just walked, because I didn't want to walk in the drenched grass and she still went bananas sniffing their path.  It was a no win situation and I was just glad to finally make it home.

There were no more walks after that.  The rest would have to wait.  One crazy walk with Blaze did me in for the day.  Yep, I was all done.  And sometimes that's just how it rolls here at the 24 Paws of Love.  We pack up the leashes and save them for another day.     

When Momma can't take no more, she means it!!

Brut and the Harness

Pfffff...What do you mean no walk, just pictures??

So you may remember that I've been using the no-pull EZ Walk Harness from Gentle Leader and raving about the results.  My biggest conquest is walking Brut on it because we have always had tension on the leash on purpose, like a direct wire between the two of us and I am finding it a bit of challenge to walk without that direct current passing connecting us.  It comes so natural and it is like my life line to Brut that it is a tough habit to break, but little by little we are doing it.

The last few times we were out together, I fumbled around trying to be conscious of when the leash became taunt and then I would turn him in a different direction.  Now you might not believe but my big bad boy any  patience when it comes to a walking but he was quite calm.  I think he was enjoying me groping around with this new idea, making many mistakes and feeling a bit lost.  Somewhere near the end of our walk, it occurs to me that I have to teach Brut where the new line is being drawn, so I began clicking and rewarding before the leash tightened and it worked!  After trying to find the best way to work with Brut and this amazing harness a light bulb was flashing off in my head, I'd made some progress.  I don't know who I was more proud and excited for, him or me.

So today we fumbled around again a bit with that same idea, teaching ourselves where that mark was.  It helped that I had cheese this time for his reward, so I really had his attention. I think he realized we were in this learning experience together.  The cheese was just a bonus that he knows I only bring out on special occasions.  Brut was on his best behavior from the start.  Using the same method of click and reward before he started to pull, we walked back and forth many times, turning around when he did pull and starting over.

Then the magic started to happen.

Brut would get to the mark and turn his head for a treat.  Over and over, not crossing the line that pulled on the leash!  I was in awe!  We were almost at our goal of the end of the road, which was the furthest we've gotten since trying out this new harness.  Brut was catching himself before he pulled.  I couldn't believe it!  It was so AWESOME!!

I contemplated whether to keep going forward or turn for home.  I had him where I wanted him and I didn't want to lose that, but I didn't want to overdue it either and ruin what we had just accomplished.  So I opted for the latter and treated him to a run half way down the road.  In which both of us totally forgot what we were doing we went back to our walk!!  He's pulling me in the woods and I'm trying to figure what the heck just happened.  BOL!!  Talk about short term memory loss!!  But we pulled it back together for the rest of the walk home and I made a mental note about to next time celebrate at the end...not in the middle of the exercise.  :)

So this has been pretty cool, we are still staying connected just a different way and we are quickly falling in tune with each other with this harness.  Brut is so much calmer with this harness, the back/chest strap wraps around him like a big bear hug and I think he likes that.  The strap on the front chest plate is a martingale loop with a "D" loop for the leash.  This loop pulls to the left and right while hugging the dogs shoulders to turn them when they pull.  One of these days I'll get some video for it.  It is just so AWESOME!!

It's really more like a mommy hug!

EZ Walk Harness Update

Without the EZ Harness my arm is ready to pop!

I'm still working with the dogs with the EZ Walk Harness and I've got to tell you what a huge relief it is.  I have never been 100% comfortable with the nose harness (like a Halti) and still feel bad for using it, but with the EZ walk harness it is like a huge weight has been lifted.  It is easy to use and control, but the biggest relief is that the dogs are so relaxed and comfortable in it, which eases my consciousness.  Even Brut.  And while we still have some practicing to do I am thoroughly impressed with the ease and toll it takes off my body.  The bursitis in my shoulder is thanking me immensely.

For some reason some of the dogs are taking to the harness so well, I barely have to do anything but enjoy the walk, like with Fiona, Chance and Zappa.  It really is quite mind blowing, to go from some form of tension and pulling on the leash to hardly any.  Even Brut, Mr. Determined seems to be thrown from plowing forward any way he wants to go by letting up on the leash.  I'll have a long way to go with him, but he hasn't reached any level of frustration or copped an attitude yet, so we are doing great!

One thing I love about the brand of EZ Walk Harness that we got it has two clasps, one for the chest and one that goes around the back and because of that I don't have to slip the harness over anyone's head.  That is a gift.  I don't know if they are all designed that way, but I'd never get it on some of the dogs if it had to go over their heads.

And so we are rocking and rolling with the EZ Walk Harness and I couldn't be more pleased.  I meant to get photos of the dogs wearing them, but I completely forgot the last time we were out and today it rained, so please forgive me.  You'll just have to take our word that it is working for us!