Ziggy did a surprising thing today. Usually when she sees a group of guys playing soccer she lunges and barks and cries to join in. Today she saw it and took an immediate turn on a path we've never been on before. It was pretty obviously an attempt to avoid a stressful situation for herself and I was very proud. We walked far away and only when we were past and almost completetely out of sight did she allow herself to stand and watch them for a minute.
She does not like to be followed, and neither do I, so while it's kind of annoying to have her keep stopping and staring openly at whoever is walking behind us, I also don't really mind it.
Oh, and when two guys came up unexpectedly on the sidewalk with bikes, she didn't leap to chase like usual - she jumped into nearby bushes and sniffed vivaciously. Pretending like they did not even get all up in her space, which usually provokes her. That was a very surprising move she made.
She did both of these things after we passed the area where she had her last really bad meltdown, when we were with a friend and a guy with two dogs snuck up on us because we weren't paying attention. She lost her shit. And today when we approached, she took a long few minutes staring and looking around because nobody's surprising this pup a second time. When satisfied, we continued along our way.
Lest you confuse my puppy with the amazing progress with a well-behaved dog, however, she did some major yanks on the leash for squirrels. Those squirrels are such jackasses and absolutely provoke her.
So, I found a pet-friendly hotel with good reviews not far from the veterinary behaviorist I communicated with. I'm thinking this really needs to happen and it needs to happen SOON. It will blow my budget, but having a well-adjusted dog would be worth it. I don't want her to be so stressed, and I want her to play with other dogs, and I want to have friends over.
She does not like to be followed, and neither do I, so while it's kind of annoying to have her keep stopping and staring openly at whoever is walking behind us, I also don't really mind it.
Oh, and when two guys came up unexpectedly on the sidewalk with bikes, she didn't leap to chase like usual - she jumped into nearby bushes and sniffed vivaciously. Pretending like they did not even get all up in her space, which usually provokes her. That was a very surprising move she made.
She did both of these things after we passed the area where she had her last really bad meltdown, when we were with a friend and a guy with two dogs snuck up on us because we weren't paying attention. She lost her shit. And today when we approached, she took a long few minutes staring and looking around because nobody's surprising this pup a second time. When satisfied, we continued along our way.
Lest you confuse my puppy with the amazing progress with a well-behaved dog, however, she did some major yanks on the leash for squirrels. Those squirrels are such jackasses and absolutely provoke her.
So, I found a pet-friendly hotel with good reviews not far from the veterinary behaviorist I communicated with. I'm thinking this really needs to happen and it needs to happen SOON. It will blow my budget, but having a well-adjusted dog would be worth it. I don't want her to be so stressed, and I want her to play with other dogs, and I want to have friends over.
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