The first few weeks of our relationship were pretty smooth. Peanut, as it turns out, was completely housetrained. She loved my roommate (and still does), allowed me to touch her feet, ears, body, and mouth (modeled after a routine vet visit). Peanut was eating well, all things considered. She was never a hard puller when out for a walk, or exceedingly destructive (I did however, leave some things a bit too close to her crate). There was one thing that happened after those first couple of weeks that brought the ‘honeymoon’ period to a quick close.
At this point, I knew I was a goner.
Peanut did NOT like the vet. Normally this wouldn’t be concerning. What animal likes the vet? Peanut for her part, had been tense, but polite during our visit. I chalked that up to the standard “being at the Vet’s office” stress. At the very end of our visit, the vet went to say goodbye to Peanut, and Peanut jumped up, snapped at the vet, and began to growl and snarl. At this point there was nothing the vet or I could do to make Peanut feel more comfortable, and she continued to snap at the vet. In the end, the vet left and Peanut and I waited several minutes before heading into the lobby. The front desk staff invited Peanut up to the counter and she hopped up, gave kisses, and took a treat nicely before we left.
So, in a nutshell, our first vet visit was like going from a sunny day, to a thunderstorm, and back to a bright, cloudless sky in a matter of minutes. I was more shaken than Peanut. I felt like I had failed her, and wondered if I was really equipped to handle a dog with the reactivity that Peanut had. Thankfully for me, I had a group of awesome people willing and able to help!
"Look lady, that vet was nuts!"
I contacted a friend of mine, who is a Certified Pet Dog Trainer - Knowledge Assessed (CPDT-KA) and specializes in nervous/anxious/fearful dogs. We met in neutral territory, and did a brief assessment. Her opinion was that Peanut was an unconfident dog who had never had someone whom she could trust to keep her safe. Therefore, Peanut took it upon herself to make sure she kept herself, and her people safe. My friend suggested that I work on using physical cues to help Peanut learn that I was the one who was taking care of our safety. She also suggested looking into K9 Nosework, as a way to help build Peanut’s confidence.
To be honest, I didn’t think much of K9 Nosework at first. It wasn’t the “high octane” “super charged” dog sport that I was looking to do. Just about a year later, I’m very happy I decided to give it a try! After doing a couple weeks worth of research, I finally decided to email the instructor that my friend suggested. Looking back, I may have over exaggerated Peanut’s reactivity! Either way, the instructor was kind and asked that I sit in on a couple classes before deciding to sign up. I ended up sitting in on each of the different levels, and decided to give it a go!
I won’t go into too much detail about those first classes, other than her change during that first class was incredible! I went from having a dog who wouldn’t take a treat from a shallow box, to a dog who would walk into a room with an unknown man, say hello, and go back to work. If someone had told me that six classes over eight weeks would have my dog becoming a confident, less reactive dog, I would have told you that you were crazy!
In the course of the year, my fearful, anxious dog has become a happy, outgoing girl, always ready with kisses and cuddles for her friends. We aren’t quite there yet (‘wild’ plastic bags and mylar balloons are still problems among other things), but we are out of sight from where we started! Personally, I think a lot of it has to do with Peanut gaining the confidence to trust me more than anything I’ve done.
Obviously not super keen on bags...
If there is one thing that anyone, myself included should take away from this ramble, is to be willing to ask for help. Knowing your limitations and inexperience, and being brave enough to seek help and grow, is incredibly important! I am so thankful to the people (you know who you are!) that have helped me learn to be the person Peanut needs! I have no intention of stopping with K9 Nosework, and we might even pick up Rally and Agility, but that’s a story for another day!
Up Next: A year in a post…
Until Next Time!
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