We are wrapping up day one here in Palmetto.
Thea is actually playing in the x-pen now! She is walking more confidently on leash. She still hasn't pooped though so I think she is still pretty stressed out. She has been able to pee which is a huge relief. I think we need to keep attending trials just to get her healthy!
Time to take the Brave Girl for a walk...
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
Pupdate December 29, 2009
It's been a long time since last update.
Thea is making little steps of progress every day. This week we started clicker training. She is just now getting used to the sound of the clicker. The first time I clicked it she ducked for cover. Now she still flinches a little but she is getting used to it. We are starting with "sit". After 3 sessions she is starting to understand she must sit for the click/treat... not too shabby!
We've also been working on walking on leash. We made it around a short block in the neighborhood. Were we live is very rural, we have neighbors but none who are close so we can walk without the interruption of people, other animals, feral mailboxes, etc... She pulls a bit and tries to bite the leash but I just have none of it and keep her going. Finally, she submits to me and by the time we were nearing home she is walking like a champ!
Right now we are at an agility trial across state so we have another opportunity to challenge her with new surroundings, new people and some people she has already met... She has a little ways to go but she has come so far in just the few months we've had her.
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
Walking Along the Road
You wouldn't think that walking along the side of the road on a leash would be a major feat for a dog but... when you are Thea it is a miracle!
Today Thea wanted to go out the front door. She has become wonderfully curious about what is beyond her boundries... the bathroom, the laundry room, the dining room, the garage, the front door. So, today I clipped the leash on her and said... "Let's go" and walked right out the front door with her. Don't get me wrong, she was a bit jumpy but she walked down the sidewalk to the decorative stone, walked over that to the grass, came back over the driveway and walked right down to the street. She sniffed the garage door, the plants, the grass and the cars but she kept going!
Thea has a bad habit of trying to bite on her leash. She sits back on her bum with the leash in her mouth as if to say... Ut, uh, not doing that. But, today she did very little leash biting. She actually seemed to enjoy walking with me.
I think there is hope for our sad little girl.
Oh, did I mention, she has a gouge in her ear. Perhaps she got into a fight with another dog, perhaps she was abused by a human but her poor pointed ear is more like a forked ear. It just makes her all the more beautiful! What a sweet, precious, brave girl she is.
Today Thea wanted to go out the front door. She has become wonderfully curious about what is beyond her boundries... the bathroom, the laundry room, the dining room, the garage, the front door. So, today I clipped the leash on her and said... "Let's go" and walked right out the front door with her. Don't get me wrong, she was a bit jumpy but she walked down the sidewalk to the decorative stone, walked over that to the grass, came back over the driveway and walked right down to the street. She sniffed the garage door, the plants, the grass and the cars but she kept going!
Thea has a bad habit of trying to bite on her leash. She sits back on her bum with the leash in her mouth as if to say... Ut, uh, not doing that. But, today she did very little leash biting. She actually seemed to enjoy walking with me.
I think there is hope for our sad little girl.
Oh, did I mention, she has a gouge in her ear. Perhaps she got into a fight with another dog, perhaps she was abused by a human but her poor pointed ear is more like a forked ear. It just makes her all the more beautiful! What a sweet, precious, brave girl she is.
Agility Show - November 30, 2009
We had another great adventure in packing into the RV for a four day trip to an agility show. Thea didn't want to stay in her crate during the 2 1/2 hour drive north. She stayed mostly on the couch and didn't seem stressed in the least! Another wonderful breakthrough.
Thea got to walk on leash each day while we were at the show. She was best when there wasn't too much action going on. By Sunday I was able to take her around the perimeter of the property and we walked right down the main drive way with the agility ring to our left and the vendors to our right! She is a champ!!! Her tail was up and wagging throughout the walk!
Her trouble seemed to be in coming down the steps out of the RV. We had the x-pens set up right outside the RV so all she had to do was walk down 4 little steps... she just doesn't seem to "get it". Going up is much easier for her.
While she was outside in the x-pen she stayed pretty much in one corner lying on her belly but she did venture around the pen a few times.
She was so happy to get home! She ran and played in the yard. I think it is giving her security to keep coming home to the same place.
Thea got to walk on leash each day while we were at the show. She was best when there wasn't too much action going on. By Sunday I was able to take her around the perimeter of the property and we walked right down the main drive way with the agility ring to our left and the vendors to our right! She is a champ!!! Her tail was up and wagging throughout the walk!
Her trouble seemed to be in coming down the steps out of the RV. We had the x-pens set up right outside the RV so all she had to do was walk down 4 little steps... she just doesn't seem to "get it". Going up is much easier for her.
While she was outside in the x-pen she stayed pretty much in one corner lying on her belly but she did venture around the pen a few times.
She was so happy to get home! She ran and played in the yard. I think it is giving her security to keep coming home to the same place.
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
A day at the beach - November 22, 2009
Today we got adventurous and tried going to the beach. Mary, who knows Jane, who knows a lady who owns a house on the beach invited us to bring our gang to the beach each weekend. The most we've had on the beach at one time was 18 dogs!
Well, it was a bit much for Thea. I made the mistake of taking her down to the beach instead of just staying by the pool. It was just too much for the poor girl so I carried her back up to the pool area which is completely fenced in. She stayed in one corner the whole time. I could not coax her out so I brought Trik up to try to make her feel more comfortable which worked a little bit. When the other dogs joined us she started coming out of her shell. Jane sat with Thea for a while making her feel safer. By the time we were ready to leave she was coming up by the pool and getting more adventurous.
It was an exciting and exhausting day for this brave big girl.
Well, it was a bit much for Thea. I made the mistake of taking her down to the beach instead of just staying by the pool. It was just too much for the poor girl so I carried her back up to the pool area which is completely fenced in. She stayed in one corner the whole time. I could not coax her out so I brought Trik up to try to make her feel more comfortable which worked a little bit. When the other dogs joined us she started coming out of her shell. Jane sat with Thea for a while making her feel safer. By the time we were ready to leave she was coming up by the pool and getting more adventurous.
It was an exciting and exhausting day for this brave big girl.
Doggie Door II - November, 21, 2009
I just caught Thea sticking her head out of the doggie door in the kennel room! Oh, my... she may just be getting bold enough to follow one of the others out the door! What an achievement that will be!
One day...
One day...
Be careful what you wish for - November 18, 2009
Actually, it is a wonderful sign when Thea has to be reprimanded! She started chewing on a shelf in my office. I traded her for a chew bone and she has not gone back to chewing on the shelf! Yeah!
New travels to the office - November 17, 2009
I am so sick and tired of Thea living only in the doggie room and the family room... she is scared to death of doorways... so today I picked her up and carried her into my office. I have a big doggie pillow on the floor in here. I set her down at the farthest point from the door which is by my desk chair. She sniffed around a bit then scurried over to the big pillow where she rested a bit. She didn't have a bit of trouble going out the office door. Now she is in and out of the office all day.
Poor Thea just slips and slides across the tile floor. I've given her massages and realize her muscle tone is so poor, she is just mush.
I trimmed the hair around her pads today. It was so terribly long. I think it has been hindering her traction on the tile floors. She just layed in my lap and let me have my way. How can she be so trusting after all she has been through???
Poor Thea just slips and slides across the tile floor. I've given her massages and realize her muscle tone is so poor, she is just mush.
I trimmed the hair around her pads today. It was so terribly long. I think it has been hindering her traction on the tile floors. She just layed in my lap and let me have my way. How can she be so trusting after all she has been through???
Doggie Door - November 15, 2009
Thea traveled all the way from her crate to the deck without having to be picked up!!! And... she went through the doggie door all by herself!
Incredible that these 2 insignificant acts are such an accomplishment for this little girl.
Incredible that these 2 insignificant acts are such an accomplishment for this little girl.
Thea hits the Deck - November 2, 2009
Thea is coming along so well. She is, of course, she is still skiddish but she is attempting more brave new moves. Yesterday she came onto the wooden deck all by herself... up until now we have had to carry her over the deck...
I actually took her for a 200 yard walk on leash down the road yesterday! She didn't like it but she went.
She has her foster siblings who are really helping her learn the ropes.
I actually took her for a 200 yard walk on leash down the road yesterday! She didn't like it but she went.
She has her foster siblings who are really helping her learn the ropes.
Crate Swaping - October 30, 2009
Last night was good. We just left Thea stay on her area runner. She ventured off just a paw at a time. Night was good. Thea slept though the night. This morning Trik went to the Vet for his snip-snip so he isn't here to instigate trouble with Thea.
This morning we had breakfast in her crate, now I've left her crate door open to see if she will come out on her own. She did move into another crate while I was not looking and I was able to coax her front paws out but she is still very unsure about leaving the crate.
What horrible conditions she must have been kept in. I don't think she was beaten or hit because she is not fearful of people or the other dogs. I think she was left neglected in a cage. Her fur was so matted when she was rescued that she had to have her bum and tail shaved. I understand these dogs were left in pens outside, left to live in their own feces and urine. I just can't imagine...
I can see the trust building in her already.
This morning we had breakfast in her crate, now I've left her crate door open to see if she will come out on her own. She did move into another crate while I was not looking and I was able to coax her front paws out but she is still very unsure about leaving the crate.
What horrible conditions she must have been kept in. I don't think she was beaten or hit because she is not fearful of people or the other dogs. I think she was left neglected in a cage. Her fur was so matted when she was rescued that she had to have her bum and tail shaved. I understand these dogs were left in pens outside, left to live in their own feces and urine. I just can't imagine...
I can see the trust building in her already.
Run like the wind - October 29, 2009
In the morning Olaf carried Thea outside to potty. She did pee and had to be carried back inside. When I woke I again took the kids outside. Thea does not like to be on leash so I decided to take it off her. We have a fully fenced yard so I felt safe in that she would not run away.
With her leash off she cowered for a few seconds then off she ran like the wind! She looked so happy to be running free. She chased and ran and tumbled. She, Trik and our most recent adoptee, Prix, seemed to become a little pack. The three of them just ran and played.
When it was time to come in she had some trouble. First with the screen, she doesn't seem to understand that there is something there even though you can see though it! Then it was up the step onto the deck. She does not like hard surfaces. The wood of the deck scares her. She did not want to come through the doorway, I had to pull her through. Once she was on her carpet inside she was fine. We have 3 differend sized throw rugs in the family room: One the size of a large doormat in front of the French doors. Another which is a runner that runs along the "fishtank" wall. The 3rd is an 8'x10' area rug. She is now on the runner and does not want to venture off.
Luckily, Trik is coming to her. The play and wrestle. I have snuck back into the room to see her pawing at him with a huge smile on her face. I've been able to coax her to take a step onto the tile but I can tell she is uncomfortable.
With her leash off she cowered for a few seconds then off she ran like the wind! She looked so happy to be running free. She chased and ran and tumbled. She, Trik and our most recent adoptee, Prix, seemed to become a little pack. The three of them just ran and played.
When it was time to come in she had some trouble. First with the screen, she doesn't seem to understand that there is something there even though you can see though it! Then it was up the step onto the deck. She does not like hard surfaces. The wood of the deck scares her. She did not want to come through the doorway, I had to pull her through. Once she was on her carpet inside she was fine. We have 3 differend sized throw rugs in the family room: One the size of a large doormat in front of the French doors. Another which is a runner that runs along the "fishtank" wall. The 3rd is an 8'x10' area rug. She is now on the runner and does not want to venture off.
Luckily, Trik is coming to her. The play and wrestle. I have snuck back into the room to see her pawing at him with a huge smile on her face. I've been able to coax her to take a step onto the tile but I can tell she is uncomfortable.
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