I Am The Dog Whisperer

October 17th, 2012

I woke Drake early and put him out with the other dogs.  He fell into the parade of dogs out in the morning.  I had hoped by making him wake up early, he might take a couple of naps and give me a break during the afternoon.  By late morning the barking and spinning was getting crazy.  I continued to put him in bed and contained him, but I also felt that it was not working. 

Mid morning my dog Tejas, the 70 lb. Poodle had come into my bedroom and was resting comfortably on the bed.  So when I picked Drake up and put him in the bed to contain him, he suddenly broke loose and ran right into Tejas.  This is the kind of thing that my big boy does not allow.  So, with a quick growl, he jumped up and rolled Drake onto his back.  He held him there with his mouth around Drake's breast bone.  He released him and Drake ran to me, huddled into me.  He sat there for at least five minutes before moving.  That is when it hit me.  I have to treat him like a dog, if I want him to be a dog.  I keep wanting him to be a dog companion, but treating him like a blind/deaf impaired dog. 

I am a big fan of Cesar Millan and agree with most of his training methods.  I have lived by his creed of exercise discipline affection.  I feel so ashamed that I had really not thought of Drake as a normal dog that should follow the same prescription that my other dogs had to follow.  I had given him everything in reverse.  I would normally never put up with his behaviors, but with Drake I was thinking his baggage was normal.  When I saw Tejas correct his behavior like a dog and him react like a dog, it clicked.  I spent the rest of the day correcting him as a dog or a pack leader would.  It did not change his behavior, but it definitely seemed to extend the good time.  I did give him half of a pill around  mid day.  He took several naps, got into the tub twice and licked grout all day.  While he licked the grout he would bark and occasionally dig.  I corrected him by flipping him.  I did try to redirect him, but didn't catch him early enough most of the time.

He came to me about seven and asked to go to bed.  He went right to sleep and was just as loving as normal.  At the end of the day he had responded to me, but still didn't know if it would really change him.  He seemed more confuused and not as he had reacted to Tejas.  He needs more exercise, that is for sure.  I will have to walk him at least once daily.  He is so hard on toys, that I have to be more creative.  The one thing that I have learned through this is to be more flexible and the plan is to not have a plan.