Tuesday Topics #45 - What Do You Say?

It's spring break here, and the mustard is in full force. Yesterday, I took about a million photos of Cabana for our annual mustard shot (well, maybe not a million, but at least 20), and this is the only one that turned out even halfway decent. Pathetic!

Yesterday on our walk, we met a woman walking a shih tzu-type dog. The dog was straining to meet Cabana, and the woman asked if Cabana was friendly. I said yes and we allowed the dogs to meet. The problem was, HER dog wasn't that friendly! He immediately put his front paws up on Cabana's back and got snippy and territorial of his owner. Cabana quickly moved away from the woman and the dog, and the woman said, "Oh look, they're playing." I thought, uh no, that's not playing. Obviously, this woman was completely oblivious to her dog's body language and uneducated about dog interactions. She wasn't a bad person or a bad dog owner, and her dog was probably a very nice dog--but they lacked knowledge and socialization experience. As we walked on, I chided myself for not having spoken up and for allowing her to continue thinking that her dog was "playing".

Then today, an older couple brought their black lab mix, Zena, to the park. I had met them a few times before, so I knew they had rescued their dog fairly recently, maybe 2-3 months ago. Every time Zena comes to the park, other dogs react strangely toward her. Non-aggressive dogs get a bit aggressive. Submissive dogs get overly submissive. And Cabana just avoids her like the plague. Zena tends to hackle, and I keep watching her to figure out what it is about her that makes the other dogs behave differently. Is she anxious, fearful, insecure? Probably a mixture of all those things.

Maybe because I had been silent yesterday with the shih tzu incident, today I decided to say something. Here was this nice couple who had rescued a black dog (usually the hardest dogs to adopt out), and I wanted to see them succeed and have a good experience. So I just asked the couple if they had ever worked with a trainer and that maybe they might want to, since Zena seemed to be sending some unusual vibes. The man answered by saying that he didn't know about working with a trainer, but that one thing he did know is that Zena loves to play with Bella, a young Golden Retriever at the park. Moments before, I had witnessed Zena completely overpowering and pinning Bella, who is just about as submissive as a dog can get. I explained that, ideally, you want to see both dogs taking turns being on top and playing equally, rather than one always getting the upper hand while the other one keeps trying to get away.

But now, I feel like I should have kept my mouth shut, and I'm chiding myself for being a know-it-all!

We all have times when we see other dog owners doing things that we don't agree with. Sometimes, it's just that they don't know better, but sometimes, they think what they're doing is right. Of course, we don't want to finger wag or get obnoxious, but sometimes, a well-meaning and appropriately stated comment can be helpful. I'm not sure if that couple found my little comments helpful; they probably just thought, who asked for your opinion?!

Do you ever tell other dog owners what you think? Is there a way to provide unsolicited advice in a manner that will be well-received and make a difference? Or is it really none of our business and we should just keep it to ourselves?

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Mustard and "Catch-Up"

In our neck of the woods, January is quite beautiful. The winter rain makes the fields turn lush green, though they're dry and brown in the summer--sort of the opposite of most of the U.S. Wild mustard plants take over, turning whole landscapes into yellow carpets. Although it's a weed, it's such a pretty weed that nearby Napa Valley even celebrates with their annual Mustard Festival, attracting visitors from all over the world.

I feel so blessed everyday to live in this area. So much in fact, that it actually makes it a bit hard to travel to other places because there are few areas more lovely and with better weather than we have here. Plus, my bed has the perfect soft/firm combination--I really miss that when I have to sleep somewhere else.

To catch you all up on the past few days, I've decided to take a break on the dog parks for a little while. I do think it was helping quite a bit with Cabana's dog distraction, and she sure loved every minute of playtime. But...I'm tired of having a dirty dog! Cabana is drawn to the mud like...velcro to the other side of velcro. For the next couple weeks, I'm switching gears to work diligently with Cabana on recall.
When we've got a strong recall, maybe I'll even be able to call her away from the mud puddles before she steps paw in them.

Armed with my long lead (thank you, Bethany, for your comment about this; our dog training instructor also confirmed your advice) and my Bil-Jac Liver Treats (thank you, Ally, liver brings Cabana around much better than chicken jerky and kibble), we stop a few times on our morning walks. I let her go with "go play", let her sniff and meander, then call her back at random intervals. If she doesn't respond, she gets a little pull back to me, and I greet her heartily with happy praise and a tiny morsel of liver treat.

It's a little cumbersome and tangly, though, with grass and paws getting in the way of the long lead. And even with the liver, Cabana isn't exactly dashing back to me. We've only got one day of practice under our belts, though, so I know I need to take it slowly. My tendency is to expect too much, too quickly. I know, I know, patience, patience, hurry up, I need patience....

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Extroverted Introvert

It has been raining for days and days, almost nonstop. But the rain makes everything lush and green. Here's some mustard, beginning to bloom in a field we pass on our walks. (This photo has nothing to do with the rest of my post, but it's always nice to have something to look at.)

I believe myself to be an extroverted introvert. I'm introverted by nature, but I have taught myself to function as an extrovert because it seems to be more socially acceptable. Still, if given the choice of going to a fancy cocktail party or staying home with my family, I would pick staying home every time.

But when I'm out walking or running, this learned extroverted behavior causes me to smile and greet people who are coming in my direction. I'm not interested in having a conversation, but I like to be moderately friendly and usually say hello or good morning.

However, now that I have Cabana, who is an extrovert to the extreme, I have realized that even these small gestures of extroversion on my part can't be continued (at least for right now). I have had to learn to use my body language and energy to convey to both Cabana and to passersby that we aren't interested in any interaction. A real "don't bother me" attitude. I keep my eyes averted from them, move as far over to my side of the path as possible, and hold Cabana's leash close to body. I feel super unfriendly when I'm doing this, but it makes a HUGE difference in how Cabana behaves toward other people. I don't know if my body language is picked up by Cabana directly, or if my body language affects other people's behavior, which in turn affects Cabana...probably it's some of both.

Before I figured this out, although it seems simple and obvious enough to me now, I would smile and say hello to passersby, and they would do the same. And Cabana would be pulling on her leash, lunging toward them (yes, even with her headcollar on), saying with every part of her being, "Hey, look at me! I'm a cute puppy. Please pet me and let me jump on you and nibble your fingers! I like you and I know you'll like me!"

With my newly adopted mode of behavior, Cabana is much calmer when a person is approaching. She still tends to perk her head up and quicken her pace even when the person is at quite a distance--but it is much more controllable and shorter in duration.

This is all very important because if there's one thing that might lead to Cabana's downfall as a Guide Dog, it's her tendency to be distracted by people and dogs. She can't be stopping to meet everybody when she's working as a Guide Dog--or her blind companion will never get anywhere on time! She needs to be able to focus on doing what her owner wants and needs, and she will never learn that if I don't teach her to ignore other people.

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