Hi friends,
I just came back from a three-week trip. My husband and I spent the last week driving from New York in a rental car transporting his upright bass. We got to see family in Asheville (what a cool town!), Selma, and Hattiesville, and we did catch food poisoning during the last two days of our drive. We’re home and now trying to rehydrate.
I also kept stressing out about how Dolly’s doing in boarding, but after seeing pictures of her enjoying pup cups, I’d feel better for a day and then I’d worry again. She’s home now and staying perfectly calm. More info on her boarding facility below.
Here are some things to try and some things I’ve learned.
🐾 Experiment of the week
People-watching and snacking together
In the mornings and afternoons, when it’s not too hot, Dolly and I have a little “picnic” and watch people walk by. She’s very treat-motivated, so I give her a Kong filled with frozen bananas or a carrot stick, so when people walk by, she’ll look up at them briefly then get back to her snack.
When I come out and sit down with my iced coffee or bowl of fruit, it’s like a cue for her to relax and eat her snack as well. We’ve been doing this for a couple of days now and she no longer barks when she hears voices outside and actually sleeps through our neighbor’s dogs barking.
If you don’t have a fenced-off yard, maybe a window will work too. If you try this, let me know how it goes.
🌟 Win of the Week
We went to Vancouver for a long weekend a few weeks ago and I was delighted to see these signs throughout the city:
A sign in Vancouver that tells people to leash up their dogs so reactive dogs, dogs in training, and humans can have their space.
The signs go beyond telling people to leash their dogs. We have those signs in Austin too and they’re basically ignored. The signs acknowledge that some dogs are reactive or just don’t want to be approached, and the signs do it with a lot of empathy and care.
I also learned that Vancouver participates in the Yellow Bandana Movement, giving out yellow bandanas to reactive dog owners to let others know not to approach their dog. I’ll be looking into the Yellow Bandana project and sharing what I learned in a future newsletter.
I stopped walking Dolly because we had too many off leash dogs (and people!) approach her even with her muzzle on. When she finally lunged at someone, that person told me to put my dog down. I wish there was this acknowledgement and acceptance of pup reactivity on a wider scale. That’s what we’re working on!
🎁 Resource
When I learned about reactivity, I thought I wouldn’t be able to travel anymore. After Dolly was banned from a popular daycare, I looked around for other options and found SkyBlue Kennels.
If you’re in Austin, SkyBlue accepts non-social dogs and Dolly gets her own private play area and is let out 5 times a day. She’s been going there a few times a year and has stayed as long as 18 days. She has her favorite people there and they’ve gotten to know her really well.
I still get stressed out when I leave her there, especially since they don’t have cameras or give daily updates like I heard other facilities do, but they have called me to let me know when she has diarrhea and to let me know how she did during a thunder storm.
That’s it for now! I’ll be sharing more news and resources next week.
Joni and Dolly