#Undecided's Hero

Hello everybody! How's Friday treating you? Kindly I hope, LOL. My day isn't all pretty (I had a persistent tummy ache thanks to this spicy egg and tofu dish I had last night) which is why I need to distract myself with happy thoughts and here I am, writing... sharing with you my latest happy thought.

As you know, I am a dog person. I love dogs. I always have and always will. But I guess growing up with them didn't necessarily teach me how to properly treat them. Sure I tend to them, play with them, give them lots (yes, LOTS!!) of affection, but that was it. I thought that was enough. My dogs always seemed happy anyways. Sure they chew on stuff, bark some, jump on you, hump your leg, pull on their leashes, but that's what dogs do... right?

Well I thought so... until I saw my first episode of Dog Whisperer on NatGeo.

My understanding of dogs was instantly scattered *dramatic alert LOL*. Apparently everything I did to and for my dogs wasn't all correct. I started watching the show religiously - and I got my hubby hooked as well. It's safe to say that Cesar Millan is our new hero. I was honestly amazed of how good he is with dogs, even with dogs he has never met before... 

We started practicing his theories on our own dogs - with surprising results. Apparently they are doable! And NOT to my surprise, our dogs responded better to hubby. Yep, he's my very own Dog Whisperer. LOL. It's a joy watching him "at work" doing his magic with our pack, and it has become my obsession to share him with others (the talent ya, not the person. I don't share husband, sorry!! LOL).

The opportunity presented itself in the form of a handsome 6-month-old Siberian Husky name Bolt.

Bolt - recent photo

Bolt - a few months ago *cue: awwwwww*

Bolt before he met hubby was a typical dog which had - quoting Cesar Millan -  no rules, no boundaries, no limitations. Yes, with his adorable face, he pretty much got away with everything. He even managed to nip and bite his humans here and there. Quoting Fanny (my friend - his owner), "It feels like I'm in an abusive household - LOL - I have bruises all over my thighs, cuts on my knee, and scratches on my hands." She was finally at a point where she needed someone's help because she just couldn't manage him anymore. Especially with a baby on the way (yes, she's 5 months preggo), and the fact that Bolt is growing fast and he will eventually become bigger and stronger than he is today.

So it was one Saturday afternoon. Hubby and I with our two German Shepherd (Jerome and Kalista) drove to her house. We got there and were greeted by Bolt barking his lungs off. We immediately spotted that he wasn't aggressive - he was just territorial and unsure about how to react to a situation, especially with 2 new dogs on his turf (which is a very typical case for dogs which live alone and have no social skill). It took hubby around 5 minutes or so wrestling with his leash (while Jerome and Kalista sitting quietly with me - completely ignoring whatever Bolt was doing - which is exactly what stable dogs would do) and Bolt immediately calmed down. 

We took everyone off for a walk and after one round hubby was confident to walk Bolt off leash (I'm sure it was because Jerome was there - he's such a good role model, that dog, I love him to bits LOL). We ran into two neighbor's dogs (another German Shepherd and Siberian Husky - coincidence?!) and everything was a-OK. Bolt never bolted (yes, pun intended LOL), but he did strayed and ventured into a vegetation by himself and got himself dirty but he came back when we called out to him (never, I repeat, never chase a straying dog because he will only run faster thinking that you're playing with him. Just stay calm, squat down and call their name with some whistling and clapping - that is the trick!)

Bolt trying to dominate Jerome - and no, it is NOT okay when a dog does this to another dog. He's not being playful, he's being dominant (look at his ears and tail). We need to stop this behavior before this escalates into a fight. 

We tackled several of Bolt's issues that day and showed Fanny and Harry (Fanny's husband) how to handle him. They have managed (by themselves) to walk Bolt without him pulling on the leash. Harry did it first and then jokingly made a bet that Fanny would never be able to walk him successfully that day, but hubby was like "challenge accepted!!" and got her to do so after 2 or 3 attempts *proud moment LOL - Harry so owes us money!!*. They managed to get him to walk into his kennel (without force or being lured by treat), and to wait patiently in front of an open door. 

Harry took this pic. He said that it was one memorable moment that Bolt could sit politely with a stranger LOL.

The next morning, I got the best news: Harry and Fanny had a good morning with Bolt. Their biggest achievement - see for yourselves:

Bolt - sleeping in front of an open door - without trying to barge in - yep, a first for them!!

And one more - read the caption, please!! *smug* LOL

We felt it was appropriate for Bolt to be introduced to our whole pack - and I am proud to report that it went smoothly. Enjoy the photos!

from left to right: Denzel - Jerome - Hubby - Bolt - Kalista - Fanny - Alvon - my brother Henry (Gloria is not in the picture because we suspect that she's preggo so she needed to stay inside)

Bolt and his two mentors

Alvon sniffing on Bolt's rear. Yes, this is how dogs meet. It's normal. Don't worry and try to separate them when your dogs do this. 

We had one incident when Bolt jumped and tried to nip Alvon when Alvon tried to drink from his bowl. A new challenge for us to tackle. By the end of the day, Bolt only let Kalista pass (well not really, Kalista sashayed her way in and Bolt was speechless LOL), so it's a point to work on - which we will.

Kalista and Bolt's bowl LOL

I wonder where Jerome was...

nap time

I've been getting rave reports from Fanny. Bolt is on his way to be a balanced dog. Was it magic? Nope. It was just a bunch of people trying to do what's best for our dogs. How? By being their good pack leader and treating them as dogs - just the way they are meant to be treated - and not humanizing them.

Was I proud of hubby? Very! He's my new hero!! LOL. 

Hubby and Kalista

Our next project? Personally, I would like to keep helping Baby Boy be a good pack leader. I'm sure he will - he's on his way to be!! Just look at how good he is with Jerome and Kalista!

Have a nice weekend, y'all!

Until next post, 
#Undecided

a photo of me and Gloria :)