Update on Charles
As you may know, Charles Hobson Booger, III has been a bit of a nipper. In order to deal with the behavior, we first bought a snazzy red muzzle, which he actually liked. He would dive into it when I picked it up, and he wasn’t at all bothered by it.
But muzzles don’t solve any problems. What they do is treat symptoms and make your dog look really mean. Because I didn’t like the way people reacted to my muzzled dog, and because I wanted to resolve the issue that was making him want to nip, I ditched the muzzle.
And he did very well for several weeks, although I did keep him a bit away from smaller dogs. Then, when my guard was down, we had the Westy incident, which caused me to get the trainer, who recommended a shock collar (which they call an "e-collar." How’s that for marketing?). He had no idea who he was talking to, and how vehemently opposed I am to shocking my dog, but he quickly caught on.
His Plan B was the good ole yank of the leash, which he tried to convince me hurt more than the shock, but I still resisted the shock collar. When we went for a trial walk, he brought Charles close to Rex, a small dog, and had to yank Charles so hard that he was practically hanging him by his leash, so that Charles wouldn’t bite him.
This upset me so much at the time, but even more over the subsequent week because Charles looked so dejected and carried his head way down and was terrified of all dogs. The spirit had been yanked out of him and everyone noticed it. It was like watching learned helplessness in action. On the upside, he hasn’t so much as looked sideways at another dog since then.
Little by little, he is coming back around, though. I walk him 4 or 5 times a day, alone (rather than with Violet, so he can have my full attention), often side-by-side with other dogs. I talk to him constantly, telling him how handsome and wonderful he is. He needs a bit of a yank every now and then, but he hasn’t snarled, barked, or lunged at any dog since his one training session.
My friend the social worker who’s had dogs her entire life, suggested
that there’s always an adjustment period of a couple of months when a dog goes to a new home. She reminded me of how different Violet Rays was for the first 4 months (the opposite extreme–she acted profoundly depressed and wouldn’t ever look us in the eye or act at all interested in us). But once she was convinced that we were her forever parents, in it till death do us part, she opened up and is now an extraordinary companion.
When you adopt an animal, particularly one that has had more than one home and was trained to be a racer, it’s unreasonable to expect that you will have no obstacles to overcome. Just like people, nobody’s perfect. But we can all get better.
Everyone we attract into our lives is here to teach us a lesson. Charles has taught me patience. I have to meet him where he is and encourage him day-by-day. He has also taught me that just like people, dogs behave the way you let them behave. It’s largely my fault that he misbehaved. He tested the waters, and I let him do what he wanted.
My lesson is also a Gray Matter and is the same one I’ll encounter if I ever have children: What kind of discipline is best, and how much force, if any, is necessary? I don’t have the answer, but I do know that, for the first time in my life, I have to become a disciplinarian.
