Alice - 8 month Update and the Pumpkin Patch!

"She's just one of the pumpkins!"

We've had Alice 8 months now! I can't believe it's been that long already. She's doing so well and she's finally starting to feel like a member of our family and not a foster dog. I've felt like the last 3 years I worked at the dog training facility was all in preparation to own Alice. The minor behavioral problems that we've had have been easily worked out and most of the time I've immediately known what to do if she does something unexpected. Even though I'm no longer at that job, I still highly value all the knowledge and practice I got there. I'm thankful to my mentors for everything they taught me. Alice would not be a successful member of our family if I hadn't had all that training.

When Alice came home, she was always in a high arousal state. She was way too excited about absolutely everything, which lead to some barking and lunging at dogs on leash, she was also extremely intense about the environment and all the creatures around us. She would not take anything but the highest value food (cooked meats), which made training a little challenging at first. It was hard to know which reinforcement would work and which wouldn't so it took some experimenting. We've gotten to the point where in our neighborhood, I can use lower value treats but when I take her on a hike or any other trip, I'm still pulling out the highest value stuff for her. She's not being counter conditioned and fed constantly anymore but I like having the best treats on me for when I need them.

I was really worried about Alice for a few months because the last thing I wanted to do was have another reactive dog. I'm happy to report that with some diligent training, counter conditioning her to dogs and the environment and training of alternative behaviors, we have not seen any reactive behavior in a good long while. She does still fixate on squirrels here or there and I have seen a bit of neophobia (it was dark and someone left an unexpected bag of trash in a weird spot, she couldn't tell what it was so she barked) but she's easily redirected. I've noticed that she has started trusting me and my judgement about stuff. She's really good about all our regular neighborhood dogs, even the ones that bark their fool heads off at us. She can still get a little tense if she smells a new dog but she takes direction well and looks to me for what to do and falls right into the training we've been doing. It's taken a little extra work on my part but she's coming along so nicely.

We've also had a major break through with her potty training. I was extremely and I mean EXTREMELY frustrated with her with the potty training. Alice is the first dog that I've ever known who would not go potty unless it was absolutely urgent for her to do so and it was hard to tell when she had to go. We had more accidents in the house that I've ever had with any dog previously. Even with crating her and watching her and trying to get her on a schedule, it was tough. I ended up desperately asking for advice on a +R facebook training group and I was given advice to up her fluid intake. For about a month, instead of doing training for meals, I would soak her meals in water. I also gave her water mixed with (low sodium) chicken broth about two hours before bedtime, so we could get a quick pee in right before bedtime. With all the extra fluids going in, we finally made progress and I was able to put a cue on her peeing. Occasionally she will go outside and be so distracted she won't go but it's gotten so much better. We are still walking her to get her to poop but with a few spoonfuls of canned pumpkin at dinner time, she's gotten more predictable and regular with that, too. She has started to alert us to when she needs to go outside now, which is great.

In the past couple of weeks I've even started to trust Alice a bit off leash and we've done a few hikes at the park I know best (where off leash is legal). If you're following along on my instagram (@zoepheedogs) you can see some of her beautiful recalls. When I got her I was worried I'd never be able to take the leash off because she'd either take off after a critter or go home with someone else because she's so friendly. She has greeted people on our hikes but has always come to find me right after. It appears that she knows who her family is now and she's choosing me.

With the hikes we've done and the dogs Alice has met, I'm still on the fence with how she feels about interacting with other dogs. I would generally say she doesn't really like dogs she doesn't know well. She greets well and is cool if the other dog is cool. I've never seen her really play with a dog she just met. She's not very trusting. I've also seen her get snarky if another dog won't leave her be. We had to save her recently from an adolescent cattle dog puppy, who wouldn't take no for an answer. That puppy was twice her size and was bullying her and it caused an aggressive response from Alice because he wouldn't stop. The thing is, Alice is definitely a terrier, she's got BIG feelings about things and if she doesn't like something, she won't put up with it. So with that knowledge, I'm being super careful with her dog/dog interactions.

Alice is doing really well with Phoenix and Zoe. Phoenix is still her favorite buddy and she beats Phee up regularly. They have a good time crashing around the house. She still has some trust issues with Zoe. Zoe is definitely that old lady dog who would scream "GET OFF MY LAWN" if she could. We're still working on building a trusting relationship with the two of them. Zoe can be snarky at times but I trust her way more than I did when Alice first came home. Most of snarky behavior we've seen was because Alice was too high in arousal and it bothered Zoe. So we're constantly working to make sure the chaos doesn't last too long, or Zoe is in another area of the house when they're being crazy.

We recently took Alice on a solo adventure to Bauman's Pumpkin Patch and hiking at Silver Falls State Park. (Silver Falls is a gorgeous park but not very dog friendly. Dogs are not allowed on any of the trails to the waterfalls, which was a huge bummer) She did absolutely amazing. At both places, there were people, kids and dogs everywhere. She posed for photo after photo. She did everything we asked her to do and was completely fearless. She was the perfect traveling companion and all the people she met loved her.

Which pumpkin are we getting?

Helping push the wheel barrow to the checkout line!

We still have some things to work on. Alice is still scavenging things she finds on walks. It's been a real problem and she has gotten sick from eating acorns. We've been working really hard on "drop" and "leave it". She's pretty darn sneaky with things she finds on walks. A few times I've had to open her mouth and remove objects. The joy of a former street dog! LOL!

She's also having a tough time leaving the cats and their food alone. Cats are super fun to chase and only one of our cats will correct her. The other cat acts like a prey animal. We've been doing some timeouts for cat chasing and we've had to up our management and rearrange the area where they are fed. Alice was climbing the cat trees! I think we've finally got that worked out.

I am also super aware she's a bit chunkier than I would prefer. We've been doing so much training that she has gained a little weight. I'm very careful with her food intake but with her sneaking cat food and eating nuts off the ground and all the training, it's been tough to keep her slim. I think we're about to the point where I can start reducing my rate of food reinforcement and we're working on adding toys as the reinforcement. She loves running on the treadmill and going for hikes so hopefully we can get about a pound off of her soon.

Alice has been sleeping with me at night and she has been so loving. She's such a sweet dog and has been comforting to me in a way that the other dogs aren't able to. Zoe has always been aloof and Phoenix, while she's my heart dog, she's not into being cuddled. I think Phoenix is finally relieved to have another dog in the house, so she's not constantly being kissed. LOL! Alice absolutely soaks up the attention and wants to be held and petted. I've been really struggling with depression this year and have been having a very hard time. Alice is down for cuddles, she's down for laying in bed if I need her to. She's also ready and willing to go on any adventure I throw at her. She's gotten me out of the house, she's gotten me socializing with people I would of never spoken to. She's so friendly and such a social butterfly that I've just gone with her on her adventures. She reminds me to get up and get outside, she reminds me to get up and get off the computer. It's time to GO! Even though Alice didn't come at the perfect time in our lives, we weren't financially prepared for a third dog with me being unemployed, I'm happy she's here. It's becoming really hard to imagine what life was like before she brought her optimistic, chaotic craziness into our lives. We really love her!

I'll be posting her photos from Silver Falls in a separate post, as I'm reviewing the coat she wore. :)

Alice ~ 8 Weeks Home ~ Update

Alice has been in our home for 8 weeks! It's crazy how time just flies by. I'm happy to report she's doing really well! She's still settling in but we've made a lot of progress in so many areas.

The most important thing that's happened so far is that Zoe has accepted Alice into her life. Zoe has been without the basket muzzle since last month. They are doing really well coexisting. I've been allowing really short play sessions. Zoe and Alice Interacting  Zoe is 30lbs, twice Alice's size and she likes to play pretty rough which isn't really reciprocal. It's a little intimidating for Alice, especially since Zoe has been snarky and crabby with her up until a few weeks ago. I still separate Zoe out when Alice and Phoenix are playing because they are both twice her size and I don't want them ganging up on her.

 

She's also started taking naps all by herself during the day. The first 6 weeks she wouldn't rest on her own without being put into her crate and being "forced" to take a break.  

Last week Alice went on her first official hiking trip. Up until this trip, we had been going to our quiet little spot at the pond for walks and training. This was the first time we took her to a busier place where there would be more dogs. She did really well. I didn't see any reactive behavior, she did get a little excited when a reactive dog passed us and was whining at us but she didn't react back at the dog. 

We've been working on a few tricks, too! She's learning to sit pretty, fetch, roll over and spin. I'm also working on position changes sit to stand to down, etc. She's so smart! 

WALK ME!!!

So far our only real challenge has been potty training and bare with me because it's not what you think. When she was at the rescue, they have volunteers coming in all day, every day and walking the dogs. Previously to that, she was found on the street, so I doubt she was ever taught to potty in one spot. So I've had a hard time convincing Alice that she can go outside and just potty without going for a walk. She doesn't really like pottying in our yard and will hold it forever. I take her out on a long line and she has to share the yard with my neighbors because we live in a townhouse but she's got about a quarter of an acre to roam and find a spot. Often she will try to go to the street, strain against the leash and cry for a walk. I've been working hard on sticking with it so that she learns to go in our yard. It's been tough. She will often get really distracted outside and if you add in some really annoying and nosy neighbors and their barking dogs, it's a recipe for frustration on my part. It's really important that she learn this because I won't always be able to walk her. I feel like she's definitely gotten better but two months later, we're still struggling with it.

If I FITS I SITS

Overall, Alice is a great puppy and I'm super happy with her progress. She's fitting into our lives almost seamlessly. I'm really happy that Zoe has finally accepted her into our family and I love how much Phoenix plays with her. Alice is the perfect friend for Phoenix. They play and cuddle all day in a way that she never did with Zoe. She's brought out so much puppy in Phoenix. It's been so fun to watch them! 

I post a lot of videos over on my instagram, so I would recommend following us there for more frequent updates: @zoepheedogs

A Work In Progress...

Today we've got a Phoenix update! Phoenix goes to play group once a week on Mondays and she is doing pretty well with our established group. We don't see her playing very often yet but she's able to hang out with the other dogs and she does try to play with a few of her favorites. She's just not sure how it all works yet. "How do I get these dogs to play with me?" (That doesn't involve chasing and nipping or third wheeling.) Attending play group has also helped her with her dog interactions in the real world. She has been doing great when we go to the off leash hiking park. She's even solicited play from some random dogs we've come across out there!

With all the good stuff, Phee still struggles sometimes when she meets new big dogs. Greetings can be stressful and she gets scared. We had three new dogs start yesterday and she had trouble with one of them. I guess one out of three isn't ridiculously horrible but sigh... The greeting was not what we usually do with her, the dog showed up early (new dogs are supposed to come in last) we didn't control our antecedents very well and we had a snarky incident. Nobody was hurt but it wasn't pretty. Then the rest of the session, Phoenix struggled with that dog being in close proximity to her. Eventually everybody did settle down and everything was fine but it was not her best day.

Everyone at my work is very supportive and we think these are issues we can work through with her. There are other dogs that come who used to have way worse issues and they've been worked with and are doing great. I keep trying to remind myself that all dogs have good and bad days, just like us! Training takes time and she is only able to go once a week. My co-workers tell me that she is doing better each week and she also does better when I am not in the room with her.

When things go wrong, it's so much harder when it's your own dog. I can watch other dogs have their grumpy moments all day long but when it's my dog, it really gets me emotional. My boss has given me a mantra to repeat: "Conflict is normal". So I try to remember that shit happens, they're animals. We just do the best we can and that's all we can do.

So that's my Phee training update. She's a work in progress! Overall she's doing well so I'm trying to look at the bigger picture and not let an occasional off day get us down.

I also just wanted to let you guys know that I've been having technical difficulties with my computer and camera so it's been making it hard to blog and visit blogs. So this is why you guys haven't been seeing much of me.