More kids

We had a smaller group of kids yesterday and today -- only 14 of them ages 9 to 11.

I started with the circle and having the kids feed her. She was ok, with that, but not at happy as I would like to have seen her. Then I had a epiphiny -- Bonnie LOVES toys. Food is good, but toys are better.

I had the kids spread out in a line, and got a few toys. I let each kid have a turn throwing a toy for Bonnie, and got her to drop it by waving a second toy in her face. She was extremely happy -- tail up over her back, play face -- the whole 9 yards. Best of all the kids had a blast playing with and watching her.

I repeated that same exercise today, and the coolest thing was that after Bonnie lost interest in fetch she actually voluntarily ran up to some of the girls and happily invited them to pet her. (interesting that it was the girls and NOT the boys...)

I think play is the key to getting her over her shyness.

We've Had a Lot of Firsts

Kid Circle
On Tuesday I had the kids make a circle, gave each of them a treat and put Bonnie in the middle. She was definately uncomfortable with the kids, although she willingly went around the circle and took treats from their open hands. I gave each of them a second treat and she repeated.

It was interesting how quickly she warmed up to them - initially her tail was down low -- almost between her legs. By the end of round two her tail was up over her back -- which is her normal tail set.

Playing with Mystic

Bonnie and Mystic started playing together! At one point this weekend Mystic had attemped to get Bonnie to play with him, and she snapped at him. Then on Monday I saw Bonnie give a little play bow and they've been playing together ever since.

Reactivity Coming Out

Ok -- so not such a good first. Bonnie's starting to feel very comfortable, and she's starting to reactive bark. It happens the most when there's a sudden change in environment; everythings quiet and then there's a noise, someone walking into a room, etc.

She did get reactive and fear/alarm bark at someone who stopped by my office to see her. The woman is very tall and was wearing a baseball cap. I'm not sure why she reacted to this particular woman -- but obviously she has some issues with people that will take quite a bit of work.

Confined to a Crate

I've been feeding Bonnie in her crate, but hadn't actually confined her to one. I've left her several times loose in my house when shoveling, and even once when I went to the store -- no accidents, and no damage. But I was going to be gone a looong time on Christmas, and I didn't want to chance it.

I gave all the dogs a Kong before I left -- Bonnie got her's in the crate, and then I shut the door. She cried, but not too badly. I got home 9 hours later, and she was fine and the crate was dry. This is a very good skill for her to have for when she goes to her new home.

Dog Park

Today I took Mystic and Bonnie to the dog park. She did alarm bark when we first got there at a woman and her dogs that were off in the field. But once we'd been there a while she did great - I think she truly enjoyed the wide open space and being able to chase after Mystic. She would run within a foot or two of other people, but never stopped to say hello.

I almost think this environment was good for her - people at the dog park generally don't attempt to pet loose dogs unless the dog obviously comes up and wants them too. So Bonnie got to see people in a non-threatening environment while having a good time.

She Continues to Amaze Me

My first day back at work with Bonnie, and I knew it would be a hectic one. I was a bit worried about how she would handle it.

As humane educator I develop a lot of kids programs. We currently have one at the shelter right now - Winter Camp. Today and tomorrow we have 33 kids between the ages of 7 and 9. The kids have a lot of fun -- they get to learn about and play with animals, play games and do some fun activities. Put that many kids in one large room two days before Christmas, and you can imagine just how noisy and active it can be!

My office is right off of the Activity Room where camp is held. My dog Mystic does great when camp is running. He enjoys interacting with the kids; getting petted, getting told how cute he is, cleaning up after snack time, and showing off his tricks. My office has a gate in the doorway -- so if Mystic is overwhelmed he can get away from the kids and crash in his crate.

I wasn't sure, however, how Bonnie would deal with it. I hated to put her into a kennel in the shelter because I was afraid she'd shut down again. I didn't want to leave her in the front office because she is my responsibility, and I didn't want to pawn her off on other staff. So I decided I would leave her in my office and see how it went.

She did great! She actually came up to the gate many, many times and let the kids pet her - wagging her tail the whole time. Sometimes it was overwhelming -- and she retreated under my desk for a self imposed time out (I eventually went and got a bed to put under there for her.)

I think tomorrow I'll actually bring her out into the room with the kids for a carefully supervised visit.

Wow -- what a change!

You would never know that the frightened shut down dog I brought home on Thursday night is the same dog I have in my home today!

Friday we had a snowstorm - about a foot of snow came down and made all our lives miserable. I had plans to go hiking with a friend, and we decided to try snowshoeing instead. Mystic, of course came with me, and I decided to take Bonnie as well. She seems pretty energetic and hasn't seemed to mind the snow.

She wasn't excited to meet Ruth, but nor was she afraid of her. Ruth gave her a few treats before we started out. Bonnie did great - was running through the snow on a flexi-lead without any problems.

We ran into a group of people, and she was wary of them -- came running over to me for security. But she wasn't terrified either. I'll be interested in the coming weeks to see how she does with other people that she meets.

We're home now, and she's sound asleep. Not only is she tired from all the exercise, but she feels safe. I'm glad I can give her that.

Tremendous Progress

I had a hard time finishing that last post because something wonderful happened. Bonnie suddenly came out of her corner and started pacing. First she jumped up on the other couch and looked out the window. Then she came over to where I was sitting and stood in front of me. I was very touched when she not only allowed me to pet her, but seemed very much to enjoy it.

But the best part was that she suddenly jumped up on the couch I was sitting on, and layed down on my lap. She decided that I was trustworthy, that I wouldn't hurt her, and she needed me. I am so happy for her -- I never would have thought that she would come so far today. I truly expected that I would spend the next few weeks trying to build up her trust.

I think this bodes well for her future. If she can come around so quickly with me, hopefully her shyness is something that can be overcome. I've promised her that I will make sure that no one ever hurts her again.

The photo is of Bonnie feeling right at home in my house -- looking out the window while perched on the back of my couch.

I Lost Her!

Well - not permanently, but I was a bit worried.

I made Bonnie sleep in my bedroom last night. She found a spot in the corner of the room around the corner of the dresser. I think she learned that the only way she was safe was to stay out of the way and be quiet -- anything else resulted in punishment. The more I get to know this dog, the angrier I get at her former owners!

This morning we were socked with about a foot of snow. When I came back in there was no sign of Bonnie! I looked everywhere - in the bathroom (even in the tub!), in the kitchen, under the bed. I even checked the entire house twice and still couldn't find her. I was worried, even though I knew she HAD to be in the house somewhere.

I should have listened better to Mystic. Several times he stood and pointed to the area behind the stairway, but because I'd already checked there twice I ignored it. Finally I checked a third time, and found her hiding in corner between the wall and an old TV. Poor thing was too scared to come out.

I ended up pulling her out and putting her in my bedroom with some food and water. She hadn't eaten or drank since I brought her home, and I was hoping she'd feel more comfortable if we all left her alone.

Today

Of course I couldn't leave her there. She was terrified and I knew that she most likely needed to go into a foster situation instead of being adopted out. I must be nuts -- I have 3 dogs of my own and they are very insecure whenever I bring other dogs home.

It occured to me as I was driving home that she probably has some very bad associations with the name "Keena". I needed to change it, and gave it a lot of thought.

We have her down as being a papillion x american eskimo. But she is most likely a sheltie mix. (I actually think she looks quite like a very chubby Belyaev fox... But there's no way she could be one. http://8e.devbio.com/image.php?id=477 ) I wanted something Scottish and Bonnie seems to fit her.

I put her in the backyard when I got home and then let the dogs out to meet her. She was a bit overwhelmed and a tiny bit afraid -- although not nearly as afraid as when people try to approach her. She ran to the far end of the yard after the greetings and watched as my dogs chased each other through the snow. Several times she started to chase after them.

I had taken some things from the car and brought them into the house. So when I let the dogs in I opened the back door. My dogs came in. Bonnie remained in the shadows at the far end of the yard. I finally got my jacket and boots on and went out to get her.

I knew she wouldn't let me handle her - I wasn't even going to try. I hoped that she would follow me. In the end I finally got behind her and herded her to the back door. She actually seemed relieved when I opened the back door and she was able to get into the warmth of the kitchen.

Initially she was a busy little thing -- checking everything out, poking her nose into all the corners of the downstairs. I see this as a good sign -- I think it means that she still has curiousity and a willingness to explore. Somewhere in there is a dog who is ready to learn how to be happy again.

Finally she settled herself around the corner of the couch. She's in the same room as the rest of us -- but out of sight. Every now and then I see her peek over the arm of the couch at us -- checking us out? Making sure she knows where we are?

She seems to be housetrained -- once she got up and went to the back door whining. She was happy when I opened it for her and she ran right out. She also came back in when I opened it a few minutes later.

I haven't forced her to interact with me at all. Right now Bonnie needs to know that she is safe here and that no one will hurt her. Maybe soon she will want to interact with me, but I need to build some trust with her first -- trust in people is something that was taken away from her. Those former owners certainly gave her no reason at all to want to trust anyone. I just hope that tonight -- maybe for the first time in 7 months, Bonnie is able to truly relax.

The Beginning

Up until 3 minutes ago her name was Keena. She originally came into our shelter last spring as a 5 month old puppy and was adopted out to a couple. They brought her in for a private consultation with our trainer earlier this week who talked them into surrendering her back to us.

I wish these people could have been charged with abuse. Apparently she was submissively urinating. In response they smacked her, grabbed her and shoved her face in the urine. They also kept a shock collar on her and used it pretty liberally -- anytime she did something they didn't like. And this was just what they admitted to the trainer -- who knows what else they were doing that they were ashamed of.

She was placed in our adoption area, and on Tuesday I tried to get a photo of her for our website. She fearfully ran from me to the other side of the kennel. I came in the kennel and sat some distance from her -- tossing treats. 5 minutes later she was still frozen in the same corner on the opposite side of her kennel from me. I walked out and 15 minutes later she was still in the same corner.

She was supposed to have been adopted yesterday, but the potential adopters changed their minds after hearing what they would have to go through in working with this damaged dog. It was a good choice -- this will not be an easy dog to work with, and she should only be adopted by someone who has the patience and ability to help her.