Well we are getting Bear ready to head home tomorrow and I feel confident that he is ready. He still makes mistakes sometimes but he does not make them because he does not know what to do. He makes mistakes because he is a soft dog who is easy to overwhelm or frighten. He is EXTREMELY sensitive to the tone of someone's voice and if you use too harsh a tone he will act frightened of you. The answer is not to always be soft spoken around him, nor does he need to be coddled. On the contrary, I would suggest strictness for him. His confidence in his owner will keep rising if he learns that they mean what they say. When they say "Sit" it means "Sit." The trick is to use a firm "Mom" voice and refrain from yelling at him.
I am going to recommend that for the first few days he be kept on a leash when outdoors so that his boundaries can be redefined. Right now he knows not to enter the horse fence or to cross the tree line. At his home his boundaries will likely be the curb or property line but he won't know that until they are defined for him. It is a relatively easy process to define the boundaries but it would be unfair to simply release him and expect him to know what to do.
We had fun howling with him today. We were watching a basketball game and we noticed that when we cheered he would yodel a little bit. So I howled and he howled right back! I wonder if his kids will like howling with him when he gets home. But don't worry, he quieted right down when I told him to stop.
He also had a breakthrough with his fear of getting into the car today. I had to get in with him at first and encourage him to follow me. After a while he was hopping right in and at one point he didn't want to get back out!
I will miss this young guy. He has been a delight and a challenge to work with. Not a challenge because he is poorly behaved but because of his fear and anxiety. Seeing him come out of his shell and become more playful has been extremely gratifying. I think he was traumatized by country life at first. Tomorrow I am going to give him one last hike in the field, a final workout, and take his glamor shot for the Photos page on the website and then he will be ready to go home!
I am going to recommend that for the first few days he be kept on a leash when outdoors so that his boundaries can be redefined. Right now he knows not to enter the horse fence or to cross the tree line. At his home his boundaries will likely be the curb or property line but he won't know that until they are defined for him. It is a relatively easy process to define the boundaries but it would be unfair to simply release him and expect him to know what to do.
We had fun howling with him today. We were watching a basketball game and we noticed that when we cheered he would yodel a little bit. So I howled and he howled right back! I wonder if his kids will like howling with him when he gets home. But don't worry, he quieted right down when I told him to stop.
He also had a breakthrough with his fear of getting into the car today. I had to get in with him at first and encourage him to follow me. After a while he was hopping right in and at one point he didn't want to get back out!
I will miss this young guy. He has been a delight and a challenge to work with. Not a challenge because he is poorly behaved but because of his fear and anxiety. Seeing him come out of his shell and become more playful has been extremely gratifying. I think he was traumatized by country life at first. Tomorrow I am going to give him one last hike in the field, a final workout, and take his glamor shot for the Photos page on the website and then he will be ready to go home!
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