The Before and After

HOW IT ALL BEGAN

Over the last few blogs we have discussed that anxiety in dogs can be subtle, a little about me and the work I do and what 'miss-takes' to avoid when confidence building with your dog.

Today I thought I would give a deeper look into what can be achieved with love, patience, understanding and the power of plant medicine by sharing the story of a recent client and her wonderful dog.

During lockdown my client, Jen, decided that with time on her hands, she would give a loving home to a dog whose circumstance was less than ideal. She felt giving a home to an adult dog would be preferable in her situation rather than getting a puppy and having all the housetraining and chewing issues that can be associated with a pup.

If anyone tried to rehome a dog from a rescue centre in the UK during lockdown you will know that it was about as easy as catching a hen in a 40 acre field! Nigh on impossible.

So seemingly, out of nowhere, a plethora of rehoming centres, focusing on the need and plight of foreign street dogs appeared. This is where the story began for Jen and her dog Lucky.

Jen chose Lucky over the internet and she was delivered one afternoon with her vaccination card and not much history other than she was a dog who been picked up from the streets of Romania.

It was clear from the word go that Lucky had never been in a house or been treated kindly by humans, so she took up residence behind the sofa and there she stayed pretty much for 3 months. Jen would have to leave food down for her and leave the room as Lucky was too anxious to eat in front of her. Toileting was wherever and whenever, there was no way she was venturing into the garden. Jen wondered what on earth she had taken on, it was a far cry from the loyal companion she had wished to spend lazy hours cuddling with and taking long walks in the countryside.

Jen contacted a dog trainer local to her for some help as she was at the end of her tether, but until Lucky came out from behind the sofa there was nothing the trainer could do. In desperation she joined a Romanian rescue facebook page where a previous client of mine answered her post and the two of us were put in contact.

Jen and I worked together regularly over a few months. We built Lucky’s confidence through the awesome power of plant medicine. Little by little Lucky came out to interact with the botanicals and during one Zoom call she actually came out and sat on the floor by Jen, it was a tearful moment for us both. She went from strength to strength and with time and patience she eventually took tentative steps towards the world outside again. At this point we were able to build Lucky's confidence so much that she now happily goes for walks and Jen has the dog she dreamt of owning.

Lucky is still a work in progress but Jen has said that in her darkest hour, when she could do nothing else but interact with Lucky via the botanicals she felt she was able to communicate with her in a way she understood and it made the world a less scary place.

Not every dog I work with has extreme anxiety like Lucky, but many dogs suffer with anxiety in one way or another. It was a happy ending for Lucky, this could be your dog’s story too.

To start your dog's road to confidence please get in touch.
Email me at: caninesenses@btinternet.com