THE LAST HURDLE

Dakota's file said he had some separation anxiety. Just like the storm fear, this problem has the potential for destroying the house and causing unlimited problems for the dog. With a dog like Dakota, the seed was there. His high level of insecurity was the catalyst. Since he had a mix of problems, I determined that I had to solve one at a time if I expected any permanent success. So, I decided to stay home with him until we had made enough progress in other areas. This was not difficult for me because of being semi-retired and what work I did was done out of my office at home. My husband did the grocery shopping and handled all of the trips outside of the house. Dakota needed time to establish trust. He also needed some of his self-confidence back. Luckily I had the time and ability to wait it all out. I used the time to establish routines, develop his decision making capabilities, and assure his trust in me. In the beginning, just going to get the mail set off his anxiety. Over time we made progress little by little.

Then, one day we walked out of the house and disappeared. He handled that quite well with just a couple of barks. My husband had been leaving and coming back on a regular basis, so one day I decided to leave the house and he could stay home with my husband. It didn't phase him. Some time later, we decided it was time to make the big move. We intended to just go up to the drug store and be back in 15 minutes. I stuffed a couple of his bones, talked to him briefly and told him we'd be back. We put his music on, gave him a treat and shut the door. Our trip went well beyond our planned 15 minutes and I was really worried. When we got back home, Dakota greeted us at the door and trotted off to find a bone. What a surprise. Obviously he had developed enough confidence and security that he wasn't too concerned about us coming back.

Sometime later we decided to go for a major shopping trip. He managed the longer trip just beautifully. He was happy to see us, but went off to get his favorite bone and settled down to chew. I looked at the other bones I'd scattered around the hall and family room. Some were chewed, some were not. I'm assuming he went to sleep after chewing for awhile and didn't wake up until we got back. Trips since then have been the same. I'm crossing my fingers that this will hold. But I'm not about to try it in a storm this summer. I'm not confident that the storm desensitizing will work even if it appears to work. I will have to hide in the garage or stand in the rain a number of times before I'm convinced. But that's down the line.

For now, life is pretty darn wonderful around here. Dakota loves his Christmas teddy bear and drags it around most of the time. He loves being outside and makes his snow angels on a regular basis. He loves to lay out in the snow with the bear even though mom doesn't think it's in his best interest. I'm sure not the task master I used to be with my dogs. I've turned quite liberal in his management but it works. Since he doesn't have his chipmunks to keep track of, he's found a source of shrews to catch. Like a cat, he wants to bring them into the house, but I drew the line at that. It is not easy to get him to drop them, but I'm adamant about that.



I cannot explain this but adopting a rescue dog and bringing it into your home is totally different from bringing a puppy in and growing up with it. Both experiences are fantastic, but they are so different. Your views and feelings are different. You think differently. I wish I could share it with you but I don't have the words. There just aren't words...it's inside me. It's feelings, attitudes, a different kind of love and so much more. When I look at Dakota I often wonder about his previous life. I think he was happy. He seems to understand some commands, he's a gentleman, and so full of love that it spews out of every inch of his body. He never gets enough back. He keeps asking for more and in return he keeps giving it back. I am so glad that I can extend his life. He deserves it. We are creating new traditions thus bonding us together with special memories. Every day is so special. Each one I hang on to with dear life hoping we never run out of days or time. I am so thankful that Dakota was sent to us.

This week I must share with you how I came to adopt Dakota. It's a sad story so I wanted to warn you. But wrapped inside are some wonderful experiences.