Would it surprise you to learn that two neurotic, anxious human beings have somehow found themselves in charge of a neurotic, anxious dog? No? I didn't think so.
In order to combat Hannah's anxiety, we have a three-pronged approach.
1) We have changed her probiotic to one that is supposed to have "calming properties." I don't know, friends, if this is legitimate science or not, but my veterinarian did recommend it.
2) We have a hormone diffuser going (Adaptil) in the room where she sleeps. Again, the veterinarian recommended this. Is it woo woo science? I don't know.
3. Regular training sessions. We're keeping them short (2-5 minutes). I'm hoping this will both tire her brain so she's less likely to focus on her anxiety and that it will build trust with her trainer (generally me, occasionally my husband) so she will come to one of us when she's encountering something new that seems scary to her. I would also like her to just be better on our leashed walks, so the training will definitely help with that.
Jules asked in a recent post what type of training I'm doing with Hannah, so I'm going to write a lot of words about it. Feel free to skip it and just look at the photos if this is boring to you.
1) You may remember that Hannah received her Canine Good Citizenship (CGC) certification early on in our relationship. (In order to find those links, I had to go through the posts where I used to write about Hannah EVERY MONTH for the first year after we adopted her. I'm posting those below because it's nice to have them in one place. If you want to see a very unwell dog, these posts show it.) We do a lot of training that's based on the skills we learned in CGC classes.
- Sit and down commands
- Sit-stay/down-stay commands
- Grooming - touching her everywhere, including teeth, paws, tail; putting her chin in my cupped palm; looking in her mouth and ears; lifting paws one at a time to be examined (Hannah, can I see your paw? Paw lifts up - THIS IS THE CUTEST THING I SEE REGULARLY)
- Come
- Reaction to distractions including loud noises, other animals (Zelda, mostly), and her common triggers (in her case, people running/skipping/hopping/limping, things with wheels like bicycles and skateboards, people throwing stick-like things) - One of my favorite things to do for this is to put Hannah in a stay and then run around her in circles gesticulating wildly with my hands and talking loudly to Dr. BB in a different room. She's always so CONFUSED, but stays.
- Loose leash walking - generally this is just us working on left, right, and about turns, as well as going S L O W, medium and super fast quick paces
If I've done this correctly, this should be a short of video of Hannah where I put her in a down-stay, walked away from her into a different room, and then called for her to come. She has to go by Zelda (who is eating her own dinner) and Hannah gives Z a major stink eye, but doesn't get distracted and comes right to me. I feel like this is pretty impressive for Hannah. If I haven't done it correctly, just pretend there's an eight-second video here that shows what I just described.
2) I also work on some other "fun" things that Hannah and I like to do (and Hannah tolerates).
- Dance elements where she winds between my legs
- Twirling clockwise and counterclockwise
- Spinning on an elevated food bowl
- One paw at a time in a hula hoop or box
- Jumping through a hula hoop - look, she's real bad at jumping and can jump only a few inches off the ground before she balks, but she used to not even do that!
- Walking backwards - our vocal cue for this is "beep beep" (I think I'm funny)
- Leave it for food and treats on the ground in front of her or on her paws
- Stand - Getting a dog to stand is hard, yo. At least, getting Hannah to stand is hard.
- Stand-stay - She's so good at other stays, but if I put her in a stand and ask her to stay, 90% of the time she lays down. I feel you, sister, I'd rather be laying down, too. Anyway, we're working on this.
- Our newest trick is for me to get Hannah between my legs in a sit and then the goal is for her to come to a heel on my left side with a hand gesture. We're not there yet, but it's going to elevate our dancing game.
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| I put her in a down and then walked around her waving my hands. She was not amused. |
3) Once it's warm out, I want to start creating some
rally dog courses outside for us to work on. There are some great cards that I'm not sure we have the skills to do, so it will be great to learn some new skills.
4) I'd like to train Hannah to take better photos. I have not successfully managed to get a good sequence of Hannah doing the classic German shepherd head tilt, but I'd like that. I'd like her to actually sit by my side when I'm trying to do a selfie (she doesn't like too much human contact, you know?). I'd like her to learn to shake on command (useful for bathing). I'd like her to open her mouth on command (useful for dental/oral exams). There are so many things to learn and SO LITTLE TIME.
I do not do all of these thing every day, but I do work on loose leash walking and come every day. We usually do our sessions right before her dinner for 2-5 minutes. I honestly just use kibble as her reward. I guess I'm supposed to make her training rewards super awesome special treats, but we do it every day and Hannah LOVES training and doesn't need a super special treat. With the exception of the grooming items*, Hannah's tail is wagging the whole time we train and she's watching me super carefully, and she wants to please. Not all dogs love training, but I firmly believe all dogs should do some formalized training at some point in their lives. (Many dogs would be fine with just a basic CGC class and then no more - Hannah is too smart to live without mental stimulation. Also, she's too neurotic.)
*Hannah does not care to be touched. She frequently tucks her tail (a sign of fright/stress) when I touch her back, tail, and look in her ears. I try to do it as painlessly as possible, but these are all things that are done in a veterinarian exam, so I do it in training at least once a week so she never loses her doggy mind at our vet office. Yes, it IS stressful and I hate to make her uncomfortable, but I'd rather she be uncomfortable with me than have it done for the first time at the vet's.
I let Hannah's training slip a bit in 2023 because I was struggling with life, but we are back at it and she's so happy. Here's to a year where Hannah learns to trust me and chill and I have fun with her while she learns. (My super secret special goal that I didn't even write down on my goals list is for Hannah and I to have a dance routine by the end of the year. Even 30 seconds would be fantastic. We'll see how Hannah's doing if it gets added to my Q3 or Q4 goals list.)
Our First Year with Hannah
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Is there a trick that you have seen dogs do that you think is super impressive? This entire
freestyle dancing routine is magical to me. This woman and her dog are such an inspiration to those of us who are simply trying to get our dogs to open their mouths. When Daquiri winds between her legs BACKWARDS, I gasp every time.
Oh, I LOVED this post! The trusting look Hannah gives you at the end of the video is perfection. What a smart doggo and how loving and patient her humans are!
ReplyDeleteRight? That look! She's so happy that she did the command right! I melt. She's perfect.
DeleteYour first sentence made me smile, and honestly, I think it is very true that dogs pick up the personality traits of their people. Rex is Hannah's opposite - he knows very few tricks BUT he does pose really well for the camera. He also cannot be touched enough, he is extremely snuggly and is always approaching random people to be petted. He has what they call the Bernese Lean, he leans into people's legs and he's 97 pounds so that's a lot of dog. I'm so impressed by all your training! She's doing great and loves you so much. How old is she, I am sure you've told me but I've forgotten.
ReplyDeleteHannah leans, too! But generally when she's stressed. When we first met her, the first thing she did was lean against my husband and we were too dumb to know that she was freaked out and thought it was a sign of her friendliness. LOL. She does not approach random people to get petted - only a handful of people are trustworthy enough for that.
DeleteI think she was probably 2 or 3 when we got her, so she's probably 6 or 7 now. There was a lot of disagreement about how old she was when we first got her, though. Her muzzle is starting to grey a little, but not too much.
That is one good girl! My favorite part of the video was hearing her nails click on the floor. It's one of my favorite dog sounds.
ReplyDeleteHa. And this is probably the shortest her nails have ever been. RIP our wood floors!
DeleteOh, my favorite part is how her hard her tail is wagging. I love that she's so happy.
DeleteI adore the beep beep cue for walking backwards! That is hilarious.
ReplyDeleteThank you! It makes me chuckle every time.
DeleteHannah is quite a project.
ReplyDeleteShe's my favorite hobby.
DeleteI believe that Hannah has found the very best caretakers; you understand her plight.
ReplyDeleteShe's such a sweet girl. I didn't realize she wasn't a fan of touch and that makes me so sad for her.
I also love seeing people 'dance' with their dogs, but also, I do that while trying to cook dinner with two of them dancing under my feet. Our version does not look so graceful. :(
Seeing her in the video made me smile; she's the goodest girl!
It's not as dire as it seems with touch. She will let us pet her and she does come to us for pets when she's nervous or scared. But it's not her jam and honestly that's OKAY because I have a cat who is on my lap at every available second! If I also had a 50-pound dog trying to get on my lap, things would be more challenging. :)
DeleteI am so impressed by all of this! I think I said it before, but do you make house calls for training kids?!
ReplyDeleteThe beep beep for backing up is too much - love it!!!!
I think training kids takes longer than 2-5 minutes a day! And they probably wouldn't take as kindly to getting pretty boring food as treats!
DeleteWhat a dear, sweet dog Miss Hannah is, and what a vast array of commands she has in her repertoire! You've really put in the work. It's sad that she is touch averse; I think of my granddog Zydrunas, who climbs on top of me with all of his 75 pounds just for cuddles. But it's clear that Hannah is a happy dog, and that's because you've cared for her with a keen eye toward her as an individual personality.
ReplyDeleteIt's so important to accustom dogs to what they'll be doing at the vet. Zydrunas is a nightmare and has to be sedated just to get his nails trimmed. (They can't even do it at home. He won't allow even me to do it.) You're so smart to prepare Hannah this way. It helps the vets and, more importantly, her.
Yes!! Dogs need to have experience as to what happens at the vet. If no one has ever looked at a dog's mouth, they are going to be really confused when the vet wants to look a tooth. I feel so terrible for dogs like Zydrunas who have so much stress associated with it. Poor things!
DeleteAnd that YouTube video of Jen and Daquiri was...mind-blowing!!!
ReplyDeleteRight? Jen does amazing things with Daquiri. It makes what I do with Hannah look like child's play, but it's always something to aspire to!
DeleteWHAT THE HELL. He jumped into her arms like he was Baby in Dirty Dancing! I didn't even know this was a thing! That's amazing that Hannah can do even a little bit of that.
ReplyDeleteWe took Lucy to a puppy training course. She's not extremely trainable and doesn't do tricks, but she's quite well behaved on walks. I would like her to bark less when people come to the door and do not even get me started on the cleaning lady - we are probably looking at getting a trainer for help with that when it's in the budget.
I'm sorry she's so anxious. It's miserable being an anxious person and feeling like you've passed it on to your kids - I'm sure it's not any more fun with a pet, when you can't talk to them about it.
I KNOW! Aussies and border collies are FREAKING AMAZING. I don't know if I want a dog that's smarter than me, but if we could dance like that?! Maybe I would! Daquiri is such a good dog and Jen does great things with a super smart dog.
DeleteIt's funny how different people are about training dogs. I don't NEED H to do tricks necessarily, but I need her to be polite and not murder her doctor and honestly, we're not 100% on that. LOL. Just like Lucy, once Hannah starts barking, it's hard to get her to stop. I feel badly for her because she's clearly worried about her (and our) safety when she's freaking out and I don't know how to get her to trust ME that I've dealt with the problem. *sigh* Dogs. Why they gotta be so neurotic?
Sweet sweet, Hannah. I am sad that she doesn't like to be touched. You are a great caregiver of pets to recognize all that she needs. When Finn, Lad's dog, lived with us, I was very tuned into my needs . . . which included me needing to have Finn live somewhere else. I honestly love dogs, but this was not my dog and I felt like Lad wasn't doing enough to train him. His manners were not 'polished'. He sure as heck was crazy obsessed with me though and he still goes crazy when Lad brings him to hang out on our deck and he sees me. So funny.
ReplyDeleteI laughed at woo woo science. I cannot get over that youtube video. What on earth? Incredible.
She’s so sweet!! Love this. And! Not that doings and preschoolers are the same (but sort of), but I am really anxious about Minnie’s health, and now she is anxious about it too, so I have been working on being calm and reassuring and just more CHILL when she doesn’t feel good, and it helps me as well as her. All that is to say, I think training is probably engaging and helpful for you as the trainer, too.
ReplyDeleteDogs and toddlers are similar in so many ways (with the HUGE caveat that toddlers will actually grow up). I think they respond to a lot of the same carrots and sticks. I am hoping training helps BOTH of us trust one another a bit more.
DeleteI admire all you are doing with Hannah. I'm sure she loves the attention and I say as long as she likes kibble for a treat, go for it -- probably better in the long run. (Gypsy loved that -- Lizzie, not so much!). I say go with what the vet recommends even if it seems weird. When Gyp had bad car anxiety my holistic vet recommended a specific floral essence for anxiety. I thought "Is the emperor wearing any clothes?" but I tried it and he never had car anxiety again. So sometimes, unproven stuff proves to work well indeed!
ReplyDeleteMy vet was pretty solid that the Adaptil would do something, but less sure about the probiotic. However, she was pretty sure that it wouldn't HURT. So that's a thing. I feel like it's hard to measure success in clinical trials with animals, so sometimes it's just guesswork. Crazy how they even figure out things like a floral essence would help with anxiety! How do they find that out?
DeleteWell, it all works out- you guys are the perfect people for Hannah because you can understand and empathize with her anxiety. it sounds like she's doing great, and I love that she loves the training. I know this is not quite on the same level, but for Christmas we got a book on training rats. We haven't started it yet, but I think they'll really like it. They like to be with us and and be stimulated, so it should be good for them. I'll report back1
ReplyDeleteRats can do amazing things!! Have you seen this video? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0jo_EG7XqZQ
DeleteI'm basically obsessed with watching animals do tricks humans have taught them.
This is so amazing, Engie. You are such a wonderful dog parent. And it tickles me to think that a pair of neurotic and anxious people have found a neurotic and anxious dog -- you are clearly meant to be a family.
ReplyDeleteWell, I think we turned a nice, friendly dog into an anxious mess, but if you want to think it was always this way, go right ahead! It's a match made in heaven!
DeleteIt is reassuring to me that you're still doing all sorts of training with Hannah and she's 6 or 7 years old. I have been worrying that I should be doing way more training with Charlie, but just haven't seemed to have a ton of time to devote to it. I know little bits go a long way. He does well with the basics like sit, down, come (WHEN he wants to.... if he's being naughty/ chewing something, etc., then it's like his ears turn off for "come" in certain moments, even though he knows darn well what it means...). He does well with "wait" when I open the basement gate- I can get to the bottom of the stairs telling him to wait at the top before I release him to come down to me. The issue though is that he is inconsistent any time there is anything else going on exciting, etc. We've had a little issue with him trying to bolt out the door when someone opens it! I always make him sit and wait before crossing any threshold basically, but if the door opens unexpectedly, he just wants to make a break for it. I also want to train him so that when I open our back door (which leads out to the deck, and then down to the yard) he will go out, walk across the deck and then STOP at the top of the little steps down to the patio/yard. I put him on a tie out leash in the backyard (even though it's fenced in) because otherwise he zooms all over the place and doesn't always necessarily come. Besides, I don't want him going off and pooping all over the yard- I prefer him to stay limited to one big area only for potty. I have always just picked him up and carried him out on the deck, and then put his leash on. But I'd really like to be able to just open the door, have him walk out, and wait at the top of the steps for me to put his leash on. (The leash does not reach the back door at all- you have to walk like 15 steps across the deck, down 3 steps, and then to the patio and the grass.) Currently if I try to let him walk, he just goes racing off across the deck, down the steps and out into the yard like a bat out of hell. Hahahaha. (I'm thinking maybe I can just put a short leash on him to practice this? Like a leash to the leash, if that makes sense, using my commands?) It's also been tricky bc like I told you in SP, he has a sensitive stomach. So we've been limited to just using dog food for training treats, which is only so-so in terms of motivation. He will do most things for it inside during "training time", but like he won't stop chewing on a stick in the yard or drop a tasty sock to come just to get a piece of kibble...
ReplyDeleteHe's still a baby! You'll teach him how to be polite and he'll figure out what you want soon enough!
DeleteComing back to say that you inspired me to up the game on our "stay" command practice today. Charlie generally does fine if I place him and then say "Stay" and then I can back up, turn around, etc. But I had never really tried making him stay while anything exciting was going on. So today I brought him in the basement and made him stay while I jumped, whooped, did jumping jacks, and then even turned and ran away from him... I made all sorts of crazy noises, made my voice really excited, etc. The first couple times he thought, PLAY TIME!! And broke the stay. But by the end, he was staying, even though he was looking at me like, wtf mom?! What's up with this weird behavior. Hahaha. Still a work in progress, of course, but definitely going to keep working this! Bc when I will inevitably actually need him to sit and stay in real life someday, probably it will be because something "exciting" is going on!
ReplyDeleteYay!! The scariest example I saw of this was a video at a dog park. The people who were cutting the grass left the gate open while they were driving their tractor in. This lady yelled at her dog (from across a huge field) "DOWN" and the dog, who had been bolting for the open gate, immediately laid down. She was able to get to the dog and leash it AND draw the attention of the person driving the tractor that her dog was there so they wouldn't hit the dog. It was such a scary video to watch. If that dog hadn't been trained, it would have either run out of the gate or possibly been hit. Training isn't just about doing tricks - it's about safety!!
DeleteI love this. When we are ready for another dog, I am going to emulate you and do some daily training. Mulder got out once at my in-laws' house and ran down the street, and did NOT come when called. Very scary.
ReplyDeleteBack in July we dog-sat a sweet Keeshond, Theo. I've done some back and forth with his foster dad, Bernard. Most recently I was asking about Theo, and he told me that he has gone to a wonderful home with an 11 year old daughter, so that's a happy ending for sure, though we were all secretly hoping Bernard would keep him, he was SO HAPPY when Bernard came to pick him up. I wish I had it on video. Anyway, Bernard is an older, very courtly type gentleman, who has owned and fostered Keeshonds for several decades (we first met him before we got our last dog in 2002, and he wasn't new to it then) and I liked what he had to say about training. Here you go:
"This year I have been training my bitch Artemisia in obedience. This has been an intellectually challenging and rewarding experience. One of the things I have come to realize is that there are times when I need to give the dog time to figure out what it wants to do to please me. So often we try to impose our will on a dog and we don't give the dog the space to make the right decision. This realization has given me cause for reflection."
Yes to Bernard! Sometimes Hannah does not want to cooperate. That's a sign of something (she's bored, hurt, sick, or whatever) and it's up to me to figure out what that is a sign of! It's hard, but it's worth it.
DeleteA little training every day goes a long way. I'd love to take Hannah to classes every week, but ain't nobody here got time or money for that!
This is amazing! My mom started her dogs on training last year and it has been incredible to see the difference in them. Chip used to be a bit reactive (barking at other people while on walks, pulling on his leash, etc) and he has gotten miles and miles better than he used to be. It's also funny how much training wears them out! Chip was always so tired after his training sessions!
ReplyDeleteBased on that video, Hannah loves this training time. It's special one-on-one time with her favorite people! How cute.
I think that barking is such a hard behavior to curb! I don't know how you even START with that. Getting a professional to help with that was probably a good idea.
DeleteHannah does love training. And I find it really fun, too! Win-win-win!
I think it's amazing how much effort (and love) you put into training Hannah. She'll be a better dog for it (and you a happier dog owner). <3
ReplyDeleteShe is my favorite project, that's for sure.
DeleteOh, Hannah. Those eyes. Those ears. She has found Her People, and the world is a better place for it. <3 Her anxiety and neuroses speak to me (I had a similarly neurotic dog...). I do - always - wonder, with rescues, what their lives were like before? Simon used to cower if you moved your foot to the side (even just to take a step, sometimes), and it made me think that he must have been kicked at some point in his early years. :( You give Hannah SO much love, and I hope she can also feel the love pouring out of all of these comments. <3 (And thanks for sharing her with us! She's truly special.)
ReplyDeleteI honestly feel like we are 75% responsible for how neurotic she is. In a different family, I bet Hannah would be a more outgoing, friendly dog. But it is what it is and we love her the way she is!
DeleteI am scared of dogs (long story that involves a german shepard going for my throat) and am more scared of utnrained dogs in combination with overly confident dog owners who have no idea how their dog behaves. It is nice to read that some dog owwers – you – are different.
ReplyDeleteI get a fear of dogs and it probably doesn't impress you that Hannah looks like a German shepherd! If you met Hannah, we would do proper introductions and make sure both of you were comfortable. Ugh. Irresponsible dog owners make me sad because it's sad for the dog and the people.
Delete