Camping weekend

Terra went on her first camping trip, along with my sister and her dog, Frankie. Her behavior was mostly what I expected. She repeatedly held her bladder and bowels as long as she could, as she doesn't like to potty in new places. She picked at her food but ate everything in the end. She dug a hole. She tried to play with Frankie by pawing at him obnoxiously. She loved getting attention from me and Agnes. She woofed at most of the people who walked by our campsite. (Fortunately we were in a spot that didn't have too much traffic.) I was relieved that she didn't once bark at night.

She slept right next to me or on top of me most of the time. During the first night, every time she woke up, she would proceed to wake Agnes and me up by nosing at our faces. During the second night, she was tired from a long night and mostly settled. Once I train her out of bugging us, she'll be a great camp dog.

Fear period?, training with others

I invited other local FDSA students to come over for a group training session. Two were able to make it - both women with large dogs (Beauceron and Dutch Shepherd). In the recent past, Terra has been quick to approach and befriend women who visit. She was scared of all strangers as a puppy, but learned through experience that female visitors to the farm are great. (She has also improved with men but it's still somewhat of a gamble.) This time she approached them but immediately withdrew when they moved at all, even when they weren't reaching for her. One of the women sat down in a chair and let Terra take her time sniffing, then she was comfortable. The other woman just gave her space. I'm thinking now that Terra is experiencing an adolescent fear period.

With the large dogs, her behavior was typical - she wanted to sniff them but was intimidated by their size.

After the initial excitement died down, I did a teeny bit of training with Terra. She was able to sit, shake, do a hand touch, and place one front foot on her platform target. I tried to get her to place the other foot as well, but she was done at that point. She got some more cuddles and food scatters, then I put her away so I could work with Cai.

Regression in socialization

I took Terra to a knitting group that takes place in a meeting room at a library. It's all quiet old ladies sitting around a big table. I haven't been getting her out much lately, so I thought it would be an easy way to get her back into it. When she'd been younger, she'd done well at a knitting meetup at a yarn store, which had been bustling with activity. I was disappointed to see that this time, Terra wanted to leave the meeting room from the moment we walked in. I sat down away from the main table and cuddled with her. She settled down somewhat, but was still stress panting, tense, and oriented toward the exit. I slid off my chair and sat on the floor with her. This had a greater effect in reassuring her, and she ended up lying against my legs with her head down. She wasn't relaxed, though, and she was happy when we left. We were there for 45 minutes.

Was it because she hadn't been getting out as much during January and February, other than hiking? Was it because this was an enclosed space with only one exit? Because it was too many people at once, even if they were all quiet, sitting ladies? Because her shoulders were bothering her and she was in pain, and that lowered her tolerance? Because she's going through an adolescent fear period? All of these things together, or some, or none?

Who knows? The point of socialization is to have repeated positive experiences that build the dog's confidence, and protect them as needed. It's better for me to keep her out of these situations than to have her repeatedly experiencing them and hating them. So we'll continue playing, learning, and walking and hiking in open spaces until she shows me that she's ready for more.

New people, stripping puppy coat

Terra met my friend Ally's family on Saturday. She was a bit standoffish with Ally. She warmed up to Ally's husband quickly. (I think it helped that he looked similar to a couple of other men she likes.) She really liked Ally's 5 and 6 year old kids! I don't know way but Terra has always liked kids, the younger the better. She also likes Miki's 1 and 5 year olds. She wants to lick their faces over and over and lets them reach for her and pet with with a wagging tail.

Terra was initially put off by Nimbus, the 5 month old Portugese Water Dog. He was jumping onto her head and shoulders to play. But she warmed up to him and they ended up running around in circles together.

I tried my hand at stripping her coat, as the breeder was stripping her sister Ryuk this weekend. Terra was mildly irritated when I tugged on more sensitive parts of her body, but for the most part just laid down and let me do it. We're doing a little at a time so she looks very strange right now.

Hiking, socializing

Terra has been enjoying off leash hikes lately. Unlike Chimera, who needed to be on a long line for years before he was trustworthy, Terra is more attached to me and comes back if she gets nervous. (Though if she feels cornered by someone's approach on a narrow trail, she may bark at them.) And now Cai has a near perfect recall, and she follows his lead.

She got to meet my friend Amy at a park in Oakland. She acted like a "normal" happy dog in the new location with a new person and new dogs. She still has trouble with most men, around crowds, and in tight spaces, but she's come a long away.

I flew down to San Diego to see Hamilton at the end of January. Terra and Cai stayed with my parents. No trouble.

The following weekend was a musical freestyle and rally-free event for Cai. Terra spent most of the time in the car, but came into the building during longer breaks between Cai's runs. She showed off her lapdog skills.

Family cuddles

Switching crate to x-pen

Terra's crate has been tight for a few weeks. I was finally able to retrieve her large, heavy duty x-pen from where I'd left it on the agility field. She's confused about the change, but she has room to stretch out now.

Here's the most recent picture of her growth. She weighed 96 pounds last week.

And a couple bonus pictures of her sleeping:

 

Potty training update

I've mostly stopped putting Terra in her crate at night or when I leave. She has had a few accidents but they only happened when 1) I was sick and slept in way later than I should have, or 2) I was getting the car serviced and it took longer than I'd been expecting.

She always pees on top of her bed when she does need to go, but thankfully it has a truly waterproof liner, so I just wash the cover and liner and it's good to go.

It's still a bummer to clean up a tsunami of Wolfhound urine, though.

01/03/18: feeling better

Terra still slept through most of the day, but she had short bouts of bored energy.

We did two super short nose work sessions. She did some good problem solving with containers 8-12" off the floor.

12/26/17-01/02/18: pneumonia and ICU

In the week before Christmas, one of my regular boarding dogs arrived with a cough that had just started that morning. Terra developed nasal congestion on 12/25 and a mild cough on 12/27. On the evening of 12/30, she became lethargic and unresponsive to me talking to her and cajoling her to eat her dinner or go outside to potty. I took her to UC Davis. We had to take the scary elevator because she didn't have enough energy to climb the stairs. (Side note: who the fuck decided to put the emergency clinic on the second floor?) They found that she had a fever of 104.8 and pneumonia, and was not getting enough oxygen on her own. They started her on antibiotics. She spent the 31st on supplemental oxygen and an IV in the ICU. When I visited, she gave me a little tail wag but mostly kept her head down on the floor.

On the morning of January 1st, after 24 hours on antibiotics, she was doing much better. The supplemental oxygen was removed. She started eating the meatballs, cottage cheese, and rice that the staff offered her. (Though she did lose a little weight during her stay.) I was able to take her for a walk when I visited. She was moved from the ICU to an intermediate care ward.

They re-ran blood tests on the morning of January 2nd and confirmed that she was well enough to come home. She will be on antibiotics for at least 2 weeks and has an appointment to get a chest x-ray at our regular vet's on 1/12. No physical exertion (including running or playing) for 2 weeks. I guess we'll be doing a lot more nose work practice.

She ate her dinner with gusto but has spent all day sleeping, with a few half-hearted attempts at squeaking a toy or chewing on an old bone. Chimera was happy to see her and tried to get her to play, but she turned him down. She welcomed a thorough brushing and cuddle instead.

They told me that she had a fan club, which was no surprise. She's so mild mannered and cuddly that she makes friends everywhere she goes (note that all the staff, techs, and vets were women).