Big day for Takota (Brag)

[dreamchaser456]

Today I took Takota to "meet" my groomer for the first time. We would have done this sooner but she was almost due when he came in November. We've been working hard on our manners around new dogs so this was a big test. Kota did great, greeted her nicely and held his sit, walked to the table with her without problems. It took a little coaxing to get him all the way up on the table (he thought front feet should be enough) but once up there he was a perfect gentleman while his nails got cut! He was more interested in giving "kisses" to the little dog on the next table than what was being done to him. Perfect manners the entire time there. Not bad for only having him 5 and a half months considering all the issues he came with. Kota now has an appointment for next week for a full groom!
We also walked around Petsmart and did some training today and he was almost perfect just one reaction to two bouncy dogs on a flexi but it only lasted about 5 seconds and he was back to sit and listening. If you had seen this boy when he came here you would think I have another new newf, there is that much difference. We are almost there now and it sure was the perfect way to start my day this morning, Kota surprising me again with how far he has come, and seeing all our hard work pay off so well.

 

[Bill382]

That's quite a story of success! Walking the dog around Petsmart, or any pet store, works wonders for socializing them. I walk Timber through local pet stores for the exact same reason, and she seems to enjoy it. All the great smells, new people, other dogs, fish swimming in tanks level with her eyes... it's just great.

 

[dreamchaser456]

I usually take Kota to Tractor Supply since I live in the boonies and even that is 30 minutes away! It took us two months before he made it INSIDE that store because of excitement and training levels. It had been a few weeks since we tried Petsmart so it was nice to see his training and manners are getting so much better. He came to be being people and dog aggressive so this was a HUGE step forward for us. I knew it was going to take time and lots of work to help him but Takota has surpassed everything I expected of where we would be at this time. It turns out what he needed was training, boundaries and expectation of proper behavior so that he feels secure and he gave up almost every "issue". Can't wait until we're solid on training no matter what the distraction is and I know that's coming. Then I can take the whole gang places together.