“Sam”
Meet Sam. Sam is a lab mix who was rescued as an owner surrender at 7 yrs old. It must've been quite a change for him winding up in the shelter. He was adopted by a wonderful couple who wanted to give him a good life without having to deal with puppyhood.
Except, Sam has really tough separation anxiety. He doesn't like it when his new humans leave him alone, if even for a minute in the other room. He barks and howls. He screams and shakes when he is in the car. He never seems to get tired and he has health issues like his ear and tummy bothering him.
His whole world was turned upside down and he's been dealing with his health issues on top of it. I can't imagine what must go through a dog's mind, especially an older one, when everything they knew as their life is gone and replaced with something else. I always liken it to me being placed into a foreign country where I don't know the language, social rules, topography, people, or how to communicate.
His vet recommended his new humans contact me for help with his behavior troubles. I met with his humans last week and explained the science behind what I thought was behind a lot of Sam's behaviors. I then gave them a simple plan to start to work on changing things for the better for Sam by teaching him some new skills.
We have a lot of work to do. When I get cases like this, I am happy if the progress is even a 10%. We can't resolve everything at once so this is going to take some time.
I asked his humans how Sam was doing this week on a scale from 1 (low) to 10 (high) as far as any of his behaviors improving. He got a solid 7! I was not expecting that! WOW They were even able to leave him comfortably in another room by himself for an hour while they were in the next room over.
I am so happy to hear such wonderful news so quickly. His new humans are so dedicated and committed to helping Sam understand that he is safe and that he is going to be okay.
Trauma can really mess up how the brain thinks. Not feeling well can also impact behavior. I have a very holistic lens when I look at dogs. I feel this is the best way to look at them, making sure we are addressing what we can and controlling what we can't, as we teach new skills by growing new neural pathways. It's deep stuff but it's not difficult for the humans to do. They just have to jump in and do it.
Super happy to get such a wonderful update about Sam. I feel very optimistic about him and will be updating his journey as we go.
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Clarksville Tennessee and surrounding areas premier dog behavior help and dog training specialist. I don’t have to be in your living room to help you with your dog.
