AHHHH....

     Ahhh, today was so much better than yesterday. I tried something I haven't done in awhile with her. I loaded her backpack with about 6lbs of stuff (water bottles and canned soup) and we went for a walk. It was like night and day. She listened so much better today! She did great with loose leash walking. She was doing so good that I decided to try "heeling" for the first time. Perfection!!! I think I had to correct her twice and we walked for an hour! Every day is improving, even if it's baby steps! She did so good I let her play on the jungle gym after our walk; she loves the jungle gym. Her favorite is the tunnels and jumping from the ground up onto the highest part of the gym she can reach.

     

One step forward two steps back...

     Well today was a test of my patience. Our trip to the dog beach had a very rough start, just one dog on the beach today but you'd think that there were millions of dogs running all over the place. Voda pulled, she tugged, and she whined. Oh my gosh did she whine :-( We did have a very nice break, the dog and his family left and Voda actually calmed down enough that I could remove her lead. We ran and ran and ran splashing water everywhere. It was so much fun. I've never seen her smile so big! But then the cutest Black Lab puppy and his owner showed up and bring on the whining and barking yet again. I wanted to pull my hair out! I do have to get her some credit; we got about 5 feet away before she became too excited to handle. I have never met such a persistent dog before, she whined, cried, and made the most horrible sounds imaginable for 30 minutes straight. Thankfully the Black Labs momma was nice enough to allow us to work on our obedience while she and her baby, Bear, played. Unfortunately, they left before Voda could actually meet the puppy. But every bit of practice pays off.

     On a lighter note, my husband and I met up with a gentlemen who handles dogs and offered us even more help with our obedience. He has the most beautiful Belgium Malinois (example shown above) and he is so well trained. If I could have that much control over Voda I'd be giddy as a school girl! One of these days we will be as good of team as him and his dog! I am already excited that I randomly had this man ask me and my husband if we would be interested in working obedience and possibly more with our dog just because he had one look at her and fell in love. *I mean who could resist? She is the sweetest baby.* He is so excited about her though, he keeps talking about how intelligent she looks when they make eye contact and how he really thinks she could go far in training and gaming. I am stoked! It's so nice to run into fellow dog enthusiast.

Ouch!

    So this was day 3 of trips to the dog beach for Voda. She is doing so good! We still have a long way to go, but much less barking and whining today! And the ride in the car...much less hectic, I only had to tell her to lay down 4 times there and 4 times back! Compared to yesterday that is monumental! The only down side is that my feet are not used to the rough beach sand here. Ouch! I feel over exfoliated! But as in all things *no PAIN no GAIN*

1st day at the beach

     So yesterday was Voda's first day at the dog beach. Oh my gosh what a crazy day! Poor thing needs more socialization than what she has been getting, today was filled with so much whining, barking, and a lot of correction on my part. Just means more trips to the beach...darn!

Almost a year earlier...

Almost a year earlier...May 30th to be exact...my husband and I brought home a skinny, scared, urine soaked German Shepheard. This dog was a sad sight to see. This is the beginning of her story. 

     While pcs'ing to Hawaii with my husband my father, who at the time was watching my Chocolate Lab during his quarantine, feel in love. After agreeing that my father could keep Buck, I decided it was time to go looking for another member to the family. Knowing that there are plenty of dogs needing a home without going to a breeder, I began looking into shelters. None of which had a dog that really spoke to me. After that I began taking alternate routes to find the one. Craigslist, Petfinder.com, and places like that. After a few days of searching tirelessly, I found a post on Craigslist for a German Shepherd. The listing asked for serious inquiries only and experienced owners. Having grown up with dogs all my life and many people comment on my nack for teaching them, I decided to contact the owner. After many back and forth emails via my android cell phone we finally met up with the owners. Me a jumble of nerves riding with my husband in a borrowed truck, we found their house. The owners were so nice and very concerned about the well being of their baby. They were having to get rid of her because their children were crazy allergic to pet dander and the doctor bills were piling up. They explained that they were keeping her in the garage so that the kids were not being exposed to the pet hair. Nothing too crazy about that right? I didn't think so either until they went into their garage to get her so that we could meet. There in the middle of their garage sat a medium sized wire kennel trying it's damnedest to contain a LARGE fully grown German Shepherd. This is when the first yellow flag was thrown.They opened the kennel and out exploded a huge furry and peeing hair ball. *Second yellow flag* After catching the crazed dog they locked her in a tiny back yard only a yard or two wide, they told me that this is where their "beloved" dog was kept when not shunned to the garage. We continued talking to the family reassuring them that she would have a forever home and be treated like a member of the family. After twenty or so minutes we were loading up our new baby, reluctantly cramming her back into her tiny pin(as crazy as she had acted in the garage I was afraid she'd jump out of the truck and hurt herself). When we finally made it back home, I immediately put a collar and leash on her and we walked for a good two-three hours. This was a double edged sword, Voda *her new name* learned to trust and respect me on our walk; however, every one of her pads split open from being urine soaked. *Yellow flag number three!!* Poor poor Voda. We struggled with walks for days after that bandage covered paws and all. I had bought plenty of toys and a kennel the correct size for her the day we brought her home; the sad thing was the poor dog had no clue how to play with her toys. I'd give her a tug rope or a treat filled kong and she would just stare at it. WHAT?! What kind of family pet does not know how to play?

     That was almost 12 months ago. Today Voda is well on her way to becoming a well rounded dog.
She still has her issues. She gets overly excited around dogs and most people, but I am very proud of the amount of obstacles we have overcome. No more submissive or excited pee. No more split paws. We actually are up to running 3.5 miles now! And best of all she knows how to play!!! Of all the jewelry my husband has ever given me, Voda is my most prized possession. MY DIAMOND IN THE ROUGH!