When we adopted Meadow – we knew what we had signed on for. Taking in a dog who lived in the wild for nearly three years and was extremely frightened of people, we expected to have our behavioral ups and downs. And we certainly have had our fair share of each.
Some of our most devastating ‘Downs’
- Meadow repeatedly bolting on leash, practically running in place, to try to get away after hearing either a thunder clap or a firework.
- Meadow anxiously chewing up her plastic water bowl, the plastic side vents to her crate, and several blankets inside her crate - because we left her alone.
- Meadow refusing to go outside of the house because of thunder or rain or fireworks, and us having to literally drag her out the door.
- Meadow freaking out on walks and deciding it was time to go home – when no amount of pleading could convince her to continue onward.
- Meadow refusing to give us eye contact or even acknowledge us whenever she felt overwhelmed.
- Meadow becoming so overwhelmed at a Vizsla meet up that we decided to bring her back home.
- Meadow and Leah getting into a pretty serious fight while they were working out their initial differences. (No injuries, thankfully.)
- Meadow freaking out and barking like a lunatic whenever Nick left the house.
- Meadow refusing to go into her crate, shoving at the door, and even nipping at us when we tried to close it.
- Meadow deciding that picking on Toby and Cinder, rather nastily, was a fun new game.
Yet, with a lot of advice and support from Meadow’s previous foster Mom, Lesli Hyland, and our trainer, Sue Reising, many of the issues resolved, and the good list soon surpassed the bad.
Some of our most heartwarming ‘Ups’
- The first time Meadow came out of her crate to see us without being lured.
- The first time she ate an entire meal without being coaxed.
- The first time she flopped on her back and kicked her legs up in the air in sheer joy.
- The first time she played with our other dogs.
- The first time she play bowed at me.
- The time Nick caught Toby on the sofa, while Meadow lay obediently on her mat with an expression that clearly said, “I told him not to go up there. Dogs are not allowed up there.”
- The first time she picked up a toy in the house, and later, in the yard.
- The first time she brought a toy back for me to throw it again.
- The first time she galloped to Nick at full speed while practicing recalls in the yard.
- The first time she walked an entire Rally course with Nick, without balking.
During her last year in ‘captivity,’ Meadow made so much progress that we just recently began to trust her off leash – inside our fenced yard. Previous to that, she was either leashed, or dragging a thirty-foot line around the yard with her.
Three reasons finally convinced us to give her some freedom.
(1) Her recalls have been amazing. No matter what she is doing, she comes running at the sound of her name.
(2) She has been recovering quickly to noises, including a low flying helicopter, the neighbor using power tools, and the wind - all things that used to frighten her in the past. While still wary, each of these noises now cause her to pause and look around for reassurance, and then with a wag, she goes back to whatever she was doing.
(3) We have been working on a desensitization program over the last few months using a CD that plays various firework sounds, gradually upping the volume at meal times, a little at a time, with no reaction from her at all.
Meadow improved so much during her time here with us that we began to feel as if one day she might turn out to be a fairly timid, but otherwise ‘normal’ dog. In fact, we joked that she would turn out to be the most normal one of the three.
That is, until last night.
One bottle rocket revealed the truth.
Meadow bolted to the fence that separated the backyard from the front, and when I called to her, trying to remain calm, she did not acknowledge me – at all. Instead, she began pawing at the fence, attempting to escape. I reached her and leashed her only moments before a second bottle rocket shrieked through the air, and within seconds she was in a full blown panic, straining wildly at the end of her leash and staring through the fence.
I waited with her, talking softly, until she offered me the tiniest of glances, and then quickly brought her inside before a third firework could go off. She pulled the entire way, desperate to find safety. My only condolence is that I’m pretty sure, if she had hopped over the fence, she would have just fled to the front door.
But I can’t be sure…
To make matters worse, Meadow took it hard. She reacted poorly to her firework CD at dinner, even though I thought to play it at a much lower volume than she was accustomed to. She refused to acknowledge Nick later on, and had to be forced outside to relieve herself both last night and again this morning. She is now curled up next to the heater, looking worried, her forehead wrinkled. She looks very much like the same haunted Vizsla we adopted last June.
Frankly, I feel defeated – a total failure. The ups and downs I expected. Complete regression, I did not.
Last night, all of our patience and hard work dissolved. All of the trust we had built had merely been a mirage. So it is back to coaxing, and dragging a line, for a long, long time. I am also now looking into medication as a possible crutch. In the past, Nick and I have refused to ‘drug our dogs’ on many occasions, but after seeing Meadow’s joyful personality so easily conquered by fear, we might have to look past our own ideals, and do what is best for our dog.
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