Cadbury

Age at start of Board and Train – 7 months

Breed – Miniature Dachshund

Focus – Intense fear of strangers.

The Discovery meeting (first training session)

When I met Cadbury for our Discovery meeting I quickly realized that, while his owners were doing everything they could, he was living in a constant state of fear when not in his comfort zone. When he was home and things were quiet he was perfectly fine. However, new people in the house, people on the streets, etc. he would bark and try to flee. Cadbury is a really adorable little guy and it just tugs at your heartstrings to learn he would hide behind furniture and bark at anyone new that came into the house until they left. I knew a board and train would take him out of his element and get them started in the right direction for the best chance for success.

The beginning of the board and train

The biggest underlying cause for these symptoms is a lack of confidence in himself and his ability to adapt and navigate the world around him. When arriving for the board and train, the moment we had him away from his owners he quickly attached himself to me. A couple of days of us just literally sharing the same space together and him realizing I am not a threat and I’m actually pretty cool (if I do say so myself), he had quickly gained the confidence to interact with me comfortably. Once we got over that hurdle I could start to introduce play as a way to build confidence and also introduce new people to him.

Play training

Little man sure does love to play. Through play we were able to introduce “ready” and “get it” cues. Once we built the understanding of how to start play we then made games more challenging to win for him. That, in turn, built his confidence and his love for interactive play with people. Through play I would introduce him to new staff. We would start off with the “ready” cue and that would get his attention on the new person. He immediately would express excitement because he knew what was coming next! At first the new person would start off by using the cue “get it” and throw the toy away from themselves. Rinse repeat this a couple of times and eventually when he would bring it back the new person would tug with him just for a few moments and then let “win”. Much like a kid playing a new game with someone they get discouraged when they lose right away. This, again, builds confidence in Cadbury and keeps him wanting to come back to play more. As time goes on, depending on comfort level, we would add more difficulty to the game each time.

Transitioning home

My favorite thing I get to say to a client is “Your homework is play with your dog”. Continuing play at home will set them up so when a stranger comes over he is ready to play. I set up their first in home so they could have a stranger come to the house. When entering the home myself for this lesson Cadbury did, in fact, bark at me, because dogs WILL humble you every time. Once he settled in, after a quick round of tug with me, his owners said the best thing they could possibly tell their trainer – “We’ve been playing with him everyday”. THAT is the key to all of this. That is the whole reason why the chain of events that happened next went so successfully.

A few minutes later we had the “stranger” come in. Same process of starting the “ready” cue. I had to engage with him first and then hand the toy over to the stranger. Again, once the process had gotten started Cadbury was in the “strangers” lap within ten minutes. Normally, Cadbury would be hiding in a corner or behind a couch continuing to bark at this new person in his home and not enjoying life.

Continued success

It has been five months since that last lesson and I receive updates from Cadbury’s owners any time they have people over, and every time it makes my whole day. Long term success is not possible without owners putting in the work themselves.  Cadbury’s owners did exactly that, and now they have a happy dog involved in their lives and not hiding in a corner.