Gill Tuxworth Ltd Canine Consultant T/A Top Dog

Jed was really beginning to relax, his inquisitive nature and mischievous personality was blossoming.

When visitors came to the house Jed would take the opportunity to go up to them and sniff and much to our delight not one person made eye contact with him or tried to touch him. He would then retire to a respectful distance and lie down and instead, as before, of watching them he would often sleep on his side.

When we were playing in the garden with the dogs he would join in, at a slight distance, and really enjoy chasing the balls or other dogs. If one of the dogs dropped the ball he would charge past them, collect the ball without stopping, throw it in the air and catch it whilst still on the move. Eventually he would drop the ball for another dog to collect and return to us. Jed was particularly talented at digging holes and he encouraged the rest of the pack to join in, much to Col’s despair!

 The dogs in the garden with me and my niece Emma. Emma has initiated play with Jake whilst stroking Lily and then becomes engaged in a conversation with me as Jake brings the kong back and deposits it at my feet. When this action gets no reaction from me Jed and Jake continue to play on their own.Notice how Jed  rebounds off Jake... as usual.

At about this time Jed began to bark at us when we emerged from the house or left the property whilst he was in the garden. Each time Jed barked at us we would go back indoors, wait until he was quiet and then try again. What a test of patience and perseverance this was as sometimes we could attempt to go out, maybe only intending to put the washing on the line or down to the garden shed, ten times before he would allow us to leave without barking. When we left the property he began to whine behind the gate so we performed lots of gesture leaving. This could be very time consuming as often it could take ten minutes before we could leave the house without him barking but it was what he needed to reinforce our leadership. The last thing we wanted was for Jed to exchange fear for leadership.

 Jed and Toby in the garden.

Jed had certainly found his voice and also barked when he played and when anyone came to the house but responded beautifully to ‘thank you’.

He had stopped destroying his bed, soiling at night, he would also sleep through and could no longer be heard playing in the dead of night.

If anything different happened, visitors or illness, human or canine, Jed still had a tendency to circle, not spin, and to scent mark indoors (but this was becoming very infrequent) and his confidence was growing.

We took the opportunity to go away on holiday, taking Jake and Lily with us and leaving the elderly Cassie, Megan and Toby at home with Jed in the capable hands of my mum. Mum only lives five minutes down the road and was (is) a frequent visitor and carer if we are not available.

Mum reported that Jed was quite happy, playing and eating as usual but she could not persuade him to go into the kitchen at bed time. He refused to leave his bed in the lounge at night or when she left the property so she left him there where he felt safe. Unfortunately, he destroyed the hearth rug, his bed and urinated on every item of furniture. He was obviously stressed and struggling to cope with the change but mum didn’t scold him. She removed the hearth rug, the filling from his bed and was constantly cleaning after him. We felt very sorry for both of them.

When we returned it only took Jed 24hours to revert to is previous behaviour and he spent the first six of those playing with Jake. If he was not pestering Jake to play he was with him, mirroring his every action and had obviously missed him very much. We are due to go away again in October and it would be nice to think that Jed will be ready to go away with us but this depends totally on his progress.

On the 29th July, a day we will never forget, something amazing happened. I called Jed to me, as I often did, and instead of him stopping inches away from me, he came to my hand and pushed his face into it.

Jed and I had our first contact which progressed to a cuddle. I cannot put into words how that felt, his coat was so soft as he has not had this interaction before and had no human oil on his coat, his eyes were soft and his body so well-muscled despite never having been for a walk in his life!

What a wonderful day!

Jed watching Pam  Shaw and Ruddi.