Toad, as you can imagine needs work in the car. He's gotten to a point where he relaxes and sleeps when I drive, which is terrific! (one of his first drives he landed on my head in a leap that accentuated his lack of grace and load of ... well... endowment).In no particular order he needs refining on marking his "territory" inside the vehicle. He needs training to stay put while I exit the car. He needs reinforcement on "not being in the drivers seat". And he needs to learn to stay calm while people walk or drive by.
We set out today to sit in the car parked in the parking lot of the local grocery store. Sunday is a slower day in a slow town (important to allow him to process not just burst). The goal was to stay long enough that he could self calm, respond to requests and get through his initial anxiety.
Toad's time line went something like this;
Arrival
10 minutes; whining
20 minutes; increased/louder
25 minutes; more frantic
30 minutes; whining slowed
35 minutes; able to lay down (self calm)
40 minutes; up and sniffing/exploring car
50 minutes; more active, no whining, able to do commands
60 minutes; good eye contact, panting from tired
 |
| Shake Hands |
He was concerned about one couple (the man was carrying a fairly large.thick stick), interested in a skateboarder and keen to be with when he went around the corner and out of sight. Got more worked up at the 20 minute mark when a truck blocked his view and then the man proceeded to talk to him. He started to get bored with the outside world just past 1/2 hour mark. Was himself at about the hour mark.
We worked quickly on "get in back" with treat lures being thrown, and "sits". He is still sleeping 3 hours later. These things/training outings completely get rid of all mental energy leaving him drained. I'll schedule him to go back mid to late week and see how quickly he goes through the paces.
I feel one hour was a quick turn around from no eye contact to being able to do his basic obedience (especially since we've not overly practiced his commands in the car, so they are technically new to him)
He's such a willing participant.... he's getting to go on more drives (my past bully went everywhere with me, so I'd love for Toad to get to that point). He gets excited when he realizes we're going in the car (his tip off is me getting my purse, which doesn't come with us for walks, smart booger). I'd like for him to be able to relax in the parking lots and that means spending some time rewarding calm behavior, modeling calm behavior and ignoring the rest! He'll get there... we'll get there.
