Stitches Out

Sally got her stitches out this afternoon. I keep learning lessons from this dog.

The first was when I took the top off her crate. As soon as I unscrewed the top of the crate and lifted it, she bolted out. The first time she ran into my TV room, under the table. She is brilliant at hiding. It was work to get her out and very stressful. She clings to the carpet for dear life.

I get her back in the crate.

I let several minuets pass and try again. As soon as the top comes off...BOOM...she bolts through the sliding glass screen door outside. Just went right through the screen like a knife through butter. I took off after her with a gusto I haven't mustered in a while. If she gets into the ivy or back fence, I have a tremendous fight on my hands getting her out.



She runs all the way to the end of the yard, which is fenced-in thankfully, and then back towards the house. I am hoping she will go back intp the house. If she gets down the ally, she is out front and then I have an entirely different scenario. She could get into the street and I would never get her.

Chasing her, I realized how out of shape I am!

She goes into the house and I hear a bang. I see the front screen door open.

I run out through the screen door and don't see her. I go back in the house and look at all the places she hides and don't see her. She is a black dog so it’s difficult to spot her in a small corner. I go back in the TV room and she is stuffed in a corner under the coffee table.

This couldn't be worse for her trip to the vet! I wanted her to be relaxed and she is totally stressed out.

I put the bottom part of the crate in my back seat and finally get her in the car with a towel over the top for seclusion. We head off to the vet.

The stitch removal took ten minutes. Very nice people. I can tell a well run vet/Dx's office the first few seconds I enter. This place was good.

On the drive home she did well. I'm sure she was petrified of all the noises. I was encouraged in how she exited the car when we got home. The first trip back from the vet she was so afraid it was nearly impossible to pull her from the carpet--she cleaved to it for dear life.

This time with leash on, she walked out and right up the driveway to the yard and then into the house. In the house she goes to her bottom stance until she finds a secure place. I put her in the laundry basket and she snuggled in my dirty clothes.

After getting the bottom portion of the crate from my car, I attached it and she went inside. I gave her a rub down then a treat. She is resting now.

Back to a dog's life...

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A Safe Place

I've had Sally for almost two weeks. I take her to the vet Tuesday to get her stitches out after being fixed.

Sally reminds me of an autistic child. She seems to have little emotional connection. I think she was a feral dog that will most likely always be wild at heart.

She sits in her crate 23.5 hours a day. She just sits and stares. This is not a good life for a dog. What the heck does a dog's mind contemplate? It seems her entire existence is to be safe. That's all she is interested in...being safe, and her crate is safe.

Walkin' in LA

Mission Persons said, "Nobody walks in LA!"

Well, Sally did last night. We went on our longest walk ever...at night. It has to be dark and quiet for her to relax, so about 12:30am I took her out and she walked on the street at a normal pace. By the looks of her nails, she needs to walk more on solid ground to widdle them things down some.

She's still reluctant to come out of her crate, but last night after our walk I laid my hand in the cage and for the first time she rests her head on my hand. Normally, this would be no biggie...but with Sally and all I've been through with her, this was an event.

One Step Forward, Three back?

This morning I took Sally for a walk, do her business, etc. She was very skiddish from the get-go. My neighbor decided to rent a room to a guy that has turned the backyard into an autoshop. He's a nice guy, but...

Sally did not respond well to the power tools, revving engine, and loud clanking. So I walked her through my neighbor's yard to the front yard and then out to the street. More noises! Cars, stupid barking dog across the street (anybody have any mace?), helicopter overhead...it was too much. She never relaxed.

I determine her feelings by her tail. Normally it is tucked so far between her legs, she looks like a he. Every now and then it relaxes to hang straight down the the ground which is better than the full-curved tuck.

Instead of pushing it, we walked back and she belined for home to her crate. When she marches home it feels like a dog that loves to walk, pulling full steam ahead rather than her typical sheepish creeping.

So, it's a one step forward, three steps behind kinda thing. She requires a lot of time and patience.

One Step at a Time

Last night we had the longest walk so far. She seemed to walk like a normal dog, sniffing the ground. It was late and dark which puts her at ease.

Today I walked her and although it was bright and sunny, she responded as well. Cars that drove by which used to scare her immensely did not have the control they had previously.

I made a thread about dog training in a few forums and received some good advice. I need to get her some yummy treats.

I can't help but think of a psychology professor in college. At the end of the semester she said, "Class, I have a confession to make...I have a PhD and to be honest, the best advice I've ever read on behavior was from a dog training book!"

Sally, Sally, Sally

Well, I've had Sally almost a week now. I picked her up last Tuesday from the vet.

I believe we have made progress. When I first got her she was classic feral dog. All she wanted to do is hide. She was petrified of life. Her eyes were dead and all she did was radiate fear. It was very sad.

I felt good about one thing...ME!

I knew she would get the care she needed. I live in a very quiet home off the street with a good size back yard. If this dog can be rehabilitated, this is the place. I am also out of work right now so I have the time to spend with her. Ideal really.

Since arriving, Sally will go outside for a walk. She takes at least 20 mins to acclimate herself to the outside. ANY noise causes her to jump, even if I sniffle. After 20 mins, she will follow me walking on her leash. I walk very slowly and let her roam. Eventually she starts to act like a healthy dog and sniff around. Her tail is always between her legs. I've only seen it relax once and then it was straight down.

She has gotten loose from her leash three times. The first was early on and she bolted. I have a body harness leash but she can back up and pull her front legs out. Collar leashes don't hold her and I refuse to use a chock leash. They seem so harsh.

The first time she dug into a corner of ivy in my backyard. It was just getting dark outside. Luckily my neighbor was out and she helped me grab her.

The second time was scary. I had her on the leash outside for a minute while I went inside. She pulled backwards, off came the leash. I ran like a rocket outside my front door to catch her as she ran down the ally. No Sally. I knew she had to still be in the backyard...but where?

I scoured the backyard for 30 mins and was feeling very nervous. It was an empty feeling. This happened when I lost my hamster last year. I prayed for her actually and was giving up hope until I saw her out of the blue. I felt like it was a little miracle. I was hoping for one with Sally.

I asked my neighbor once more to help me look. We went through all the common hideouts she would seek. I tried to think like a scared dog. Where would I run to? I was stumped.

I went inside to call the helper from the dog rescue center and when I walked inside, there was Sally, crunched up to the side of my bed. When I was running outside to my front door, she ran inside behind me. Crazy!

The last time she got away was actually progress. She once again backed up and instead of bolting she ran to the screen door. Because it was closed she scoured to the side under a storage table. I let her go for a few minutes then gently walked up to her. She allowed me to come nearby. I picked her up and brought her inside.

Tonight I did some research on feral dogs. Not a lot of positive info. The rule of thumb is if they had no human contact after six months, they will most likely never be comfortable with humans. I sense this with Sally. No matter how much I pet her, she still acts like we first met. Her flinching has gone however and she seems to relax in my presence.

I Googled for dog training forums and found a few. I registered and made a thread in each. Hopefully I will get good advice.

Well...more to come. As soon as I get a camera I willtake some pics.

Meet Sally!

Sally has had a hard life!

She is a German Shepherd mix puppy that was abandoned and probably really abused by some #%@$#% person. She was in LA and taken to a vet to get fixed. Before that, she was destined for the chamber in a kill shelter. If it weren’t for the good hearted dog rescuers out there, she would be dead.

I was browsing through craigslist this week in the pet section. I NEVER have done this before, but was thinking about getting a cat. My hamster ran away...the third one, so I gave up on the pet thing for a while

As I was browsing, I saw an adoption for a dog close by named Don. He was a cute white mix that needed a home. The rescuer emailed me15 questions to look at. By the time I got to question 10 I knew I wasn’t ready for the commitment of a dog...that is do own a dog the way one should, with respect and dignity. I am too busy right now...so I passed.

I went back to craigslist and saw an ad to help rescue this little puppy in a kill shelter. They only needed someone to take her for a few weeks until they found a place to keep her and nurture back to health.

The next day I was told the little guy wasn’t well and would probably not make it but there was another puppy. Now we're back to Sally.

I picked up a crate, went over to the vet and picked up Sally.

I had an idea of her temperament, but she was more scared than I thought. She wouldn’t walk. Her eyes were dead. She was coiled up in a self-protective ball. I was pissed.

All I could think of was kicking serious Rambo ass on whoever hurt this dog. Then I shifted to Sally. Eventually I got her in the car and home. Getting her out of the car was difficult. She cleaved tenaciously to the floor of my car.

In her crate she felt secure. It’s large so there is plenty of room. I gave her some water and food and a little classical music in the background.

Let the healing begin!

I can't really explain what having this dog has done for me, even these few hours. It taps into my guardian personality.

I will have Sally for several weeks to get her healthy enough for adoption. The gal at the vet clinic said I would end up keeping her. I told her, “Not me…I am good at detaching.” On the way home, about a mile I already knew this was going to be tough.

I'll make updates on her progress.