It’s been a while since I have posted about Zach due to the overwhelming work load of the MBA. We’ve also been waiting to see if he would respond well to being taken off the fluoxetine. It has been at least three months since his last pill and we can safely say he responded well to the change. He is still very demanding but his reaction time to commands has greatly improved. A fog has been lifted and you can see him adapting to the change. Slowly, a new normal is established with a new sense of self-awareness. Not anxious, but not completely calmly, he takes life one day at a time.
Zach is a very misunderstood specimen of his breed. He reacts to certain sudden movements and picks up weird habits like chewing on his Jolly Ball until it is shredded to pieces, or growling and jumping to spook you into throwing food on the floor. (We are working on this issue.) We recently learned his fear of school buses is due to his upbringing. His first fosters let him bark at the kids and yellow monster and it stuck. For about 95% of the time he doesn’t react and is mellow but when he does, he still turns into The Bride. Somethings you learn to correct and others you learn to manage, but most you learn to live with. Coexisting is a very delicate dance and we welcome the challenge to bring it on the dance floor.
We would love for nothing more than to train Z to be cool around other dogs because he seems to be lonely and misses the connection he had with his original doggy foster siblings. Time will tell on this one, but right now, we have to focus on finishing the yard to make sure he enjoys every inch of freedom he can. I can’t imagine how hard it must be to watch the sun go up and down from the great indoors. Being alone for 8-9 hrs a day when there is a perfectly good yard outside the french doors to conquer has to be lonely unless if as an introvert he actually welcomes it. Our alarm cam doesn’t show him wistfully looking outside and with all the toys and bully sticks we leave around for him, he should have plenty to do.
Once the weather holds, and it is sunnier and drier, we will focus on reinforcing good outdoor behaviors. He gets upset at passerbys and doesn’t have a lot of shade or privacy due to the lack of trees (even though he is behind the fence we can see cars and movement through the slats of the wood panels). The yard has been leveled so all we need is sod and a few accents to call it done. We have been looking at trees and foliage to give the lot a more aesthetically eco-friendly look. The small forest that was destroyed to build the house was never suitably replaced.
Time will tell with this one. 🙂
Check out Zach’s FB and Instagram pages!
https://www.facebook.com/Project-Zach-235767680332740/
http://www.instagram.com/ZachtheIntrovertedDog
Mrs. Enginerd - Nerd Whisperer 