My Little Velcro Dog

While still under the covers on a cold winter’s morn, I sense a soft vibration against my left shoulder. With out opening my eyes I know what it is.

Today is garbage day and Coco lies pressed against me.. his entire body trembling. In the distance I can here it .. the squeal of the recycling truck’s air breaks as the lumbering truck makes its way down our street. I lift a corner of the blanket. Coco crawls under and snuggles close to my side. After a couple of minutes his trembling subsides and we both drift back to sleep.

Coco is one of the sweetest little dogs I have ever met. He came to our house as a rescued dog a little over a year ago. At first glance he appeared to be the perfect dog. He rarely barked, enjoyed playing with his toys, liked to be around people.

Then came garbage day.

Immediately on hearing the squeaky breaks of the recycling truck, he froze in fear, slowly tucked in his tail and literally slinked away to hide. It took him the entire day to recover. Not one morsel of food would he touch.

A little warning bell started going off in my head. This was definitely not normal behaviour.

The following day he seemed to be fine but I started noticing other things. A cough would have him reacting in a similar manner. A sneeze would send him into a frenzy, clawing and scratching at the back door in terror.. desperate to escape some unseen demon.

Most of his fears appeared to be noise related, except for one. He refused to walk on grass. Walking on the street and pavement were fine.. but grassy areas were avoided if at all possible.

It broke my heart to see his fears. One moment he was a happy playing little dog.. the next he would be cowering in a corner. We knew very little about his history. Were the fears related to his genetic disposition or were they caused from previous bad experiences?

Not sure how to deal with all of this, I searched the internet for information on shy and fearful dogs. I was surprised at how many websites dealt with this problem. One of the best and most supportive sites I found was a Yahoo group entitled “Shy-k9s” I quickly joined and received support as well as much needed advice. With their guidance and after reading a couple of invaluable books, I learned how to recognize the triggers and how to slowly and patiently desensitize my little guy to many of his fears.

I devised a plan of action and we set to work. Obedience and Agility classes helped to build his confidence. Lots of treats and patience helped to alleviate the severity of many of his reactions. Living in a house filled with lots of hugs, lots of play time and a big cat to chase also did a world of good.

It has taken over a year.. but the changes are very noticeable. Coco is active and happy. He loves to play outside in his yard and grass is no longer an issue. Even wet grass is tolerated :-). A sneeze still gets a reaction.. but it is most often short lived, especially when he sees me headed straight to the fridge to get him a little post sneeze treat. The garbage truck is still a biggy.. but the effects no longer linger for the entire day. 15 minutes under the covers, snuggled close to me, and we are both good to go.

I recently read some where that we have become a disposable society.. even in regards to our pets.. especially if they don’t seem to fit our expectations. This saddens me. Just like people, our pets are not perfect and many come with their own emotional baggage. A little time, a little education, and a little love can make a big difference in the quality of their lives. What a shame that we give up so easily on so many of them.

My little Coco will probably never be completely fearless.. but he has come a long way in a very short time. He is my bud, my shadow.. my little velcro dog.