100 By Summer motivator

On march 20th we started a challenge with a group on Facebook, and our goal is to walk 100 miles (or more) between the first day of spring, march 20th, and the first day of summer, June 20th. I have always loved walking my dog, but I will admit that after working 9-10 hours 5 days a week I have come home numerous times and just played ball with the dogs to get out some of their energy. While this is great to tire them out a bit physically, it hasn't helped Rhiya's reactivity. So with the help of the challenge, the warmer weather, and my new fitbit that my fiance got me for my birthday in mid march, our number of walks have increased significantly. Getting Rhiya out and exposed to other unknown noises, objects, and dogs is the key to helping her overcome her fear and anxiety. 

So its Time to play catch up with the posting. We have had so many successful walks over the past week that I haven't had time to update this. It has been absolutely amazing to watch Rhiya's progress, and to see her not be as stressed when we're out and about. Don't get me wrong, its definitely not time for her to have a romp at the dog park anytime soon, but we have made significant progress. 

March 31st, 2016

We walked around our neighborhood and encountered several dogs, ones we had seen before and ones we had not. there were times, again that we were walking down the middle of the road and dogs on each side were barking/charging the fences.... no outbursts. 

3/31/2016 - walked around our neighborhood

April 2nd, 2016

this day/walk/picture says more and means more to me than probably anyone will ever know. I remember 8 or so months ago when I first made the decision to put Rhiya on doggy Prozac... We spent several days/evenings out sitting in the car and dog watching. she would freak out in the car sometimes, and then pretty soon she settled down a bit and got the hang of "Trigger" watching. We did this a few times up at the Portneuf Wellness Complex since there were always different dogs there. NEVER would I have thought that Rhiya and I would be able to walk on the same path as these dogs less than a year later. I'm absolutely amazed. I almost didn't take her there because i didn't know if i could keep her under threshold with the possibility of seeing a lot of dogs, but on the way home from visiting "Grandma" i thought i would at least try it and see how far we could get, and then i would at least know if this place was a possibility for future walks or not. 

On this walk we encountered a black pug and a corgi. When she would see them, her ears would perk up a bit and then I would give her the "watch me" command. We would always swing out wide a bit to give enough cushion space so that Rhiya would stay under threshold. She didn't react at all. she would look at them and look back at me, resulting in lots of treats and praise. 

4/2/2016 - Walking at the Portneuf Wellness Complex

April 3rd, 2016

Since Rhiya did SO WELL at the PWC the day before, I decided to take her up there again... this time the fiance joined us and was able to take this pic of her laying down and waiting for this dog to pass. on this walk we encountered several dogs including 3 labs, a chihuahua, a spaniel, and an Irish Wolfhound. She didn't show any reaction to any of them until the very last one we passed, and then she huffed a bit and had a short low throat growl. but with a pick up of our pace, "Watch me" command, and a treat i was able to get her focus back on me as we finished passing the dog.  In her defense we were on a part of the path that has giant rocks on either side of the embankments going down so we couldn't really give her much cushion space between her and the other dog. There was no lunging towards the other dog though, which is a huge improvement!! I'm so proud of her. 

pictured here is one of the dogs we passed a couple times. This was the 2nd time we had passed this furry four legged "friend", and both times she noticed the dog and didn't have any outbursts. we are about 15 feet away from the dog in this picture, which is saying a lot for Rhiya's progress. 

4/3/2016 - walking at the Portneuf Wellness Complex again.

April 5th, 2016

Continuing on with the amazing progress she is showing, we went up to PWC for a third time.... and it wont be our last visit either. This walking path seems to tire hiya out a bit more than just our neighborhood stroll because there's a long portion where its up hill.  Between the training on no reactivity towards other dogs and the 'terrain' of this location, the physical and mental stimulation is covered. 

4/5/2016 - walking at the Portneuf Wellness Complex a third time. 

April 7th, 2016

We walked around our neighborhood again for a change of scenery and she did just beautifully. Consistency is key... and i realize now that i had lacked in this sometimes; 

4/7/2016 - walking around our neighborhood.

well those are our updates. we are going to try some other walking paths/parks in the coming week. :-) thank you for all your continued support and encouragement. check back for more updates.