Recently I had the absolute pleasure of getting reacquainted with a client that I hadn’t seen for almost a decade. I first met her when we worked with her over protective Doberman, named Zor. A dog that wouldn’t allow anyone near her. She is one tough lady with a heart of gold. She has three disabled adolescent children that depend on her for their well being. At that time she also managed her property with goats, llamas and three small dogs. We worked together for months in order to bring back the harmony in the home. Teaching Zor to respect her and her children’s space, integrating all the livestock and the small dogs with him, while maintaining his protector side for the property’s sake. Fast forward to last month when she reached out asking for help with her new Doberman, Gunther. She now lived in a smaller ranch house, no more livestock since she had developed Parkinson’s and was now confined to a wheelchair because of the disease. Her children (all adults now) still live with her. Gunther had been seen by two trainers but they couldn’t get him to slow down. He would bump into her kids constantly and they were scared of him. He almost knocked her off her wheelchair twice and broke one of the glass doors of the house trying to get inside. Since she still has Zor, Gunther and him were starting to fight when they were around her. Gunther was now two years old and life with him in the house was becoming unsustainable. That is why she was calling.
No one enjoys living in chaos. When someone imagines their life with their dogs, the scenario rarely includes getting toppled over by them. Or having a hooligan energy trying to go through a glass door. My job, a lot of the times, is part clean up and part therapist. She was at her wits end with Gunther and trainers. I made a point of meeting her the next day so we could figure out what was going on. When I met them I saw an extremely frustrated human and an even more confused dog. Gunther is the true definition of a working dog: high energy, eager to please but with absolutely no idea of what an off switch is. Within the first few minutes of me being there he had run a mile just by doing laps around us while we talked. He was stuck in a perpetual state of fight – flight and the only way they could get him to stop pacing, running, drinking copious amounts of water, bumping into everyone around or teasing the other dogs in the house was by putting him in his crate. Then he would simply shut off. But that in itself was a project since he would charge into the living room in order to get into the crate. Demolishing anything and anyone that happen to be in his way. Reminder that Gunther happens to be a huge Doberman. Can you imagine that monstrosity charging your way while you are wheelchair bound? Not a very comfortable place to be.
With all his “faults” Gunther happens to be one of the sweetest and most earnest dogs that I have ever met. Once I leashed him and asked him to stay by me, all he wanted to do was lick me. The amount of energy cruising through this dog’s body was incredible. You could feel him buzzing. That other trainers could not see that he happens to be the perfect candidate for a service dog says more about the current state of the industry than it says about the dog. Here was the perfect dog to be of service to someone wheelchair bound. He needs a job in order to be the best version of himself. We have the perfect job for him and it is not protection – which one of the other trainers tried, unsuccessfully, to train him in bite work. Once I explained what I was seeing to my client, she was a little skeptical at first, but also said that no one had ever been as successful in training Zor as I had been. So we decided that Gunther would come to a 28 day board and train with me to lay the foundation of service dog training and we would see how he did. After that we would regroup.
Gunther not only shined, he exceed all my expectations. What a remarkable dog! These are the dogs that make a trainer look amazing. Everything, I mean everything, that I asked of this dog he did. Sure he already had a foundation of commands, having gone through trainers before hand, but it is more than that. He is able to grasp commands super quickly with an energy behind everything he does infused with purpose. Gunther wants nothing more than to be part of pack, but more significant than that, he has an instinctual need to please the human. He could be in the middle of playing with other dogs, having the time of his life, but at the moment I recalled him, he would come and lay by my side. Ignoring all other distractions simply to get a pet from me. That ,ladies and gentlemen, is a true working dog. One that was misunderstood for close to two years and two trainers before me. I am so grateful that my client did not give up on him and contacted me. I am a better human for having worked with this dog.
Gunther went home last week. To say that my client was pleased would be the understatement of the century. She was surprised, elated, grateful and in awe. We will continue working with Gunther in the months to come, teaching him specific commands that will help her day to day life. For the moment all the members of the household are enjoying the company of an absolute legend of a dog without fearing that he will jump on them, bump them out of the way or try to break in through glass doors. I experienced a dog that felt at peace for the first time in his life once someone saw him for who he is. With the right direction from humans he started to grasp the rules and boundaries of the pack. Slowing him down, giving him a chance to learn on his time, letting him play and socialize with other dogs without tension and giving him a job, allowed him to blossom into the best version of himself. When we say in Dog Psychology that our job is protection and direction, Gunther’s example comes to mind. I came in at the right moment to give this dog and my client the right direction so they both could feel protected. I am one lucky gal for being able to help people and their dogs achieve the type of relationship that Gunther and my client are now enjoying.
