Although I didn't get Lily Rose during the Covid-19 Pandemic, she has spent the last year of her two years basically alone with just us. She has lost all her socialization skills. She went into psychotic meltdown when I left the house, hated or feared everybody except William and me, and barked at everything and anything that moved. And car rides? I'd rather have a root canal that take Lily to the vet or the groomer.
So we decided to have a personal dog trainer come to the house. Now this young woman, armed with knowledge and dog treats, came to the house to access Lily's issues.
What I really, really wanted was an instant fix. Zap! Lily, you are cured and are now the sweet, lovable pup to all once more.
What I got was a list of things to do. More things to do. As if I don't have enough! Now, guys, to me this is like losing weight. Knowing what to do and eat are completely different from what I do and eat. I was discouraged.
But it is my responsibility as a pet owner to work at solving this problem. I want Lily to feel comfortable with other people and in the car. I want her to not scare the neighbors. I want her not to think she's being abandoned whenever I leave the house. So...I took these professional dog training suggestions.
Improvement took time. Two step forward, one step back. Some issues, like car rides, have shown NO progress. But I can go outside, leave the house, and have guests over with a minimum of fuss.
I am still working on the car rides. She is a little better as long as the car is not moving, but is that really a ride? She is still afraid. Sessions of us sitting in the backseat and eating cookies are usually followed by a nap because they exhaust both of us.