Doing Battle With Sandy

Wally has had to endure Sandy all day today since he has to go out and such. However, he's been a trooper and actually seeming to enjoy it. The last time we've been through tropical, Wally could not stand the wind and the sound of the trees blowing, and was noticeably worried. During windy thunderstorms, much of the same, though that might be the thunder more than the wind.

This time, though, he's been his usual self inside and acting like it's just a normal day. No impact on his eating or resting at all, and he's done his business every time, showing no anxiety about being in the elements. I'm glad to see this, especially as it might be going strong for another day.

Of course, we've been doing what training we can indoors, but mostly it's been drying him off and trying to keep him warm. That's the one thing that's really surprising with this storm, the fact it's more like a coastal storm and merged with a winter-type storm, making it a cold day complete with bone-chilling rain and a real wind chill.

Overall, though, it's been about as good as you could expect. Still got some ways to go yet, but definitely could have been far worse.

Most important is that Wally has been more than fine and is happy and well.

That Time of Year Again...

...The Fourth of July and nearby days (and probably all of July and August really).

That means fireworks and that is one of the few outright fearful events left, largely because of how infrequently encountered they are. Literally, just once a year. No way to do much classical conditioning to reverse that association and nowhere near enough for habituation. So we go through this every year. Poor Wally.

This year, I used some pieces of grilled steak and sausages - really top-value stuff for him. I took him out and on a usual route we walk. Sure enough firework sounds were going off, some sounding like a mortar just fired off. I bet to him it did sound like a war zone.

Each time he looked at a sound, I marked and give him a bit of the reward. Pretty much using the "Look at That!" game mentioned in Control Unleashed to help him. Of course, ideally, I'd do this constantly but this is something that's pretty much random and may or may not happen on our walks now that the Fourth itself has passed. It's just a matter of if there's any "leftover" fireworks being used. When they are, I use this and, of course, have good value treats that can "cut through" his fearful energies (which will keep him taking the treats instead of the fearfulness shutting off his appetite as well as not being able to focus by sight of the treat, but the scent can capture him).

For the most part, it went pretty well. He was still very nervous and showed all the signs (tail looks like it got cut off, lower height, skittish, choppy steps instead of his usually 'strut' or 'bouncy' steps, constantly scanning around obsessively), but he kept taking the treats and the scent did indeed capture his attention. He gulped them down like he had to eat-and-run (another sign of being very nervous), but he kept eating them and they did help him focus more on me and what I was doing.

Overall, he really held it together well, considering what was happening around him. He stayed close to good position and stayed near me. He did his business, even if it took him some distance away from me, and he never completely "zoned out" on me. It was just harder to grab his attention.

Luckily, it's only once a year and he's overall a more confident dog and that we've built some trust up over the years, so he believes I'll protect him and he sticks close by when he gets scared. Much better than him trying to bolt and risking choking himself, that's for sure!

Displaced By a Fire. Much Is Lost But Wally Stays Strong

There hasn't been much training going on of any kind lately, thanks to a recent house fire that has forced us out of our home. Many of Wally's and mine things are gone, as are many of the notes and articles we were using to train with.

So much of what we were doing is stopped since things like the blue rug and such are no longer around. As such, we've been just going through the basics and mostly trying to keep Wally as stable a possible so he can make an adjustment as well.

To his credit, Wally has been quite stable and adaptable through it all. He had some nervousness, as can be expected, and the first couple days were a challenge of sorts, especially in the case of using the bathroom in this strange place he's never seen before and not seeing his home and familiar sights and scents.

Now, he's adapted to the hotel we're currently staying at quite well. He's pretty much taken to it like home. He's sleeping peacefully, enjoying walks again, and getting to go in the car a lot more than usual since I don't want him in the way of the housekeepers when they come by to service the rooms.

This is quite an achievement for him, given the way he used to be. At first, there looked like it would be something of a regression, but it was mostly initial anxiety and confusion. Of course, we'll be moving on from the hotel eventually, and on to a temporary housing while our home is being repaired. That may well create another adjustment for him, but I think he'll be just fine after how he took this.