In our prior post about Blitzen, our new addition to the family, we described some of the issues that brought Blitzen into our lives. He had resource guarding issues, handling issues, and as it turned out, some pain issues.

The resource guarding is a work in progress. He has made good strides forward on that front. We manage things as carefully as we can so we limit the objects he gets hold of that he should not have. This helps us to minimize his guarding issues while we work on them. But as anyone who has tried to manage their dogs from stealing things they should not have, you know that management is never foolproof.

He gets hold of fewer things that he should not have, and it seems that it has been easier to get those things away that he does manage to get hold of. We always – at this point – trade for something. In our case, that is always a treat of some sort. He typically is willing to take treats in trade.

The main thing we have been working on resource guarding with is chew items like bully sticks. We typically give our dogs something to chew on after dinner. Sometimes I leave him alone and let him enjoy his chew item. Sometimes I walk past and toss a few treats his way. He will typically stop his chewing, eat the treats and then go back to his chew item. At first, I could not get too close without a growl.

Now I am able to approach without any growling. I am able to approach closer and drop treats right near him. I am able to hand treats directly to him. Sometimes I will sit on the floor near him. Once in a while, I will touch him carefully. Not petting him. Just a touch here or there.

For the most part, I want him to understand that he is free to chew on the item I gave him without worry about anyone bothering him. But I also need to be sure that he is comfortable with me approaching, passing by and possibly even stepping over him when he decides to lie down right in the middle of the living room without an easy way to get past him.

And sometimes I need him to understand that I might need to take that thing away even though I gave it to him in the first place. Once in a while when the bully stick or other item is pretty small, I will make a small treat trail for him to follow and then pick up the small remainder of the chew while he is picking up his treats.

Sometimes I will lead him away from it with a treat trail, pick the item up and then give it back to him.

He has done very very well with all of this.

In regard to the pain issues, he completed his three week round of medication. We started doing physical therapy with him with the rehab clinic via online sessions. We log in and they can see what we work on with him and see how he's responding to it. We work on his PT every day.

He seems to be moving and feeling better.

And if you see him play with Zooka, you would think he is completely fine and there are no issues whatsoever!

While he is much better, we still have some work to do to get him fully conditioned and everything working as well as it should in a young healthy dog.

Handling issues are coming along more slowly. I work several times per week on his paw handling and nail trimming. Most sessions, he tolerates me handling his paws gently and touching his nail and between his toes with my fingers. He tolerates me touching his nails with the nail trimmer.

Most days. One day, he decided he was not wanting me to continue and he put his mouth on me. He did not bite, but he gave me a very clear warning that he was done with our session. I stuck around just a bit longer to make sure he was calm and that we were calming down and ending on a note that was more cooperative. I did not want to get up and leave right away after his nip at me. But I also wanted to respect that he was not ready to handle more. I backed off and then ended the session shortly after so we could end on a good note.

Nail trimming. I have not been able to progress much with the actual nail trimming. I can sometimes get one nail done. That's about it, then he's done. So, we have a lot of work to do on the nail trimming. I had hoped to be much farther along by now. But we're not. And that's ok. I need to keep at it and be very careful to push him gently past his comfort zone so we can accomplish what we need to.

But nail trimming just like any other husbandry things are done by cooperation. I do not force it. I want my dogs to choose to cooperate. And I pay very well for cooperation. But I do not coerce. The more I try to force something, the more opposition I will set up. I want my dogs to understand they have the ability to say no, not right now.

It's my job to help them decide to cooperate more and more. This nail trimming piece though, is going to take a while for this guy.

Muzzle training. We have also been working on his muzzle training, so that he can wear a muzzle for the things he struggles with. This way, when we are ready to do the things that might elicit a bite, I can keep everyone safer. He has been doing very well with sticking his nose in the muzzle and holding it there. I need to start hooking the strap behind his head soon.

Evening issues, with him being more irritable in the evenings, seemed to have gone away for the most part after he was on his pain meds. However, that might have been because we were being very careful about how we interacted with him in the evenings. We had no issues for several weeks, then we had several issues in one week.

One evening, our schedule was different than normal. Visitors from out of town came over one evening for dinner. He did fine while they were here, he was separated out and given something to chew on and did well. (The visitors had an elderly dog that we did not want him interacting with.)

When the visitors left, we settled down for the evening in our living room. Blitzen had snuggled up with me on the couch before Ed came to sit down. When Ed approached and set something down on the couch behind him, Blitzen growled. Ed had been about to sit down on the other side of Blitzen (who was snuggled up with his head in my lap.) Blitzen was not happy about that.

I had Ed sit farther away (we have a large sectional couch so there is plenty of room for everyone). And Blitzen settled back down.

We chalked that up to having his evening routine upset.

The next evening was a normal evening. Everything had gone fine. Ed was going to head to bed early, and Blitzen and jumped up and snuggled in with me again. Ed came over to lean in and give me a kiss. Blitzen did not like him leaning in and hovering over and let out another growl.

So two nights in a row of growling at Ed when he leaned over us. It is possible he could have been resource guarding me or his space. I don't think that was the case. I think he was tired and felt uneasy about Ed hovering over him.

We make note of that and we will work to make him feel more comfortable and not threatened by that. Blitzen will easily jump up and snuggle between us if Ed is already sitting down.

The stairs are another area where we have struggled to make progress. Initially, he would not go anywhere near the stairs.  Now, he will go near them at least, but will not go up or down our full flight of stairs. The stairs that go down, he will put his front feet on the first step. That's it.

The stairs that go up to our loft and my office, he will approach. He will put his front paws up and stretch as far as he can. Only one time was I able to get him to go up with his back paws a step or two, then he went right back down. Some days, he stretches so far with his front paws that his rear paws actually lift off the ground! But he will not place his rear paws on even the lowest step.

Then we had a breakthrough one day, it looked like. I actually got him to go up 5 or 6 steps! And hung out for a bit. It took a while to get up that first step with his hind legs. Then gradually went up another and another. Eventually he turned and went back down. But that was huge progress for us!

The next day, I was able to get him up a couple of steps but not as far. The next day, he would not move his hind legs up any steps.

The stairs have been hit or miss. Some days it seems we are making progress, others days not.

We have started having Blitzen sleep in our bedroom with us. Since he has not been able to do the full flight of stairs to get there yet, Ed takes him on leash outside and around to the walkout and brings him in at night. Then back out and around in the morning.

After a few mornings of this, when he has to wait for me and Zooka to head up to find Ed to get him to come back down and go around, Blitzen has to wait alone in the bedroom for a minute or two. One morning Zooka and I went up the stairs and left Blitzen behind. As always, I call to him to join us. And lo and behold, he did it!

So we will see if it happens again but for one morning at least here at the end of the month, we got Blitzen to do the FULL FLIGHT OF STAIRS! He did not want to be left behind so he gathered the courage and went right up the full flight of stairs to join us.

I hope he will be able to continue this, but I know we still have work to do on the stairs.

Basic training is not as far along as I would like because I have been spending so much time on his PT and other issues. I will get caught up on the basics one day, but that's not our current priority. He is going through two of my group classes right now, so we are working on things. I just am not able to spend as much time during the week on those things to practice until some of these other issues lighten up.

He and Zooka play a ton. Every day. Blitzen LOVES Zooka. Zooka mostly loves Blitzen. Zooka is very patient and tolerant of his younger brother and I credit him with putting up with a lot even when I can tell he would rather not. It definitely takes a lot of pressure off from me having to entertain Blitzen and burn off all of that energy!

We have lots of work to do, but we are making progress. Some progress is happening faster than others, and that is normal and to be expected. I just need to adjust each week to what I need to spend more time focusing on as we move along.

All in all, he is a good addition to our family and will be a wonderful polite gentleman one day.

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