pandemic puppy

I got Dutch a few months before Covid-19 ran wild in the U.S., but she has spent most of her life under Pandemic Rules: no strangers in the house. My husband and son visit often enough that she considers them part of her pack, but no one else is allowed. She is almost three years old now, and thinks it is her job to enforce the rules, and, yep, she bit somebody.

We got a good trainer (recommended by the person she bit!) to come to the house. Sarah looked at her body language and started tossing her treats. Dutch started accepting the treats immediately. Some guard dog! The basic plan is to get lots of people to come over and toss her treats (while Nixie or I have her on a leash). I think there would have been other steps involved if Dutch had continued barking and ignored the treats, but no, she is highly food-motivated. Sarah was Dutch's new best friend within ten minutes, but she stayed for an hour, walking back and forth in the house, and in and out the doors, and talking to us about training. Sarah also suggested we teach her some new tricks, because obeying commands, eating treats, and movement all serve to lower the arousal level. So now Dutch will "Turn!" (clockwise) and "Spin!" (counterclockwise), though she still relies more on the hand gesture than the verbal command. Now we need a lot more people to come to the house and throw treats at her.

( dog in garden )