15/08/2026
๐๐ญโ๐ฌ ๐๐ฅ๐ฐ๐๐ฒ๐ฌ ๐ง๐ข๐๐ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ฌ๐๐ ๐ ๐ซ๐๐๐ญ ๐ฉ๐ซ๐จ๐ ๐ซ๐๐ฌ๐ฌ, ๐๐ง๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐ข๐ฌ ๐ฐ๐๐๐ค ๐ฐ๐ ๐ฌ๐๐๐ฆ๐๐ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ก๐๐ฏ๐ ๐ ๐ฅ๐จ๐ญ ๐จ๐ ๐ข๐ญ, ๐๐ฅ๐ฅ ๐ข๐ง ๐ ๐ฏ๐๐ซ๐ฒ ๐ฌ๐ก๐จ๐ซ๐ญ ๐๐ฆ๐จ๐ฎ๐ง๐ญ ๐จ๐ ๐ญ๐ข๐ฆ๐! โค๏ธ๐พ
From dogs finally sleeping and eating again, to one dog who was already booked to be put to sleep just one hour after their owner first called me.
A few of this weekโs wins:
๐พ ๐ ๐๐จ๐ ๐ฐ๐ก๐จ ๐๐จ๐ฎ๐ฅ๐ ๐ง๐จ ๐ฅ๐จ๐ง๐ ๐๐ซ ๐ฌ๐ฅ๐๐๐ฉ ๐๐จ๐ฐ๐ง๐ฌ๐ญ๐๐ข๐ซ๐ฌ ๐ฐ๐ข๐ญ๐ก๐จ๐ฎ๐ญ ๐๐๐๐จ๐ฆ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐ฑ๐ญ๐ซ๐๐ฆ๐๐ฅ๐ฒ ๐๐ข๐ฌ๐ญ๐ซ๐๐ฌ๐ฌ๐๐ ๐๐๐ญ๐๐ซ ๐ ๐๐ซ๐ข๐ ๐ก๐ญ๐๐ง๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ฆ๐๐๐ข๐๐๐ฅ ๐ข๐ง๐๐ข๐๐๐ง๐ญ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ง๐จ๐ฐ ๐ก๐๐ฉ๐ฉ๐ข๐ฅ๐ฒ ๐ฌ๐ฅ๐๐๐ฉ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐จ๐ฐ๐ง๐ฌ๐ญ๐๐ข๐ซ๐ฌ ๐๐ ๐๐ข๐ง ๐ฐ๐ข๐ญ๐ก๐จ๐ฎ๐ญ ๐๐ง๐ฒ ๐ข๐ฌ๐ฌ๐ฎ๐๐ฌ.
Something that had previously been completely normal had suddenly become a huge source of anxiety, so seeing them get back to feeling comfortable there again is a massive win.
๐พ ๐๐ง๐ ๐๐จ๐ ๐ฏ๐๐ซ๐ฒ ๐ง๐๐๐ซ๐ฅ๐ฒ ๐๐ข๐๐งโ๐ญ ๐ ๐๐ญ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐จ๐ฉ๐ฉ๐จ๐ซ๐ญ๐ฎ๐ง๐ข๐ญ๐ฒ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ฆ๐๐ค๐ ๐ฉ๐ซ๐จ๐ ๐ซ๐๐ฌ๐ฌ ๐๐ญ ๐๐ฅ๐ฅ.
I received a phone call about a dog with a bite history who was already ๐๐จ๐จ๐ค๐๐ ๐ญ๐จ ๐๐ ๐ฉ๐ฎ๐ญ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ฌ๐ฅ๐๐๐ฉ ๐ฃ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ญ ๐จ๐ง๐ ๐ก๐จ๐ฎ๐ซ ๐ฅ๐๐ญ๐๐ซ.
The owners had been left believing that there was no help available because the dog had bitten and that once a dog bites, they will essentially always be that way. Unfortunately, they were also told this over the phone by a trainer without proper assessment. There was also limited consideration of how stressful clinical veterinary environments can be, and how early behavioural concerns in a rescue dogโs history may not have been fully followed up or supported over time.
A bite history is serious and should never be minimised. But simply knowing that a dog has bitten does not tell us why it happened, what triggered it, how predictable the behaviour is or what the future risk actually looks like.
When I met this dog, I made sure to give them some space initially. They didnโt lunge or show any obvious signs of concern, they were able to engage with me and follow instructions while we worked through what had been happening.
That does not erase the bite or mean there is no risk.
It means the whole picture deserved to be looked at before making an irreversible decision.
The owners have now agreed to work on understanding and addressing what has happened.
There absolutely are situations where behavioural euthanasia can be the responsible and compassionate decision, but proper and appropriate assessment and support should be explored first, not taking a one-size fits all approach.
For this dog, one phone call gave them that opportunity โค๏ธ
๐พ ๐ ๐๐จ๐ ๐ฐ๐ก๐จ ๐ก๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ง ๐ ๐๐ญ๐ญ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ฎ๐ฉ ๐๐ง๐ ๐ฐ๐๐ค๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐๐ข๐ซ ๐จ๐ฐ๐ง๐๐ซ๐ฌ ๐๐ฉ๐ฉ๐ซ๐จ๐ฑ๐ข๐ฆ๐๐ญ๐๐ฅ๐ฒ ๐ฌ๐ข๐ฑ ๐ญ๐ข๐ฆ๐๐ฌ ๐๐ฏ๐๐ซ๐ฒ ๐ง๐ข๐ ๐ก๐ญ ๐ฐ๐๐ฌ ๐๐จ๐ฐ๐ง ๐ญ๐จ ๐ฃ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ญ ๐จ๐ง๐๐ ๐๐ญ ๐จ๐ฎ๐ซ ๐ฅ๐๐ญ๐๐ฌ๐ญ ๐๐ก๐๐๐ค-๐ข๐ง.
Even better, this change happened within just a few days of our initial session.
๐พ ๐๐ง๐จ๐ญ๐ก๐๐ซ ๐๐จ๐ ๐ฐ๐ก๐จ ๐ก๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ง ๐ฅ๐ฎ๐ง๐ ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐ง๐ ๐๐ญ๐ญ๐๐ฆ๐ฉ๐ญ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ญ๐จ ๐๐ข๐ญ๐ ๐ก๐๐ฌ ๐ฌ๐ก๐จ๐ฐ๐ง ๐ ๐๐ซ๐๐ฆ๐๐ญ๐ข๐ ๐ข๐ฆ๐ฉ๐ซ๐จ๐ฏ๐๐ฆ๐๐ง๐ญ, ๐ฐ๐ข๐ญ๐ก ๐ญ๐ก๐จ๐ฌ๐ ๐๐๐ก๐๐ฏ๐ข๐จ๐ฎ๐ซ๐ฌ ๐ง๐จ ๐ฅ๐จ๐ง๐ ๐๐ซ ๐ก๐๐ฉ๐ฉ๐๐ง๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐ฌ ๐๐ซ๐๐ช๐ฎ๐๐ง๐ญ๐ฅ๐ฒ.
Just as importantly, the anxiety surrounding the situation has reduced significantly too.
A huge part of my job is not just changing what the dog does. It is helping the owner understand what they are seeing, recognise things earlier and know what to do before a situation escalates.
๐พ ๐ ๐ซ๐๐ฌ๐๐ฎ๐ ๐๐จ๐ ๐ข๐ง๐ญ๐๐ ๐ซ๐๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง ๐ข๐ง๐ฏ๐จ๐ฅ๐ฏ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ซ๐๐ฌ๐จ๐ฎ๐ซ๐๐ ๐ ๐ฎ๐๐ซ๐๐ข๐ง๐ , ๐ ๐ซ๐๐๐๐ง๐ญ ๐๐ข๐ ๐ก๐ญ ๐๐๐ญ๐ฐ๐๐๐ง ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐จ๐ ๐ฌ ๐๐ง๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐๐ฏ๐๐ฅ๐จ๐ฉ๐ฆ๐๐ง๐ญ ๐จ๐ ๐๐ง ๐ฎ๐ง๐ก๐๐๐ฅ๐ญ๐ก๐ฒ ๐๐ญ๐ญ๐๐๐ก๐ฆ๐๐ง๐ญ ๐ญ๐จ ๐จ๐ง๐ ๐ฆ๐๐ฆ๐๐๐ซ ๐จ๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐ก๐จ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐๐ก๐จ๐ฅ๐ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ฉ๐ซ๐จ๐ ๐ซ๐๐ฌ๐ฌ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ซ๐๐๐ฅ๐ฅ๐ฒ ๐ฐ๐๐ฅ๐ฅ.
When a rescue dog arrives in a new home, it can be tempting to think that the closer they become to you, the better.
But sometimes that attachment can start becoming unhealthy.
Part of our work has actually been about helping this dog become ๐ฆ๐จ๐ซ๐ ๐ข๐ง๐๐๐ฉ๐๐ง๐๐๐ง๐ญ, rather than encouraging them to rely even more heavily on their new person.
The integration is progressing, the guarding concerns are being worked through and this dog is becoming increasingly comfortable doing things independently.
Sometimes helping a rescue dog feel secure means teaching them that they are safe even when their favourite person isnโt right beside them โค๏ธ
๐พ ๐๐ง๐ ๐๐ข๐ง๐๐ฅ๐ฅ๐ฒ, ๐ ๐๐จ๐ ๐ฐ๐ก๐จ ๐ก๐๐ ๐ฌ๐ญ๐จ๐ฉ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐๐๐ญ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐จ๐ฅ๐ฅ๐จ๐ฐ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐ฌ๐ญ๐ซ๐๐ฌ๐ฌ ๐จ๐ ๐ ๐ก๐จ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ ๐ฆ๐จ๐ฏ๐ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ง๐จ๐ฐ ๐๐๐ญ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ญ๐ฐ๐จ ๐ฉ๐ซ๐จ๐ฉ๐๐ซ ๐ฆ๐๐๐ฅ๐ฌ ๐ ๐๐๐ฒ, ๐ก๐๐ฌ ๐ฉ๐ฎ๐ญ ๐จ๐ง ๐ฐ๐๐ข๐ ๐ก๐ญ ๐๐ง๐ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ฌ๐ก๐จ๐ฐ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ ๐ก๐ฎ๐ ๐ ๐ซ๐๐๐ฎ๐๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง ๐ข๐ง ๐๐ง๐ฑ๐ข๐๐ญ๐ฒ โค๏ธ
This dog had lost a significant amount of weight over only around six weeks and had become extremely stressed following a house move.
Anti-anxiety medication had been prescribed on the day of our session, but had not been started.
We looked at what had changed in the dogโs environment, what appeared to be contributing to their stress and what changes could help them feel more comfortable and secure.
๐๐ ๐ก๐จ๐ฎ๐ซ๐ฌ ๐ฅ๐๐ญ๐๐ซ, ๐ญ๐ก๐๐ฒ ๐ฐ๐๐ซ๐ ๐๐๐ญ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐ซ๐๐ ๐ฆ๐๐๐ฅ๐ฌ ๐ ๐๐๐ฒ ๐
And the latest update has been even better.
They are now consistently eating ๐ญ๐ฐ๐จ ๐ฉ๐ซ๐จ๐ฉ๐๐ซ ๐ฆ๐๐๐ฅ๐ฌ ๐ ๐๐๐ฒ, have put on weight and are significantly less anxious.
They are also no longer becoming extremely distressed around people they previously struggled with. In fact, they are now ๐ฏ๐จ๐ฅ๐ฎ๐ง๐ญ๐๐ซ๐ข๐ฅ๐ฒ ๐๐ก๐จ๐จ๐ฌ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ญ๐จ ๐๐ฉ๐ฉ๐ซ๐จ๐๐๐ก ๐ญ๐ก๐จ๐ฌ๐ ๐ฌ๐๐ฆ๐ ๐ฉ๐๐จ๐ฉ๐ฅ๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐๐ฆ๐ฌ๐๐ฅ๐ฏ๐๐ฌ โค๏ธ
That improvement has happened without the medication being started and, following the progress they have seen, the owners have decided not to begin it at this stage.
Obviously, a dog stopping eating and losing significant weight needs veterinary involvement, and we certainly arenโt declaring everything fixed. But seeing improvements in their eating, weight, overall anxiety and willingness to interact with people is a fantastic change in such a short amount of time.
๐๐ง๐ ๐ ๐๐ข๐ ๐ฐ๐๐ฅ๐ฅ ๐๐จ๐ง๐ ๐ญ๐จ ๐๐ฅ๐ฅ ๐จ๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐จ๐ฐ๐ง๐๐ซ๐ฌ ๐ข๐ง๐ฏ๐จ๐ฅ๐ฏ๐๐ โค๏ธ
Reaching out for support when your dog is struggling isnโt always easy, particularly when you are worried, exhausted or simply donโt know what to do next.
The progress above is also a reflection of owners who were willing to ask for help, make changes, put the work in and advocate for their canine companions when they needed them.
That commitment can make such a difference, not just to the behaviours we can see, but to helping these dogs live happier, more comfortable and less anxious lives ๐พ
These might all look like completely different problems on the surface, but so much of behaviour work comes back to understanding ๐ฐ๐ก๐ฒ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐๐ก๐๐ฏ๐ข๐จ๐ฎ๐ซ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ก๐๐ฉ๐ฉ๐๐ง๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ข๐ง ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐ข๐ซ๐ฌ๐ญ ๐ฉ๐ฅ๐๐๐, rather than simply trying to stop what we can see.
Sometimes, when we get that right, things can begin changing surprisingly quickly โค๏ธ๐พ
