Cody was comfortable with the boys on the other side of the gate, so we moved the introductions into Cody's room. Cody he sleeps in this room and usually this is where the pack and I can be found. Cody isn't territorial and is comfortable in this space. For safey measures we had easy access both to the baby gate and also a play pen that blocks the front door off from the rest of the room. I had little concern about the introductions, but extra safety precautions never hurt!
We started out with me standing back from the gate and feeding treats to Cody as David came in. We used David first instead of Brennan since David showed a higher confidence around Cody, plus Cody had just had a positive experience with him. I asked David when he first came in to put his hands together in front of his chest and let Cody sniff him over. After that David started giving Cody treats.
Next, we had David sit down the couch. At first he held his arms in front of his chest and let Cody check him out, then he gave Cody treats.
Next, we had Brennan come in and do the same thing. Hands together at his chest while Cody sniffed him, then he he gave Cody treats.
And finally, we had Brennan join his brother on the loveseat. Cody has a lot of agility but not a lot of grace, and he demonstrates this half-jumping, half-plowing up onto Brennan's lap. Around 5 seconds you hear him start to growl. Between his clumsy jump and scrabble into Brennan's lap, and being in close proximity to the boys, he gets a little nervous and turns and stares at his tail. This is redirected stress and I'm able to immediately interrupt just by saying his name. The growl was not directed at the boys, but having a dog suddenly spin and growl in your lap can be scary..
Just for comparison, here is the video from Cody's very first night in foster care. This boy is so amazing, so eager to grow and love, and seeing him blossom after years of isolation and neglect is incredibly affirming.
No comments:
Post a Comment