Later today, Mia and I went for a walk and ran into our friend Lucky and his owner, Dan. Lucky looks just like Mia. He is a Chihuahua Terrier Mix with a darker nose, and when we first got Mia he was the only dog in the whole neighborhood that Mia did not bark at. Since we enrolled Mia in the Growly Dog Program to tone down her attack dog skills, she has been responding well to "clicker" training. She can now be compared to Pavlov's dogs who salivated every time they heard the bell. Mia knows a click means treats. Sometimes it is enough to distract her from big scary dogs, unless those big dogs are too close, which at first for Mia meant being able to see them. Even though it is a slow process, after a few weeks Mia has been able to pay attention to the clicker and treats and me whenever she sees a dog from a distance. Today we were able to get closer to the big dogs, and hanging out with Lucky really helped us feel more comfortable.
Even though Mia was "okay" with Lucky before, she was still highly distracted by the presence of another dog. Today, with the help of the clicker, Mia was able to pay attention to commands and sit very still with Lucky hanging around. They were both distracted by other dogs nearby, but Mia was able to turn around for a treat. If the dogs got too close, Lucky was able to stop barking and go up to the dogs playfully, but Mia couldn't stop barking and had to be taken away. When Lucky came back from visiting the dogs, Mia always felt more comfortable and could settle down. It's funny to see how they act together. They look exactly the same, react at the same exact times and in the same ways. They really look like twins from behind. When they meet up they are like their own little pack. They both do this thing where they like to scratch in the dirt or grass with all four legs whenever another dog is around, either to make themselves look scary or as a territorial thing.
I had a whole Ziploc bag full of chicken when we went out this afternoon, and by the time Mia and I went home the bag was completely empty. Lucky and Mia ate the whole thing between the two of them.
Hopefully we will get Mia to the point where we can be on the same sidewalk with other dogs (besides Lucky) without freaking out, but Lucky's owner said that even after a few years, Lucky is still afraid of those really big ones.
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