Piper

On Mon, Nov 3, 2008 at 2:38 PM, Elly wrote:

Hi Ryan, how is Piper settling In. I havent heard anything so I hope that is a good thing. The group loves to hear success stories, so let us know how its going.Give her a kiss from me
Elly

Hi Elly,

Piper is doing very well! She adjusted faster and easier than I expected, making the place her own very quickly. No accidents in the car ride or when she first got here. Within a day or two she was totally unfazed by the sounds of traffic outside my apartment. All the smells of a big city neighborhood make for fairly slow walks, but she got used to all the concrete sidewalks pretty quickly. There's a park 3-4 blocks away, which we go to at least once a day.

Sara and I are working on training, especially socializing her with new dogs and people... having people she meets give her a treat, so that she's not scared with new people. We've also noticed that when she barks or nips (which she's only done a couple times), it seems to be because she's nervous or scared-- like when she hears someone coming into my apartment building downstairs, or hears a strange dog barking outside. So hopefully she feels more and more comfortable hear with us, she already seems to be doing better. The only other issue we had was that she ate a small piece of something while out walking (there are sometimes scraps from people putting their garbage out to the curb) and later vomited. I think she learned her lesson. I definitely did too, I keep a closer watch on what she's sniffing now.

Overall, she's been so well behaved. She loves the bed I got for her, but also curling up on the couch next to me, watching TV or getting some work done. She does well when I go out-- I bought a baby gate that I use to contain her in the front hallway with her food, water, toys, and with the radio on. I got her a no-pull harness, which she got used to within about a day, and she loves playing fetch and tug-of-war with the little rubber toy I got her. This past Sunday I took her to see a bit of the NYC marathon passing by. And just last night, Sara was offering her a treat (holding it above Piper's head) and discovered that Piper can stand up no her hind legs and turn around in a complete circle! I'll definitely give her a kiss for you, she gives us plenty back!

Take care,
Ryan


Hi Elly,

Yes, Piper is doing great and she sends her kisses. She eats well and has been very well behaved. She went upstate with me for Thanksgiving, and did great with the car ride. Sara crocheted Piper a sweater recently, and bought her a coat, so she's warm and stylish on her walks.

The only thing I'm really working on now is that Piper gets nervous when she encounters dogs, and can definitely be dominating, just like you warned me. She often barks, growls, and snaps when we meet other dogs while out walking. So I'm trying to socialize her more at dog parks, in a very controlled way. Aside from that, she's been great-- only getting better with meeting new people.

Here are a few recent pictures!

Take care,
Ryan

Here is an update on Piper. She came in as a very aggressive dog. She seems to be doing great.!
Elly