So Iggy has been on a search and rescue mission for all the extraneous toys and bones that Tink has meticulously hidden around the apartment over the past 3 years we've lived here. His most recent discovery was Tink's long lost kong which was buried underneath our bed way in the middle. So Iggy bravely crawled under the bed to retrieve it! To date he has found a bully stick in the front closet, a bone under my dresser, the kong under the bed, and countless treats around Tink's crate. And as a result of these findings he continues to search every nook and cranny in the house REPEATEDLY!
Yesterday Nick and I finally gave the beefcake a bath and while he didn't like it by any stretch he did ok and endured it just fine. He is soooo soft and shiny now! I love the neem oil products for these dogs' coats! Beautiful!
Iggy is doing better with his growling and being possessive over high value treats and chews. He's learning that we're not going to take them and that we will play with him when he is nice and not when he is mean. Because he is so completely food motivated a behavior modification plan works very nicely for him. We've been working on "drop it" with high value items giving another high value item for dropping it and then giving the first item back to help establish a positive experience with dropping a valued item. I have to sneak the treats out of the container because if he even thinks I have one, he drops the bully stick or bone or whatever else and waits for a treat before the command is given!
Definitely improvement overall although he did bark and almost snap at Tink who got too close to him this evening while he was chewing on a bully....I will say in his defense he moved away from her and she sought him out. But still....so any suggestions on how to work with the growling at another dog around a highly valued item I would be happy to hear!
We've figured out the roles that Tink and Iggy have in this house--Tinker is the princess and Iggy is the court jester. He has that goofy but self-absorbed attitude and is generally a laid back guy! He won't move out of the way for Tink though...he lets her bump into him repeatedly and then get confused and bump into the walls trying get through and well it's not such a nice scene for the Little One...
Iggy has a strong chew drive which has been working out for Tink quite nicely. He chews the bullys and gets them all soft and white and then drops them for something else to do. She comes along and because they've been started and are soft, she will sit down and chew on the bully for 5 or so minutes in heaven! It's so cute! And Iggs is pretty good at leaving her alone with minimal reminders, but some supervision.
There's been a nice flow and routine to the house over the past week or so. We've had Iggy for 3 weeks and he is getting into a groove with us. Tink gets into bed in the middle of the night and for the past few mornings around 6 or so, we left Iggy out of his crate and he sleeps under the covers for the last hour or so of sleeping. It's amazing how much more he trusts and is comfortable in the house too... he was always a fairly trusting dog, but even so, it has deepened and really shown in his attitude with bones and with sleeping and hanging out...
I want the best home possible for this beefy guy. Nick and I feel a home that doesn't have young kids that has a dog or maybe not would be best for this guy. Also a home that people don't work crazy long work hours. He's such a social people dog, it wouldn't be fair for him to be alone for 10 plus hours.
So, if you're interested, fill out an application with NEBtRescue....
--Vicki
And Tinker Makes Three
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