Off To The Slammer

My little princess got picked up today and taken to a 3 week boot camp full of obedience training and behavioral adjustment.  When I tell that to people they think I'm crazy, but you know what is crazy?  Not having control of your dog, that is crazy.  Jermaine our dog trainer is going to help her cope with her fears and get over being so afraid all the time (she's the biggest wimp ever) and he's going to help her learn how to focus and listen to her handlers.  He's going to do it the right way and there won't be any shock collars or mean things like that.  As much as I love my dog, at the end of the day I'm the dog owner and she is my pet.  It's our responsibility to make sure she's cared for but also that she is controlled so other people aren't ever effected by a giant Mia meltdown.  She's not as bad at many of the dogs that he trains, which is good, but we just don't have the skills to help her the way she needs it.  

It was really hard to watch her be taken out of my house knowing that I wasn't going to have a couch-mate for a long time, or a puppy to kiss on the nose.  She has become such an important part of my life and I already do feel a giant gaping hole without her here.  We will be getting updates and photos sent to us via email/text/phone from Jermaine on an every other day basis with a longer update at the close of each week.  At the end of her sentence in the big house, he'll bring her back home and we'll spend some time with him going over what she has learned and how we can maintain it at home.

My expectations for the completion of this training are that she will be able to:
1. Not bark at or jump up on strangers, or kids
2. Be in public without barking at others or pulling on the leash
3. Go on walks and see other people and dogs without freaking out
4. Be able to sit in the vet's office without having a total meltdown
5. Respond to our commands and execute them even with distractions going on
6. Go in and out of the crate on command without putting up a fight
7. Control her anxiety level

So most of those items are related.  The bottom line is that if she can learn how to control her anxiety: anxiety of strangers, anxiety of big scary men, anxiety of the unknown, separation anxiety, etc. she will then be able to do just about anything else.  She's a really smart dog so her potential is sky high.

I'm not sure how much I'll keep up her blog while she is away, but I'll be sure to post her photos at boot camp and her updates!