Pepper: A New Happy Dog

[Schnauzer]

THE OLD PEPPER:
Pepper came to us at 8 weeks old when granny came for a visit. He bonded with me and we played a lot until I went to a math and science boarding high school. I had to be gone all week each week, so he turned to mum. He had all the love he could ever want, but mum always babied him and got him excited. He was obedient in the house too... sit, stay, come, stand, etc. What was missing? Socialization with other dogs, people and kids. Walks with Pepper were just terrible. He would pull on the leash until I had rope burn and had to get one of those bigger braided nylon leashes so that my hands wouldn't get raw. I got him a no-pull harness and this worked like a miracle until 2 days later he figured out that since the harness locked his front legs, he used his back legs to drive himself. I always knew to never let him walk in front of me, and kept him to my left side always. I had to constantly hold him there while he choked himself though. Choke chains didn't work either. Conventional dog training books and TV programs taught that you should teach your dog the command "heel" and jerk the leash to keep the dog at your feet, or make him come to your feet. I tried this and it made things a little better, but not much. The REAL problem though was when another dog got within sight of Pepper. Pepper would growl, bare his gums and teeth, bark a lot, choke himself, pull, hold his tail (stub rather) up high, and lunge. I dreaded an encounter with another dog on walks. Even worse was when someone didn't obey the leash laws (happens frequently around here) and a dog walked up to us. Sometimes the dog seemed to show aggression back, and I'd have to pick up Pepper while he made a bunch of nasty noises and snaps, and walk away with him, hoping he wouldn't accidentally bite me. Luckily, he's never bitten me. Encounters with children were never this bad, but nonetheless concerning. If a little kid was taking a walk with his/her parent in the subdivision and Pepper saw it, he would go into alert and stiff mode, tail up, ears up... and bark and lunge. He never growled much or showed his teeth at all though. It just seemed like anything the size of a large dog and smaller made him go crazy. Pepper also did a lot of boredom barking in the backyard which was annoying. When my boyfriend would come to the door, even though he knows him pretty well, I couldn't get him to stop barking. That was annoying too. I would tell him "quiet!" very firmly, and "NO" but this did nothing even though he knows what "no" means in most other situations INSIDE the house. Mum actually praised him for that behavior by trying to tell him "it's okay" in her high pitched voice while she petted him. I always thought something was wrong with that... Pepper often ignored me if mum was around and only paid attention to her. This was almost intolerable to me. She talked to Pepper in a really high pitched voice, making him excited as he got praise for no reason. This made it so that he wouldn't listen to me because I have a low pitched voice and never go crazy excited on him. She also let Pepper in and out of the backyard whenever he wanted, sometimes even waking me up in the middle of the night. I knew he didn't have to go to the bathroom nearly every time, but she let him out anyway, and he'd just bark... even though I complained a lot because I couldn't go back to sleep. Mum never walked him except a tiny bit in the very beginning when she wasn't so disabled. This means that while I was away at college for months, Pepper wasn't getting enough exercise physically and mentally. During summers, Pepper liked me more and I could enjoy him much more. He spent a little more time with me because I walked him even though it was frustrating. Breaks were too short for him to distance himself from mum even a little. He also didn't sniff my butt much, and he never humped me... something he did to mum very often. Pepper wouldn't go outside in the rain unless mum came out there with him. He seemed afraid of water.

THE NEW PEPPER:
The day after I came home from school I began working on him. The last couple of weeks of school I really wanted to turn Pepper around because I thought I was going to get his brother Rusty (now I'm not sure if that's going to happen). I did a lot of research and a few people pointed me in the right direction. I went through Cesar Milan's book "Cesar's Way" and learned a TON! It all made sense too! I picked up on it immediately and began to practice my energy. One thing I didn't understand that has now become apparent to me when I look around is people thinking their dogs are humans... How can people do that?!?! A dog is furry, walks on all fours, barks, wags tail and sniffs butt. How can that be human? I NEVER saw Pepper that way, thank goodness. I've always had a great understanding for animals, but with Pepper, I didn't really know how to solve his problems. I've always had reptiles, amphibians, fish and other small animals that are of lesser intelligence than a dog and I never encountered a behavioral problem, so this was different. The more I read, the more it all made sense. Pepper saw mum as a comfort zone and something he could dominate (aka the humping and sticking beside her). Mum let him in and out of the house when he wanted, and praised him when he was excited rather than calm. Pepper never got socialized as a puppy, with dogs or other people. He had too much pent up energy from not being walked while I was gone that he wanted in and out of the house all of the time, and barked at nothing. I only got frustrated with him on walks, so Pepper saw that weak energy and pulled on the leash, trying to take the lead. I got nervous when another dog came up, so Pepper picked up on that as well.
The day after I came home, I took Pepper for a walk. I learned about a technique for pulling. You give the dog the lead, then turn around and walk the other way. The dog gets a jerk on the leash and sees you walking away. You repeat this over and over until the dog walks beside you or follows you because he learns that the only safe place is by your side. I did this to Pepper in the cul de sac and saw impressive results in only 30 minutes! Of course, I had to repeat this every time I went to take him on a walk, but with time it just got better and better. He still had a big distraction problem. I kept working with him and doing what I saw Cesar do on the Dog Whisperer (nipping the neck, leash jerking, etc.) and he improved even more. A week after I began reforming Pepper, I walked him to my boyfriend's house and his parents came to the door. We agreed to try to introduce Pepper to their two boxers. I couldn't believe how well it went! Pepper seemed really on edge, but I just kept correcting him. He was introduced to the female first (Chancey) and then the male (Bandit). Neither Pepper nor Bandit are neutered, so they tried to dominate each other a bit. My boyfriend and I walked them around on the street until Pepper seemed comfortable and stable. We introduced them again, and by the third time we took them to the dog park. We put the boxers and Pepper in a fenced off area that no one goes in, and I eventually let Pepper off the leash with them. He did well. We did this again another day, and that same day we took them to the main area of the dog park with the other dogs. Pepper never showed aggression! I felt like that was a shock of a lifetime! We've been bringing him to the dog park just about everyday now with the boxers and he does very well. He doesn't really interact with the other dogs though. He either stays at my feet under the bench or walks the fence line. He's very aloof and doesn't act like he knows what bow + jump or run means (play), but he'll play with me if I act like a dog and do that. I haven't figured that one out yet, since he loves to play. He also gets anxiety when other dogs don't get along, which I correct. We've taken Pepper to other public parks and places and he's done very well. He just keeps getting better. He's easy to walk with and doesn't want in and out of the house all of the time. He doesn't wake me up at night anymore from mum letting him out because he's sleeping through the night. I'm teaching mum some techniques and Pepper seems to listen to both of us now. I can actually call him away from mum to pet him now too. One night he even stayed downstairs with me almost all night until mum called him upstairs. Recently at the dog park he went up to some other people like he was greeting them, which has never happened. He also seems to have overcome his fear of water! I'm not sure how that happened other than Pepper now sees me as his pack leader and knows he doesn't have to be afraid of the water anymore.

A lot of people don't like Cesar Milan. To me, that's rubbish. I took what I saw from the programs and what I read from the book seriously. I put it into practice and remained consistent with Pepper. I got immediate results... It really is as simple as it looks! It's all about energy and doing the right things in the right order. If it worked for me, it can work for anyone. I got more than what I expected, and things that I thought could only be in my dreams. Now I KNOW that Pepper can accept another dog, whether it be Rusty, or the Giant Schnauzer that I will eventually get! The impossible is now very possible, and Pepper and I are much happier.

Thanks to Bragger, Jacque and Winter's Morning for telling me where to look to help Pepper! And thanks to Boxer for all of our runs to the dog park!

[PetBrags Pet Lovers Paradise]

Very nice, and great news for sure! I didn't realize a lot of people didn't like Cesar Milan. I've never heard that. I can't imagine why. But, sometimes I stay on the computer so much working, I'm under a rock.

[JACQUE]

AWESOME!!!!!