"I am Pam Dennison, a dog trainer, and Shadow is my sixth rescue dog. I
assumed, with a history of five dogs to my credit—all successfully
rescued and rehabilitated—that I could quickly and easily turn this dog
into the competitive obedience, agility and sheepherding dog that I
wanted him to be.
Unbeknownst to me, I had a human-aggressive dog on my hands. I did not
truly realize or comprehend the magnitude of the work, total dedication
and commitment required to help him. I had been humbled by a forty-pound
Border Collie.
This journal chronicles our struggles together, from recognition of the
aggressive behavior to the painstaking efforts to turn Shadow into my
dream dog: confident, calm, focused, and friendly. It is the story of
taking him from a human-aggressive dog to passing his Canine Good
Citizen test.
I have included my actual journal entries as well as training concepts and comments on what I learned in hindsight as I went through this experience. You will see that I made quite a few mistakes, especially in the beginning of the retraining process. I could have, quite easily, edited out all of them to make myself look better, but that is not what this book is all about.
The purpose of this book was not only to show the mistakes, but also to highlight them so that you might learn from my errors. Part of my intent is to demonstrate to you what does not work as well as what does when retraining an aggressive dog. I understand firsthand the denial, frustration and anguish that comes with living with an aggressive dog. I want you to know that I feel your pain, but there can be a light at the end of the tunnel."
I have included my actual journal entries as well as training concepts and comments on what I learned in hindsight as I went through this experience. You will see that I made quite a few mistakes, especially in the beginning of the retraining process. I could have, quite easily, edited out all of them to make myself look better, but that is not what this book is all about.
The purpose of this book was not only to show the mistakes, but also to highlight them so that you might learn from my errors. Part of my intent is to demonstrate to you what does not work as well as what does when retraining an aggressive dog. I understand firsthand the denial, frustration and anguish that comes with living with an aggressive dog. I want you to know that I feel your pain, but there can be a light at the end of the tunnel."
***
Shadow passed away yesterday. On p4r, Pamela Dennison writes
Shadow quite literally changed my entire life for the better. From the day I brought him home from rescue, he enriched my life. Shadow taught me much more than I ever taught him and he inspired hundreds of people with dogs like him.
He was funny, smart, a pain in the ass sometimes, sweet, loving and even though in the beginning he wanted to be good, he didn't know how. But as the years went by, he truly became the dog he wanted to be, loving up complete strangers that came to the house.
He will forever be my shadow.
Pamela Dennison, CDBC
http://www.positivedogs.com
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