Because I like to be able to pet my dog, this Spring I started what I call Pet Therapy with Connor. I make him come over and be still long enough for me to hug or pet him. At first, we started with just a second or two and we always did it just before we were headed out for a walk because he would get so excited and over-stimulated by this massive, overwhelming display of affection that he would have to go out and run it off. He'd grab a frisbee, bite it hard, shake the life out of it and have to run extra fast to make up for every nanosecond of Pet Therapy.
Little by little though, Pet Therapy is paying off. We can do it minutes at a time now several times a day. He even let RB give him a brief hug this weekend, which was a first. He adores RB, which usually means that, every time he sees her, he gets so excited that he is never still long enough to touch.
There is one place where Pet Therapy has really paid off though - every morning now, while I am getting dressed, he voluntarily comes in for a dose of Pet Therapy. I rub his shoulders and he instantly bows down in a long, luxurious stretch. At night, Connor sleeps on my bed with me, managing to take up at least 4/5 of the available bed space and lying like an anchor atop the blankets. Connor does nothing by halves, so as hard as he runs and plays, he also sleeps hard at night. When I crawl into bed and have to shove him over so I can carve out a little slice of sleeping space, I make him endure more Pet Therapy. It took a while, but he has decided that he likes it. If you ever manage to be around Connor when he is sleepy, you might be very surprised - he is downright cuddly.
Aw, this is the nicest thing I've heard in a while. I'm happy for both of you.
ReplyDeleteI thoroughly enjoyed our pet therapy on Friday, it was wonderful! Keep up the good work and its such a win-win.
ReplyDeleteWhat a doll baby. He reminds me SO MUCH of my beloved Bosco, who was exactly the same way. Bosky was always within arm's reach, but wasn't a cuddler. The only time I could get him to cuddle was if i insisted he come up on the couch with me during tv time. He would lie let me rub his tummy for a while, but then he would slowly shift so that he was ON me, and the he'd break out The Stare. The Stare meant, "gt up and give me a cookie!" We made a game of iot. I would pretend not to know what he wanted, and he would crank up The Stare to warp drive until I'd laugh and he would jump off and dance around and go to the cookies. I miss him so much.
ReplyDeleteBut with my new dog, Skittles, I hoped she'd be a cuddler. At first, she acted pretty much like Bosco, but when she hit a year old, lo and behold, while she is still Miss Active, she has become a total cuddler, too.
I can only try to imagine the patience it took to succeed with Conner.
ReplyDeleteMy dog is a huge cuddler -- I love that about him <3
ReplyDeleteThis is pretty amazing. Will be interested in watching his progress.
ReplyDeleted'Arcy is not a cuddler either. He gets his pats first thing in the morning and is good. if he's really tired he will let one of the cats snuggle with him but not too often.
ReplyDeleteA Jack Russell is much the same way. Even at 11 yrs old Morris is not a 'pet me' type of guy. He'll wiggle and roll and then be so happy that he'll grab a hedgehog toy and stand before you with that stub vibrating.
ReplyDeleteHowever, he will lay tight up against me on the couch while I read. And and a rare occasion when he thinks he is cold or frightened [imagine that!] he will climb into my lap!