I adopted her almost exactly two years ago and she was EXTREMELY traumatized from whatever had happened to her. She would flinch if I reached towards her, and run away if I moved towards her.
Over the years she's relaxed a tiny amount, but still almost never lets me touch her or approach her if she's not on the bed where she feels safe.
After two years of letting her have the space she needs, I had literally given up on her ever getting truly close to me the way Blossom was, and accepted that she was going to need me to be a very different kind of owner than my last dog.
Which was very sad if I'm being honest. It wasn't what I was hoping for when I adopted a new dog after losing Blossom. But she is what she is, and I accepted it.
Then suddenly, about two months ago, we started making small progress. She would let me pet her if we happened to be passing each other in the hallway, instead of running away as soon as I looked at her. Then she started letting me hug her.
Then last night, she jumped into the chair with me, basically out of nowhere. She carefully laid down on my lap and held herself very still. I could tell she was ready to bolt.
So even though she happened to catch me in an uncomfortable position, I held still and gently stroked her until she relaxed a little. I was tired, so even though it wasn't a good napping position, I forced myself to breathe deeply and relax and I eventually dozed off.
When I woke up an hour later, she was completely zonked out on my lap.
“And what happened, then? Well, in Whoville they say – that the Grinch's small heart grew three sizes that day. And then – the true meaning of Christmas came through, and the Grinch found the strength of ten Grinches, plus two!”
Over the years she's relaxed a tiny amount, but still almost never lets me touch her or approach her if she's not on the bed where she feels safe.
After two years of letting her have the space she needs, I had literally given up on her ever getting truly close to me the way Blossom was, and accepted that she was going to need me to be a very different kind of owner than my last dog.
Which was very sad if I'm being honest. It wasn't what I was hoping for when I adopted a new dog after losing Blossom. But she is what she is, and I accepted it.
Then suddenly, about two months ago, we started making small progress. She would let me pet her if we happened to be passing each other in the hallway, instead of running away as soon as I looked at her. Then she started letting me hug her.
Then last night, she jumped into the chair with me, basically out of nowhere. She carefully laid down on my lap and held herself very still. I could tell she was ready to bolt.
So even though she happened to catch me in an uncomfortable position, I held still and gently stroked her until she relaxed a little. I was tired, so even though it wasn't a good napping position, I forced myself to breathe deeply and relax and I eventually dozed off.
When I woke up an hour later, she was completely zonked out on my lap.
“And what happened, then? Well, in Whoville they say – that the Grinch's small heart grew three sizes that day. And then – the true meaning of Christmas came through, and the Grinch found the strength of ten Grinches, plus two!”
