Controlling Anxiety

Those of you who know me in real life, know I can be a bit anxious.  I hold it in my body in a sick ball.  And yes, it makes me sick.  One of the biggest anxieties about the move has been the dogs.  I've worried myself silly about them making the transistion.  The truth is animals are far more adaptable than we give them credit for. 

My mom has been coming in the afternoon to let them out - and fix the hole in the wall the movers left.  This breaks up their day and makes me feel better.  Right now I'm pulling out at 7:30 am and busting a move to be back by 4:00 pm.  This is not an excessively long day for the dogs to "hold it" but I worry about it.  I've got the dog run set up in one corner of the yard.  This is going to be the toilet area.  I despise dog doody covering an entire yard. Yuck!  We've been working on training to go to the bathroom in that area.  The dogs are almost 100% consistent with going in the kennel now.  Diva, of course, has to push the limit...

They've started supervised time in the yard.  I want them to learn to not bark at people or dogs in the area when they are out there.  This is challenging for Ryder who often gets barkitis.  He's coming along and listens well to prompts. 

The biggest stress was knowing we'd be walking in town.  I live in little fluffy dog mecca.  There are oodles of the creatures in the neighborhood.  One day I'm hopeful I'll have dogs that will happily walk past other dogs without lunging at the other dogs.  Yes.  I'm popular on the walking trails...  I realize my anxiety is part of the problem.  I need to believe in my dogs.  I'm doing a ton of work with treats and getting them to "look".  I also really focus on basic obeidience.  Heel, sit, etc.  I won't lie it takes some of the fun out of walking.  I know with time, patience and consistency our walks will improve.  Meanwhile, I'll learn to control my anxiety.