It took Jodie four and a half months before she would go out to the yard with her foster’s dogs. It’ll take a while before Jodie gets used to your family and friends. When she is scared, she will bark and back away. She will warm up slowly, but surely.
Jodie needs a patient, supportive person and maybe a dog mentor to help her blossom. Experience with shy, fearful dogs & using positive reinforcement is a plus! She is not destructive when left alone for a few hours. She will bark loudly if she hears someone near my front door.
She is a clever dog, is food motivated, and learning some commands. When she accomplishes something, Jodie is pleased with herself and asks for extra pets and tummy rubs. She is athletic and can easily jump over a 3ft. fence.
April 2022 Update: Jodie responds to kindness, patience, repetition & learns at her own pace. She is now clean & dry in her crated car rides! I’ve been working on her leash reactivity to dogs. She is walked on a no-pull harness & rewarded with praise & treats when she remains quiet & calm. This can be challenging on the city streets, but we usually do 2 training walks a day. Housetraining is still in progress. Jodie prefers to use pee pads, but is getting more relaxed & toileting more often in my yard & on her walks. Jodie has come a long way since I started fostering her. Grooming, handling, training & a predictable daily routine were all new to her. She loves to cuddle with the resident dogs, napping in front of a sunny window, nudging me for petting & tummy rubs & quietly watching Animal Planet! She’ll continue to blossom with the right adopter(s).
