Diary of Lulu in a Thundershirt, Day 7 and Conclusion

To read Day 6, go here.

DAY 7

Day 7 was pretty much a wash because of the rain. There simply wasn't anything see. There were no dogs out when Lulu was out, and she couldn't go outside for fun.

Lulu was pretty depressed.

FINAL DAY -- or is it?

Lulu and I went out on our walk Saturday, which is training class day. And it wasn't long before we were having problems.

A lady with a big black dog passed us on our walk and Lulu just lost it. There was running and barking and running and some more barking and on and on. I had to drag her away because I couldn't get her to refocus.

I was all set to throw in the towel on the Thundershirt. It's been generally mixed results, and I didn't want to keep using something that had no effect in calming Lulu.

And then this happened.

That's Lulu, on the floor in training class. That's a treat in front of her. Today, we learned "leave it." She was surrounded by dogs, but she was too distracted and calm to care. She was completely focused on the task, which was to stay and leave the treat alone. It was amazing.

So my trainer wants to stick to this for one more week. One more week of the Thundershirt. We'll see how it goes but, for now, this diary is closed.

Diary of Lulu in a Thundershirt, Day 6

To read Day 5 of the Diary, Go Here.

The first thing we learned today was that Lulu did not have the Thundershirt on tight enough. If you recall, she took it off the first day, so I had to put it on her.

We met with my trainer and he readjusted her Thundershirt. We then walked around two Petcos. Sadly, no dogs at either to test the shirt out on.

Then we took her to Dr. Phillips Dog Park, for some "field testing."

She is usually one of the first to greet the dogs at the gate... waaaaaay on the other end of where she is now in this picture. As you can see, she's found something else she'd rather do.

Doesn't mean that she didn't mix it up either. But it was different. She only howled a couple times at dogs coming into the park. But she definitely met all the dogs by the time she left. And today there were a lot of them.

Great Dane. Luna is SEVEN MONTH OLD!! Yikes.

And when we got back to the car, Best Friends Pet Care was there with free treats! Score! Lulu got a cookie and a peanut butter and banana ice cream. She loved both... and would have eaten more!

One more thing to mention -- Lulu is still barking at noises outside the house. Again, I don't quibble with this. BUT -- isn't that something the Thundershirt should be dealing with?

How to take part in a Blog Hop

I'm starting a Blog Hop for all the bloggers in Florida, and I got a lot of questions about how it all works. So here's a step-by-step, and at the end people can tell me whether they want to be part of it.

Quite simply, a blog hop is a way for people to get together and learn more about bloggers involved. It's a fun, easy way to network, and to increase your page views.

Step 1:

Find your blog hop. I belong to the Blog Paws Wordless Wednesday Blog Hop.

So first, write your post. For the Florida Bloggers Blog Hop, it doesn't follow a particularly theme. YOU just have to be from Florida.

Step 2:

The Blog Hop tool is created by Linky Tools in this case, and is likely what I will use for the Central Florida Blog Hop. All the pictures you see are of people who took part in the most recent hop.

At the bottom of the list are two links you should focus on. One is how to enter, the other is how to get the code.

Step 3:

When you click Get the Code, it will take you to this page. Simply copy the code in the box. In your blog post, paste the code at the bottom. If you are using Blogger, you'll want to do this in the HTML format where you edit your post. Once you publish this, the list of all the blogs involved in the Hop will appear at the bottom of your post.

Now, if you have a Wordpress.com account, you need to follow something different. Just follow the instructions in this handy picture (click on the pic to get a bigger one):

 

Step 4:

Now all that's left is to formally enter the blog hop. Click the link that says "Click Here to Enter." Then just fill out this handy dandy form.

Now you're in the blog hop. Then you just go from blog to blog that's involved, read their posts and comment.


The Florida Bloggers Blog Hop starts Friday, Oct. 4! Just look for this picture!

Diary of Lulu in a Thundershirt, Day 5

To read Day 4, click here.

Lulu took the morning walk to the park in the Thundershirt and did ok. She whined and barked a little at one of the neighborhood dogs that was barking at her, but nothing major. Oh, and no luck with passing golf carts yet again.

On the second walk I took Lulu in the opposite direction. We did have a little trouble with another neighborhood dog -- a big dog that often barks at her from the balcony.

 Then we went by that house with the dog Lulu met yesterday to the doggy in the window was the other pet in the household, definitely a boxer. The dog followed her around, but she and Lulu -- for once -- didn't bark at each other.

 

   Oh... and another day of grass rolling. This time though... I got video. Enjoy!

My hopes for the New Year and for Lulu

I'm not one for resolutions. But I do have hopes for the new year, so I thought I would mention it.

My hopes for the new year:

• That I can grow my blog through better posts and more networking.
• That I can grow my status in and around Central Florida.
• That I attract some sponsors.
• That I grow the friendships I made this year.

My hopes for Lulu:

• That she grows in her training, and she finally stops barking at all the other dogs.
• That she remains happy and healthy.
• That she gets to have more fun!

 Happy New Year everyone!

Diary of Lulu in a Thundershirt, Day 4

To read Day 3, go here.

DAY 4

More mixed results in the Thundershirt today, but some progress too.

The day started right out with trouble,  in a small package. We walked out of the apartment, and in the place above us one of my neighbor's yappy dogs started barking violently (won't say what kind of dog, because I don't want to upset breed lovers). Lulu did eventually start barking at it, but it didn't last long because the dog's owner grabbed the dog and shut the window.

Walked Lulu to the park, and she didn't have much to get upset at. She did bark at one of the other neighborhood dogs, Zelda. But it was not her crazy bark -- she was trying to get my neighbor's attention. Zelda is one of Lulu's best friends, and she wanted her to come play, but they couldn't.

On the second walk, just as we got outside, the lady with the yappy dogs upstairs came down to walk her dogs. And her pack has grown now from one dog to three! Oy! They came down yapping all the way at Lulu, and Lulu was happy to oblige. I had to drag her in the opposite direction.

As we walked by, one of the other neighborhood dogs barked like mad, and Lulu barked back. But she only barked a bit, and she came along easily.

But here is a positive moment. As we walked, we came by one of the neighborhood dogs. Normally Lulu would immediately bark at this dog, but this time she just watched it, and then went about her business. Meanwhile the dog watched her!

The only time Lulu barked at the dog was when it barked at her.

Other than that, Lulu did ok. She also barked at some noises outside while in the house, but I never quibble over that. It's kinda what she's paid to do.

Another roll in the grass!

Diary of Lulu in a Thundershirt, Day 3

To read Day 2, go here.
DAY 3

I took Lulu back to the complex dog park. She still had her Thundershirt on from the night before, so that's a good sign.

Another good sign -- Lulu walked right past a passing golf cart. Normally she would bark, so it's a good sign.

She did alright at the dog park too... until she saw another dog walk by.

Then she ran in one direction:

Then the other:

Back and forth, back and forth, barking all the way.

When the dog passed, I tried to take her back to home. But the dog and it's owner makes an appearance. Now Lulu does her usually freak out. She wants to meet this dog, wants to know about the dog, but she can't.

That's not a good sign. She doesn't calm down at all. Until she gets home.