Kino's First Nickname

 When Kino came to live with me as my "foster dog" - the first nickname he got was "Mr. Puppy." He earned his nickname when I realized that while he may have LOOKED like an adult dog at 90 pounds, everything else about him was pure puppy. 

My guess was that he was never allowed inside his previous home because he didn't know the first thing about being inside a house. Consequently, we had to start with the basics . . . potty training, simple commands (sit, down, stay), etc.  I also had to help him get comfortable with all the things he would encounter while living indoors.

He had obviously never encountered a mirror before because he would routinely go into the half-bath where the mirror came down to sink level. Standing with his chin resting on the sink counter, he would whimper (or bark) at the sight of another German shepherd in the house.  LOL  He didn't know how to go up and down stairs and he hadn't yet learned that counter-surfing was a no-no. He didn't get on the furniture, even when invited up. It was as if every single thing inside a house was a "first" for him.

I also described him as a 90 pound feral cat because he reacted much the same as a feral might when you attempted to touch him (which made grooming impossible, as well as cleaning his ears which were a necessity because he came out of the shelter with a horrendous ear infection). His reaction to everything was to try to bite you. Since he was pretty much an "adult dog" with "adult teeth" it wasn't quite like dealing with a puppy. He could do some serious damage with those big strong teeth of his. He didn't know how to take a treat from your hand without somehow biting your fingers/hand. 

Then there was the odd mixture of him not wanting to be touched yet also not wanting to let me out of his sight. He was literally on my heels and/or standing on top of my feet every time I moved. I can still remember how much my feet hurt that first month from constantly having him step on the tops of my feet. I had to stop wearing flip-flops inside the house because he put his foot inside my shoe each time I took a step. Since my foot wasn't moving with the rest of my body, I was lurched forward giving me a constant neck ache and throwing my back out of alignment. 

If I needed to go to the bathroom, he would follow me in there and then attempt to play tug of war with my underwear, WHILE they were still on my body. When I changed the sheets, he also thought it was an invitation to play tug of war with each sheet / blanket as I attempted to put them on the bed. 

It was all "puppy" but so much more challenging with his size and his high level of strength. In an attempted to be humored by these behaviors rather than irritated by them, I used his nickname more often than his real name. He was and will always be my "Mr. Puppy." 

Not As Clear As I Thought

Even though I pride myself on being able to communicate well with animals, occasionally I find that my communication isn't quite as clear as I think it is. In the hopes of helping others communicate more clearly with their pets, I thought I'd share the humorous example I faced of this a few weeks ago.

Since Kino came to live with me, he always gets very excited when I am getting ready to leave the house. It's a nice change from Lucky who looked so sad each time I was getting ready to leave that my heart would feel heavy in my chest, but still Kino's approach has come with its own set of challenges.

As soon as Kino realizes I am going to leave the house, he begins following me around the house, but not at a safe distance. He's right on my heels. What thrills him about my departure is that each time I leave the house, he gets a kong stuffed with wet dog foot, treats and peanut butter and based on his level of excitement, I'm quite sure it is the highlight of his day. I can almost hear him chanting, "I'm going to get a kong, I'm going to get kong, I can't wait til she leaves because I'm going to get a kong!"

Since Kino is right under my feet the whole time I am trying to get dressed and out the door, my stress level starts to go up. I find that the closer I get to my departure time, the more frazzled I am. As I walk back and forth between the bathroom and my dresser . . . to put on make up, to pick out jewelry, to brush my teeth, to put clothes on . . . he's right there behind me and I am constantly tripping over him.  If I walk into the closet to grab a shirt, I trip over him as I am trying to walk back out of the closet because he's right on my heels, wondering when he's going to get his kong. Consequently, I often show up at my destination not completely put together . . . I'm missing earrings or a watch or I realize I never put lipstick on or I forgot my water bottle.

Recently, I was recounting this "routine" of ours to a friend of mine, laughing about how unrelaxed I feel by the time I get into the car and he asked if I had talked to Kino about it. I stopped to think about it, as I was sure I had although I couldn't remember exactly what I had said. Soon I found myself shaking my head as I recalled that what I was saying to him was, "Kino, back up!" and "Kino, you're not helping me." Clearly, these statements were not helping Kino understand what it was that I needed.

When I got home that night, I had a chat with Kino. I explained to him how anxious I get when he is right on my heels and asked him if he could give me some space when I am getting ready to go out. I suggested that maybe he could stay outside the bedroom while I am getting ready and told him that I thought we'd both feel better if I was less stressed when I was getting ready.

The next day when I got out of the shower and was attempting to get dressed, there was Kino, right behind me as I stepped back from the bathroom counter.  I said, "Kino, can you wait outside the bedroom door?" Much to my surprise, he walked over to the bedroom door and sat down. The whole time I was getting ready, he sat at the doorway of my bedroom watching me closely but not getting in my way. I couldn't believe how easy it was . . . and I hated to think about how long we have struggled through the "getting ready routine" when the solution was so simple.

Yet rather than dwell on the past, I decided to focus on the present . . . because I had finally articulated my needs clearly, my sweet boy was giving me the space I needed to get ready. I thanked him for helping me and promised him that he would still get his kong.  :-)  I'm happy to report that Kino is now routinely "giving me my space" when I am getting ready to go out, although he does need a periodic reminder.

Are there any times where you feel your animals are just not "hearing" you? Maybe like me, you've fallen into the trap of thinking you had been more clear in your communication than you actually were. Our animals really do listen to us . . . the catch is that it's up to us to make sure we're being as clear as possible.

Kino and Reiki

For those of you who read my blog regularly, you know that my relationship with my dog Kino has come with some challenges, and that during the time I was still fostering him, I even asked the rescue group to find another foster home for him because he had bitten me several times and I didn't know how to deal with his aggressiveness.

Fortunately, he has made great strides since then but in some ways Kino was still acting like a feral cat.  He doesn't liked to be touched, unless it is his idea, so basic grooming (baths, brushing, nail trimming, flea treatments, etc) were still high drama activities.  No matter how sweetly he kisses my face when I wake up in the morning, if I attempt to do any type of grooming, it quickly dissolves into barking, wild flinging of rope toys, growling and an overuse of teeth.

At the beginning of the year, I decided to try giving him daily Reiki treatments to see if that would help.   Of course, the treatments had to be "distance treatments" from across the room, given his sensitivity to being touched, but I figured it couldn't hurt to give it a try and see what happened.

I'm happy to report that four and half months into this experiment, I have seen a dramatic change in Kino's behavior.  I had to trim the hair around his ears the other day and the whole activity took less than 5 minutes and didn't involve a single tooth.  :-)   His last bath, while he didn't necessarily enjoy it, did NOT involve him growling at me, baring his teeth or attempting to bite me, which was a huge and pleasant change from previous baths.  Putting flea treatment on him, which used to take about 35 minutes because he wouldn't sit still and had to run around the house barking in between each small application of medicine, took only 3 minutes last month, all in one sitting.

I have been amazed by how much the energy has helped calm him down.  It is as if it took the edge off and he no longer believes that I am out to do him harm whenever I touch him.

Just the other day, I experienced yet another pleasant surprise . . . a saw a cat walking across the fence and I immediately braced myself for what I knew was coming . . . . a bark/howl/wail combination that was about to emanate from Kino's throat.  It is so loud and so unsettling it sounds as if someone is ripping one of Kino's limbs off.  I cannot adequately describe how horrid this sound is, but he's been making it for a year and a half now, whenever anything is on the fence (cat, squirrel, rat, opossum, bird, etc) and it has always unnerved me.

Yet this time instead Kino only let out a small little whimper before running towards the fence to chase the cat away.  I was shocked that he didn't let out that overblown sound and I was also overjoyed!  I have a feeling my neighbors will appreciate this quieter method of yard protection as much as I will.

When I began this experiment, I didn't know what to expect and I have to say, I am astounded by all the positive changes I have seen in Kino.  To think that I can now groom him without all that drama - it truly feels like a gift.  And after all these years, I love that I can still be surprised by what healing energy can do and how much it can assist us and our animals.

Reactions to Pain

I know that each animal is unique and that it is highly unlikely that the new animal you adopt will be anything like your previous animal when it comes to their personality.  I know this - and yet I still find myself surprised at sometime of the differences between Kino and my previous shepherd, Lucky.

For instance, Lucky was not very affectionate and did not give kisses while Kino will give me 20-30 kisses a day, whether I want them or not.  :-)  Lucky was rather independent and was happy to hang out in another room when I was home.  Kino on the other hand is glued to my side from the moment I get out of bed in the morning.  I have accepted the fact that if I am going to do the crossword puzzle or respond to emails, I will be doing it with his head in my lap.

Their reaction is pain is also the complete opposite, but not in the way you might expect.

When something hurt Lucky, whether it was a bee that stung her or she bonked her head on the table, she would immediately run to me to "make it better."  And fortunately for both of us, my instinct is to comfort and nurture, so I felt competent to help her when she was hurt.

When Kino gets hurt, he gets mad!   Initially I hear a yelp, i.e. if he runs into something or steps on something that hurts his paw, but then he begins growling and hopping around, usually grabbing a rope toy and flinging it about with such force that I fear he is going to make holes in the walls or knock himself out.  Even more interesting is that he will not let me touch him. In the beginning, if I tried to help him, he would attempt to bite me.  Fortunately, he doesn't turn on me anymore but still if I try to touch him or ask him to show me what hurts, the frenetic rope swinging lasts even longer.  It is a real challenge for me to sit back and do nothing when he has hurt himself since it is the opposite of my natural instinct.

I find his reaction so curious and I also believe that everything has a purpose.  Maybe I am meant to teach Kino that it is safe to let people help him when he is hurt.  Maybe he is meant to teach me that it's OK to back off and let people work things out themselves.  Who knows, maybe it's both.  It will be interesting to see how this unfolds.