Sweet Victory

Lately I have been extremely frustrated at the fact that Miles does not listen to me.  About a month ago I noticed that he was peeing in the house and chewing shoes and I was over it!!!  I googled some things and started reading that Miles has separation anxiety.  Now, that's not hard to figure out considering he was left on the street to fend for himself, but it goes much deeper than I thought.   So I tried all of the suggestions, hoping to become the "Alpha Dog".  With so much effort, I saw so little improvement, if any at all.  Last night at small group we finally met Max, Laura Beth and Trey's new addition.  He was so sweet and so well behaved I knew I needed to step up my game. 

I was able to leave work a little early today, so I stopped at the pet store. :) I came home with a few more things than planned, but all well worth it.  I purchased a pinch collar and it could quite possibly be the best purchase I have ever made.  When I first put it on him he yelped a little but he got used to it.  Instead of rushing out the door, he calmly walked out and waited for me to lock the door instead of racing down the hallway.  Instead of rushing off sniffing everything in sight, he stayed by my side.  Instead of barking like a maniac and pulling to get to the other dogs, he wined softly, stopped and sat down when told.  I was so giddy, I called my mother to exclaim the good news.

One of the other purchases I made was a kong.  He worked at getting the treat out for about an hour, played with the toy and now has passed out next to me on the couch.  Such a nice reprieve from the jumping and head butting and squeaky toys.

It's the small things in life that make it all worth while!  Cheers to a happy puppy and a happy momma!