Boefie
Boefie showed increasingly bad behaviour, especially towards ‘men on wheels’ like skaters, skateboarders and step scooters. People told me that he was probably afraid because he’s a small dog. I did not think that was the case.
The first session with Dorine taught me two important things: one – that Boefie is not afraid, but he thinks he is the leader and two – that Boefie is a very good listener. He just does not listen to me.
We were almost finished with the first session when two men on step scooters came by. This would normally trigger Boefie to lunge. Instead, he looked at Dorine – not at me – to check whether he could run. And he stayed put. That was really an eye-opener. Dorine helped me understand Boefie’s behaviour, work with him and be the leader.
I have seen a huge change. I find that being consistent, working out and teaching him new things on a daily basis lead to really good results. I also realise that this immediately gets worse when I am busy doing other things. And that is fine too, because now I know just what to do, and that is a good feeling.
This is the message I texted Dorine to illustrate what I mean:
Let me share some of my successes with you (and all praise to you, of course)
• This week we practiced on a cafe terrace: it went well, Boefie was a good dog and stayed put. He did not lunge once.
• We just practiced with skaters again, like we did Sunday. It went really well and Boefie lunged only once. For the rest he was off the leash, chased the ball etc.
Boefie and I are having a much better time together, ha ha. During our walks, I throw the ball which he now retrieves nearly all the time. He is happier and so am I. Merci beaucoup Dorine.
In short, I am very grateful to Dorine for the insights she gave me.
