Time is a fixed concept; we each have 24 hours in a day. In my zeal to educate Jackie, it has been brought to my attention that I have to give her time. Time for her to decompress, time for her true personality to emerge. Time for her to learn how to dog.
In my defense I have been very patient, but patience can only go so far in a moment. True patience has an element of passage of time, and there is (unfortunately) nothing we can do to slow time down, nor speed time up when we want it to suit our needs. So in the passage of time, I have been encouraged to allow Jackie to do more sniff-walks, play with toys when and how she chooses, and smile and laugh with her often; and to limit our focused training to just a couple very short sessions throughout the day.
In Prissy’s final few weeks of life, we had some really awesome moments of closeness and affection. Because Prissy at that time wasn’t able to go for hikes or long walks, or run and play at the farm any longer, all that remained was time on the floor, on the sofa or bed, together, petting her and talking to her, just being with her. To me that is the essence of a good relationship, that you can be together, happy and loving one another, even during “boring” moments of quiet time.
In the experimenting to discover what will be Jackie’s 100 dollar bill, it has become clear that one of Jackie’s favorite things is to be loved on and petted. Jackie is very cuddly, and loves to lay next to her person. I’ll never know, but it seems Jackie may not have had much interaction with people in her life before she was brought into rescue, as she does seem to crave it now. While she’s definitely not a velcro dog, Jackie certainly loves people and loves to be petted and groomed. Similarly, she seems to relish being in a house, on a soft bed or sofa. She will very occasionally grab a toy and start to play with it by herself. In other words, she is still “learning to dog.”
So this all takes time, and I am trying to keep my own agenda with her training in perspective. Certainly with dressage the fastest way forward is often to slow down. It has been said that it takes about three months for an adopted dog’s true personality to emerge; we have had Jackie now for six weeks; so….give it time. Above all I love her, and that is the most important item on the plan.
Pearls:
- Patience is good, and includes an element of the passage of time
- Lots of walks, sniffing, play and time to decompress is important for a newly adopted dog
- It’s been said it takes at least three months, or more, for their true personality to begin to emerge
- Even though I know I love Jackie very much, Jackie needs time to learn to be loved and feel love
