socrates63
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Dog sitting -- week one is done and there's three more to go.
Son 2's girlfriend's family left for Taiwan a week ago to visit extended family. We agreed to dog sit Mochi for four weeks.
Having heard from my son, I knew Mochi was not well socialized with people and animals. He was distant from us and only opened up to my son. For such a dog, I expected him to be a bit traumatized having been left in an unknown place with mostly unknown people. When my son went to work, Mochi would lie on his bed in the bedroom and spend hours there. My wife and I were getting a little worried.
After one week, I think we may have turned the corner. He came up to me looking like he wanted something. We ended up playing chase around the house. Eventually he got tired and I got tired, and we sat on the floor. I approached him slowly and gave him some space and started petting him. I think I was stroking him for half an hour and Mochi shifted his body and leaned up against me. I continued to stroke him for a while longer and he fell asleep.
He still doesn't approach too close and maintains his distance, but I think he'll be ok. We were seriously worried for his mental health.
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Nice work!
Watch some Cesar Millan (we see his show a lot on Nat Geo Wild channel and also YouTube) to get more tips. But you did exactly the right thing in building trust with the dog. One small step at a time. Teaching him to walk on a leash is another good one to learn and build trust.
Good luck!
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I've watched a bunch of Cesar's shows, and his shows have been the most helpful.
Watching his shows and the Dodo channel on YouTube are how I get my doggo fix. I even read The Art of Raising a Puppy by the Monks of New Skete before getting my GSD.
