Many of you probably remember our last member of the pack: Tumle, two years old - Lhasa apso/poodle mix, and definitely not the sharpest knife in the drawer!
We took him in when he was 1½ years old. At that time, it was well known that he was not 100% like other dogs. However, we did not have a general picture of whether it was 'just' that he was immature, or whether there was actually an injury to his head. He is missing an eye, and in addition he lacked a lot of stabilizing muscle mass, which makes him wobble and can seem strange to other dogs. To some other dogs he even looked like a prey animal, which resulted in lunges at him.
We agreed to start somewhere: in the body. We trained the stabilizing muscles thoroughly and worked on a lot of relaxation of the body to see what was happening here. Whether the strange behavior could be due to pain - we were able to rule that out! It therefore had to come from the head!
As time has passed, we have been able to better form a picture of what he really is: a dog who in many ways remains a puppy... We visited a really skilled veterinarian, in connection with a chiropractic treatment, who described Tumle very well: namely as a dog with "lack of development in the fetal stage". A dog who could not fit into the usual 'boxes' that he could otherwise put many patients into.
Whether it is actually a lack of development in the fetal stage, or whether he may have been stuck and lacked oxygen during birth is unknown... We just know that he has some special needs.
A simple thing like learning to sit on command has been a huge task for us. We've trained, trained, trained and then trained some more. But now it's sitting there too!
When we meet strange dogs, he is often unsure of them, lacking the ability to read their body language (and they can't always read him). Sometimes he forgets that he has to go out to pee: he just sits down when he has to, where he is. So we are training cleanliness even after 6 months here. In many ways like having a puppy - only full time.
But that being said, he really is the happiest little dog. He loves to play with the rest of the pack, happily sprints from behind to pull a trouser leg, and loves to be at the nursing home, where the elderly can sit with him on their laps. He has come so far in his development that people we meet consider him to be a completely normal, well-functioning dog. In many ways, he is exactly what we need, although he can also be a bit of a burden, as he demands a lot.
Bloggers of the week
This week's blogger is called Nanna Retz Sloth and is 23 years old and the daughter of a dog trainer.
She has been involved as a "foal" since she was a child, first within DCH and is now independent.
I am the happy owner of no less than four beautiful doggies: Ralf, Alfred, Kato and Allie.
A dog with special needs
Many of you probably remember our last member of the pack: Tumle, two years old - Lhasa apso/poodle mix, and definitely not the sharpest knife in the drawer!
We took him in when he was 1½ years old. At that time, it was well known that he was not 100% like other dogs. However, we did not have a general picture of whether it was 'just' that he was immature, or whether there was actually an injury to his head. He is missing an eye, and in addition he lacked a lot of stabilizing muscle mass, which makes him wobble and can seem strange to other dogs. To some other dogs he even looked like a prey animal, which resulted in lunges at him.
We agreed to start somewhere: in the body. We trained the stabilizing muscles thoroughly and worked on a lot of relaxation of the body to see what was happening here. Whether the strange behavior could be due to pain - we were able to rule that out! It therefore had to come from the head!
As time has passed, we have been able to better form a picture of what he really is: a dog who in many ways remains a puppy... We visited a really skilled veterinarian, in connection with a chiropractic treatment, who described Tumle very well: namely as a dog with "lack of development in the fetal stage". A dog who could not fit into the usual 'boxes' that he could otherwise put many patients into.
Whether it is actually a lack of development in the fetal stage, or whether he may have been stuck and lacked oxygen during birth is unknown... We just know that he has some special needs.
A simple thing like learning to sit on command has been a huge task for us. We've trained, trained, trained and then trained some more. But now it's sitting there too!
When we meet strange dogs, he is often unsure of them, lacking the ability to read their body language (and they can't always read him). Sometimes he forgets that he has to go out to pee: he just sits down when he has to, where he is. So we are training cleanliness even after 6 months here. In many ways like having a puppy - only full time.
But that being said, he really is the happiest little dog. He loves to play with the rest of the pack, happily sprints from behind to pull a trouser leg, and loves to be at the nursing home, where the elderly can sit with him on their laps. He has come so far in his development that people we meet consider him to be a completely normal, well-functioning dog. In many ways, he is exactly what we need, although he can also be a bit of a burden, as he demands a lot.
Bloggers of the week
This week's blogger is called Nanna Retz Sloth and is 23 years old and the daughter of a dog trainer.
She has been involved as a "foal" since she was a child, first within DCH and is now independent.
I am the happy owner of no less than four beautiful doggies: Ralf, Alfred, Kato and Allie.