Fly Chasin' .....

Meet Spike....
Purebred Toy Fox Terrier.... been through pure Hell.
One of my Foster Kids,  he came to me as a lost cause.    Normally a courageous breed, Spike's former owner had worked hard to whittle him down to a quivering yelping mass of dog.    I saw in his eyes his spirit was still alive so I worked to find his strengths.
His fears were simple..................... Everything.   Noise, movement, touch, new things, old things in new places.  We started small,  he loved to eat.   So all his food came from my hand.  From there we moved to working for food.  Learning to signal for going outside, showing excitement when I did, staying close when I spoke loudly, and following.   Once those were mastered we worked on much harder skills.   Touching and moving him was one of those.  He yelped when picked up, positioned, feet touched, held, nearly anything.   His tummy grew and so did his self esteem as we gathered our new "tricks" about us.   He learned how to use steps, sit, down, come, and ride in the car.   Soon we were well on our way to a modified version of the original boy.   Being eight years old, he was sort of set in those patterns and when I added another foster dog he started to bloom.
Show and tell taught him so much.   Pack behavior brings a dog back to its roots and often is the only hope for those so severely traumatized.  Spike has developed into his own little man now.  We still work every day on new things and old.   He hates the leash on his neck but the harness is getting him to walk better.   He was very afraid of the doggie doors , in fact he had to be carried outside and a person stand with him while he walked about two feet away to do his business then raced back.   Once I showed him the squirrels feeding on the back fence he began to realize leaving my side was not so much terror.  Now he can come in through the dog doors and will race to the back fence when let out alone.
His favorite and best exercise is fly chasing.   As I said, I encourage all things a dog is good at, and he is good at this.    His little ears stand up and he watches then ... SNAP... he grabs it mid flight.
I heap praise upon him and he falls into my arms for cuddles and kisses.   I am not sure if Spike will ever regain his former glory before he was abused, but I do know I am giving him a chance to open his spirit again.    I hope someday a loving home takes this fine little gentleman in to further cultivate his growth and love. 


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