Our beginning

In 2002, I adopted a six-month old lab mix from my local animal shelter. According to her history, she had been rescued after being locked in a basement for most of her life. She was the first dog I’d ever had, and I thought a lab mix would be best for my five-year old nephew. The very day after I adopted Molly, I discovered that she barked, lunged and growled at other dogs and people. If I could have been objective, I might have been impressed by the intensity of her reaction, but not being objective, I was horrified and embarrassed. I almost brought her back to the shelter but at the last minute, I realized I had to stick to my commitment to her or I wouldn’t be able to live with myself.

Desperately searching for some kind of help, I asked my vet for suggestions. I don’t know who the vet tech was who answered my question that day, but her answer probably saved Molly’s life. Her suggestion to read Pat Miller’s The Power of Positive Dog Training made me realize that Molly was terrified of new things. If I was going to help her, I needed to get her slowly used to new things and help her change her reaction to them.

Throughout her long life with me, I learned about using small steps to get her used to scary things. I worked on changing her reaction from “This is horrible!” to “Oh, my human has chicken!”. In my neighborhood, there was a small dog frequently outside on a light chain. Ever so slowly we got closer and closer to that small dog as I rewarded Molly for calm behavior. I’m not ashamed to say that I had tears in my eyes when my 50-pound girl skittishly decided she was ready to greet this 10-pound dog. In hindsight, although I introduced Molly to the little dog, I should not have. Despite the work I put into it, having a challenging dog meet another dog – especially while on leash – is never a good idea. Also, while another dog who had inherited a confident, outgoing personality might have come through unscathed from the experience that Molly had as a puppy, she could not. I believe that her shy, fearful personality combined with a lack of socialization made her the reactive dog she was.

Getting Molly used to humans and any other dogs was a constant effort. Humans tended to look at me as if I was crazy when I outlined the slow, careful process that Molly needed to get to know someone. Some people insisted that Molly would be okay with them, but I knew better and if I couldn’t change their mind, she didn’t meet them.

Molly died in March 2017 at 15 and ½ years old. During her life she had several absolutely treasured human and doggie friends. Never an extrovert, she and I were both happy with her small group of companions. I miss her terribly, but I know she’s not afraid anymore.”