Then & Now: Meet Sydney
Sydney came into her owner’s life as a tiny 20 lb puppy…and quickly turned into a 110 lb dog with some BIG feelings.
Pulling, jumping, fear, anxiety, no recall, chasing every squirrel and rabbit in sight, and major anxiety in the car were making everyday life harder and harder. Her owner remembers trying to get Sydney into the car for a routine vet appointment and realizing, we need help.
Walking a 110 lb dog who wanted to go wherever she wanted wasn’t easy either. Her owner joked that before learning how to properly use a prong collar, she felt like Sydney was nearly tearing her in half!
But look at them NOW.
Sydney has completed Obedience Levels 1, 2 & 3 and is enrolled in Level 4. She’s completed E Collar Levels 1 & 2 and has worked her way through our Confidence Builder program too!
And the biggest transformation hasn’t just been what Sydney can do.
It’s how Sydney, feels.
This once incredibly anxious Velcro dog would whine and cry for hours when her owner left for work. Now? She settles in quietly and is perfectly content being home alone…unless, of course, the mailman has the audacity to show up.
Car rides have gotten SO much better, which means Sydney gets to go places with her owner again. She has impulse control in unfamiliar environments. Walks no longer come with the fear of an arm being ripped out of socket. And the dog her owner once worried might become reactive toward other dogs now attends group classes and actually wants to make four legged friends.
She may still be unsure about certain dogs, but instead of immediately reacting, she has learned to communicate through her voice and body language. Her owner has learned how to read her, advocate for her and guide her through those moments.
And then came a goal her owner once thought would NEVER be possible…
SYDNEY PASSED HER CANINE GOOD CITIZEN TEST!!!
One of my favorite parts of Sydney’s story is something her owner said:
She was mortified during those first few sessions because of Sydney’s behavior.....but she kept showing up.
And had she let that embarrassment convince her to quit, she would have missed everything that came after it.
Today, Sydney isn’t the only one who is more confident. Her owner is too.
That’s what this Then & Now series is all about. Not creating a “perfect” dog, but looking back at where you started and realizing just how far you’ve BOTH come.
And apparently this isn’t the end of their story…because Sydney’s owner already says we’ll be starting all over again someday when Sydney finally gets a sister.
>>THEN: 20 lb puppy with BIG anxiety and an overwhelmed owner.
>>NOW: 110 lbs of confidence, communication, impulse control and a freaking Canine Good Citizen.
Way to go, Sydney and Emma, I am so incredibly proud of you both!
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