Vizslak
Well-Known Member
Shhhhhhh....it's finally sleeping
Oh my word! Tilly is a loony!!!
For those of you that don't know her, she is coming up 8 and I've had her roughly 7 years now. She was a rehab foster dog that stayed as she was so mentally screwed I just didn't have the heart to pass her on. When she came to me she was emaciated and encrusted in her own excrement, she had no handling and would drop to the floor shaking when you tried to touch her (if she couldn't run away and hide first) It took me over a month to be able to get her to greet me on four legs (and then she was still cowed, tail between legs)
She had been in a puppy cage that was too small for her to stand up straight in once she grew so had no muscle development and her feet are terrible where she couldn't develop properly. Food had just been thrown through the bars. Someone had apparently placed a deposit on her as a pup and never come to collect her, a friend of mine had siezed her from a local problem BYB.
Anyway, she grew to trust me and earned the nick name 'hawk' as I would take her out to socialise her with people and she would lie on the floor in the pub and never take her eyes off me. Eventually people could come and stroke her where she lay and she grew more confident. I would take her down the little hill outside the house and back up again (about a 1/4 mile in total) to try and build up a little muscle. My other dogs would see from the property and start barking and she would drop straight to the floor shaking from the sound of their barks.
In the first 6 months the improvement was dramatic but she was still obviously very mentally troubled. Over the next few years the improvement slowed but she never failed to amaze me that she still did continue to improve years later, something small would happen that would make me very proud. I've always been able to say about something 'she couldn't have coped with that 6 months ago'.
She missed her entire puppy hood in that pen and although for the last 6 years has appeared a normal dog, if a little quiet she has never played with any of our other dogs, picked up a toy, bounced like a carefree dog. Years after her rescue I thought it would always be this way, as sad as that is, she doesn't understand that interaction or freedom to let herself go.
Throughout the last year I have noticed her let her guard down a bit, just on the odd occasion. Particularly when we had the last litter of parson pups in the house and they came out for playtime at 6/7/8 weeks, she started to sit with them and occasionally pick up a toy to let them hang off. With Flora too she will occasionally pick a toy up after being pestered to do so from the ginger nutter, and then look very ashamed at having done so and get back on the sofa. I've never managed in all these years to get her to play with me, she would rather have a cuddle and a fuss or sit quietly by the fire.
Fast forward now to this last few months and the day the snow first came down. I let the dogs out into the snow and she played in it, just for a little while, chasing Flora and bouncing like a pup.
Throughout the snow and in the last few weeks Flora has managed to intice more and more play out of her. Walks have become quite hectic with Tilly and Flora taking off for a game of bouncy chase as soon as we get through the gate. Something always seems to click and stop her from playing though, its suddenly over and she returns to my heel and walks along next to me quietly again.
This last week however she will wait for me to call her back, she has the confidence to play until I say play times done
She also started last week thinking that Flora (and one of the terriers) seem to be having fun chasing that dummy! She started picking up and retrieving it very bouncily with a great big grin on her face! (cue a very miffed vizsla that can't get near the damn dummy as someone else has the speed advantage
)
Now to this morning and the real point of my post......Flora and Tilly have been running riot around my house with a tennis ball, I thought there was a bloomin earthquake to start with
She is finally playing, and playing properly, full on buncy big puppy playing!!!
Then we went for a walk, lots more playing, ragging toys and throwing them in the air, rough and tumble play with Flora. Home....more playing with a tuggy toy......and now they have crashed!!
It's the final break through, shes finally got her puppy hood back all these years later she is a 'normal' dog, thanks to one little ginger demon it seems
I'm so happy, sorry for this rambley very very long post but I had to let you all know not just how far this dog has come, but how long it took her to get there. I was welling up watching her this morning, totally carefree, truely enjoying life to the max at last!
So I have only taken 7 years to rehabilitate this one.....shes ready to leave now....any takers???!!!
Oh my word! Tilly is a loony!!!
For those of you that don't know her, she is coming up 8 and I've had her roughly 7 years now. She was a rehab foster dog that stayed as she was so mentally screwed I just didn't have the heart to pass her on. When she came to me she was emaciated and encrusted in her own excrement, she had no handling and would drop to the floor shaking when you tried to touch her (if she couldn't run away and hide first) It took me over a month to be able to get her to greet me on four legs (and then she was still cowed, tail between legs)
Anyway, she grew to trust me and earned the nick name 'hawk' as I would take her out to socialise her with people and she would lie on the floor in the pub and never take her eyes off me. Eventually people could come and stroke her where she lay and she grew more confident. I would take her down the little hill outside the house and back up again (about a 1/4 mile in total) to try and build up a little muscle. My other dogs would see from the property and start barking and she would drop straight to the floor shaking from the sound of their barks.
In the first 6 months the improvement was dramatic but she was still obviously very mentally troubled. Over the next few years the improvement slowed but she never failed to amaze me that she still did continue to improve years later, something small would happen that would make me very proud. I've always been able to say about something 'she couldn't have coped with that 6 months ago'.
She missed her entire puppy hood in that pen and although for the last 6 years has appeared a normal dog, if a little quiet she has never played with any of our other dogs, picked up a toy, bounced like a carefree dog. Years after her rescue I thought it would always be this way, as sad as that is, she doesn't understand that interaction or freedom to let herself go.
Throughout the last year I have noticed her let her guard down a bit, just on the odd occasion. Particularly when we had the last litter of parson pups in the house and they came out for playtime at 6/7/8 weeks, she started to sit with them and occasionally pick up a toy to let them hang off. With Flora too she will occasionally pick a toy up after being pestered to do so from the ginger nutter, and then look very ashamed at having done so and get back on the sofa. I've never managed in all these years to get her to play with me, she would rather have a cuddle and a fuss or sit quietly by the fire.
Fast forward now to this last few months and the day the snow first came down. I let the dogs out into the snow and she played in it, just for a little while, chasing Flora and bouncing like a pup.
Throughout the snow and in the last few weeks Flora has managed to intice more and more play out of her. Walks have become quite hectic with Tilly and Flora taking off for a game of bouncy chase as soon as we get through the gate. Something always seems to click and stop her from playing though, its suddenly over and she returns to my heel and walks along next to me quietly again.
This last week however she will wait for me to call her back, she has the confidence to play until I say play times done
Now to this morning and the real point of my post......Flora and Tilly have been running riot around my house with a tennis ball, I thought there was a bloomin earthquake to start with
I'm so happy, sorry for this rambley very very long post but I had to let you all know not just how far this dog has come, but how long it took her to get there. I was welling up watching her this morning, totally carefree, truely enjoying life to the max at last!
So I have only taken 7 years to rehabilitate this one.....shes ready to leave now....any takers???!!!
