One Year With Poppy

One year with Poppy, has been amazing, for Lucy and I both.  I love how every morning I wake up tell the girls its time to get the day started and Poppy gets up on my pillow and does her pterodactyl yawn.  The moment I get home from work or we get back from day care she runs around the apartment crying for supper like shes been starved.  She patiently stalks Lucy for what ever toy she has at the moment or me for my socks.  She is always down for cuddle time and nap time.  And no matter if I am gone 1 minute or 1 day she is all wags and kisses when I return.  Sometimes I even get a toothy smile.  Shes everything I wanted in a dog and a chinese crested.  I still don't know how I got so lucky!   

Onto current stuff...

For a while now Poppy and I have been working on tricks for her TKN.  I had been a bit, erm, well, less than proactive about getting out some props.    However she had been doing well on the tricks we had been practicing.  I contacted an evaluator and almost had a date set.  Then I pulled out those 2 props to refresh her on them.  Poppy has developed a fear of going in her kennel and jumping through the hoop.  Sadly I cancelled and the evaluator was very understanding.  We are now working on all tricks now, like we should have been.   So that is where we are on TKN for Poppy.

We are also working on some behavioral issues.  For a while now (since getting my new job and having new hours) we are out when "normal" people are out.  So we run into neighbors more often.  Unfortunately I have seen an increase in Poppy's fearful barking and lunging.  I have been trying to work with her on redirecting.  Its working to a point. 

Who me?

However sometimes situations come up and don't go as well.  Like before day care reopened, I had both dogs out on leash during lunch.  I was trying to get a poop bag out of the holder when the maintenance man walked up the side walk ( I was in the grassy area behind the apartment) and Poppy saw him before I did.  She lunged and I wasn't prepared for it thus dropping her leash.  She ran up to him hollering like wild banshee.  Thankfully he didn't seem bothered and just picked up her leash and walked her back to me.  Shes also had a couple of incidences where people want to pet her and she nips to make them go away.  Not a bite,  just a little warning nip.  Again we are working on this issue too with redirecting.

It still makes me sad that she is so scared of someone coming up to her that she feels she needs to act this way.  Improvements I have seen are when people ignore her and allow her come up to them.  Its a less threatening situation in Poppys mind and all is well.  She will sniff people or just simply walk away.  

I will end this with saying we are a work in progress as a team and I literally wouldn't trade her for anything.  Other than that she is my spunky, sneaky, sweet pup that loves to cuddle and give kisses! Which is what I need in my life! 

-Katie the Momma