Sensitive Dog

Last March, I added a new mini dachshund, Ponyo, to my home. I already had an 11 year old dachshund who was house trained, well behaved, sweet, and gentle. But Ponyo's personality was an absolute force of nature—even for a puppy—and I was totally out of my depths. Everything that "worked" with my 11 year old, Ponyo just ignored or got more difficult. She barked at me constantly, was reactive on walks, made me get up every 20 minutes to play or let her outside even if she didn't need to potty, and controlled my behavior in the house to suit her needs. My energy plummeted in December after a breakup with my long term partner, and my ability to deal with Ponyo was nonexistent. I was snapping at her and crying constantly. This is when I found Julie. I arrived in tears, not sure if I could keep Ponyo given how disruptive she was to my life. I was worried I had "ruined" her by not giving her the proper training now that she was already 1 year old. Julie listened to my story with compassion. Just being witnessed in my pain and anger was a release I didn't know I needed. She taught me about the fundamental mental exercise needs Ponyo had that I had been completely blind to. She taught me how to set boundaries with Ponyo's strong personality. These lessons were incredibly intuitive and easy to grasp, yet I've never seen them or read about them anywhere else. She sent me home with digestible follow up lessons that deepened my understanding of what we went over. Less than a week later, after implementing her suggestions, I feel such a deep connection with my dog. I have now created so much more respect between the two of us, and I feel genuine excitement to have her in my life! I honestly did not know I could feel this confident with Ponyo before meeting with Julie. Do not give up!

We are SO thankful to have found Julie at Sensitive Dog. Our little Maggie had always been a sweet and submissive dog, but suddenly became aggressive and even attacked another dog. With the coaching that Julie provided, Maggie has been able to go on neighborhood walks without lunging or barking at other dogs, and even gone to an off-leash hiking area and interacted well with other dogs! She's still on a journey of getting better, but we're so grateful to have our friendly and loving Maggie back. Thank you to Julie for all of your support!