Doing well.....

Its been just over a month that Ben has been wearing his muzzle now. Things are going really well. He seems to be reacting much less to other dogs which is brilliant. Other dog owners are much more aware when they see him in his muzzle and put their dogs on lead or stop them from coming over. I have upgraded his muzzle recently to a Baskerville Ultra which is much less restrictive for him and he seems much happier in it.

We have discovered a new local walk around some lagoons and if we go around 4.30pm, we barely see anyone and its big open spaces which is really nice. Ben seems to really enjoy this route and its a good 1.5 hour so really tires him out. We have been going with his doggie friends, Robert the Westie and Lucy the Lab. Its great for him to have little group walks like this and because he knows these dogs well he is relaxed around them.

I am feeling very content in owning Ben, he is my world and managing him is getting easier and easier. He has taught me so much about dogs, about their body language in particular. I really would not be without him. I cannot take him to the dog park and sit at the cafe and have a coffee with my friends, but that does not matter to me anymore, it used to matter but I have accepted him and we have great walks together now. He is relaxed and kept stress free which is the most important thing to me.

Spring is just around the corner and I am looking forward to spending time with him on the garden with his flirt pole and the paddling pool :)

Walking with friends;

No Longer in Denial

Ben has been wearing his muzzle for 3 weeks now. And what a difference it has made. I think its made a difference in me, which has helped him. I feel so much more relaxed, even my friend commented that she felt more relaxed on one of our walks.

The other day we were in the woods, and two people with spaniels saw Ben and put their dogs on leads. I moved Ben to one side so they could go past and I said thank you to them. It felt good and Ben was calm and looked at me for his treats.

I so wish I had muzzled him as soon as he had injured that first dog all that time ago, Even though I have been careful with him, the muzzle gives me more confidence. I am not worrying that he could bite another dog, although he hasn't for well over a year, I guess the risk is always there. I don't think I wanted to admit this to myself.

On todays walk, he only tried to rub it off very briefly a few times. He seems more accepting of it when I put it on him when we arrive for a walk too. Even though we did not see one other dog this morning, I felt relaxed and really enjoyed the walk, just me and him. We played 'find it' with treats, as he has learnt to pick them up with his muzzle on now which is fab! I also got him a nobble ball which is a ball with bits sticking out of it which he can actually grab through his muzzle, he needs a bit more practice with this so it is a work in progress! He does love to play fetch so if you have a dog that loves this game but needs a muzzle, it is still possible!

I think its important to note that Ben could still cause damage to a dog, particularly a smaller one even with his muzzle on, so I still walk in quiet areas at quiet times, and if I see a dog then he is put on lead and we move to one side if we can or change direction. Just because he cannot bite, I don't want to over expose him to dogs, causing him to go over threshold, or make another dog scared of other dogs if he were to have a go at them.