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Harlequin Haven
11567 St. Rt. 774 Open By Appointment Only |
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Cybil I was turned into the Brown County animal shelter when my owner went to jail and instead of them calling the rescue they sent me to the APL in Cleveland. They were not very nice people but that did not stop HHGDR from getting me and saving my life. I had a hard time at first because of the neglect and life style my owner had kept me in but thanks to a wonderful family that are now my Forever Family I am a well adjusted Dane.
Here I am with the new addition to my extended family Nomar. Mom and I wanted you to know that a dog having Separation Anxiety is not the end of the world and with just a little bit of time and patience that your dog and you can have the life I do with my new family!!! Please read the story my mom wrote to help you with your new addition. Our Story
When you adopt a puppy, you understand that you
will probably have about 6 months of training. When you adopt an adult
dog, you should also understand that you will have about 6 months of
training (more or less depending on the history of the dog).
When I adopted Cybil, I knew that she came with
separation anxiety, and that she would require work. I did not mind
this since she loved us from the first day. I figured that it would be
like adopting an older child. You should show them the rules, but you
also need to pay close attention to the personality and needs of the
dog.
Cybil’s situation before she came to the
Rescue had not been good, and she had been at the Rescue for about one
and one-half years. To add to her problems, she was there at the time
of the fire which destroyed the Rescue. As a result she was very
nervous about being in a confined space such as a crate or behind a
closed door.
The first month that Cybil lived with us was very
rough. We had her go to the basement during the day while we were at
work. Our basement is very nice with a completed recreation room with
carpet and a couch. Still, she was very unhappy and would stay at the
top of the stairs and claw on the door. We added extra pieces of wood
to the door to reinforce it. Also, she drooled constantly when she was
in the basement. We could not leave her upstairs because we did not
know whether or not she would try to jump through a window. In
addition, our Chihuahua did not like her we couldn’t leave
them alone together.
I consulted with our veterinarian and he suggested
using “Clomicalm” which is a medicine used for dogs with
separation anxiety. We used this for three months, and read all the
instructions on how to work with a dog with this problem. After
approximately two months the clawing and drooling started to diminish.
When we were home with Cybil, she was the perfect dog except with the
Chihuahua (this was not her fault). We trained her that she had to
overlook the grouchy Chihuahua because she (Cybil) was so much bigger.
She got along with all of our other dogs. Cybil’s tail was always
wagging when she was with us - I had never seen a dog that wagged its
tail so much! Also, I was very lucky to have a husband that believes
in working with a dog (or so he says).
When you adopt them, they are yours - bad or good.
It is up to us to teach them to be “good!” This is “good”
story! Cybil kept doing better and better. Last Thanksgiving I decided
to give her a chance to stay up in the house while we were gone. I
started with short periods of time, and kept increasing the time. She
never once bothered anything. She would just stretch out on our bed
and wag her tail as we were saying goodbye to her.
Cybil and the Chihuahua now sleep on the bed
together (although the Chihuahua is still grouchy). The only problem
we have with Cybil today is that she is a food hound. We really have
to watch all the dogs’ food bowls. She is a blessing to our family -
all visitors love her (although she will move them of the couches if
that is where she wants to be). All the work with Cybil was well worth
it!
Written by Cybil's mom with love All images and text on this site Copyright © 1998-2024 Harlequin Haven Great Dane Rescue, Inc. unless otherwise credited. Use of any image or text without written permission is expressly forbidden. All rights reserved. |
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