The art of letting go
Dillon went into kennels for the first time this weekend. The usual anxiety that any dog owner has when their puppy goes into kennels for the first time was in my mind. It was a bit different for me as I had been apart from him recently when I went to the USA, but that was when he was left with Simon so not really leaving as such and he certainly didn’t have any issues as still in the home. Placing him in kennels was the big one really. I knew all the advice of ‘don’t show it’ and so on but still felt the ‘uh oh’ of him being put in there.
As usual with dogs, I really shouldn’t have thought anything of it as he certainly didn’t. Barley was also a concern as it was her first time away but she also spent some time before coming to us in kennels so knew the score more. Both of them proved to not give a flying frisbee though - all you can really want in the end if it does leave you thinking ‘hmmmm you could feel something’ (of course in reality you don’t want this). As we handed them over Barley got a bit grumpy about a new lead and clocked what was going on. Dillon on the other hand was contemplating licking a wall so didn’t care at all. As far as he was concerned there were more new people to fuss so that was the focus and oh yes the new smells - did a bird fart over here…
The report was good from their stay, well bar Dillon deciding to interior decorate his bed (read destroy). Oddly he didn’t touch her bed - I think she sat in it and gave a ‘go on I dare you’ stare or lay their growling (her usual trick). The side effect also of kennels seems to be they have learnt more how to play together - there really is something great about two dogs playing with a ball. I found them yesterday even asleep on each other which they never do, Barley was curled around Dillon who was half on / half off her. We both think Dillon probably spent a vast amount of the time doing his chewing Barley’s ear trick, but she doesn’t seem to mind or if she does she puts him on the floor and he stops.
It proves again how resilient dogs are and how as owners you have to learn to let them go and do their thing. It would have been so easy to rub off my angst onto them both, luckily I kept that in check and it worked out well. It’s part of owning a dog letting them go and do their thing and keeping calm - after all they pick up everything from you. I remember being told the lead is like a transmitter for your feelings and it really is true. Keeping a level and calm strong head around your dog is a thing to do at all times along with not putting our human fears and feelings onto them. They are dogs and they do what dogs do if you let them.