By 2023, Rocket had grown into a well-behaved pup, most of the time. Other than two annoying issues, Rocket had become the model dog. The two areas of concern were his persistent lunging at other dogs while on the lead or at any animal he sees coming too close to his perceived territory. Most of the time, we were able to work our interventions and prevent a prolonged barking/lunging/growling scene, but on occasion, Rocket would see the “threat” before we had a chance to react. His guard dog personality (due to his breeding) often surfaced when Rocket was excited, energetic, and alert. His “attacks” usually consisted of running to the window and barking at a squirrel, lunging at the car window when he saw a cat near the road, or running through the house during the night when he heard a noise before he had completely settled in for bed.
The other area of concern, and this was a big one, was the way Rocket reacted toward our beloved Frank. While Rocket and Frank got along quite well throughout the day and probably 98 percent of the time, it became clear that the reason for this was Rocket’s bullying tactics. If Frank found a scent, which he often did while hiking-after all, he is part hound, Rocket would immediately stop in his tracks and run to see what Frank was sniffing. Our mild-mannered Frank would simply step aside and resume his hike. If Frank was sitting near his human master, Rocket would get jealous and climb up on the couch and push Frank away. Frank is easily offended, so he would quickly leave the couch and lay on the floor. We had to stop giving chew toys and bones to both Frank and Rocket because Rocket would simply not allow Frank to have his. He, at times, became aggressive, so in order to avoid any potential outburst, we eliminated toys, chews, and/or bones while the two were in the same area. Unbelievably, food and treats given while in the presence of one another has never been an issue-thank goodness for that!
Keeping Rocket under control on his lead became a habit. Any and every walk took effort on our part; keeping a watchful eye on our surroundings and what, or who, was approaching meant that our attention during hikes and walks had to be in constant high alert mode. Luckily, in our experience, hiking trails are usually not very populated-at least not the ones we chose. These less populated trails meant that we could relax and enjoy the hikes without fear of Rocket creating a stressful situation. Although we were always on guard during our walks and hikes, we were happy to see success in our methods and interventions to help Rocket stay focused on his walk rather than an animal he encountered while on it. We just had to remind ourselves that hiking with Rocket would always be an activity that would require utmost awareness of our surroundings, at all times.
As for Rocket’s relationship with Frank, well, that is an ongoing work in progress. Over this next year, I will share with you some of the more challenging and heart-breaking moments we have faced with Rocket. We have made a commitment to not give up on Rocket. More than ever, this commitment would be challenged over the coming year. If you have ever experienced a reactive dog, please share with us how you handled the situation. Did you give up the dog, seek professional help, or isolate the dog. Did it happen more than once? Was it a serious offense or something that happened only once? Hearing your stories may help others who are experiencing difficulties with reactive dogs.