In June and July this summer Michelle and I had the joy of Pet Sitting for 2 weeks while our client's, John and Louise Chevalier, were on a vacation out West. Their dog, Pearl, and cat, Misty were left in our care.
This household was not a new one to us. A couple of years ago, we were Pearl's dog walker's. Louise and Pearl also "starred" in one of our Cable TV shows. That episode was entitled, "Dog's Isssues and their Appropriate Corrections". In that segment of the show, Louise demonstrated for us how she had learned to calm Pearl down when she would turn the coffee maker on using the techniques we had taught her and what she had seen on "The Dog Whisperer with Cesar Milan".
During those days, Pearl was exhibiting some fear aggression and Louise was concerned for a new grandchild that was on the way. She hired us to drain Pearl's nervous energy by taking her for a structured walk a couple of times a week and we did see some very positive changes.
Since I, Candiss, do the majority of training and teaching for our 'Behavioral HELP for Dogs' and 'Start 'em out Right~Puppies' 1 on 1 sessions and group seminars, Michelle is the primary Dog Walker and Pet Sitter at Walks & Wags. I oversee the compimentary Set- Up appointments with the clients before we begin our service with them. I always come on the first 1 or 2 visits and then wherever I can fill in when Michelle has multiple appointments simultaneously.
During the Chevalier's 2 weeks away, Misty kept us laughing with her adorable antics. Not a shy kitty. As with most cats, food was a very important priority for this feline. When we would arrive and open the pantry door, she would run and jump on top of her bin and yowl. She made sure we knew what to do.
Pearl on the other hand started out very timid and shy as she had always been every time we had seen her before. But...during our 2 weeks with her, Michelle noticed that Pearl was warming up to her, becoming affectionate, wagging her tail when Michelle entered the house, rolled over for belly rubs after the walk, played with the tennis ball, and towards the end of each visit, rested close by the chair that Michelle sat in when she recorded the log sheet for that visit. This was a Pearl that neither Michelle nor I had known before! A delightful surprise.
Pearl loved the routine contained in those 2 hourly visits day after day. She came to trust and love Michelle. She was very good with me as well, but I didn't see her nearly as much. Thus, in the title of this blog, Michelle is Girl of which I speak. :-)
On one of my visits, I took Pearl down the steps in the back of the house and re routed her from a path that she normally took in which she would walk over one strip of board that bordered a basement window well on the side of the house. Louise had mentioned during the set up appointment that she found it an odd behavior, so I decided to see if we could work with it into something a little safer. It only took one time and Pearl got it.
It was a delight to see this once timid dog become so annimated with us. The 2 visits a day were more than ample for both of these pets. We are in hopes that when the Chevalier's returned home, they found Pearl and Misty in better condition than when they left. That is our goal for all of the Pet Sitting assignments we have, which is why we incorporate the Light Training as well as Full Body Dog Massage into every visit.
~Candiss DelCastillo
Walks & Wags Pet Service
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