Boonie Tails

By: Grace Keilbach

“Don’t worry, they’re just shy”

Often times “shy” is used by rescues as an umbrella term to neatly wrap up a variety of undesirable behaviors most people would consider a bit more serious. So what happens when “shy” really means “don’t look at me or I might sh*t myself” and “I’m not that shy with my teeth”?

First and foremost, we firmly believe that these dogs simply should not be adopted out into the general public. Even for a well experienced dog trainer or owner, behavioral issues can be tough to work through, never mind when you have no idea what you’re doing and may or may not be afraid of the fluff-ball guarding the couch. Furthermore, to set both dog and owner up for success, shelters and rescues need to be more transparent with behavioral issues. Failing to provide 100% accurate information sets both owner and dog up for failure as well as ruins the chances of them and anyone else who meets their pooch to adopt again.

No matter how you are acquiring a dog, there are many ways you can accidentally get into a situation you may feel unequipped to handle. Although the following information is directed towards more extreme behavioral issues, everything discussed can be applied in various situations and adapted to fit your needs. Whether you’re looking to overall build more confidence or simply trying to touch the monster disguised as a dog you brought home, the key principles from this information can help.

Use a leash

So your new best friend wants nothing to do with you? When asked her training recommendations, Aria stated, “Can’t really put ‘lasso them with a slip lead and make them get over themselves while you dodge bites’ in the newsletter”. Although we do not recommend lassoing your dog like a wild alligator as Aria (a trained professional) so often does, the point of this is to gain control.

Having your alligator (oops we mean dog) on a slip-lead or leash with a secure collar such as a Martingale collar (we use these on all of our dogs and cannot recommend them enough, your dog will not slip out) allows you and the dog to safely navigate space together. Absolutely NO harnesses as they can be difficult to get on putting you in harms way and they most definitely will not stay on.

Having your dog on a leash tethered to you not only provides significantly more control in any situation but also allows for you and your furry friend to stay close. I am not talking about taking the dog for a walk here but simply keeping them secured near you in the home. This allows you to be right there immediately able to reinforce good behaviors or interrupt unwanted ones. As well as force both of you to begin building a relationship as you cooperate with each-other and navigate your home and activities together. Use this strategy throughout the day during various activities such as working out, cooking dinner, watching TV etc. Of course you do not want to shove the dog out of their comfort zone but a slight drag is okay! Remember, the main thing that we are trying to build here is confidence and relationship, therefore your dog must be required to try new things. Even if it’s just moving from hanging out in the bathroom to the living room, progress is progress.

It is important to note that a terrified dog will probably not want to be on the other end of that leash and to that we say, too bad! Joking slightly but not really…

Of course, treats, patience, and sweet talking are wonderful to start with and work to build trust and make progress on many lower level issues but we’re talking about the extremes here. When you are working with an absolutely terrified dog, there is not much you can do with treats they are unwilling to even eat and sweet words they cannot understand, until you decrease that level of fear. And sometimes the only way to do that is to show the afraid-for-their-life dog that they will not die when they walk out of the bathroom, and then the living room, so on and so forth. You may be wondering, why not wait it out? They’ll come out of their shells (and their hiding spots) eventually right? Maybe! But oftentimes dogs with this level of fear or those who are simply very insecure and have never been asked out of their comfort zones will hunker down indefinitely because in their eyes, that has kept them “safe” in the past. Your scared new dog may pick their spot in the bathroom, under the bed, on your favorite pillow, etc. and refuse to come out for weeks, months, we have even spoken to people who have claimed their dogs did this for YEARS (with potty breaks of course). Although patience and letting your dog explore the world (aka your house) at their own pace may seem like the kinder option, we argue it’s actually more detrimental (again, we are talking extreme, out of the norm, cases here). It is not only unfair to you who wants and deserves a dog to share experiences with but also to the dog who is stuck in a constant state of fear whose mental suffering is being prolonged.

Be brave and stick to it

Whether you are training your dog to sit or working on getting them into the living room, once you have asked them to do something, it is important that you do not let the dog regress and stay paralyzed in fear forever. There may be a few steps back every once in awhile as with any non-linear journey, but always keep trying. You are in charge and they need to know that when they do something they don’t necessarily want to, nothing bad is going to happen to them. Let’s say you get the dog on the leash and they start spinning out like a gator death rolling an antelope, stand back and hold on! Unless you are working with an extremely aggressive dog (in which case that dog should be behaviorally euthanized) most dogs will choose flight instead of fight. Give them space to spin out and do NOT try to pick them up or touch them during this meltdown. You will be bit in the scuffle.

Boring bowls

It is important to remember that this is your house and your life, there is no need to walk on eggshells. Avoid “chasing” them with the vacuum and any unnecessary trauma but do not go out of your way to make them overly comfortable. The dog needs to see you living your life and how no harm will come to them as you do so.

As you continue to prove to your dog that you and no one else, even the couch, is going to kill them, use food to your advantage. When building confidence, it can be extremely beneficial to hand and scatter feed. Start with scatter feeding as it is less scary than your hand. As we like to say, “feed the chicken”! Simply toss small amounts of food on the floor allowing it to scatter. This exercise allows the dog to lower their guard, making them less anxious about you and your surroundings and more open to new opportunities and spaces. The point of this is to get your dog out of their shell and navigate spaces they otherwise would never dare to, so make sure you are doing this in different areas of the house. Scatter feeding is a great exercise for not only “shy” dogs, but can used for anyone looking to make meal times more interactive and enriching.

With hand feeding, slowly provide small handfuls of food to your dog, bringing them closer to you, proving that good things come from you. If your dog is unwilling to take food directly from your hand, continue scatter feeding and slowly start to integrate hand feeding with it.

Spooky box

Get a cardboard box of your choosing, large enough that your dog would have to reach their head into but are still able to comfortably reach the bottom. If you’re reading this article and comparing it to your own scaredy cat of a dog, your dog will probably not stick their head in the box right off the bat, so step one with this exercise is to simply scatter feed around the empty box. After you have mastered this skill (perhaps a few days later) begin to gently toss kibble into the box. This will be very scary but with some encouragement and continued scatter feeding around and in the box your dog should make progress. When your dog gains more confidence and can approach/eat of the box comfortably, start to get spooky. Find harmless trash or objects such as eggshell cartons, paper bags, and empty soda cans. Start by placing one spooky item in the box and continue tossing food in with it, slowly add more “spookies” as your dog gains more confidence over time.

The goal of this exercise is to prove that nothing is going to hurt them and they are capable of overcoming even the spookiest of things. At the end of this, your dog should be able to confidently navigate and rustle through the spooky items to enjoy their reward. At that point you can get even more creative with your spooky box, for example we like to level it up to a box large enough that the next confidence booster is getting them to jump entirely inside and root around. This will take time. Again, although this exercise is aimed at fearful/insecure dogs that need to build confidence, it is great mealtime enrichment for any dog!

Trust the process

Although a lot of this stuff may seem unrelated to your dog’s issues, trust the process and try implementing these training strategies which can be used/adapted to any dogs training needs! If you are struggling and looking for more catered, professional training, please reach out to us via email at [email protected] to learn more about our virtual training program.

Dog training can be extremely frustrating but it is important to stick with it. To all our dog moms and dads out there, you’re doing great!

Boonie of the Week: Meet Aria Grace

Our journey towards our Boonie Baby, Aria Grace started two years ago while watching “Operation Christmas Drop.”  We are unapologetic fans of Christmas Specials, but this one struck a chord we had not anticipated. After watching the film (which was entirely shot on location in Guam), we realized we knew nothing about this place which had such a long connection to the US military.

After a preliminary dive into the history of the Marianas Islands, we stumbled upon the story of the Boonie Baby dogs and how they run wild, oftentimes without care and even more often, live horrible, short, painful lives.

We have loved dogs our entire lives.  We had just recently lost our beloved Pomeranian and also had two other large dogs, Freyja, and Nala, both rescues themselves, at home.  We did not hesitate to try and adopt a Boonie dog.  This is when I contacted Boonie Babies Saipan.  It was almost immediate that we were sent photos of adorable and available Boonie puppies who were desperately in need of a new home off island.

We selected Aria Grace (Gracie) from a photo.  The process was incredibly smooth and before we knew it, our little fur child was on her way to the cargo pickup at Seattle International Airport.  At 4 AM in the middle of winter, we finally met our baby Grace.

Today, Gracie is inseparable from her sisters Freyja and Nala and has a very special relationship with her new friend Symba, a rescue kitten that was dumped at the side of the road and hours from death. It is as if she knows the pain of being abandoned and the equal joy of being rescued.

At 47 pounds and the longest legs, Gracie is the perfect Boonie.  She has the trademark “squishy” neck rolls that are simply irresistible. Her expressive eyes tell you constantly that she loves and trusts you.  We cannot imagine our life without her.

And how did she get her name?  She is named in honor of the incredible sisters who operate Boonie Babies Saipan Rescue, Aria and Grace Keilbach.  We couldn’t resist. Every time we call her; we are reminded of the goodness of these wonderful sisters and their dedication towards giving Boonie dogs a better chance of a better life.

Thank you Karen Ghio for adopting Gracie and sharing her story. If you would like your Boonie or honorary Boonie (any adopted animal) to be featured in Boonie Tails or have a newsletter idea, please email us at [email protected] 

Boonie Tails is free to read. But if you liked this post, support Boonie Babies and this newsletter by pledging a monthly or annual donation. Thank you for reading and we’ll see you next week!