Rescued

So I found this on the website for the West Texas Chow Rescue page and I thought it was really sweet.  We often say this dog is a "rescue" or I "rescued" him/her, but its not just the dog thats 'rescued' but also the person as well.  Chingu wasn't the only one rescued in our story because he also rescued me so I guess we were both rescued.

Anyways I thought it was just a very sweet sentiment:

I rescued a human today. 

Her eyes met mine as she walked down the corridor peering apprehensively into the kennels. 

I felt her need instantly and knew I had to help her. 

I wagged my tail, not too exuberantly, so she wouldn't be afraid. 

As she stopped at my kennel I blocked her view from a little accident I had in the back of my cage. 

I didn't want her to know that I hadn't been walked today. 

Sometimes the shelter keepers get too busy and I didn't want her to think poorly of them. 

As she read my kennel card I hoped that she wouldn't feel sad about my past. 

I only have the future to look forward to and want to make a difference in someone's life. 

She got down on her knees and made little kissy sounds at me. 

I shoved my shoulder and side of my head up against the bars to comfort her. 

Gentle fingertips caressed my neck; she was desperate for companionship. 

A tear fell down her cheek and I raised my paw to assure her that all would be well. 

Soon my kennel door opened and her smile was so bright that I instantly jumped into her arms. 

I would promise to keep her safe 

I would promise to always be by her side. 

I would promise to do everything I could to see that radiant smile and sparkle in her eyes. 

I was so fortunate that she came down my corridor. 

So many more are out there who haven't walked the corridors. 

So many more to be saved. 

At least I could save one. 

I rescued a human today. 

Author Unknown

The Little Jindo Who Could

So Chingu continues to make progress and I'm just so pleased with him.  You can tell in training he just tries so hard.  He doesn't always want to participate and he'll hide behind me, but once we're in it you can tell its work.  But its work that he works really hard at and he gets better and better every time.

My parents have even felt comfortable enough to allow him to run around the house, sans muzzle, while I'm away at work.  I've also started introducing him to new people and he's handled it beautifully.  We haven't had a single incident of snapping, growling, or attempted biting.

In group class everyone takes turns petting him (while I of course stuff his face with hot dogs) and he's handled it like a champ.  Also the other day he was turned away from this guy who couldn't see his muzzle, and before I could stop him the guy just reached down and touched Chingu on his back (he's not a fan of his body being touched) and Chingu didn't react at all.  For him that's huge.

So we just keep chugging along and hopefully one day we'll be able to go out and about without a muzzle.  One day I think we can, although thats still a long time away.  But we keep practicing and trying new things and he just keeps chugging along like the little engine that could.  In fact I was so pleased with how he's been handling the new surroundings and people we've been trying out I took him to a pet store this week!

I never thought we'd be able to go to a pet store but we did and he rocked it.  We didn't stay long because there were cats and juggling him, a bag of dog food, and dodging cats could have been tricky.  But he was well behaved and all the staff oohed and ahhed over him at a nice and respectful distance.  Next time we'll hang out longer and I'll probably let him pick out a toy (cause sometimes I like to spoil him).

Also Gina said we didn't need to go to private lessons anymore unless we wanted to and while I've decided to stick with it for now its nice to know its no longer critical.  I feel like though I really want to reinforce and keep doing what we're doing for at least another couple months.


But you look at him and he's so happy now.  What I think I love most about Chingu is the big smile he always seems to have on his face, and even though he's pissed when he has to wear that muzzle, the moment its off he's just so happy and smiling.  Its so great to watch him be pet by other people and even enjoy it sometimes.  I'm so happy for him that he can learning that being pet by others can be enjoyable and I think group classes have been great for him to just be able to watch other dogs and people interact.

Of course we still have to continue with the training and reinforcement but he's doing awesome and his resiliency is just so impressive to me.  He's the little Jindo that could and every morning when I wake up and see that big Chingu grin on his face and watch him do his 'happy sneezes' he does because he knows we're about to go on our walk I know that it was all worth it.