The Gus Update

By / / miscellaneous
Gus is half Italian Greyhound and half Jack Russell Terrier. He splits his time between the two breeds. When we wake up around 6:30 am, he’s an Italian Greyhound, refusing to come out from under the covers for our walk. He then sleeps in front of the heater or under whatever blanket is handy from 8 am until around 3:00 pm.
As if on cue, at exactly 3:00 pm, when the tae kwon do studio downstairs starts its first, noisy class of the evening, Gus turns into a Jack Russell Terrier. He’s on high alert, barking at every little noise, and chasing all his toys around the house until around 9 pm.
Gus is sweet (and that face!), but he is not an easy dog. He was found wandering the streets of East Sacramento, unfixed. Probably because of that, he is skittish and incredibly reactive on walks. He’s an incessant barker inside the house. Training has helped a lot, as has a constant stream of hot dog and cheese treats, but we still have a very long way to go.
All of us have our baggage. We all have the hurts and the fears that make us timid or reactive or overly vocal. I try to remind myself of this whenever I have to drag a snarling Gus away from another dog who just wants to be friendly, or when he’s barked through my dinner. Sometimes I want to lock him in a dark closet, but I soldier on with training instead because we all need love and positive reinforcement and a sense of security.
I feel a tremendous amount of responsibility for Gus. I chose to bring him into my life. And I’m determined to make a well-behaved dog out of him.

 

18 thoughts on “The Gus Update”

  1. Rita

    We have a shiba inu. Same type of issues. We have worked with her and she is smart. Moved to a new house recently and since she is now 12 is confused by the steps outside the door. I have learned to hold her on a short leash and say step then we both step. Otherwise she was going to get hurt because no matter how deep the jump she would just jump. I love her but I’m 62 now and no more shiba’s for me. :)

  4. Pingback: Gus is a very good dog. | Jen Hewett, illustrator, print maker, textile designer.

  5. Kurt Gadomski

    I simply want to mention I am just beginner to blogs and certainly enjoyed you’re page. Probably I’m going to bookmark your website . You definitely come with tremendous well written articles. Thanks for revealing your blog site.

  6. viagra canada buy

    I?m impressed, I have to claim. Truly hardly ever do I come across a blog that?s both enlightening and entertaining, and let me tell you, you have actually hit the nail on the head. Your idea is impressive; the issue is something that not enough people are talking smartly about. I am really satisfied that I came across this in my look for something associating with this.

  9. Crim Safe

    Today, I went to the beach front with my children. I found a sea shell and gave it to my 4 year old daughter and said “You can hear the ocean if you put this to your ear.” She put the shell to her ear and screamed. There was a hermit crab inside and it pinched her ear. She never wants to go back! LoL I know this is completely off topic but I had to tell someone!

  10. security screens windows

    Hey there! I just wanted to ask if you ever have any problems with hackers? My last blog (wordpress) was hacked and I ended up losing many months of hard work due to no data backup. Do you have any methods to protect against hackers?

  11. site here

    I?d need to get in touch with you right here. Which is not something I normally do! I take pleasure in checking out a post that will certainly make individuals believe. Likewise, many thanks for allowing me to comment!

Comments are closed.

Scroll to Top