Shenzi

Pushy: still tends to bark/nip/jump up for attention but is getting better.

We have been working on her sitting and doing "touch" or other second behaviour instead before getting attention.

She is trying hard but impulse control is a big challenge! Resource guarding: as she got more comfortable in the house, she has started trying to keep other dogs away from us and some spaces in house (physically getting between us, using hard stares).

Takes toys and food away from other dogs and will push them away from water dish Leash reactive: barks/lunges/gets up on hind legs when she sees dogs and people.

The trainer we worked with says she is a frustrated greeter and not aggressive (so is another aspect of her lack of impulse control).

We have been working on "Look/Look Away", "Find it" and "Leave it/Let's Go" as ways to handle seeing triggers.

She is getting better with seeing people and has even managed to meet briefly a couple of people walking by.

She can quite reliably do a u-turn or find it with dogs that are around 15 metres or so away (a bit closer if they are moving away from her or at right angles) but loses it if they are closer or if she sees several in a row.

Other triggers are squirrels (or course) and magpies.

Loose leash walking remains an elusive goal She may have trouble staying loose in the house all alone and even if one of us is in the house, she gets very agitated/upset if the other dogs go outside with the other person.

She barks and races to doors/windows and jumps up on her back legs and pogos is getting better with staying calm if he & someone go out in the back yard, and often will wait pretty quietly although she will still sometimes bark/jump/nip.

Commands she knows (she knew a few of these already but offers them much more reliably compared to when she arrived): Sit Down Stay (but haven't built up much duration or distance) Wait Come (although not at all reliable when there are distractions, even in house or yard) Roll over (both directions) Shake Touch High five (although this looks a lot like her "shake") Sit pretty Bow Paws up (on footstool, chair, etc.) Bell (will ring a bell by back door to go out for a pee) Be quick (to pee when in yard) Drop it (not too reliable when she gets excited; treats are necessary) Find it Leave it Let's go (u-turn) She also knows "relax on a mat" not in response to verbal cue but when she sees the mat (a bath towel).

She reliably settles on the mat and often goes to sleep, although we haven't worked on this with distractions.

This shouldn't be a surprise to anyone, but she is definitely a good prospect for some canine sports - agility seems like an obvious one.

She's very smart and fast and has shown herself to be fearless in crawling, climbing, jumping over obstacles.