I'm mostly packed up with just a few essentials left unpacked. I've been packing a few boxes every night at which point Kody usually chooses to go in his crate. I think he doesn't like the commotion. He comes back out when I'm done packing and today even stayed out while I packed a box.
Today on our walk he was acting so strange. We went outside and right near the beginning he started barking at nothing. So we went back in. A little while later, he asked to go out again, and the same thing happened. So we went back in again and I'm hoping he's learning that barking ends the walk. I'm thinking that the barking I thought was excitement for the new treats yesterday may have actually been related to this barking, and maybe not entirely about treats.
A little while later he asked to go out again, so we went, and he was better. Once he had shown he was going to be okay, I was a little more generous with the treats to reward him and get him in a great mood for the rest of the walk.
Then we ran into another dog which he could see from behind the bushes I've talked about so often recently. He barked, I wasn't too surprised since this is an area we're working on. I walked him away and back and treated while he was quiet. Then we went to go down some stairs and he was surprisingly stubborn about going down them before I said to, so we repeated that a few times. Then a runner was running by and Kody was really good. Just a few seconds later just a normal man was walking by and Kody went to smell him. I clicked to get him back, he didn't respond. The man stopped, Kody pulled on the leash, then let out just a howling series of barks. "Haroooo, ruf, ruf, ruf."
This is surprising because even in the past, this was a rarity. This kind of barking was reserved for special occasions where Kody was surprised by something and really wanted to alert about it.
We took the fastest way home after than, but we were about in the midpoint of our walk. I wasn't angry, but I wasn't pleased. I stopped the treats, and switched to praise when necessary. Kody was good all the rest of the way home, but after something like that happens it's just best for me to get back home because my nerves are a little rattled. And I have no idea what was causing it, except maybe the move?
It sounds like the leash tension caused Kody’s tantrum. He was frustrated. Once in a while, my dog will shriek bloody murder as if I was beating the crap out of her if I don’t let her drag me over to some other dog. It happens. It is very stressful. Not getting to investigate is a significant “punishment” for the dog in that case. It’s just hard I think to convey that to them, that their behaviour caused them to miss out on a reward, since it (a distant smell or introduction) can’t be delivered with proper timing anyway.
I hope the move didn’t have too much to do with it, although you are probably a little more stressed than usual, which means that you’re more easily rattled and that your dog feels your stress, too. Just make sure he feels safe during the whole process and he’ll be completely fine. Dogs aren’t attached to places. If you’re doing several trips, you might want to move him FIRST so he never feels left behind.
You’re right, those situations are hard because I know Kody wants to just smell the person and I’m inadvertently punishing him by not letting him. The treats don’t always make up for it when he’s really curious. I think I need to work in more asking people if it’s okay if Kody smells them, because he loves doing that, and he’s been really good about it in the recent past.
That’s a good idea with regard to the move. I was trying to decide how and when to “move” Kody and I think I will move him first. That way he doesn’t have to be around when they are loading up the truck and I’ll just figure out what to do when they are unloading.
I moved with Bowie last year and she was so annoying!! I kept her with me as much as possible, and when I couldn’t I used a long tie-in where she wouldn’t be too much in the way but could still witness all the action. Good luck to ya. I hate moving.