Dog Training Update: Hyped-Up Hiding

My absence and recent spike in stress wreaks havoc on Lilly. It’s a terrible feeling to know my actions and emotions impact her well-being. Lilly is hiding … a lot. While I recently discovered the peace of hiding in the dark, alongside Lilly, I still feel icky about her feeling the need to hide out … especially when I’m home so much less these days.

When we cannot find her easily and she chooses NOT to respond when we call her, here is the list of places we check:

  • Crate in the basement (even Ginko has taken to hanging out down stairs in his crate with the door open … howz that for a kick in the tummy?)
  • Crate in the dining room
  • Behind the toilet in the master bathroom
  • Inside her agility tunnel
  • Front corner of the garage
  • The tall grass that makes up our reversed crop circles in the pastures
  • Under the picnic table on the back deck

I try not to make a big deal of out of her hiding. Sometimes, I scoop her up and carry her to the sofa, where we hunker down together.

best dog blog, 2010, champion of my heart, tunnel photoI find the tunnel the newest and funniest spot … in part because of what I said in my 2010 acceptance speech for the Best Dog Blog Award about tunnels and troubles and dreams.

P.S. We announced it on Facebook, but we did NOT win again this year. Thanks everyone, nonetheless, for the nomination and votes. Congrats to Carol Bryant from Fido Friendly (and all the others) on the win. I said last year she was unbeatable. This year, I was right.