Mocha sometimes gets pretty possessive over balls. We’re still trying to teach him to give the ball back after fetching it, without much success.
Meanwhile, Melvin looks on, practically begging to play with the ball too. C’mon, Mocha. Share the ball, boy, share the ball.
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We just got Mocha a donut dog bed as an early holiday present and he hasn’t been out of it since. Well, he’s been out to poop, pee, eat, and play, but that’s about it.
We’re glad to see you like your present, boy!
Apparently Mocha is a soccer fan. He’s watching this game intently, even seeming tense when someone’s about to score. Fun game, huh boy?
Goooaaal!
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Uh oh… Looks like somebody’s been playing in the mud.
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Mocha loves playing fetch. Unfortunately, he only likes the first half of fetch – the “I’ll go get the ball” part.
The “And I’ll bring it back” part? Not so much.
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Yesterday’s post made me a little sad. Mocha has been frustrating. He scares our friends and neighbors. His 2AM barks disrupt our sleep. Exercise doesn’t seem to be helping. It has definitely been frustrating.
But for all that we are frustrated with him, we are also very thankful for him. I’ve seen other dogs that are a handful and a half. Mocha has lots of great points. So here is a list of why we are thankful for Mocha:
Happy Thanksgiving!
Tho… I don’t think Mocha had a very happy one himself.
We dropped him off at a kennel back in September. Since then, he seems to have developed a case of stranger anxiety. At least, that’s my theory.
Before the kennel, he didn’t bark much. After that, he’s been getting increasingly vicious. I don’t think it’s aggression, since his body language hints at fear more than anger. Neighbors, strangers, odd noises at 2AM in the morning, he’ll bark at anything scary.
Then at a camping trip, he lunged at some friends with bared teeth. The growls were a distinctive, “Stay away from me” warning. Lunges are now part of his daily repertoire too.
I watch enough Dog Whisperer to know that us – Mocha’s owners – could be triggering this defensive move with our own anxiety. So we’ve worked hard to maintain a calm & assertive demeanor.
The other problem could be a lack of exercise. However, after alternating days of three-mile runs and dog park romps, he’s still a barking, growling, lunging mess of anxiousness. We might not be exercising him enough though; he might need a marathon to tire his ass out.
Which leads me to why Mocha was in a crate on Thanksgiving. We visited some friends who have young children. Admittedly, we were a little worried about how Mocha would react to them, but remained calm & assertive when introduced him to the others.
We had him on a loose leash while I stood in front of him in a calm, dominant stance. He had on a new PetSafe Bark Control Collar we purchased.
And what did he do?
He barked and lunged at the children. :( He also lunged at an aunt and both parents of the children. His teeth almost bit through their mother’s pants.
This resigned him to an evening in the crate alone, unfortunately.
It was great to see family and friends this Thanksgiving. But for me, the weekend was dampened with concerns for Mocha. What are we doing wrong? What can we do to help this poor guy? Maybe we ought to call up Cesar Milan one day.
I have a dog hammock for the back seat of my car. On long road trips, sometimes Mocha likes to rest his head on the edge to try to be as close as he can to Mommy and Daddy. It’s like he’s saying, “What are you guys doing? Can I see?” But then he closes his eyes and falls asleep in that position, just like you see here. Poor tired little guy.
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Mocha loves playing tug-of-war. And, apparently, he likes playing tug-of-dog now too.
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Mocha is a playful 1-year old 25 lb mutt we rescued from a local animal shelter. He loves to run, play, and eat. Don't you?
Mike is was the proud owner of this adorable little guy. We miss him terribly every day.
