Yep, we’re definitely investing in good safety measures. It’s better to stay on board than to recover someone overboard.

I’ve even found inflatable PFDs for dogs that would allow Honey to wear protection that’s less bulky than a conventional life jacket.

I’d love to hear about your sailing adventures. We’re also looking at boats in the sub 35 feet range and people keep trying to push us larger.

Way to go, Harley!

It’s great to read about your success. So many people would rather avoid fearful things but it doesn’t do anything to help our dogs. And if the scary thing is right outside Harley’s house? Oh boy!

That’s wonderful that your vet was open to your slow approach with Pierson. Excellent example for teaching a dog to associate something positive with a potentially scary place.

I think people should do the same thing with their cats.

For me, a helpful concept is to distinguish between training and management. In some situations, it’s best just to move our dogs as quickly as possibly past the scary thing.

Training comes in when we can control the circumstances and can work toward a specific task.

I used to walk my last dog, Shadow, at 5 a.m. to avoid eruptions at other dogs. But we’d do training by sitting on the porch with treats and rewarding her for looking at a dog and then looking at me while remaining calm. If things go overwhelming, we could go inside.

It’s smart for you to think about BD’s relationship with Mity too.

That is a great suggestion, Edie.

I’ll add the link here for future readers: http://dogsinneedofspace.com/

Well, I’ve overcome some of them. Like telling people I’m moving aboard a sailboat.

New ones crop up every day. 🙂