ANXIETY!!!

Let's see... latest news... took Mar to dog park and a small dog wanted to play with him but he was too chicken and started to yelp. Dog parks don't seem that fun for him really. All he does is sniff the ground. Later we took him to tidy dog to wash him. I struggled with finding a shower setup to wash him at home.

I've been researching dog food. I think the purina brand i bought is crap. I think i'm going to try Innova Evo brand next time. It's one of the few kibble brands that is recommended on Leerburg.com. I really like the innova site.... they have a comprehensive comparison against all competitors and they tell you why each ingredient is good or bad. And Mar takes way too long to poo as well. That's usually a good indicator the food sucks.

So this weeks problems all stem from the fact that we found out he pee'd in the 3rd room. From what I've read dog's pee inside the home because they are nervous, fearful, anxious. I originally thought it was him being bored or acting out. When he acts out he goes into the trash, not pee. So we tried crate training him and for the first time we saw him go absolutely nuts. We taped him for 14 mins as we went to the market and he went nuts the entire time. I'm almost starting to think it's when I leave... not when anyone else leaves. The gf tried crate training him earlier today and he was fine. I tried it recently when I went to take a shower. he was fine until the middle of my shower when I could hear him. When I shut off the shower he stopped. I don't know if this meant anything so after I was done I walked back into the room and left again. then I opened and shut the door to the garage and he was fine. Did he get over it? it will probably take more time.

This morning when I left I left him in my room and he went nuts again. The gf had to kick him out. I wonder if this would be a good way to correct him for whining. We could leave the leash on him and I could leave the room and make all the usual noises when I leave.

I've also been leaving the leash on him all day. I'm not sure if it is a pyschological message to him saying he has no control. At least for a while I'm not going to give him any affection without him doing something for me. He was pretty good tonight. He even played fetch for me... but I had to give him the super happy attitude to get him excited. This time was pretty good because he would do it without a treat... the reward was me giving him affection.

Right now he's in his crate sleeping. I'm worried about the rain tomorrow. I won't be able to walk him. I actually had to take him on a 3rd walk today because he didn't go poo on the 2nd walk. Damn purina crap!