LIfe is funny. The other day I was at my parent's house, watching Ender hang out with my mom in the kitchen. I was hit with a holy shit moment, realizing how far we have come with him. His first visit to my parent's house promptly got him banned. Now, my mom asks when he's coming over.
But it is these moments that have me complacent. That maybe Ender is now "good enough." Then life reminds you that good enough is not going to cut it. We got the official break up letter from Ender's dog walker, informing us that group walks with him is not going to work out any longer. An excerpt from the letter(s):
"[We] concluded that group walks are not working for him. Lucia had hoped that she would be able to do more training with him, but it's not possible with five other dogs in the crew, so he's not making the progress she had hoped for. He's a pretty challenging guy to incorporate in the mix--specifically the difficulty around controlling him when they encounter 'new' dogs on the trail."
"Ender is still so excitable when we see new dogs. If we are rushed by off-leash dogs, which is happening more and more, sometimes the only way I can stop Ender from his preferred greeting of jumping on the other dogs head, is to hold him back physically with my hands or a tight leash. I worry if that happens too often he may develop some leash-reactivity."
My stubborn self is convinced we can get Ender to that point where he can roam wild and free. The other side of me questions whether or not I'm trying to turn Ender into a dog he isn't meant to be.
So here we are.
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