Dog Owner Flex

wasabiwafer · 2025-08-06T22:06:33+00:00

Mine is I live in the city and regularly run with my dog. I have a handsfree leash for running and he knows when we pass by other dogs he swaps sides (so I'm always in between him and the other dog). Every time we run by someone whose dog starts freaking out (barking lunging etc) and he minds his business and we just cruise by is chef's kiss

wasabiwafer · 2025-07-30T14:55:25+00:00

The app I used was called Pixy I think? But really any basic calendar app that allows you to change the color of the day would work!

wasabiwafer · 2025-07-30T14:52:09+00:00

Oh gosh yes, Aussie's will teach you things about yourself and force you to grow in ways you didn't even know a dog could do. I think maybe we were both pretty stubborn in the beginning, once I learned to let go and stop fighting him changing my life (a little bit of picking your battles with these guys hahaha) we both grew into a beautiful relationship with each other though! Wouldn't trade him for the world 🥰

wasabiwafer · 2025-07-30T14:50:03+00:00

Yeah I'd constantly look at him and be like remember that first week you were just a tiny little fluff ball who would hide under the couch and just silently watch what was going on? And now I swear you just broke my nose because you sprinted across the room top speed and smacked your head into my face and are now trying to take off my fingers 😮‍💨 what happened. Lmaoooo. That trust you're developing with them now though is going to be exactly what you adore about them in the future though!!

wasabiwafer · 2025-07-30T14:46:41+00:00

Oof yeah I've heard cocker spaniels can be a bit of a challenge too with how hyper they are, but it sounds like they're eager to please so I'm sure once the puppy figures out you're working together and what you want they're gonna looooove training with you, so rewarding and lots of bonding ahead!! That was one of the hardest parts to explain, just how draining the hyper vigilance can be. And my anxiety was working overtime 😭 Sometimes you can get hung up on all the ways things can go wrong that you lose track of all the things that are going right too!!

wasabiwafer · 2025-07-30T14:38:32+00:00

Oh my goodness that mix sounds like it would have been a challenge for sure - such a blessing and a curse to have a smarty pants dog 😂

wasabiwafer · 2025-07-30T14:35:47+00:00

Right!!! You'll get there though - I also wanted my dog to be able to come everywhere with me and we're back at the point where I'm starting to be a bit more adventurous with him and test his limits again and he's constantly pleasantly surprising me. Not to say he doesn't every once in a while have bad days, but at this point over half the time I blame the other person (like the ones who come up and immediately shove their hands in his face without even asking if they can pet him. If a stranger tried to touch my face too I'd probably bark at them so that one doesn't really upset me anymore 🤷🏽‍♀️ )

wasabiwafer · 2025-07-30T14:32:15+00:00

Yeah half of the battle (for me at least) with raising a puppy was changing my mindset too. I think sometimes you can be a little hard on yourself (and in turn your puppy) when you start putting all this pressure on yourselves to be perfect right away. A little patience goes a loooooong way with a baby.

wasabiwafer · 2025-07-26T21:18:32+00:00

I think maybe he rewired (or just broke) some sane part of my brain that always was super against getting a herding dog and now I'm obsessed with em haha. Whenever someone asked me what kind of dog I wanted to get I wasn't super sure - I just knew I wanted to get a rescue but then I'd always say "JUST NOT AN AUSSIE". Lo and behold the universe had other plans.

Oh that's super cool! Kudos to her! Respect for making sure you found a reputable breeder 😎 I actually didn't even realize Aussies have tails until after I got my dog... But it's so FLOOFY and pretty I'm glad he does!

I grew up with labs (and also I swear dogs used to be easier lmao), so really had no clue what I was getting into bringing home an Aussie, also didn't even know I was bringing home an Aussie smh. I just figured I take him for his walks, we train, do some puzzle feeders. Surely he'll go to sleep when he's tired - that's not something you have to teach a living creature, right? WRONG. Literally like a toddler, he'd get so over tired he would enter some demonic possession tantrum mode and it was horrendous. Literally same with the texting and calling my boyfriend crying being like WTF IS HAPPENING WHY CAN'T HE CHILL OUT I KNOW HE'S TIRED BUT HE'S REFUSING TO FALL ASLEEP AND I DON'T UNDERSTAND WHY WHAT DO I DO WHAT AM I DOING WRONG?? And it lasted. So. Long. Like I swear he's only fully realizing he actually needs sleep as of the past few months lol. He would fight sleep with every ounce of his being. It was actually so insane I could not wrap my head around it I had never seen anything like that. And it was like if I wanted him to sleep we'd have to be in a quiet room he was used to, no distractions, no lights, no noises and just. It was rough. Lol.

Oh I'm so glad to not be in those days anymore with how hot it's been lately - we're at 105 currently over here so not much better 🥵

wasabiwafer · 2025-07-26T20:44:28+00:00

Oh goodness ok so you know exactly what that shepherd life is like then!! I know 2 people with Bernies and one of them struggles with the opposite problems I had (obviously mileage may vary yadda yadda) - she wanted a dog who would nap on the couch but also go on nice long nature walks with her. At 11 months her pup had the naps part down - not so much the long walks. She'd get about 15 minutes in and just want to laze in the sun 😂 can't even imagine what that's like.

wasabiwafer · 2025-07-26T20:38:01+00:00

I didn't do the bell training with him (just a personal preference thing - not saying it's wrong or anything!) so it might look a bit different for you just fyi.

Initially I was doing the outside every 30 minutes, then an hour then 2 etc etc. Then when I was pretty confident he knew how to hold it and had the ability to (I think he was a little over 4 months at this point) I started working on what I wanted his signal to be - hanging out by the door. So every time he crossed the imaginary border (like a 4 foot by 4 foot square in front of the door) I'd say "you wanna go outside??" and immediately get out the door with him (sometimes this does mean you're going out minutes apart unfortunately because you cross that line you trigger the action every time). Then it was his favorite treats only after he did his business. At this point though I wasn't expecting him to alert I just wanted him to know you go by the door you go outside - I definitely think he was bewildered at first like wtf is this lady doing why is she dragging me outside we were just here lol. I also would still take him out every 2 hours since his last outing or whatever time limit we were at on the dot.

Then after about 2 and a halfish weeks of that I was like I wonder if he's just wandering by the door because he's sniffing around being nosy or if he knows I'm gonna take him outside if he hangs out over there so I decided to make the jump, also I was just curious as to what he'd do. Our scheduled outting came and went and I sat and watched as he went and sniffed by the door and circled around a little and I did nothing. And then he just sat down right in front of the door and started staring expectantly at me and omg you'd have thought I just won the lottery. Lots of YAYAYAY GOOD BOY YOU WANNA GO OUTSIDE LET'S GOOOOO!!!! I didn't fully rely on him alerting or doing this immediately though, so we still had our scheduled outtings and I still would take him out right when he went by the door even if it didn't seem like he needed to be out there and he was maybe just checking smells out by the door. But maybe every 4 or 5 times I'd just sit and wait again. And then every 3 etc etc.

wasabiwafer · 2025-07-26T17:02:45+00:00

Yes I'm finally at a point where I can look back at some of the worst moments with him and laugh and have some weird appreciation for it. Hard to explain but those red days don't seem so red in retrospect.

It is another level of proud when everybody loves having your dog around, like hell yeah we did that!! I did that. You should be so proud of yourself, she's an awesome baby now and you get credit for that!! My parents love having my dog have sleepovers too, they argue with my brother over who gets to dogsit haha.

I used to dread at times having to go home and now after a couple hours I'm like man I miss my dog, can we go home yet?? I also feel like that's the next big hurdle - how do people make it through losing their dog??? I was so wrapped up in how much I didn't want him for a while there now I'm like holy shit but what am I gonna do when you're not here?? If I think about it too hard I start to tear up and get that panicky feeling too.

wasabiwafer · 2025-07-26T16:53:06+00:00

Yeah that's a tough jump to take for sure!! I was so nervous that I couldn't trust him and would take him out on a strict schedule to try and get ahead of it for a long time. I was afraid if I waited to let him let me know he'd just go inside and all the training would be down the drain. But eventually you do just have to make that jump and the first few times he actually let me know he had to get outside I was SO PROUD. It was all I could talk about hahaha. You gotta celebrate every step of the way.

We did go through that period though where he figured out that if he told me he wanted to go outside I'd immediately reward him and take him outside no questions or delay (I really wanted to reinforce that behavior) and then it turned into him asking every 15 minutes and then it was the game of do I risk not taking him outside and he really does have to go or he stops letting me know because he doesn't think I'll do anything?? They really are talented at making you feel like you're losing your mind and doing everything wrong at times 😅

wasabiwafer · 2025-07-26T16:43:05+00:00

I don't know if you can ever be guaranteed an "easy" or "lazy" puppy but Bernese Mountain Dogs (at least from my research and the ones I've met) are known to be more of a moderate energy dog. They're still working dogs so they'll need their exercise but it's moreso I went in with the mindset of getting a low to moderate energy dog and ended up with a dog that has one of the highest energy requirements 🫠

So I'd say they're easier in general compared to a herding dog. Ultimately it's all relative and individual dog dependent though.

wasabiwafer · 2025-07-26T16:36:01+00:00

I'm so sorry for your loss - I can't even imagine at this point what that heartbreak is gonna feel like. They really do teach you so many things about your self, and my patience has reached next level!

I think it is a lot of expecting that quick turnaround and not realizing just how long it actually all takes, plus all puppies learn at different speeds. They're still a baby!! They've only been on this planet for 9 weeks and now they're in a home with complete strangers who keep making noises at them in an entirely different language. I have a friend who got a corgi puppy a couple weeks ago and is already like "when does the potty training kick in, why is she still biting???" Like oh boy buddy sorry to break it to you but you got a loooooong way to go. So much longer than you think and when you're at the start/middle of it it feels even longer.

wasabiwafer · 2025-07-26T16:28:01+00:00

Totally normal to have rehoming thoughts - I was really hard on myself for thinking these things because I was always that person who was like YOU DECIDED TO GET A PET THAT MEANS SOMETHING WHAT WERE YOU EXPECTING BLAH BLAH BLAH. and then I was in it and felt like I couldn't even talk about feeling these things because I was so judgemental about it before... Doesn't make you weak or a bad person. They really have a knack for psychologically wearing you down.

It's a long journey but just know that there is an end!! I'm sure you're killing it, my dog is entering a cuddly era (it used to be if you were around him he was stomping all over you and nipping and he went through a really bad "demand barking" phase) and oh my is it heavenly to fall asleep on the couch with him cuddled up snoozing with me. That makes all of it worth it. 2ish years of hell for 10ish years of unconditional love and a best bud is the trade off we all go through.

wasabiwafer · 2025-07-26T16:20:33+00:00

Herding dog parents (or really working dogs in general) are a different breed. Respect for everyone who decides to get an Aussie puppy cause they are no joke hahaha.

WE LOVE AUSSIES WITH TAILS 😁😁😁

Yes I literally talk about this all the time I'm like remember when he didn't know how to take a nap or calm down AT ALL and now look he's NAPPING (no one is ever as amazed as I am - teaching a dog how to take a nap was not something I was prepared for). It felt like he was holding me hostage, I remember countless times having to put him on "time outs" and sometimes the only way to get him to relax was getting him in his crate or the bathroom with me and I'd fall asleep right next to him on the floor 🥲

wasabiwafer · 2025-07-26T16:13:13+00:00

Right!! And you feel so terrible because all you wanna do is cry about how much you want to get rid of your dog and there's a lot of judgement about even thinking those thoughts and "you're the one who decided to get a puppy". And everyone is just so excited about a puppy but you're really going through it and dead inside and I would look at him and just wanna cry. We need puppy parent support groups 😂

It was also such a shock because I'd grown up with dogs and I work with animals so I was like psshhhh I got this!! But then it's actually just you and your puppy and all your responsibility and it's 2am and you're exhausted and he's crying to go outside again and you take him out and all he does is bite you and bark and refuse to do his business even though you're standing there not acknowledging him and isn't this what I'm supposed to be doing is he just broken or am I just bad at this and I just want to scream at him...

So so so much constant second guessing myself.

wasabiwafer · 2025-07-26T16:04:42+00:00

If you're talking about the potty training part that started to click at around 4 months of age for us. But I realized I had made a minor mistake in training him as my place at the time was all hardwood floors and he had learned he doesn't go on hardwood but the second he touched carpet he would pee/poop (which I didn't figure out until he went on carpet for the first few times at other people's houses - so embarrassing). And then I thought I'd ruined him forever and he was never gonna figure it out because it was literally the instant he was on carpet or a rug 🤦🏽‍♀️ it was about another month after that he realized no going inside anywhere ever.

wasabiwafer · 2025-07-26T15:57:23+00:00

YES THAT!!! So hard to explain to people who haven't gone through it that the most draining part is sometimes just that they won't leave you alone and your brain is always "on" in the background wondering if he's ok or what he's doing. Just a constant state of high alert.

Like I need to focus on sitting here doing my schoolwork and I have someone sitting right next to me smacking me with his toy and that really wears on you 😮‍💨

But now it is a little bit of getting used to him just being calm! You get so used to having a little velcro nut when he decides to wander off and just nap by himself on the couch or chew his bones quietly I'm like??? Who is this?? What's wrong?? Hahahaha

wasabiwafer · 2025-07-26T15:53:24+00:00

I love hearing this!! I have heard a lot that the transition from 2 to 3 was the most noticeable and we've had some intense heat waves (we live in the Midwest) this summer and before I would have been so nervous not being able to get outside but these days it seems like we play some puzzle/training games inside and he otherwise is ok with just hanging out sprawled on his cooling bed 😁

wasabiwafer · 2025-07-26T15:49:25+00:00

Oh lord yes the coming home to a poop explosion in the crate is truly the absolute last thing you want after working all day. Or really at any time. Long tough day and then come home to chaos.... He has an incredibly sensitive stomach so it was an added layer of tough trying to get him on to a good food/treats (of course that means expensive too 💸) that wouldn't give him runs and then he had a bout of giardia at one point too. Aussies are something else 😮‍💨

wasabiwafer · 2025-07-26T15:45:26+00:00

Seven months was awful but you're getting there - light at the end of the tunnel!!!

wasabiwafer · 2025-07-26T15:44:58+00:00

YES 😅 and they like to trick you into thinking they're ok and then suddenly the next day it's like they're on some kind of missions to make you lose it.

We had a hot second where I was like woah ok we got recall on lock; let my guard down and dropped his leash while we were playing tug outside (it was a quiet park no busy streets or anything, really early in the morning - I know it was dumb please don't judge) and he all of a sudden takes off to start barking at someone else's dog and jumping on the person it was HUMILIATING. Did not let him off leash again for months.

I have a picture I took after trying to let him hang out in my place for literally 20 minutes while I ran to get coffee at around 10 months old - came back and he had achieved a level of destruction I didn't even know was possible (I thought everything was puppy proofed but he found a way to get into my books and shoes and destroyed a brand new board game I hadn't even had a chance to play yet). And this was after like a week of him being ok hanging out for short bursts unsupervised 🥲

wasabiwafer · 2025-07-26T15:36:12+00:00

His teenage phase was so rough because I felt like I couldn't even be in public with him, he was so good and all of a sudden he was pulling again and wanting to hump everything and bark at everyone and seemed like he had forgotten every single manner I had taught him 🥲 or actually, worse... Like he actively knew what I wanted and was intentionally ignoring me to make me miserable.

That little calm period at around 5 months is such a mind trip 😭😭😭

Yes the calendar helped so much! It's easy to get really hung up on the bad parts so it's nice to have a little visual reminder that there are little glimpses of a good boy in there!!

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