Mia Semuta

What did we learn about Annie today?  She’s eager to please and terrified- in equal measure. 

I don’t think she loves to swim.  Certainly not like Ava and Pony do although she’s not as unimpressed with the creek as Gigi.  I’ll admit that the water was cold!  But still, she didn’t love being in it.  She didn’t splash and play like Evie but she obeyed when directed to go in.  And to sit.  She consented to having her picture taken.  In sum, she was such a good girl!

We let them all play a bit and had them pose for pictures around the garden.  She did everything we asked of her but when given the freedom to choose her own adventure she chose to lie under the bench I was sitting on.  She wants to belong to someone so badly, she wants to please and she wants to find security.

Obedience-wise, she is progressing brilliantly.  We have seen none of the theatrics or aggressive behaviors that made her last few placements unworkable.  I strongly believe that balanced training is changing this girl’s life.  She needed clear boundaries and strong leadership.  I’m lucky to have Pony in residence, he takes care of most of that for me.  Gigi is the professor of boundaries and Ava is a perfect playmate.  Evie will only be here for two days more but she, Annie and Ava have become the three musketeers! 

We will continue to work Annie through her report card and help her learn how to be a peaceful member of a household.  I’ll also continue to blog about her.  If I fail to blog one of these nights it’s because I finally won the Powerball and I’m keeping her. 😉

Please enjoy the pictures of Annie’s day; follow her story on this page and visit Char-Wills to complete an application for adoption.

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Here’s the thing about fostering dogs: ouch.  As a foster mom I have to break my own heart a little every time I do it.  She’s here, in my home; I’m treating her like one of my own.  I love her already.

As a trainer, I often have dogs staying with me and while I do love them all I know they have families waiting for them.  Families who love them and want the very best for them.  Even though it stings a bit to let them go when their time with me comes to an end I know they’re going back to their family- to their person.

My fosters don’t have a person.  When they are called out of play they simply run to a pack parent, any parent close by.  They don’t have a home to go to.  I do my best but I’m super picky so until the stars align and that perfect family is found I know they have nobody to call their own.  No family.  No place in this world.  It’s just one of the many little cracks that lead to the total break of my heart.

There is a point when it turns, however.  A point when the dog in training- especially a foster- when they suddenly just let go.  They let go of the fear and anxiety, they let go of the uncertainty and it seems they forget that they are bound to nothing and to no one.  They just let go and relax.  Ava had that moment sometime ago and I see her becoming more and more attached to my home.  It worries me as I cannot commit to a third dog forever.  She deserves her own family.

Annie had that moment today.  She was apprehensive at first, but she took a deep breath and politely greeted the other pack parents and her new packmates.  Her first play bow was received with great fanfare from both canine and human alike!  She ran for the car when presented with the creek but after some coaxing discovered that she loves to swim.  She ran, romped, rolled and relaxed with friends and people she can trust.  I found myself thinking, “If I move to a bigger house with a bigger yard…”

These girls deserve their own families.  They deserve people dedicated to helping them create their best lives.  I would love to be that person for each of them but then how will I have room for the next lost soul destined to break my heart?  That’s the exquisite agony of being a foster mom. 

Please enjoy the pictures of Annie’s day; follow her story on this page and visit Char-Wills to complete an application for adoption.

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Happy birthday, America! 💙🇺🇸❤️

Tonight‘s blog is just a quick update to let you know that our girl is progressing brilliantly. She had a short lesson with trainer Zach this morning before it got too hot and enjoyed some fun house time with her bunk mates. She is getting along brilliantly with Ava and Evie and really beginning to embrace life as a house dog. We are looking forward to introducing her to the pack tomorrow.

Please enjoy the pictures of Annie’s day; follow her story on this page and visit Char-Wills to complete an application for adoption.

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We had a couple of big wins today!  First, I’m pretty sure Annie knows her name.  She’s beginning to respond when called and is eagerly receiving affection.

I like to change dogs’ names when they’ve come from difficult situations.  One of the most common mistakes people make when scolding or correcting their dogs is to use their names with a negative tone.  We, as humans, understand context so much better than dogs.  If I’m annoyed with my sister and I say, “Megan!” in an exasperated tone she usually knows why.  Dogs are much simpler and they equate the sound of the word with the behavior connected to it.  When you scold your dog by growling or shouting, “Fido!” they may come to fear their name.  I like to give them a fresh start.

Today Annie showed us that she knows who she is and she likes it!  We introduced her to her bunkmates, Ava and Evie, and to packmate, Maisey.  These four girls are all very close in age and have all the ingredients to be an incredible girl band.  I loved watching her embrace having friends her own age.

She had a great solo lesson with Zach and was introduced to place and stay.  That’s 4 out of the 6 basic commands she’s begun to embrace.  We also introduced her to some new people and have a working theory.  She may be leash-reactive.  I’m not quite ready to make a full declaration just yet but it appears she gets nervous and acts out when she feels cornered.  It’s fairly common and fairly easy to modify so we will see.

I’m already feeling that familiar urge to say, “Come on, sweet girl, come sleep upstairs with us.”  However, I will stay strong.  I will do this baby no favors by adding a bad habit on top of the wonderful new good ones we are making!  When she finds the perfect home she will be a great snuggle buddy for her forever family, I will just be content in her allowing me to rub her belly and tell her how amazing she is going to be.

Please enjoy the pictures of Annie’s day; follow her story on this page and visit Char-Wills to complete an application for adoption.

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Annie began formal training today.  She appears to be quite bright, a very quick study.  I would not be surprised if she has had some training in her short, checkered past.

Our philosophy at Mia Semuta Dog Training is that we take every new student through the basics to establish a strong foundation on which to build.  We started Annie as we do all students: heel and sit.  Heel is so much more than walking nicely on a leash.  Heel establishes the relationship between the human and the dog.  Humans lead, dogs follow.  Period.  A dog on a leash should walk at the handler’s side, canine shoulder to human heel.  When the person stops the dog sits.  It’s really quite simple.

I know there is a school of thought out there that advises people to allow their dogs to sniff and explore on their daily walk, to allow them to extend to the end of the leash, to be curious, etc.  I disagree.  I disagree vehemently!  On leash time is work time, off leash time is play time.  Annie will learn to be respectful and attentive on leash by heeling.  When she is ready to earn off-leash privileges then she can sniff and roam and explore and roll in stinky stuff to her heart’s delight!

She spent some time outside today with my dogs, Pony and Gigi, and then had some free-roam time in the house with them as well.  She is quite social and eager to understand the pack rules.  She’s not as pleasant when in her crate and approached by the other dogs but that’s totally understandable.  Right now, that crate is the only thing that is hers.  It is her safest place, her refuge.  When the other dogs put their faces up to her door she tells them to back off.  (I do the same thing with my neighbors’ bratty kids.)

As I sit here typing this piece, my home is full of loving, calm energy.  Two fosters, two of my own and a student are all peacefully lounging in my living room.  Three in their crates- two with the doors wide open, one on the couch and one at my feet.  They are chewing on bones, snuggling with stuffies and just enjoying the art of doing nothing.  Tonight, Little Annie, you are an orphan no more.  You have four siblings and a mom who is dedicated to finding the perfect home and family for you.  Rest easy, sweet girl, what’s done is done.  Your life is now.

Please enjoy the pictures of Annie’s day; follow Annie’s story on this page and visit Char-Wills to complete an application for adoption.

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Through no fault of her own, this little girl is without a family.  She’s about nine-months old and has been through at least four homes in her short life.   She’s now arrived at Villa Mia- her fifth home- for a two-week stay to learn how to trust people and to be adopted once and for all.  She’s a petite German Shepherd; most likely the product of an irresponsible backyard breeder who threw her out with the trash.  This little orphan is smart and capable but she’s terrified and needs to learn how to be a dog instead of a scrappy street kid just surviving her hard-knock life.  Are you out there, Daddy Warbucks?  She comes with training support for life.  Welcome to the pack, Annie.

Please follow Annie’s story on this page and visit Char-Wills to complete an application for adoption.