# Sticky  Mollys story



## 2ndhandgal

Molly came to me when she was 18 months old as her previous owners were struggling too much with her behaviour and in their words she was attacking their younger dog for no reason at all. I was assured she had never been aggressive to the humans in her family especially the two children she lived with - but found out a few nights later that was not true when she stood on my bed and informed me with teeth it was hers now and I was not to go near it  (this was confirmed later from her old vet records when they had spoken to the vet about her aggression to the children and adults)

She had not been walked much so pulled on the lead enough to make herself choke, had never been offlead and when I gave her a long line to run on all she wanted to do was chase birds so she showed me no attention at all and just ran after the closest bird and barked wildly at it. She apparently knew sit - but her owners could not demonstrate this  so she was pretty much totally untrained - and prepared to use her teeth to get her own way 

I had been assured she was fine left for up to 4 hours - but also found she had severe separation anxiety and freaked out totally as soon as the door was shut. A brief try with her in a crate led to her scraping her paws in an attempt to get out.

So - my lovely new dog was a resource guarder, with separation anxiety and zero training - this is her then - sad, shut down and not a happy girl 



The most pressing need was her separation anxiety as I work so I agreed with a trainer friend (the one who's fault it was that I have her) that I would take her to her house while I was at work and pick her up after work, although the slight flaw in that plan was her behaviour with other dogs and aggression towards them 

I have now had her for three years and she has come a long way!! Resource guarding only rears its head now and then when she gets stressy about things, she goes off lead and (usually!!) behaves well even if there are birds to be chased and she is pretty good with other dogs although can be a ratbag now and then and will bully Chance sometimes if she thinks she can get away with it. We go to training classes for fun and she enjoys learning new things and showing off very much.

She also copes with being left although would still rather not be left if possible. We have had health causing a few complications with her needing treatment for luxating patella and also pancreatitis which led to her needing several nights in the emergency vets (and is the reason I now have a dog with a history of resource guarding who sleeps on my bed - possibly not the wisest decision ever!!)

Getting a puppy sister was a huge decision and caused much stress for both of us initially but that has worked out pretty well too now and I think I can safely say she is a happy reasonably behaved girl. All done with positive reward based training.


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## dio.ren

Amazing story...she is a lucky girl to have you!


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## arlo

Thank goodness your friend pointed you in her direction, it could have so easily been a different story, she really did need an extra special owner who would put in the time and love she needed. You have done a brilliant job and well done to Chance for being so patient. Lovely photo of them running. I love a happy ending


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## wellerfeller

I have made this a sticky, Molly's story and your commitment to helping her could be helpful to many on here. Thanks for sharing.


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## Cat 53

She looks so happy, Chance does too.....I hope you know the difference you've made to her....you have given her life. . I am in awe of you. Big hugs.


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## 2ndhandgal

Blimey - no reason for anyone to be in awe of me and my ratbag. She was meant to be a simple problem free dog when I initially agreed to take her  

She was lucky enough to have owners who realised they were totally out of their depth and seek help and make the choice to do the best for Molly and let my friend find a home for her rather than try to sell her. I was lucky enough to have the experience to know how to deal with her and some very supportive friends. 

As an interesting after point - this year has been really hard at work and to add to this a while back I had a few weeks of real defiant problem behaviour with her. She was stealing anything she could, climbing onto the table and generally defying me every way she could which I really did not need at the same times as being stressed from work. When I talked it over with my friend I realised it all stemmed from a really bad day I had at work when I had come home and shouted at her for something and nothing  

Took a bit of thinking but the next time I saw her on the table  instead of telling her to get down I just said hello to her and walked past a few times and even gave her a fuss. She got down without being told, and when I sat down she came and settled on my lap with a sigh and really relaxed with me in a way she had not for the last couple of weeks. 

So my baby ratbag had been misbehaving for weeks because I had stressed her out and presumably made her feel insecure  

Work is still a bit rubbish but I am trying now to make more fun time for the dogs and not bring a bad mood home with me.


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## Tinman

Brilliant story about Molly, and a very happy ending. You never gave up on her and it has worked out so well for all involved xx


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## wellerfeller

It could have so easily gone the other way for her, she could have been sold on to unwitting new owners, who also probably wouldn't have been able to cope with her. She would have been passed on and on, each time her issues manifesting into something bigger. Molly is a lucky girl and very sensitive to her mum by the sound of it. Well done to you and to Miss Molly.


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## Cat 53

What a sensitive little rat bag you have. Actually I have noticed mine are less likely to do as I want if they are spoken to harshly........guess we all need to practice calm around our fur babies.


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## PoppyLove

You should feel very proud of yourself and Molly. Rescue dogs, particularly those who got off to a bad start in life, are hard work and require a lot of time and patience - and doggy knowhow (whether intuitive or taught). Molly really did land on her feet coming to you and she'll reward you with a deep loyalty and special bond that comes from a pooch that has been rescued. Thank you for sharing.


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## fairlie

Molly is a very lucky girl, a very heartwarming story.


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## emjon123

Lovely story and gorgeous dogs. So glad Molly got the family she needed. Inspirational!


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## 2ndhandgal

PoppyLove said:


> Molly really did land on her feet coming to you and she'll reward you with a deep loyalty and special bond that comes from a pooch that has been rescued.


She is more likely to reward me with bankrupting me with her health issues and grumbling at me if I read her wrong  but she is MY girl now and nothing is going to change that


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## meloww

Aww such a lovely story - the difference in the pictures say it all <3

Lucky Molly, it was fate that brought her to such a patient, understanding owner.

I hope she's feeling well majority of the time & credit to you.


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## RuthMill

Enjoyed reading this thank you. Glad it's been made a sticky!


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## 2ndhandgal

Awww thanks - I need to be very careful with her food because of her pancreatitis but as long as I stick to that she is absolutely fine the vast majority of the time. She also has no current problems with her knees and other than a vet visit every few months for some acupuncture to make sure she is pain free is totally fine and perfectly happy bossing me and Chance around


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## spoodle45

thanks for sharing.


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## Millie123

Very good to read this- feel encouraged


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## Vagabond

Read this story with great interest and I commend you for your patience and hard work! I was particularly interested in the afternote about her behaviour being affected by your moods. We've noticed that our girl is quite sensitive too and although it hasn't really manifested in bad behaviour, I'll take extra care in the future! Thanks for sharing your story.


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## Dennis

Hi I have just joined & am very worried about my 5 month old !
Very intelligent, very quickly picked up going out , never messing in house , sits , lays .
But has this evil eye look 4 no reason , can be cuddling up 2 me , then turns into devil !!! 
He also has guarding issue with food , & chews ( have now stopped giving the chews) his treats r biscuits he eats in one go . 
Really worried this will get worse the bigger he gets ! 
Any advice would be greatly appreciated, he is such a lovely dog 
Thanks


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## 2ndhandgal

Hello Dennis and welcome

At 5 months it should be fairly easy to resolve with your lad - it just takes a bit of a different mindset. I would also say it may be well worth getting a good reward based trainer to have a visit and set you both on the right track. If you are in the UK and can let me know where you are I can find someone for you if you want to explore this route. Run a mile from anyone talking dominance and putting your dog in its place - that will make resource guarding very much worse.

What you need to do is realise your lad is guarding things because he is worried he is going to lose them - so you need to help him learn that is not a problem. It can happen with large litters sometimes if the pups have felt they had to fight to get food. When feeding make sure he is always left in peace, but you can start to add bits of tasty food to his bowl. It all depends how worried he is how you start this, approaching too directly can lead to even more worry if he is very concerned now so you may need to start gently throwing tasty bits of food near him as he eats and progress to closer as he gets more relaxed. A worried dog will hunch over the bowl and eat quickly, you are aiming for a dog who see's a human near their food and looks up with interest to see if you have something and is otherwise unconcerned.

Likewise with treats and toys and particularly stolen things, you are aiming to teach the dog he has nothing to fear.

Teaching a solid leave and give can be really useful, practised with things he is not worried about to start with and working your way up to more high value stuff.

Not too sure about the cuddling and then turning into the devil - that could be a normal 5 month old pup deciding cuddles over and time for play???


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## Jackson2017

Dennis said:


> Hi I have just joined & am very worried about my 5 month old !
> Very intelligent, very quickly picked up going out , never messing in house , sits , lays .
> But has this evil eye look 4 no reason , can be cuddling up 2 me , then turns into devil !!!
> He also has guarding issue with food , & chews ( have now stopped giving the chews) his treats r biscuits he eats in one go .
> Really worried this will get worse the bigger he gets !
> Any advice would be greatly appreciated, he is such a lovely dog
> Thanks


At 5 months this sounds quite normal

Our little guy is 6 months old and we often comment on "the look in his eye" but in a funny way as when he wants to play or go crazy he does get a look that says "I'm about to go Cray Cray" 

It's almost a way of him telling us he has energy to use or time for a walk perhaps

I wouldn't be too worried this early on unless you feel you are in fear of him


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## Puffin

What a lovely story with a happy ending 2handgal.  well done you.
I am an experienced dog owner now in my 70s I started working with and training dogs aged 15 and I have to say in some ways my CD puppy is the most difficult of all the puppies I have had. Puffin is very bright that might be the trouble she is certainly the most 'bitey'.


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## 2ndhandgal

Awww thank you Puffin, most of my dogs have been rescues and Molly was one of the toughest, she is also incredibly smart and whilst her knee problems put paid to an agility career for her she has enjoyed trick training and scent work. 

She is getting old and creaky now unfortunately but she is a very long way from the sad girl I bought home with all her worries and issues.


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