Dachshunds are such interesting creatures! Bred for hunting a rather voracious creature such as badger takes a being of great courage and determination. Is it little wonder that Doxies have a big heart in addition to such an active mouth? Being of diminutive size does not do justice to their large way of being in the world.
My own Doxie, Nestle, goes through various unwrappings of emotional reactivity stemming from birth to recent events of his choosing. His latest "deal" has been to stare at the corner of his crate and growl while his dinner is being prepared. Now, his crate is on the "second story" where only he can access. Well, the cat can, but what cat wants DOG food when his own CAT food is one floor higher (and accessable only to him)? Nestle is secure, to be sure, but apparently NOT in his own mind! Meanwhile, Jazz, who's waiting in HER crate down on the main level is getting aggitated and growling in response to Nestle. Then, Elvis, waiting waaay over yonder in the hall and being so good, laying down patiently.... will eventually get up and bark his big, boistorous bark. By the time we get to this stage, I'm pretty edgy too. Dinner time should not go like this!
So, with determined calm (not easy at times!) I went to Nestle and gently took his face in my hands. His eyes glanced about wildly and his growls were punctuated by whines. He didn't have any idea what he should be feeling right now! Poor guy. We know that "alpha growling" hasn't worked. Yelling hasn't worked. Asking him to calm hasn't worked. Sending calming signals hasn't worked. Time for Ttouch! His lips were taught and his face tight, so I wen't straight into doing Ttouches about his face and quickly moved to his lips and gums. I found chilly areas along his gumline where I spent time doing Ttouches as well as gentle belly lifts and leg touches. Nestle has taught me that when he stresses, he stresses (physically) all over.
After only 3 minutes or so, Nestle was much more relaxed. His eyes were calmer and his shaking had stopped. So, I went back to completing the doggie dinner bowls. To my surprise, Nestle followed me and stayed at my feet, wagging his tail and smiling! Thanks to his quiet, the other two were happy and calmer as well. Whew!
Nestle has taught me that for him, Ttouches are most effective for his stress.... WHEN his is stressing. Quiet Ttouch sessions lay the foundation and help him to be calmer in the world and not stress/react so easily. But when he's stressing, the Ttouches really do their magic in reminding him that he can go ahead and calm.
This phenomonon has happened before. I was walking all three dogs down our street one afternoon when we encountered the (electronically enclosed) yard of three Weimeraners. A bark-match ensued and Nestle went into hyperactive reactive-stress mode. I maintained my calm and simply reached down and applied some well placed Ttouches along with gentle belly lifts to remind him to breath. In no time, all three of my dogs were calm and quiet. The weimeraner's calmed down too as their owner looked on in utter amazement.
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