Training Zeus, a small chihuahua-like mix, has been one of my more interesting experiences at the shelter.

Zeus has PTSD due to some bad experiences with guys. He’s wary and slow to trust new people and if you’re a dude with a goatee, good luck!

I love all dogs, big and small. We don’t get to do behavior training with small dogs often so the opportunity to work with Zeus got me really excited.

Excited, but also a little defeated right off the bat.

The first two times Zeus hung out in a room at the shelter with me and a behaviorist, you could tell he wanted nothing to do with me. I tossed him super tasty wet food, he’d ignore it or come over for a sniff only to walk away.

On my third session with Zeus, he came over and sniffed me. Progress!

Yesterday we tried something that I was almost certain would not work: I went to Zeus’ kennel to see if he would let me leash him and take him out for a walk.

I figured I’d try, but expected Zeus to take one look at me and retreat to the back of his kennel.

The opposite happened! He ran up to the kennel gate with a wagging tail and big grin on his face. My heart nearly exploded. 💗

“Yay, get me out of here! I don’t care who you are!” was probably what was going through his head. I like to think that he may have thought for a split second “Hey, this dude is a cool dude. Come get me out!” 🙂 Maybe the truth is somewhere in the middle.

We went for a nice walk and then headed back to the behavior room where Zeus seemed less worried about me.

A couple times, he came over and put his paws on my leg. One time he perched on my lap as I laid on the ground and pawed his way up my chest.

The best was when he rolled over next to me.

What’s interesting is I haven’t even tried to pet him. We’re not there yet.

It’s small progress, but it’s super rewarding.

Hang in there and be brave, Zeus!

Zeus getting some extra rest after a long day.