Chohk Dee
Hi Sabrina, hoping you’re keeping well?
Well, it’s been a month now so I thought I’d update you on Chohk Dee 🙂
Firstly, it’s been beautiful to witness Chohk Dee and Neung Dieow’s (now, Bella) reunion each time they meet – such a beautiful representation of the unconditional love, bond and positive regard a mother has for her pup. They immediately recognise one another, constantly lick one another, play with one another and do not leave each other’s side – the first time we witnessed this, we were both so moved(!) I was initially worried there maybe some separation anxiety – but – fortunately, both seem to have settled in exceptionally well and accepted which pack they belong to, so thankfully we haven’t encountered any issues regarding separation.
Chohk Dee herself is settling in beautifully with the rest of the pack. I have a German Shepherd and a Retriever x. After a very early, initial, fear-aggressive response towards my German Shepherd, it didn’t take long before she was soon curled up to him at night – she also bonded very quickly with my Retriever x too, who seems to have taken over the role of her pup, whenever Bella’s not around – so lovely watching them play!
I work at a natural dog psychology/behavioural centre and run a charity, which provides canine-assisted therapy for children and adults with learning disabilities and behavioural disorders and I have to say… Chohk Dee has hit the ground running as a working therapy dog! After careful assessment, she was soon able to work with me in schools and has been an absolute ‘star of the show’ on many occasions. The children are smitten by her sweet and affectionate nature. She’s such a gentle soul. One child engaged so strongly with Chohk Dee the school asked to take video footage of our sessions to be used as evidence to show how effective canine-assisted therapy, or more specifically – Chohk Dee – had been in helping to make huge improvements with the pupil’s speech & language difficulties. He actually identified Chohk Dee by name and was able to articulate various commands. This was huge progress for a child who has difficulty using language and who doesn’t communicate by spoken word. What a star!
Of course there are some behaviours to be addressed, which is to be completely expected: initially she displayed a little fear-aggression towards larger breeds, but, fortunately working up at the centre with various breeds/sizes/temperaments/energies coming in everyday, this was quickly addressed. She just needed calm, controlled, exposure. She seems extremely secure in herself now that she no longer reacts to any breed, size or energy of a dog. She’s quite happy to mix with and greet any dog, although sometimes needs a calm reminder not to play too dominantly/OTT with a more submissive dog(!)
Initially, a little resource guarding in the very early days (not with humans, but with the rest of the pack which is to be expected), but within a couple of days this was quickly ironed out. For the first 48 hours she was also warning/displaying teeth to the other dogs if they came near me, but, she’s so quick to learn(!), this behaviour stopped completely after day 2. She adores the car, which I wasn’t expecting! She jumps in excitedly and sits happily looking out the window, watching the world go by. 🙂
She’s great off lead and her recall is very good – well…(!) that is until her hunting instincts kick in of course! We’re having to work on this one – once her primal instincts take over (and she’s frozen next to a rabbit hole!), her recall goes out the window. Although, what I have noticed is that fortunately she’s bonded so strongly with both my dogs and I, she tends to do her hunting ‘thing’ and then always happily ends up joining us again later on in the walk. She’s a natural ‘follower’ which helps!
She’s incredibly intelligent (I’m continually amazed by her aptitude to learn) – she’s responsive, sweet, happy, affectionate and most importantly, happy to follow a calm leadership style, which makes for a very balanced dog 🙂
She has been an absolute star and is loved by so many… I can’t thank you enough for bringing this gorgeous little soul into our lives.
All the very best to you all and to all of the wonderful work you do.
Will keep in touch… please find pictures attached 🙂
Take Care,
Natalia, Adam, Chohk Dee, Millie and Boon xxx
