Free My Best Friends Have Hairy Legs by Cierra Rantoul Page B

trainer stayed while he barked for a few seconds, then turned and ran away—I had been told that if Trooper acted aggressively toward him, I was to let the lead slack just enough for Trooper to run forward and feel like he was chasing him off. As soon as he was behind the building and out of eyesight, I was to praise Trooper with treats and hugs.
    The difference in Trooper was apparent almost immediately. Every morning I would tell Trooper that it was his job to protect Tink and the house and I trusted him because I knew he was a brave dog and wasn’t afraid of anything. As his confidence grew, his fears began to disappear. In the past a plastic grocery bag left on the floor would prevent him from coming into the kitchen, now he just glances at it and walks by. Rearranged furniture used to cause him to panic; now he just sniffs and ignores it. A piece of trash blowing in the field would cause him to bark and run away. Now he chases to catch it and bring it to me so I can throw it in the dumpster. While a loud noise will still startle him, he does not react in fear like he used to. He used to be so afraid of the dark that he refused to move beyond the range of street lights. Now his favorite game to play is flashlight tag in the dark. When he was challenged at the dog park previously, he had behaved submissively, rolling on his back. The next time the same dog challenged him, he stood his ground and it was instead the other dog that backed down and submitted. Trooper’s confidence was returning.
    There are only a few fears that really remain from before. But they are gradually going away as well. One of the strongest and most frustrating is his fear of being on the bed at night when the lights are out. Marc used to kick him viciously when Trooper tried to get on the bed with us at night. Towards the end of our marriage I caught him kicking him as I came in for bed one night and told him if he didn’t want Trooper on the bed, then he needed to tell him to get down—but kicking him from under the covers was not an option. I don’t know how often he had done it before that night, or how many times he did it later that I didn’t know about. But regardless, Trooper will not stay on the bed with me once the lights are out. If I’m watching TV, or we are sleeping late on a Saturday morning after the sun has come up, he will stay for hours. I know that eventually that fear will go away like the others did and so patiently encourage him and wait.
    I talk to Trooper all the time and he loves when I talk directly into his ear in a low voice as we are sitting together on the sofa or lying in bed. I tell him that he is the most intelligent dog I have ever had, how proud I am of him and how compassionate he is. I tell him I know that he is a brave dog and isn’t afraid of anything. I tell him how handsome he is and how much I love and appreciate him. What a good job he does protecting me, the house, and all the other pets. I tell him how much I believe in him, and what a wonderful blessing it has been to have him in my life.
    Positive affirmations. They should be called “powerful” affirmations. They can have even more power when a person hears them.
    For many years I never heard anything positive about myself. I was stupid. I was boring. I was ugly and fat. I would be a horrible mother if I was ever dumb enough to get pregnant. I was a terrible wife who couldn’t cook or clean anywhere near as well as his mother—who not only kept a spotless house with fantastic meals three times a day, but also worked full time, AND raised her three boys practically alone. She apparently walked on water too. I know that sounded sarcastic, but it wasn’t meant to be. Will told me many times during our marriage how lacking I was as wife and a person compared to his mother but I learned later it was far from the truth. My “other” mother and I had—and still have—a great relationship. She let me know early on that she wasn’t nearly as