Thank you
@ladee,
@Poofycat,
@Anrish,
@KwanYingirl,
@Snowwhite for your support and such kind words.
Over the past few weeks I have seen Hank come more and more out of his fears and into his present moments. He is the most joyful energy I think I have ever known.
He trusts me unlike anything I have experienced before so much so that he let me trim his nails this weekend. When Hank first came, he had what the vet thought was frostbite on his paws and he was very 'dainty' with them. I have been putting peanut butter on his paws a tiny bit each day and by the time I was ready to clip his nails he let me. (thank you again
@Changeling). I didn't take too much off because I understand that if they haven't been clipped in the past, the 'pink' can be quite close to the tip of the nail.
We went for a hike in the park afterwards and I bought him a hot dog from the vendor. It's organic beef and they always smelled really good so I thought it would be an ok thing for Hank. I let him eat only a small bit of the bun though. I had my running clothes on and Hank had his jacket on because his fur is still thickening and we must have looked goofy there together with Hank gingerly eating his hot dog and me eating my protein bar! The vendor put his hot dog on a little plate for him and then took a picture of him eating it. Hank was fairly gentle with his hot dog lol - he didn't gobble it as he sometimes does with his breakfast or dinner but took his time - maybe because it was a new texture and experience for him. But I could tell he really liked it - he gave me the squeeze eyes after.
The past few nights Hank has been coming into my room at night and curling up on the rug on the floor beside my bed. When he first came, I slept in the living room on the couch and made a 'kennel' for him with unlocked gates and rugs and a big cushion so he had his own space but he could easily move in and out. Gradually I began going to my own room later in the night and letting Hank stay where he was. He could always come into my room but he didn't so I thought maybe he was needing his own space.
The past few nights he has come in with me when I have been getting ready for bed and he curls up on the rug and waits for me to finish my nightly routines before he puts his head down. When I wake up in the morning he is right there in the same place, quiet and calm and seemingly content.
He has several dog dreams each night where he is running - he barks and cries in his sleep and kicks his feet quite a bit. The first time it happened I sat beside him and spoke softly to him until he gradually woke up - I was careful not to touch him - he seemed startled and for the first few seconds he seemed scared or maybe not sure of where he was.
The past little while when he was crying in his sleep he let me touch his head gently. Now sometimes he opens his eyes but he doesn't seem disoriented or fearful anymore - mostly he settles calmly and drifts back to sleep.
The last few nights he isn't crying and barking as much and I wonder if his moving himself into my room with me has alleviated some of that? I am not sure what dogs think or how they dream and I try not to impose my own 'human' meaning on his actions but it seems he is sleeping better since moving into my room.
He is such a good boy - When I call his name he looks right at me and if I say something he doesn't understand he simply looks me and curls his body and wags his entire self and I collapse in laughter - then he gets even sillier and comes closer and I swear he is laughing at me laughing at him.
He likes the activity at the dog park. He doesn't seem to know what play is with the other dogs so he mostly stands and watches the others play. I wanted to give him some exposure to other dogs and while he seems to like to be around the other dogs, he doesn't seek them out or run with them when there's a tag game going. I ask the smaller kids in the park to give him biscuits so that he is exposed to more people and will wag his tail and take his treats with an amazingly gentle mouth.
We are going on a road trip this weekend so i will have more to report later. He loves the car and he has his own toys and things there now so I am thinking we are going to have a great time.
