It’s that time of year again to look back on the previous year, reflect, and look forward to the new year ahead! I like to use this time to look back at everything that happened and use it to set fresh goals!
Looking back over the last year, so much has changed. I set some pretty easy and some not so easy goals for Brodie, his training, and myself and I’m happy to say we met most of them! Some got altered as the year went on (check out our Progress post!) due to some unforeseen events, but even so, those altered goals have made so much progress!
Last year, Brodie’s goals were to go for more walks, go swimming more, chase animals along the fence, and savor his bully sticks! There were some ups and downs, but this year I think we accomplished most of these for Brodie! We did take a pause on walks after his health and subsequent behavior issues in the spring, but by the end of the year, we were up to daily walks or sniffy adventures! The lake was “sick” most of the summer, so we did as much swimming as was safe! There wasn’t a ton of chasing animals on the other side of the fence, but I think that was due to some of our new training!! But he’s definitely learned to savor his bully sticks! Sometimes he even hides them and I see him chewing on them days later!
I think Brodie’s got some simple goals this year, but they are filled with intentions and love! I would guess that his biggest goal is to adventure to as many Sniff Spots and Hip Camps as he can! (I would say at least two per month!) I think he’d like to keep savoring his special treats! I also would say that he’d like his health to improve, although that’s more of a manifestation than a goal/intention… And I think he’d love to get as many Mom/Dad cuddles as he possible can! The more the better!!
My training goals for Brodie were lofty last year and this year definitely put them to the test with everything that happen over the last 12 months. Our main goal was not letting his reactivity get to us or stop us from living our lives. I also wanted to check my own emotions in those situations and let it be okay that Brodie has big emotions and work on the feeling of embarrassment of when he does react. In general, I wanted to work on his general leash reactivity and his reactions toward stranger and dog when out on walks and around our house.
This year though was a challenge when it came to Brodie and we went on a roller-coaster of emotions and trials that have changed our lives forever and influenced every choice I have made in my life since. I talk about this briefly in previous posts. Last spring, Brodie was put in an unfortunate situation that led to an aggressive reaction and horrible consequences (again, you can read about it more in our last post). Since then, we have adapted and changed all of our goals for ourselves and Brodie. We’ve dove into learning about fear in dogs and about how dog’s health can sometimes manifest in aggressive behaviors, rather than in general or more normal symptoms.
We’ve done everything to move forward and ensure Brodie’s health and safety are a priority. We have done testing (and are honestly still doing some), and learned that he had been dealing with hypothyroidism for a long time before the incident and we didn’t know. He also had undiagnosed generalized anxiety and fear based aggression that we thought was him being overly friendly. We’ve learned that sometimes one behavior on the outside can actually be him communicating something for a completely different reason and without looking at his body language as a whole from his perspective, we had missed so many signs and signals.
Since the spring, we continued to work on last year’s goals with an adjustment to focus on what had happened and what we had learned. And my goodness did Brodie start to succeed with them! Our general reactivity towards humans on leash has decreased by 80%, he’s more calm at the vet, he almost never barks at the fences anymore (unless something comes on our property, but we’re working on that!), and doesn’t chase the squirrels on walks! We walk in heel and enjoy sniffies and have learned to adapt to our new way of life.
So moving into the new year, we have some more lofty goals that I have high hopes for accomplishing! They are similar to previous years, but this time, they feel different. More important, more drive to do them, and more reachable if we work together as a family. My biggest family goal is to dive into learning as much as possible about canine body language. While I know a lot, there’s always more to learn and watch for, but for Dan, it’s important to learn and understand what Brodie is saying to us. I want to continue to work on his leash reactivity on walks. I want to get up to 90% no reactions to humans, 80% no reactions to dogs (this one may be a stretch because we’re on the struggle bus with this one…), and 100% no reaction to bikes and trucks.
I also want to continue to work on his frustration tolerance and being away while people are in the house. I recently purchased a Treat and Train and am excited to put it to use to help us with this goal! And in general, I want to work on my emotions and remember that conflicting emotions in this new way of life is okay! It’s a change, but one where we can grow as a family.
As for my Bro Let’s Go and personal goals, I had wanted to spend more intentional time with family, work towards completing my certification, and to blog more (oops…). Well if you haven’t noticed, I definitely failed at one of those (sorry people who like reading what I have to say! Maybe this will be the year!)…although one I did helped me reflect on parts of my year like I had hoped! I did, however, accomplished both of my other goals! I set some boundaries this year in my schedule and was able to create dedicated Brodie and me time, plus family time every Sunday! And I’m happy to share that I’m officially Rebecca Grant, CCTA! I graduated with distinction from CATCH Canine Trainers Academy right before the new year! It was such a rewarding experience!
This year, I want to continue what I started last year. Keep up with my goal of intentional time with family and have some awesome adventures together! I want to push some of my comfort zone and have some experiences with Brodie and Dan that I normally wouldn’t say yes to, like camping trips and hiking no matter the location and weather. Another goal I have in mind is working on my mindset when things don’t go as planned or how I imagined. Like if Brodie has an outburst or I don’t feel a client session isn’t going well. Professionally, my goal is to continue working on my education! There is always more to learn and I cannot wait to see where I’m at professionally and what I’ve accomplished this time next year!
What are your goals for you and your dog this year? Big or small, share them all! And as the year goes on, don’t forget to share those big and small wins too!
And don’t forget, you can follow along as we work towards these goals by following Brodie or Bro Let’s Go on Instagram!