That’s Buddy. He lives above me on Fawn Hill. He’s a sweet dog but he has a problem…Buddy barks. He barks so much that his owners had to take some drastic measures and they got him a collar that shocks Buddy every time he barks. That’s the thing around his neck that looks like a camera. Buddy is no dummy, however. He seems to have figured out that he can get in three barks before things get too bad. Or he shakes his head in such a way that the folds of skin minimize the shock and he’ll bark and bark. Cesar Millan, are you free to visit North Carolina?
Buddy can’t help himself. He’s a rescue dog and heaven only knows what his very early days were like. More recently Buddy shared his penned yard with Old Joe who also barked a lot. Old Joe was blind so part of his barking may have been a defensive strategy. Buddy was Old Joe’s eyes…a stressful job. I know from experience. So part of Buddy’s barking is learned behavior from Old Joe. The other part is expression — happy, sad, somewhere in between — all Buddy knows is barking.
Tango and I try to visit him every day. I take treats and we have a party. And I’ve seen Tango go up to visit on his own. Buddy is a likable dog and we all want to reassure him that things are okay. Is it working? Well, maybe a bit. All we can do is try. I mean, look at those eyes…Buddy is the kind of dog that makes you keep on trying. ☙
Alice's WanderLand 