Whoever said you can’t teach an old dog new tricks must not have spent enough time around a Bernese mountain dog.
It has been a little more than two months since my wife and I adopted Alicia, our 5-year-old Berner who is built like steel and has a thick coat of jet black, clear white and rust colored fur.
Perhaps it would be more accurate to say it has been two months since we rescued her.
Alicia spent the first five years of her life at a puppy mill, where she was used to breed. We’re not sure how many litters she had, but it’s safe to say it was probably more than she should have.
Once she turned 5 and could no longer be used to breed, the owners called a rescue organization in northwest Indiana to see if they wanted to take her. Thankfully they rescued her from the puppy mill, and we adopted her about a month later after she was spayed and updated on her vaccines.
We weren’t sure what we were getting ourselves into, as we had never brought home a rescue dog before. Plus, we already have an attention-seeking 3-year-old golden retriever at home who is used to being the center of attention.
Alicia was timid and nervous for the first couple of weeks as we learned that she didn’t know how to do some of the most basic activities that our golden retriever has done since he was a puppy.
She didn’t know how to play with toys, sit on command, eat treats and more. In other words, she didn’t know how to be a dog.
It didn’t take long, however, for us to see how affectionate of a dog she is and how much she likes to be around us and our golden retriever.
We tried for a few weeks to teach her to play with toys, eat peanut butter out of a Kong and more, but we experienced little progress.
“Maybe you can’t teach an old dog new tricks,” I said more than once.
Jen was quick to remind me, however, that Alicia was only 5 and that maybe the old dog who needed to learn a better way to teach her was me.
Of course she was right, but I digress.
A week or so later, we started to see a change as one morning Alicia walked into the room carrying a stuffed duck. Later that night, her playful side came out even more as she ran up to our golden retriever, took a toy out of his mouth, and tossed it on the ground as she walked away shaking her tail.
The “old dog” we had rescued was finally learning how to be a dog — a playful canine whose placid personality makes her the perfect fit for us.
Two months later, she has turned into the ideal dog who loves daily walks and car rides, a daily tablespoon of peanut butter that she has to maneuver out of a Kong that has been in the freezer for 24 hours, and a romp in the backyard with our golden retriever who is not nearly as excited as she is to play outdoors.
She has even learned to sit at the door once she realizes it’s time for her daily walks and to play a round of tug of war with our golden retriever when they both want to play with the same toy.
The “old dog” has learned several new tricks these past two months, and she has taught the guy who is trying train her to be a bit more patient.
That’s a lesson we all need reminded of from time to time.
jdpeeper2@hotmail.com
