Client Spotlight: Lucy

This is my best TTouch success story ever...!

Lucy is a three year old Border Collie/Australian Shepherd mix, medium sized and with the expected activity level of both breeds.  Lucy came to her forever home at about the age of 1.5 years, after being re-homed several times.   Over the last 1.5 years since Lucy found her forever home, she has been quite a bit of a trial for her new family.  She doesn't have a mean bone in her body and is really a very sweet, affectionate dog, but she had some very significant issues that were troublesome to deal with and I'm sure were the basis of her multiple re-homings.  The owners had hired several trainers to work with her in their home, with some improvement in keeping her mind active and learning new skills, but not in learning to manage her anxiety and maniacal fits with any vehicular.  They were nearing the end of their rope.

Lucy's main issue was cars.  What this means is that Lucy could not be taken for walks, was not tolerable traveling in a vehicle and even raised cain in her own home when seeing or hearing vehicles pass by.   Her reactivity to cars consisted of the most impressive manic activity I've ever seen with barking, spinning, and general "coming complelely unglued" behavior.  Can you imagine having your sweet, kind dog turn into a wild "Jeckel & Hyde" every time a car passed your house?  Window drapes were left closed as were the doors to obscure Lucy's view of the street.  Eventually Lucy was taken to see a behavioral vet at the UT Vet School who referred the family to me.

Although Lucy's parents are older, their love for the Border Collie breed is huge as is their love for Lucy herself.  She is at least their third Border Collie.  However it does present challenges when you're older and your dog is behaving like a maniac.  Lucy is a well behaved dog and it's obvious she's been worked with as she responds to commands very well.  As long as no cars are moving.

At first Lucy was a bit resistant to TTouch.  It wasn't that she disliked it, rather it was new and her mind was just too busy to grasp this new "thing" in her life.   She did warm up to it (as we all do) and we began to see significant change within a couple of weeks.  First and foremost, she calmed herself enough to readily accept TTouch.  Now the magic could begin.

That huge first milestone came on a pleasant afternoon when my client had her front door open letting light in through the storm door.  Lucy was laying on the rug by the front door, looking outside while her Momma sat in a nearby room at her computer.  Then, a car passed the house.  The owner looked up and towards the front door because she realized that "nothing had happened" when the car passed.  Lucy was still there by the door, unmoved and unchanged.  The owner was shocked and she continued to watch Lucy quietly.  More cars passed intermittently, six in all, and Lucy simply laid there and watched.   No barking wildly, no clawing, jumping, pawing, or racing around the house all obsessed and possessed.  None of that.  She was simply relaxing by the door watching traffic.

We then moved on to working with Lucy's car.  Lucy had a new car and was not too crazy about it at first because it was different.  With TTouch and treats she learned quickly that her new car was really okay and the world became whole again.  Except for actually going on rides.   One step at a time.

Lucy needed help with the visual stimulus of cars in her life if she was ever going to learn that relaxing was achievable and a way better option than flipping out.  We fit Lucy with a ThunderCap from the makers of ThunderShirt and got her Rescue Remedy to help dial in her calm.  The Thundercap is a little jewel designed by TTouch practitioners from our use of wraps on the head to help calm.  Lucy didn't do well with head wraps due to her small, slick head where the wrap would slide right off.  I fitted the cap to her head and took her outside in her front yard to see how she did with cars.  Already the change was astounding, but being only her first time there was plenty of room for improvement.

Next came the car ride.   Lucy sat in the back seat with me, her ThunderCap in place and my large Melissa & Doug stuffy (black Labrador) on her other side.  I know it sounds crazy that maybe a stuffy could influence Lucy by not reacting to the things that set her off, but it's worked for other dogs, so my stuffy, Darwin, happily came along.   When the traffic picked up, Lucy was snuggled next to Darwin, nice and quiet and watching the cars go by.  She was visibly relaxed....a first!  It was her first "normal" experience that I'd seen with vehicles.  This sweet dog had finally laid her groundwork for overcoming her car issues!  Her next car ride was considerably longer and included a lot more traffic, including plenty of trucks.  She barked three individual times and settled quickly between each incident.  In fact she settled down more than she got excited and she was much more at home wearing her Thundercap.  Huge step forward for our furry rock star!

I can't convey enough how proud I am of this sweet girl, Lucy!  My heartbreak for her owners being confined by their dogs inability to leave the house safely was huge but equally I was impressed by their commitment and dedication in improving their beloved pets life.   Honestly, Lucy was miserable being so driven and reactive to "life" essentially.   I'm deeply thankful that TTouch can help such a sweet and deserving dog improve her quality of life and increase her comfort level by an order of magnitude.  The stress level in her home has gone way, way down.

Thanks to TTouch, Lucy has a new lease of life.