# The golden may be rubbing off on him yet



## Colie CVT (Nov 10, 2013)

The holidays had me working some pretty long hours and having to do things that didn't let us get out too much the past week and some change. Not to mention that we had to deal with family stuff. Doyle's first Christmas was interesting lol. He was rather well behaved, even if my sister's chis think its okay to bark at Doyle simply for existing. Even if he is being good.

Today was the first day I had some time to take them out. And it snowed last night, so that added even more fun to everything. The dogs were just SO excited and SO happy. The group of us who were brave enough to brave the weather was down to me, my roommate, our friend's two kids (11 and 13) and another woman who has an adorable mini aussie named Frank. 

Frank and my golden Myles are total buddies. But Myles is mister popular with other dogs because he's easy going and playful. We videoed Frank and Myles playing in the kitchen after a long hike for a good ten minutes. He just lays there and noms gently on the other dog. He knows how to make himself the most non-threatening and easy going guy there is.

Today every time that Doyle was trying to interact with Frank, he wanted to play. He wanted to wrestle and bounce around with him. And I could tell that Frank was interested in playing back. The little guy likes to play as much as Myles and Doyle do. Unfortunately they didn't really get a chance during the hike. Any time that they tried, my roommate's GSD would try to get involved. Frank is afraid of her. Her idea of interacting with new dogs is to rush up at them and bark in their faces. So any time that Banshee would come around, he would feel overwhelmed and go from wanting to play to trying to drive them off. 

So they didn't get the chance to play until we got back to the cars. While we were all talking, since my roommate's dogs were in his truck, Doyle and Frank finally had their chance. They were bouncing around the parking lot near us, grumbling and having a great time. Doyle even flopped down onto the ground to let Frank nom on him. He was moving back when Frank seemed a little overwhelmed, having a lot of fun between Doyle and Myles who were careful not to really tag team him. 

It just makes me smile. Doyle has come such a long way. His reactivity is almost down to nothing. I can call him back reliably. And when he wants to make friends, he is really good at it. He loves to play. Which helps a lot. He was even ready to be playful with a little terrier who came past us early in the morning. 

I love this little guy more and more as each day passes.


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## Debanneball (Aug 28, 2014)

Its funny how the littlest of things that they do make you smile, and be proud! Congratulations to Doyle for being so grown up! How old is he?


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## MaggieRoseLee (Aug 17, 2001)

Thanks for sharing such a great story.


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## Colie CVT (Nov 10, 2013)

It really does.  Makes me smile to see him doing that. Frank was so happy he didn't want to go home! Doyle is 17 months now. He started getting reactive around 7-8 months. We have worked hard on it.


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## dogma13 (Mar 8, 2014)

Thanks for sharing such a happy story!It helps inspire those of us dealing with our adolescent pups.There will be light at the end of the tunnel


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## Colie CVT (Nov 10, 2013)

There is!  I have been very careful to keep Doyle's experiences as positive as I can. He has done so very well. Myles being his buddy and influence is very helpful. He could be a terror, but he is so patient and calm. So good at reading other dogs. 

I always knew that Frank and Doyle could be buddies. It was so cute watching them wrestle and bounce with each other.


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