Who is Ursa
2024.01.01 - AYB - Reading time ~5 Minutes
Ursa – my dog – wasn’t always mine. She was brutally abandoned at the airport parking when she was about 5 months old and spent there for about a month prior being catched by some good people. These people brought her to the vet, checked out everything and then posted a post at the FB that there’s a stray dog looking for a home.
This is a photo when she already was at my place but one of the first
When I seen this post I immediately knew that I’m going to take her. I gave her a name Ursa – a “bear” in Latin – not because she somehow is like a bear but just because there are constellations “Ursa major” and “Ursa minor” at the sky. I thought that someday she’ll get a company and another dog will also be an Ursa, but “minor”. :)
Shortly after I found two things in a very unpleasant way: - This dog has a strength of a bear. - She gets panic attacks when left alone and trying to cope her stress by destroying everything around.
One of the first incidents. Just several clothings completely destroyed within 15 minutes we were out for groceries
We started working that out. I gathered some books, good trainers around and… nothing. Not completely nothing but the positive effect was very short. Eventually we reached 20 minutes of silence but then the dog explodes and everything starts again.
One of the trainers told me that we should work out with the dog-psychiatrist first, and only then return to trainings. I found one. Each session cost was my 3-days salary with an obligation of 10 sessions for the first month. So I tried to work it out with books.
I’ve been making toys for her using the ropes from the china-bazaar. The goal was to make toys smell like me, so they would calm her.
And she enjoyed these toys a lot, while we were at home. But when we left her – toys were completely forgotten and she started crashing things again. Moreover, she learned how to open storage boxes and wardrobes reaching all the stuff inside. Once I lost to her rage all my sneakers at once. Thinking through got me to the guess that she destroys my shoes because I am leaving her after wearing them on.
Overall, there’s a clear pattern what is getting destroyed in what order: - Clothing and shoes I’m wearing going outside - Things I’m taking with me going outside: backpacks, umbrellas, bicycle - Obstacles preventing her to get out: door and everything around it in an expanding spiral. If something got damaged but the door didn’t open – go destroy next thing in order - Random things got her angry attention
We tried to train her to get relaxed in a cage, feel it her safe place and leave her in a cage – the cage was destroyed. Second cage, made of 4mm steel wire, was destroyed later, along with her teeth. So I stopped these experiments. I tried even electro-shocking collar with the video-surveillance. When she started turning into panic and trying to start a new session of destruction, there was a vibration alert first and later if she didn’t stop – discharge. But it worked for a single place only. She was always trying others. Even being locked in a small room where are just few things to touch, she was always trying to get out or relief her stress somehow, ignoring all the toys and quizz-carpets. I tried to make her entertained with special carpets with the treats hidden inside. She loved this game when I was home, but the only effect developed was she became even better in opening closed things. At the moment I’m out, carpet was forgotten or destroyed, “indestructible” Kong toys with the peanut butter inside got destroyed within 15 minutes. Once I thought that leaving her in a muzzle would be a nice idea. Turned out two things: muzzles allowing dogs to drink freely are also allowing to get teeth out. Second: Ursa learned how to destroy them with her claws. Even metal ones.
We tried medication. Even Prozac calmed her not enough. And she eventually overcomes it. Usually, within two weeks she got so much stress hormones, that medication became helpless. When we reached three times of a suicidal human doze I cancelled it. Gradually, ofcourse, but this process was embarrassing.
On the boat her anxiety went even worse. She doesn’t feel it home yet and when I left her just to go out for an hour or two to buy things I need on the boat, she met me with a very clear statement that it was a great mistake.
This little shopping trip will cost me about 2000 euros in repairs
Long story short: For all 6 years she lives with me I have completely failed trying to convince her that I am leaving not forever and always return. So I have to keep her with people all time. No exclusions.
But there’s one thing that tickling my mind: I can leave her on a leash near any shop or even mall and she will wait fine. Once I tried even 3 hours – I hid inside in a cafe where she couldn’t see me, was working there and keeping an eye on her, and she was just waiting. During my experiments she bit the leash few times but stayed where I left her even being physically free. So I guess that she’s afraid of closed spaces more than being left alone. But I don’t know what to do with this knowledge.
But, other than that problem, she is an absolutely gorgeous dog. Extremely kind, clever, happy to meet new dogs and people. She almost immediately invites any dog to play and every other woman to our “pack” – yeah, she tries to find me a new woman. :) And she’s getting very upset when our guests leaving the house.
