Welcome to the first edition of ZENFULdog’s brand new feature—ZENFUL Dog of the month! This addition to our blog will celebrate the unique traits of each ZENFUL dog and highlight what makes them special. We hope to spread love and acceptance for all dogs regardless of their background, breed, shape, or size. ZENFULdog Training loves all dogs and believes that any dog can thrive and flourish with the love and effort a family puts into them.
For this first month of October 2021, we are featuring a very deserving dog—Bandit—who has trained with his family and with Kendra to reach and maintain his goals. Bandit is the kind of dog who will break up a tense situation arising between other dogs and will comfort a human who seems stressed.
Bandit
Age: Almost 2
Meet Bandit’s Family:
Donna (teacher): “Bandit is my walking and trail buddy and always welcomes me home with the biggest, teeth-showing smile and wiggling butt after work. It is definitely something I look forward to.”
Amando (retired): “I enjoy walking Bandit every day and spending time with him. He is my companion.”
Noah (works in construction): “Bandit gives me a sense of security, and I see him as my little buddy.”
Bandit’s History: Both Donna and Amando grew up with dogs when they were children but had not necessarily planned on adopting a dog as adults. That all changed two years ago when their son, Noah, arrived home with a small puppy that resembled a fetal pig. Bandit was this cute, little pink, white brown-spotted puppy but Amando and Donna still had reservations. Noah had wanted a puppy for as long as he could talk but they had always been a very busy family on the go. After some time with Bandit, they learned that he was the perfect fit for their family’s dynamic and lifestyle.
Bandit's Personality: Bandit is sociable, affectionate, goofy, friendly, happy (except when he wears a Halti), calm, quiet and gentle with young children and small dogs. He loves to sleep under blankets and is always taking over the family’s sitting spots.
Most Unique Thing about Bandit: Bandit has a unique ability to unite people. Bandit’s friendly personality has helped his family meet everyone on their road. People are often attracted to Bandit and amazed by how calm and gentle he is. They also tend to remark upon his unique physical features which are his spots and markings.
Bandit's favourite Treats/Foods: Bandit loves beef liver, duck and sardine treats. He also enjoys the occasional cheese treat. He loves almost anything.
Bandit's Favourite Activities:
Bandit loves walking the road which takes two hours because he says “hi” to everyone (he even waits for people to come out to say “hi”)
He loves the organized trail walks with the other ZENFUL dogs
He loves to play with his dog-girlfriend Ren and his neighbour Housley
How Bandit Unwinds After a Full Day of Activity: Lounging on the patio furniture in the shade. He enjoys watching the activity on the road while lying on his elevated bed on the front porch with a blanket covering him to keep away the pesky flies. He loves being outside.
If Bandit had a human voice, he would sound like: John Ritter as Clifford the Big Red Dog. In the show, people are scared of him because he is big, like Bandit, but when people get to know him, they see that he is a caring, affectionate and gentle giant.
Bandit’s Training
Bandit trains on ZENFULdog Cani-Trails and individual training sessions with Kendra. He has reached his training goals and his amazing family continues to invest time and effort to maintain his progress.
Donna Tells Us How Training has Shaped Bandit: Training has helped Bandit immensely. We took him to puppy school at Petsmart when he was four months old because we wanted him to be socialized and well-behaved. Bandit is treat-motivated and succeeded with the sit, down, stay commands learned here.
When COVID-19 hit, we went into lockdown and that was the end of training. So, I read a lot to learn as much as I could because he was nippy and often chewed things. We wanted a dog that would walk with us and be gentle with people. We live on a country road, and during COVID-19 lockdown, we practiced walking with him. Bandit would do well on the way, but as soon as we would be returning home, he would bite me and become aggressive. I was becoming increasingly frustrated and was thinking we may have to bring him to the SPCA because of his aggressiveness.
Luckily, one day while walking, we met Kendra. What a blessing because she was able to help us with this. Within two or three sessions, Bandit was no longer biting us and was walking much better. Because of her guidance and expertise, Bandit is still with us.
Since then, we have done many training sessions and outdoor classes to help socialize him with other dogs. He is great with other dogs now and is very calm. Kendra often asks to borrow him to train other more reactive dogs. She has helped Bandit become a gentle, confident dog who can greet other dogs without any issue and we can now take him out anywhere.
We recently took Bandit to Prince Edward Island, stayed in a hotel with him, took him to the Byward Barket day in Ottawa and to the Perth Night Market with no issues. We have eaten out on patios with many distractions around and Bandit just settles on his blanket at our feet. He is always a hit in all of these places! People even ask to pet him and take pictures of him. Bandit really is a great "poster dog” for misunderstood breeds and we feel ZENFULdog training has helped him so much.
Bandit’s Biggest Training Challenges: Training has not always been easy because Bandit is challenging so his family is grateful that he is treat-motivated. Kendra taught the family that they need to be secure and confident in themselves so that Bandit knows that they are the ones to follow and learn from. Bandit’s family is good at being consistent with training, and they know training is always going to be ongoing.
Bandit’s Biggest Traning Successes: Kendra taught Bandit’s family to practice getting him super excited and then getting him to calm down, making him wait while they enter the doorway and balancing on things around them like rocks, logs, etc., to help him grow confidence. Her invaluable guidance taught them how to be good, responsible, pet parents by knowing how to read their dog's body language.
Bandit’s Most Rewarding Training Moment: Bandit can be taken anywhere without any worry that he will react to anyone or anything. He has the ability to greet every person and dog in a very friendly manner. He loves people!
Kendra’s Thoughts on Bandit and his Family: “Bandit really is the ‘poster dog’ for a socialized dog. He is the dog you can take anywhere and everywhere and he behaves like a total superstar. He is gentle, intelligent and of course absolutely adorable. I am so proud of how far he has come with the help of his outstanding pet family. I cherish all of them. We are all fortunate to have them as a part of the canine community. Each of them enriches the lives of those around them. The beautiful connection they share is the kind of relationship I think we all strive for with our dogs. He is also my dog Ren's very best friend. It is my belief that Bandit would make the most amazing therapy dog and I think, in his own way, he has already embraced that role.”
Don’t forget to follow ZENFULdog Training on Facebook where you can stay connected to your like-minded dog-loving community every day. Also, a very special “Thank You!” goes out to Bandit’s family for providing so much of the content for this feature.
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