Training my dog has not been the easiest task. Growing up, I had two very well behaved dogs. They were chill, knew what to do, and put up no fuss. I’m pretty sure they could be left for days on end in the yard, no fence required, and they would have been perfectly content. This is a major difference from the dog that I adopted a few years ago. When I adopted my Black Lab/Great Dane mix, I didn’t know what I signed up for.
When I saw that little fur ball online, it was love at first sight. I knew that I needed to rescue that little boy and make him part of my family. After meeting him, it became even more clear that I was meant to have this little bundle of joy in my life not just to spoil it rotten, but so he could teach me a lesson. He was going to show me what it meant to truly love and what it meant to be a “pack leader” – AKA – “A Fur Mama”.
Bringing him home, he was an angel. He did everything that was asked of him, he behaved as any puppy would, he was my little nut ball, but he needed some basic training. He jumped all over people, he was terrible on walks, he was just this little ball of energy that didn’t know what to do with himself, so we thought puppy training was the best option for him. It was definitely needed, so much that he got put into the “special ed” class (The class for the rebellious pups with too much energy to focus). We were even offered another round of classes if we wanted because he just didn’t know how to focus. Since he wasn’t grasping anything in the puppy classes, I thought it best that I start training him on my own.
This is where the challenge comes in. He didn’t want to learn and I would get frustrated easily. I love to go out in the morning for a walk, but when you have ninety pounds pulling you to every street corner and dog in sight, it kind of takes the joy out of it. There were moments when I would have preferred to sleep in and skip our walk, but if I wanted him to get better, I knew that wasn’t an option. Persistence is what was needed for him to stay on the right track and improve his behavior.
Training this little boy has been more of a challenge than I ever thought possible, but it is in those moments where he actually listens that I feel good about all the work that is being put into it. There is a glory in seeing him learn and following through with what he knows that he should be doing, that makes it worthwhile. I know that if I were to slack off now, he would go right back to his old ways. After staying constant with this, it has put the both of us in a better mindset.
The same goes for you. Persistence is what is needed in any challenge that you are wanting to take on. You can’t do it one day and then decided to take a few days off. If you want to see results, consistency is what is needed. Just remember that you are not going to see results right away. No matter what the challenge is that you are facing, it is going to take time and effort on your part to complete it.
Keep your head up and be persistent towards your goal!
Feature image via Luisa Schetinger on Unsplash
