Training For Life

My ability to think positively, feel openly and act efficiently boils down to MOVEMENT. When I move my body -- walking, running, hiking, swimming, biking, skating -- I find myself breathing to the natural beat of my biology, becoming in those moments the ANIMAL I was born to be. I get out of my mind and into my body. I get less cerebral and more visceral. I grow out of my human skin and into my limitless spirit. This is the greatest gift I can give myself. It is also one of the greatest responsibilities, I feel, to give this gift to the animals in my care. Exercise isn't the answer to every question; nor does it solve every problem. However in my experience, it is the foundation upon which health and happiness are truly attainable. There is simply no better way to connect with the beauty in oneself, in one's environment, or in another being, than through physical activity in the wide world outside. 

MOVING. FORWARD.

Our boy, Spock is still having fear issues, especially surrounding men. While he has comfortably settled into the Koharchick household, trusting Mary as his strong pack leader, he has had a couple of instances in her absence where he has snarled and lunged at people he doesn't know as they've come into his space. Obviously this is something we need to help Spock work out. For one, we are going to work with Mary on crate training him. Though this is something you'd more typically do with a puppy, it is also important with a dog who is essentially starting all over again, taking baby steps toward learning to trust again. Secondly, when I say we need to help Spock "work out" his issues, I am being quite literal. It is my strong belief - which comes from experience - that PHYSICAL MOVEMENT FORWARD is directly congruent to EMOTIONAL and PSYCHOLOGICAL MOVEMENT FORWARD. So today, I took Spock skateboarding. With this one activity, we accomplished many things. First and foremost, we had fun, breathed fresh air and enjoyed a sunny late summer afternoon in the park, empowering ourselves and our buddy Spock. Being in an environment that is outside the home exposes Spock to sounds, sights, smells and scenarios to which he would otherwise not be exposed. This, by itself, is growth. Think about how much you expand your horizons when you "get outside the box", challenging yourself to be somewhere or do something with which you're not altogether comfortable. Next, the fact that Spock was MOVING FORWARD while confronting his anxiety allowed him to do it more effectively, and with a greater foundation of confidence. You know how you can be feeling super crappy about yourself or your life, and then you go for a run, even a brisk walk around the block, and your whole perspective changes? You can hear the Rocky theme song playing as you charge up a set of steps...This is because any time we are MOVING, we are building strength and endurance, increasing our efficiency as biological and spiritual animals! You know how you can be stuck in a mental rut, fixating on fear or other forms of negative self-talk, and then you get up and get moving, and suddenly the blockage begins to clear, and suddenly you can see that you are MOVING TOWARD a better day or a sensible solution to your problem? Well, it is the same for dogs. Maybe not quite as cerebral, but still the same chemical process occurs that frees up energy to cycle progressively, where otherwise it would stagnate and drag the body, heart and mind down. Getting back to the skateboarding today...A big part of getting over our fears is facing them. Being forced to stay right in the physical and mental space where you feel the most vulnerable and helpless, ultimately Proving to yourself that you can in fact survive being there. Not to mention that if you challenge yourself to stay in that place, you gain the strength necessary to break through to the other side of it. There are gifts on the other side. They are the gifts of courage, inner strength and self-worth. Now, I'm not saying that Spock's fear disappeared today and won't resurface. This dog has been through a kind of hell I can't even imagine. But it is our job as the humans in his life now, to show him how strong he is, what a GOOD BOY he is, and that there is nothing to be afraid of. So MOVING FORWARD DAILY, in one way or another, is key. It is elemental not only to Spock's healing process, but to all dogs' and all people's healing processes as well.