15d • General discussion
How My Dog Helped Me Change My Mindset
Hello all!
I wanted to share something with you all. Anyone who knows me knows that I have a dog named Jake. Jake is a black lab and he is a very good boy. My plan for him was to train him as a therapy dog and it was very clear from the start that this was a good path for him.
Long story short, we did get his Canine Good Citizen certification but due to covid, we could not find a therapy dog class. He started participating in our local library reading dogs program and we visited an assisted living place for a year or so. Neither of those places required therapy dog certification so we were fine. It became very clear to me that Jake loves "working" with kids, he knows when they are nervous and he sits quietly until they come to him.
This led me to decide we need to go into the schools to reach more kids and they do require a therapy dog certification.
Today he passed his therapy dog certification!! Woo Hoo!!!
Here's where the mindset change comes in.
I knew ahead of time what the test would entail and it was nothing different than he has done before. But I was still nervous about it, it's a test after all. I had a couple of waking-up-at-3-am-nights thinking about it I will admit.
I decided this morning that I was letting my mind take over and I needed to change. I couldn't go into the test being worried.
So I thought over the facts, the things I know for sure:
Jake is an easy-going dog who doesn't have an aggressive bone in his body
He loves everyone, period.
Jake has been through training and passed with flying colors.
Jake wants to do the 'right' thing because he knows he will get treats for it.
I took these facts and the energy associated with them and let go of the "testing" energy. I didn't need a test to tell me that my dog is a good boy and he can help other people. He already does that in spades.
It made a huge difference in how I moved ahead and worked through the testing process.
I remembered the confidence I have in my dog and how we work as a team. He looks to me for direction and assurance and if needed, protection. I confidently give him that any other day; I just needed to remember to do it today.
So I did.
Where can you use more confidence? Can you find it somewhere else and apply it? Or did you forget that you already have it?
I'd love to know.
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How My Dog Helped Me Change My Mindset
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