Our furry goofball joined our family about half a year ago, and adopting her was the best decision in my life. Matt and I adopted Mocha from Manitoba Mutts, and I think she’s a mix of Labrador retriever, boxer, and collie. We’ll do one of those dog DNA tests some day and we’ll see what breeds make such an interesting mix that is Mocha! In any case, she’s the sweetest and happiest pup, with a helicopter tail and heart full of love.
She has come a long way from when we first got her, as she was a young adolescent without much prior training and direction. We found ourselves with a giant 60lb puppy on our hands who would nip, bite, and jump when excited, and unleash booming barks that shook the apartment building when she didn’t want to be home alone. (We live on the third floor, and we could hear her from outside by our car!) She was a very happy, excitable pup, loving everybody, but also just started to transition to a life indoors and practicing proper manners. The first few months had a lot of rough moments, since her impulse control was horrible – chomping on our hands when going for a treat, lunging at every new person or dog, and bouncing off the walls with excitement when meeting new people. With massive rips and holes in my clothes, scars on my arms and hands from her bites, on some of these earlier days I was dreading taking her out for walks. Her excitement bites on walks were so out of hand in the beginning, that we temporarily used a muzzle on her to protect ourselves. If you meet her now though, you’d think she is a completely different dog! With guidance from a positive reinforcement dog trainer, and lots of daily effort and time working with Mocha, she has become more settled, better with her impulse and excitement control, grown accustomed to our routines, and understands that we always come back home. It’s only been six months and she’s already progressed super well in both outdoor and indoor situations. We can go on nice loose leash walks without any bites, and our neighbors say that they hardly hear a peep from her! There’s still a lot of work and training to do with her, as she still falls back to her puppy mouthing occasionally and doesn’t always have her listening ears on, but everything is moving forward overall and she continues to be such a good girl. I’m very proud of us! 🐕 ❤️
With a high drive for food, Mocha learns very quickly with treats and we’ve been enjoying finding fun ways to keep her occupied. We plan her meals around the day’s activities, like preparing a frozen stuffed kong for when both Matt and I are away (keeps her busy for a couple hours), and using her breakfast kibble as training in car rides. We also like to make her meals into a game, where we hide her food around our home, in boxes, under towels, under cups and containers, in food-dispensing toys, and toss kibble around the floor for her to chase. Since we don’t have a yard, hiding food in towels inside a box can help imitate digging and lets her work her nose. I sometimes end up spending more time preparing her meals than I do for my own!
Matt and I have been doing our best to teach and guide her in this world, and she has been a great model for teaching us lessons too. As one of the happiest dogs in the world, Mocha loves to meet everybody, is super accepting, doesn’t hold grudges, lives in the moment and keeps her tail wagging! She has also taught me so much patience from working with her through her adolescence, and staying confident regardless of what other people think. Like with any teenager, there are frustrating moments, and certain things we have to take slow (trimming a nail a day keeps the groomer away!), but with everything we do with her, we choose to build our bond based on trust, respect, and love, and that makes us happy dog owners and makes her a happy dog.
The best way to wake up in the morning is seeing her by my side as she rolls over with a wagging tail awaiting a good morning belly rub. After a long day at work, a bad day, a great day, or a normal day, she always puts a smile on my face when I come home, with her wiggly butt and helicopter tail as she preforms her ‘welcome home’ dance, circling around me with a toy in her mouth. Journeys with her has brought new friends in our lives, both people and dogs, and expanded our exploration to new places, sights, and smells. She’s always ready for adventure, romping in the snow, splashing in the water, hiking new trails… she never hesitates to go outside regardless of Canadian’s winter and summer weather, and always keeps a happy attitude.
I’ve observed a number of dogs here in Manitoba that are neglected outdoor dogs, and it saddens me that for Mocha’s first 10 months of life she was treated as so. We’re so fortunate to have found our perfect dog and let her into our little family, as she’s made our life journey infinitely better. We love our happy-go-lucky girl that enjoys good eats, sleeps, play, and cuddles!
She is snoring on my lap as I write this post. 🙂
-Evelien
eveliendegreef.com 