22/05/2026
I blinked, and nearly 10 months has passed!
Mango arrived on the 1st of August last year. He was aggressive with and scaring his previous owners, he had been on a medication trial to try to change his behaviour, and was one incident away from being euthanased.
I accepted him as a surrender, to train and to rehome.
The first thing I did was to rename him, or I should say, he renamed himself - after trying many different potential names, he just about dislocated his neck turning towards me when I said "Mango".
And wouldn't you know it, the little snot burrowed his way into both of our hearts, and The Minsister for Everything said he better stay here, after only 2 and a half weeks.
It hasn't been all smooth sailing. He had some very severe aggression issues, and I lost more than a few drops of blood, questioned my sanity at accepting him on more than one occasion, and seriously wondered if I could make a difference.
He aggressively resource guarded people, toys, beds, himself, and food. He had a severe aversion to hands reaching towards him. And he (seemed to) want nothing to do with people.
I introduced rules, boundaries and consequences. And, yes, punished him for unacceptable behaviour and aggression.
My lessons were backed up by something he understood intuitively, pack structure! And Pippin is the best pack member support team I could ever hope for. She supported me and guided him, in every single thing I taught. If he stepped out of line, she was there to redirect him, gently at first, and with more force when required. He surrendered to her leadership and began following her, and by her behaviours, surrendered to me.
He learnt to trust. Not just the process, but the people, and the other dogs. And that he didn't need to be aggressive to get what he needed and wanted.
We have learnt that he is visually impaired. Learnt that pain from his Keratoconjuntivitis Sicca (dry eye) makes him very irritable - so he has learnt to wear eye protection. And we have learnt that he is a very affectionate little bloke, who actually loves to have cuddles.
Please enjoy 4 minutes of the transformation of Mango.
