07/11/2026
Firework training with Coco tonight. The first photo shows Coco hiding because she was frightened by the fireworks. The second shows her choosing to come out and join in some training’s in the kitchen, despite the noise outside. I’m not expecting training to take away her fear completely. The aim is simply to help her cope better and recover more quickly. I’ve already noticed improvements on walks, where she still gets frightened but settles back to her normal self much sooner. Tonight was another small step forward. She came out of her hiding place, approached the door and even got involved in learning a new trick, the bow. Genetics can play a big part in noise sensitivity, and progress can take a long time. Training doesn’t guarantee that a dog will overcome their fears. Sometimes the kindest thing we can do is let them stay somewhere safe and not push them beyond what they can cope with. It’s about understanding the dog in front of you, working at their pace, and recognising the little improvements along the way.
