Mastodawn

Sjiriki came on a PA trip this week! I’ve been going to a gender clinic (finally, after 4 years of being on a waitlist!) and they wanted to have a physical appointment instead of our usual virtual ones. I was expecting Sjiriki to need a lot of help/support and was looking at this mostly as a training outing, but he absolutely aced it!! He held a pretty perfect heel, waited calmly at the reception and in the waiting room, and didn’t try to greet a single person, even when waking closely past them. The appointment itself ended up being very stressful for me (I don’t want to turn this into a vent post about the state of gender healthcare, but it’s rough out there guys 💀), but Sjiriki did so good there as well. He settled well when I was calm, watched me closely when I wasn’t, and let me know whenever I needed a break. We do probably need to workshop his alerts a bit, as while he starts off with just staring at me and then nudging me, if I do not listen he will eventually escalate by yelling directly into my face, which is not ideal. On the other hand, it is a very effective way to get my stubborn ass to listen 🤷🏻
He was again on point with his heeling whenever we walked outside so I could take a break, and near the end he even started walking me to the direction of our car, very clearly signaling that we needed to go home! I’m really super super proud of my boy, of course there’s lots he still needs to learn but today very much showed me what a wonderful service dog he is capable of becoming 🩶
.
#husky #servicedog #servicedogintraining #hulphond #hulphondinopleiding #forcefree

James & Sjiriki Sep 26, 2025

We’ve been quietly dealing with some health issues with Sjiriki for a while. From a pretty young age Sjiriki’s been dealing with pain in his body, specifically his hind end. He was first diagnosed with growing pain, but didn’t react enough to pain medication, and I just had a gut feeling that there was something else going on. After several more vet visits, scans, and referrals we finally have an answer! This week Sjiriki was diagnosed with Tethered Cord Syndrome, which basically means that his spinal cord is improperly attached, causing him a lot of (nerve) pain. This is generally pretty treatable with surgery, though not all dogs recover fully, some still needing pain management even afterward. But there is almost always a big improvement after getting the surgery! The specialist had an opening quickly, so he’s going in next Wednesday. I am incredibly stressed about the whole situation, not knowing if he’ll make a full recovery after surgery and uncertain about what that means for his future quality of life, and his career as a service dog. But I’m also grateful to have some answers and not have to keep searching for a diagnosis any longer. So overall some conflicting feelings and a lot of uncertainty still! For now I’m pretty busy getting everything in order for the surgery, preparing to keep him comfortable downstairs as he’s not allowed to walk up and down them, prepping enrichment to keep him busy, and dreading six to ten weeks of exercise restriction with an adolescent husky 😬 We’re just gonna take things one day at a time!
.
#husky #siberianhusky #dog #dogs #huskydog #siberianhuskydog #forcefree
#servicedog #servicedogintraining #psychiatricservicedog #autismservicedog #hulphond #hulphondinopleiding #autismehulphond #psychiatrischehulphond #assistentiehond #assistentiehondinopleiding #autismeassistentiehond #forcefreeservicedog

James & Sjiriki Sep 25, 2025

Went to a pet friendly store yesterday to let Sjiriki pick out a toy for his birthday (which I can’t believe is this weekend already!!) and since he seemed up for it we did a little bit of training as well 😊 We’ve not done much in the form of training for quite a while, especially not in public, so we kept things really simple. We practiced the counting game, the ping pong game, a few hand targets, and moving together. He did so good!
.
#husky #siberianhusky #dog #dogs #huskydog #siberianhuskydog #forcefree
#servicedog #servicedogintraining #psychiatricservicedog #autismservicedog #hulphond #hulphondinopleiding #autismehulphond #psychiatrischehulphond #assistentiehond #assistentiehondinopleiding #autismeassistentiehond #forcefreeservicedog
#forcefreetraining #forcefreedogtraining #positivereinforcement #positivereinforcementtraining #positivereinforcementdogtraining #positivereinforcementworks #dogtraining

Sky Jul 5, 2025

This 4th didn’t feel worth celebrating. So instead, we celebrated something else: our love, our survival, and a really good steak. Luna’s taking over the blog tonight to talk fireworks, family, and finding softness when the world feels hard. 💛🐾
Read the post ➡️
#ServiceDogInTraining #SpoonieLife

https://dreamingofdragonscom.wordpress.com/2025/07/04/lunas-friday-takeover-not-so-happy-4th/

Luna’s Friday Takeover: Not-So-Happy 4th

This Fourth of July didn’t feel like a celebration- so we didn’t treat it like one. Instead, Luna shares a quiet, heartfelt reflection on family, survival, and making space for joy in a world that …

The Crippled Cryptid.

Varceptious Jun 11, 2025

Birger just early alerted to a #POTS flair, only by like minutes but still! He alerted before i even felt anything, AND he was persistent until i checked my bp and saw it start to go up. Enough, so I got upstairs and could lay down safely! Im so over the moon proud of him!

#ServiceDogInTraining #TheNoseKnows #Glimmer

Varceptious May 16, 2025

In my eventful life, I've managed to take an everything shower today and not flair horribly. I've been nursing a migraine all day, and Birger has alerted three times just this morning of my low and dropping heart rate and blood pressure. It's hot and muggy out, so im inside with the ACs and fans running as cold as they can and nonstop fluids and electrolytes. Caleb took Birger for a walk today, and he was even really warm after. Thankfully, Birgers neck gator is cooling, and he has a cooling harness, so we were able to stabilize his temperature effectively. Now, to rest the rest of the day until I need to help cook supper. I'm thinking of brewing some cold tea and putting some bouy in it to help. Maybe I'll brew some of my migraine relief tea...assuming I still have some.

#Disabled #Disability #Spoonie #LackOfSpoons #POTS #ServiceDogInTraining #ChronicMigraines

Varceptious May 11, 2025

HAPPY MOTHERS DAY TO YOU ALL! AND TO ME! HUGE WIN WITH BIRGER! Usually when first unit is outside in the yard doing anything he barks his head off, today while they're out in the yard he looks out the window at them, no barking and then disengaged and went and laid down! And earlier, he was sitting and watching kids play and run in the yard and didn't bark at them at all! These doggy socials I've been bringing him to every other week have made a huge difference!

#Glimmers #ServiceDogInTraining #DogObedience #BigVictories #DogTraining

Varceptious May 6, 2025

Spent my morning being productive! You know, before I die from the heat today. So! I got a ton of stuff packed up that I plan on donating to help get rid of my clutter. Especially my #Vegan cookbooks because I need digital copies because of my health instead of the big heavy books. Also some old books I've read already, some clothes I no longer wear. Took my boy out for a morning sniffari, did some scent training with him as well as some basic obedience. Got his first round of pupsicles going in the freezer, and gonna be making his topples later today. Did my physical therapy exercises and felt the burn. Birger's got a vet appointment at 11am today because I'm worried he has a UTI. Now I'm chilling in the AC drinking my tons of electrolytes for this already hot day.

#POTS #hEDS #ServiceDogInTraining #Spoonie #Disabled

Varceptious Apr 22, 2025

That proud moment when, the dog commercial that comes on and has the dogs barking and whining comes on the tv; you're boy looks up at the whining and then goes back to chewing on his chew! He didn't bark! Not once! Just looked and then went back to his chew! This may not seem like a big deal, but it is for Birger! It used to be whenever he saw a dog on TV, him in a mirror, or in person he'd shut down and bark. So, him acknowledging and then ignoring the dogs on the TV is a big step! He had a small adult dog play group on Saturday; he did well at his first one a couple of weeks ago. It showed his lack of understanding with playing with other dogs. He never got exposure to it as a puppy(canine influenza was killing dogs rapidly when he was a puppy). One on one he was figuring out play. He wants to, but is a little timid about it. Thankfully, I have some good +R trainers to help supervise and help Birger and I navigate this obstacle. Im so proud of him
#ServiceDogInTraining #PositiveReinforcement #DogTraining

Varceptious Apr 11, 2025

My boy has a neurology appointment to get checked out on Tuesday. I worry he's in pain; the vet that did his xrays says there's something around his T12 and T13 vertebrae. I'm worried it's early signs of IVDD; Im hoping I'm wrong.

#ServiceDogInTraining #BirgerTheWeen