Emery has opened up quite a bit since day one. She has bonded with her handlers and has shown progress in her confidence around the facility, walking through new areas and people.
We have had a couple of issues that we will continue to monitor. The first was on Wednesday when an officer came into the room and she started to growl. He approached her gently and she barked at him. We worked through it and he was eventually able to pet her. The same day, another person came into the room and she did the same thing, but tried to snap at him. This is something to be cautious of while out in public if a child is not being monitored or is not educated about service dogs and tries to pet Emery while the handler is looking away. It may be a resource guarding issue since her breed is known for territorial aggression.
Outside of the room she cowers when new people try to pet her and sometimes will growl or let out a low bark. She is doing great with putting on her vest, elevator rides, dinner trips, under the table, touch (hand), and duration sits and downs without breaking. No trouble at all meeting new dogs and respects social cues when play gets rough.
Also, Emery has been leaking urine while laying down in the room, even shortly after a potty break. We will be monitoring her water intake more closely. She does not alert anyone to indicate that she has to go potty. She will just lay there and it will drip or stream out as if she doesn't know it is happening. She also barked and bit at the other dog in our room when it came into her area.
