Thanks Sunflowers!!
Fama is doing absolutely GREAT!! She is finding her spot in the family and happily filling it. She is content to hang out lazily, playing with Lu once in a while, or to go and train all day. I've been super busy getting the house and yard in order, plus starting the new job, so there have been days where she isn't busy working or training at all, and she does just fine. Pam helps out keeping her occupied with play and OB throughout the day too.
Karin, I think the biggest challenge for me has been to balance treating her like a working dog and allowing her to be a pet. All the things you do to keep them on point in the work don't matter so much anymore, so I had to change how I look at her daily life and not automatically handle situations like I would if she was still working. She gets toys now. She's not allowed to counter surf. She's not allowed to just go wherever she pleases off leash. She can't interact with the world in the same way, so I have to show her the new rules while being fair and understanding.
The biggest challenge for her, though there really haven't been any real challenges, is that she can't go with me everywhere I go. Before, if I walked out the door, she walked out with me. She literally went everywhere that I went except to the chow hall. For a solid year, every time I opened the door, she would run out and turn to see where we were going. She spent the first couple days trying to door dash, and then the next couple weeks laying against the door waiting for me to come back, even if it was 4-5 hours. She now understands the deal and will go relax somewhere or hang out with Pam when I'm gone.
Pam and I were talking about this last night. It honestly couldn't have gone any better. Fama is behaving like the perfect pet. She's completely at ease in the house with the family and any visitors we have. She is happy to relax and play around the house or to go for a run or do detection work. She has only chewed up one thing, a piece of CAT5 cable that was laying under her Kong, and hasn't had a housetraining accident. The neighbors love her. She enjoys heading out to run errands and is satisfied hanging out in the truck or going in and shopping with me. She is confident and relaxed.
It's really amazing to see her so happy and healthy. I sometimes just watch her from my chair and get tears in my eyes. Everything she has been through, from training to deployment to injuries and 13 different handlers, and now she's home with daddy. I don't know how many lives she saved, but it's a lot. To see her without a care in the world except having fun and eating dinner is just overwhelming when I think about it. She brings so much to my life.
You made it girl!
Yeah, she's a little spoiled now, and that's the way it should be
... yes, I make her bed every night LOL