We took Maggie there last night and there were 4 friends there for her to play with. She sniffed around a lot and was comfortable enough to lay down, but she didn't do any running around. We'll try again tonight.
We went to the Michigan City park Thursday night where she did run around and play for a little while with two puppies. It was good for her to see how the puppies initiated play and since they were pups they were much more insistent that she play. The grown dogs often will show they want to play but if Maggie doesn't respond they leave her alone and go find another dog.
The frequent exposure to other dogs this past week really has semed to help her and each day builds off of the previous.
We also went to Bridges to eat outside with Mags. The food was so-so but it was a great spot to take her out with us and pretty quiet.
Also on Thurs, Maggie jumped out of the car on her own. That was a first and she repeated it yesterday, so we're hopeful that she finally has this down.
We've seen some great progress with her recently. The are sometimes small things, but they are signs that she's more trusting of us and more comfortable with new situations.
In the house she's figured out that if we're petting her that she can flop over on her side to get a belly rub. Previously we had to nudge her over to show her.
In a few new situations, such as the new park, the State Park beach, or just stopping to talk to neighbors in New Buffalo, she'll pretty quickly be comfortable enough to lie down and just chill. The old Maggie would have stood nervously with her nose dripping like a faucet. The nervous nose running happens much less frequently and for shorter durations. She still wil jump or finch easily at small noises, but we're seeing progress.
Last night some of our neighbors were at the firepit so we brought her out with us. She was great with about 15 people out and just lay there calmly all night - you wouldn't have even known she was there.
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