Loner Dog

We wanted a dog so badly. All of us - well, me and my two sons. My husband was unconvinced.

We snuck into rescue centers looking for ‘the one’. One afternoon, scrolling on a website, three little black pups stared out of my phone. I grabbed my son and we rushed to the local center. Three siblings were there, two of them yappy, bouncy, shouting for attention. One on his own. He ambled slowly over, sat down and quietly looked us right in the eyes. Meet Arlo.

We held him, he held our gaze and we left together.

At first Arlo was pup-typical; bouncy, nipping and chewing. But slowly he became withdrawn and sullen.

Arlo became an enigma. He wouldn’t leave the house for a walk. Yet put him in the car and he would gladly then walk wherever you wanted. Noises spooked him. Opening a packet of chips sent him into hiding.

We sought professional help. I told a trainer that I felt we had the wrong dog for our family. She calmly told me “maybe Arlo had the wrong family for him”. It broke my heart.

I changed his diet. I gave him anti-anxiety drugs. I walked him longer and further to tire the anxiety out of him. He once adored the beach but now was highly reactive to other dogs. Vets had no rationale for his behavior.

Eventually, as a family, we stopped looking for answers. We accepted that Arlo is different and found our own love pact.

He comes alive at night, along with my 12 year old, both avoiding bedtime. Together they roar through the hallways skidding as fast as they can. He loves hide and seek and plays catch with an invisible ball. He dives for pebbles in the ocean. He is a reluctant ‘spooner’ - we steal those cuddles when we can. He nudges my husband until he stops to give Arlo a full body massage, sending him into a soporific trance. He will sometimes, just sometimes, plant a kiss on my eldest.

On Christmas Day, when it was all too much, we let him have his dinner in the shower where he had quietly secluded himself.

Four years on and we love him so very much. Our family has shared precious life learnings; about acceptance, patience and giving love unconditionally. And most of all, we have learnt that dogs are wonderful teachers. A beautiful thing is never perfect.