“Carina”

Training engagement (low/medium/high):

One Year: High. Carina is all in when we are training. I do know not to overdo so we do something twice and move on. She does lose engagement if you repeat something too many times. She also does not appreciate the heat so I make sure to come supplied with a fan and cooling mat to ensure she stays comfortable so she feels like she is able to work.

Three Years: Medium to high

Energy level (low/medium/high):

One Year: High. Carina has grown in endurance and stamina over this first year. She enjoys spending as much time as possible outside running and playing with my other dogs and barking at birds, airplanes…anything in the sky. Even though she is high energy, she settles well in the evenings and is a perfect snuggle partner on the couch every evening after dinner.

Three Years: Medium to high

Biddability (low/medium/high):

One Year: High. Carina is very willing to work with me. I use toys and treats with equal success. I know she wants a job to be fun and worth her while so I make sure that happens.

Three Years: Medium to high

Vocality (low/medium/high):

One Year: High. Carina is a barker. I can’t lie on this one. She has a voice and is not afraid to use it. I’ve learned that her bark can mean she is excited, is announcing herself when she arrives at class, a big truck is going by, or she is barking to tell the birds to quit flying over her yard! Had I not had Shelties prior to having Carina, I might have thought the barking was excessive. However, Carina is barking for a reason, and I know that it calms down in 10 minutes or less when we go places that are exciting.

Three Years: High

Prey drive (low/medium/high):

One Year: High. Carina will chase any and all wildlife given the chance. Hence, why I wanted to learn about the e-collar. I was not comfortable with taking her off leash without a tool to be safe due to the fact that her drive to chase is so high.

Three Years: High

Human social (reactive, aloof, neutral, social):

One Year: Social. She has never met a stranger in my presence. She has met strangers in many different locations and only one instance was she “afraid”. That was the Indy trial where she did not like men. I feel like that was situational and not her true temperament. She wants everyone to be her friend!

Three Years: Social butterfly! She loves everyone. As she gets more mature, her ability to pull her focus from other people and put her focus back on me grows. I had never had such a social dog and I always thought she didn’t like me and was opting to be with others instead of me. Now I know it was just a young, confident dog that liked people and wanted to make a new friend. I am far more relaxed about her level of social engagement and our ability to come back to being a team when it is necessary.

Dog social: (reactive, aloof, neutral, social):

One Year: Social. Carina is not scared of other dogs and not reserved either. She wants to meet them all. We have come to a middle ground where I allow her to meet other dogs I know are safe. I am still careful when we go to trials and class. I do not want her to have a bad experience with a dog that does not want to meet a new friend.

Three Years: Social, but able to ignore other dogs if I ask her to. When she was a puppy, it was difficult for me to get her to engage with me when other dogs were close by. I just had to leave the area. Now, I just ask her to pay attention to me by asking for a behavior. I am no longer stressed that I am “doing something wrong” because we are able to be a team in a lot of environments like at agility trials or conformation shows.

Environmental sensitivity - (scale of 1-10, 10 being very reactive/unable to redirect and 1 being sleeping and/or completely engaged and able to ignore the world):

One Year: 3. This is a tough one. Carina can’t handle AQ4U (agility facility) as you know due to the distractions on the other side of the “wall” when asked to do boring obedience stuff. However, I have no issues with that and understand it is tough to do the boring stuff when you know the fun stuff is just on the other side of that wall. In every other environment, I am very happy with how she is able to settle. She can work at a practice jump at agility trials and does great at confirmation with all those dogs and is able to sleep in the trolley or in her crate.

Three Years: Carina is the most well-adjusted dog I have ever had. What I mean is that she is able to navigate her world and reacts like a dog with a good temperament should. I am going to give her a 5 and for me that means she is in a world where she is excited when she should be and calms down either naturally or when I step in and ask for engagement.

Confidence level (scale of 1-10, 1 being afraid of the smallest change/shadow and 10 being completely unafraid in any scenario):

One Year: 10. Other than the very demonstrative fear period, Carina comes in like a wrecking ball. She is the life of the party and is ready to explore and interact with her environment. She will startle at a dog barking in their crate when she walks by for example, but she recovers quickly. I consider the startle to be normal, but her recovery is exactly what I want it to be with no lasting impact on her behavior the next time she walks by a crate with other dogs in them.

Three Years: 10…I’ve never seen Carina really be afraid of anything. She went through normal fear periods and I am not counting those. She startles when she should but recovers immediately. I describe Carina as optimistic about her world. She does not expect anything to be scary so she has a positive outlook on life.

Velcro (scale 1-10, 1 being very independent and aloof and 10 being living in your skin at all times):

One Year: 5. Carina loves me and we love spending time together. However, she is independent and does not “need” me to be confident in situations. She obviously travels without me with success. I do not worry when I am gone from home that she will have any anxiety being left with other family members.

Three Years: 5…I think being a 5 is perfect. She is independent, but not negatively so. Carina is exactly what you want as far as a dog who is balanced between independent and seeking out your engagement.

Affectionate (scale 1-10, 1 being not ever seeking or giving affection/attention, 10 being the most affectionate dog ever):

One Year: 8. I can always count on Carina for a big kiss or a nip to the face! LOL! She is affectionate without being obnoxious. If I am gone for a long time…if I have to go to work…she is extra excited to see me but calms down quickly. Carina greets Allison and Don with enthusiasm as well. She is more than willing to give them a kiss when they come home from work!

Three Years: Carina is affectionate. I give her a 7. Biting is love! She gets very excited when she first sees me and I get some nips on the face and ears. After having a very enthusiastic greeting, she calms down pretty quickly. She wants to be close to me and lays at my feet when I am working and next to me on the couch in the evening.

Problem solving skills/independent thinking: (scale 1-10, 1 being needs help with everything/can’t generalize, 10 being puzzle master):

One Year: 10. She is a master. It is both fun and kind of scary how smart Carina is. I have every confidence that she can figure out any puzzle I give her. My favorite thing is that she solves the puzzle but does not get herself stressed by overthinking. She expends the right amount of energy to solve the issue but does not bring about any stress to herself. Like Six for example. She is not like that and for that I am very thankful!

Three Years: 10…Carina can solve anything put in front of her. She is not reluctant to try things. It is very fulfilling to see a dog who looks at puzzles as a challenge and does not just give up when things don’t work out easily.

Off switch?

One Year: I have a habit of saying “We’re done” at the end of a training session. Carina has picked up on that and knows when training is over and switches back into normal mode. Outside of training, she loves to play but is not obsessed and when we stop, she stops. She is not the BC who comes to you with the toy over and over just hoping you will give in and throw it. She is able to pick up on cues that the event is over. I feel like she is confident that the next opportunity for fun will happen, so she has no issues letting the current activity go.

Three Years: Carina’s off switch has grown tremendously. Carina lives in a multiple dog household and as a young dog it was difficult for her to “turn off” due to all the stimulation around her. She has learned to cope with all the stimulation, but I have also made sure to provide an environment that helps all the dogs to be able to “turn off”. We have chew time regularly, scatter feeds, snuffle mats to try to naturally bring the energy level down. I also have altered my mind set and realize the dogs need more down time and no longer feel obligated to occupy their time with constant stimulation.

Favorite activities:

One Year: Water, water, water. Any activity that involves water is the most fun. If there is mud present, that just adds to the fun!

Three years: Fast Cat, hikes, swimming (work in progress), chewing, agility, frisbee…I think variety is what I am trying to express here. Carina does not like one thing repeatedly. She wants variety so I try to provide that for her.

Personality quirks?

One Year: I love how she hides things around the house. She takes chews and stashes them around the house for safe keeping. She does go back and get them sometimes several days later.

Three Years: Carina is hysterical. She loves to hide things. She has some pretty good places to hide stuff and then some that are not so great. What makes me laugh is how she looks around to see if any of the other dogs see her hiding her toy or chew. She walks around until none of the other dogs are paying attention and then she stashes her prize.

Pros?

One Year: Carina is exactly the dog I wanted. I asked for a dog that was high energy and “crazy”. I don’t really even think she is crazy, but she is a lot of dog and some people would not be able to satisfy her need for exercise and mental stimulation. Carina is willing to snuggle, but she wants something fun to do to fill her days as well.

I think that Carina is very versatile and we are going to have so many opportunities to try different things because she is so open to giving everything a try. Carina is overall very driven, smart, versatile, happy, opinionated, and fun. She is a very good ambassador for the Icelandic breed. I feel like she is everything she should be and more.

Three Years: I can’t imagine my life without Carina. She is everything I want in a dog and didn’t even know it. That does not mean I have not had my struggles. Learning a new breed after so many years of just having BCs, has been a challenge. Carina has given me the opportunity to learn how to be a better trainer and just a better overall dog parent. I also think that having a dog that is so versatile opens your eyes to possibilities. I enjoy different activities with my dogs now than prior to getting Carina.

Cons?

One Year: I am not sure there are any negatives. It was not always smooth sailing, but any and all puppies are going to give you a run for your money at some point.

Three Years: The only “con” if there truly is one is the barking. Carina is a barker. That said, I did not do a good job of controlling that barking when she was a puppy. I did not give her clear-cut rules about when barking is ok and when it is not. I think given another chance, and knowing what I know now, the barking would not be a con.

Any additional comments?

One Year: Carina has opened me up to a new breed of dog that I hope will be a part of the rest of my life.

Three Years: