Lately, when I take Kodo into Petsmart with me, he has been getting a little squirrelly around the automatic doors in the front. Going out only- he is fine coming in. But when it is time to leave, he starts doing his donkey imitation and getting a little wild around the eyes. Dunno if it is the carts, the doors, the rustly bags I carry, or the traffic, but he has been 'refusing' inside the store, out on the sidewalk (won't cross the aisle to get to the parked cars), etc.
I decided we needed to desensitize, and every time I take him in there I buy him a jumbo Greenie and use that to lure him all the way to the car. If you are not familiar with Greenies, they are some sort of digestible gelatin mix hardened into a shape halfway between a bone and a toothbrush. They are supposed to be chewed slowly for teeth cleaning. Kodo LOVES them. Jumbo sizes are probably 6-8 inches long and an inch plus thick.
Today I picked him up a Greenie, lured him out to the car and in, then gave it to him. I then proceeded to get myself into the car at a normal speed, then drive to the end of the (admittedly large) parking lot. I am sitting at the light to turn onto the street, and I turn around and there is less than an inch left on the Greenie. Kodo is blissfully smacking his lips and making loud squishy chewing noises. And just as I turn onto the road, the last piece disappears down his throat. So he completed one jumbo Greenie before we even got out of the parking lot. *sigh*
I need to read the packaging carefully to him next time to explain it is for CHEWING, not for swallowing in large chunks. At least these are digestible (unlike his old rawhide habit) so he should be ok regardless, but sheesh!!
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