These are Mommy's Best Boys, Laredo (red merle) and Cisco (black tri Mini). I used to have one best boy, Laredo, who couldn't stand me for about 2 years until he found out one day that he was more afraid of thunderstorms than he was of me, and we had a turning point. To this day, though, Laredo is still feral and will always be to a certain extent. Four years with me is not making a cupcake out of this dog at all. He will still snap at me if I push him past his comfort zone, like when I pinched him cutting a matt off his tummy the other day. His underlying level of fear will never go away, but most of the time he not only trusts me, but asks for my affection. He is the first one to jump in bed with me in the morning--only after Mark gets up--and will bow his head and press it against me, begging for petting, and then lets his whole body fall into me, or sometimes on top of me, as I rub and scratch him all over. Pretty awesome for a dog who wouldn't let me touch him for 2 years. Now, he has a small, curly protege, Cisco. Cisco also would rather crawl into a hole and die than allow me to touch him when he first came here, but he came around in a few short weeks....with me. He's been here about 6 months now, and will never leave, because he is still so terrified at the sight of every other human that he will risk injuring himself to escape. But, he's followed Laredo's lead and I guess looks up to Laredo, so like Laredo, jumps in the bed with me the minute Mark is not there. And he snuggles, and he loves. And the second Mark comes back, he's gone. Some dogs like this aren't able to love and trust multiple people. Sometimes, it's only one person, and I feel quite honored to be that person. Although, surprisingly, Laredo did walk over to our grandson a couple of weeks ago and ask for petting, and that was definitely a first for him. I think children have a different aura and Laredo sensed that. I know my boys' quirks, I know how to handle them in situations that are scary for them, like thunderstorms or new people or if Cisco happens to get out of the yard by mistake, and they trust me, as you can see in this pic. I also know their motivations, as in Cisco's love to play fetch, so when I had a hard time getting him to come back in the house, I could toss a ball into the house and he would run right in. I just have to be aware and cognisant of their motivators and work with that. I won't lie, I sometimes stay in bed after Mark gets up just so I can have that "special bonding time" with these two, because they each jump in the bed almost as soon as Mark's feet hit the floor. They are, and always will be, Mommy's Boys. And that is a very gratifying feeling for me, after all of the hard work I put in on them. Neither will ever be adoptable to other families, but they are very happy and loved here, and are not only great with other dogs but, as in Laredo's case, are instrumental in our rescue and dealings with other dogs. I love my boys and wouldn't trade them for anything. <3
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