Welcome to the February 2024 edition of ZENFULdog of the Month featuring Ajax! Ajax is a gorgeous, thin-coated dog with no hair on her inner legs or belly so she dresses for the weather. Her pet-dad, Corey, had always believed dogs didn’t need clothes…until they adopted Ajax! Ajax has an assorted wardrobe of sweaters, full pajamas, different coats and booties! She and her family are beloved members of the ZENFULdog community.
Ajax
Age: 2
Birthday: January 15, 2022
Meet Ajax’s Family
(Crystal—Ajax’s pet-mom): Crystal has had many pets over the years, but there is something special about Ajax—she is Crystal’s heart dog: “I [adopted] her after some major life events and she was a big part of my healing. I am just as excited to get home after work to see her as she is to see me. It's the best feeling.”
(Corey—Ajax’s pet-dad): Corey says that Ajax is sweet but sassy and knows how to convince him to give her extra treats and belly rubs.
Ajax has 4 non-fur siblings: Carissa thinks Ajax is dramatic, Hayden thinks she is clingy, Evan sees her as a toddler, Taylor thinks she is playful and Hyder thinks she is adorable.
Ajax’s fur-siblings: 3 guinea pigs (Bailey, Bella, & Chewy) and 3 cats (Abby-7, Lilly-6, Rhino-10). Ajax loves to watch the guinea pigs—her family calls it “Dog TV.” Her favourite cat is Abby who loves her right back. Rhino does not accept Ajax’s presence whatsoever and Lilly will cuddle up to her on occasion but mostly defends her boundaries.
Ajax’s best paw-friend is Gracie: At least Ajax thinks so, but Crystal is sometimes convinced that Gracie is not all that happy to meet up with Ajax probably because Gracie is not as much into play and Ajax likes to instigate it. Crystal and Ajax have been going on walks with Gracie and her pet-mom since Ajax was 3 1/2 months old.
Ajax's Personality According to Crystal: Ajax is quiet, calm, sweet and lovable while also high energy, playful, curious and cautious. “She does not shy away from letting you know how she feels through her facial expressions and side-eyeing you. She has a look like she is judging.”
Crystal Shares The Most Unique Thing about Ajax: Ajax’s ears are probably the first thing people notice and compliment her on—they give her a unique look.
Ajax's favourite Treats/Foods according to Crystal: Ajax’s favourite treat is a beef rollover, she will do almost anything for it. She also loves freeze-dried beef liver, dehydrated chicken feet and dehydrated chicken necks.
Crystal Lists Ajax’s Favourite Activities:
Tug of war (with toys that look like animals—rabbits/squirrels)
Playing with her Flirt stick
Walking/hiking
Smelling everything on walks
Swimming
Looking in every culvert
Chasing anything that moves fast—squirrel, rabbit, streams of water and blowing leaves
Crystal Describes how Ajax Unwinds After a Full Day of Activity: Ajax unwinds by having a snack, then getting her back scratched and picking someone to cuddle up with. She does not like to go to bed on her own: “She will walk to the hallway and look at me to say ‘It's bedtime, let's go.’”
If Ajax had a human voice: Crystal pictures Ajax with a soft, sweet voice with a southern accent similar to Reese Witherspoon.
Ajax’s Training
Ajax started training with ZENFULdog Training in June 2022 when she was about 4 1/2 months old. Since then, she has completed training levels 1, 2 & 3, Click to Calm, Parkour, Fitness, and a few private training classes.
Ajax and her pet-mom are also members of ZENFULdog Canisport and Trail. They have participated in Canihikes, Bikejorring, Watersport, and Disc Dog (in which Crystal retrieved more frisbees than Ajax did).
Crystal credits Kendra for teaching her that not every dog is the same and that their success will all look different: “Sometimes it's okay to run through the field to chase squirrels with Ajax, that can be her success too.”
Crystal Tells Us How Training Has Shaped Ajax: Training has taught Ajax ways to calm herself, focus and be patient when a lot is going on around her as well as how to wait her turn. Crystal feels that Ajax was an easy puppy when it came to training.
Crystal Describes Ajax’s Biggest Training Challenges/Successes: A big challenge for Ajax was walking past people and dogs. She would either freeze or want to go say hi. Now, she can walk past most people and dogs with a little guidance. Crystal credits walking with ZENFULdog Canisport and Trail for helping with that.
Chasing small animals is still a challenge for Ajax because she has a high prey drive. With training, she can now walk by birds with little to no redirection: “She used to have a lot of zoomie on our walks but now I can redirect her by playing a ‘finding it’ game and sometimes she just needs a second to get the zoom out.”
Ajax’s Most Rewarding Training Moments: The most rewarding moments for Crystal are watching Ajax overcome things that she is unsure of. For example: “We have done Fitness twice now, and the first time, she would refuse to participate and would sit and side eye me the whole time, [because] everything was new and scary to her, but the second time, she is doing amazing [and] I am so proud of her.”
Parkour went from being Ajax’s and Crystal’s least favorite class to being their favourite class: “I love how mentally and physically stimulating it is, [Ajax] is exhausted after class.” Ajax has also learned that putting 2 paws on things gets her treats so she does it any chance she gets.
Kendra adds: “Ajax can charm anyone! She has the most unique and pretty face—those ears are just adorbs! When she makes eye contact, be prepared to melt. Her pet-family is so sweet and Crystal is very similar to her dog in that she is also very charming and fun to be around. Ajax was very successful in her group classes right from the get-go—she was calm and very engaged with her pet-mom.
During her adolescent phase, Ajax’s love for chasing squirrels became apparent as did her bursts of excited emotions and behaviours. She loves a good zoomie! Crystal was supportive, calm and always chose to see the humour rather than get upset, which gave Ajax the tools to help calm herself when she is overstimulated or overexcited.
Ajax loves to play with other dogs and she is crazy fast and strong! She likely is not aware of that though, she is just enjoying the play! Her heart loves getting attention from her family and friends and she has a sweet spot for kids—she is so gentle.
Ajax did start to struggle in some of her classes when her emotions shut down her behaviours. Once again, however, Crystal was calm and supportive and just let her take the time she needed to just BE. Now, those same courses are fun and they are both excelling in Parkour programs and Canifitness. They are absolutely adored by our canisport and trail community! I'm delighted to be a part of their journey. ”
A very special “Thank You!” to Crystal for providing so much fantastic content for this feature. Don’t forget you can also follow ZENFULdog Training on Facebook to stay connected to your like-minded dog-loving community every day!
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