The Yoga of Life

I just got back from a walk with my 110 lb. Bull Mastiff, Archie. It is glorious outside and I couldn't resist getting a little hike in at the greenbelt. First, a little background on Archie. Archie and I found each other when I moved into my house in October of 2005. He was 3 yrs. old, un-neutered, skinny, aggressive, but amazingly sweet and I was really ready for a canine companion. Archie had been abandoned by his previous owner, and before that, he had spent many hours tied to a tree in the back yard. The combo created an imbalance in Archie which caused fear-based aggressiveness towards other dogs, particularly other imbalanced dogs. When we met, I wasn't very assertive, but I learned quickly (thanks to some trainers and the Dog Whisperer's book) that I had to learn to be Alpha in Archie's life so that he could feel more balanced. So Archie taught me to hold my ground and to be kind, but assertive. Part of my dream of having a dog was to take said canine fri