Rukmini Vijayakumar Instagram – I’ve been spending a lot of time with Kong. Training him with the help of my trainer @santhosh_powerstar and also learning a lot online, and making many things up myself. (Thaachi, crawling under the table, kiss, hug, box jumps, etc 🙄) Kong is very reactive to strangers when I’m around, so it’s been a Herculean task to get him to ignore triggers like dogs, people who come too close, scooters etc. He’s totally fine with people and even dogs when I’m not there, but he’s hyper alert and extremely reactive when I’m there. Without really researching and trying different things, Kong could have turned out to be an extremely aggressive dog, but he’s not. He’s gentle, loving and extremely protective. The effort to make him calm, and feel safe after he lost his brother and got really anxious has come from my whole family, Santhosh, as well as the househelp. Everyone is kind and loving to Kong and he’s getting better with strangers – slowly and steadily. Meanwhile, we just have fun playing with him at home because he’s the kindest sweetest cuddly fur baby. If any of you are planning on getting a dog – please remember that it’s a lot of work and that you need the time to keep them happy and active. They are pack animals and it’s inhumane to tie them up all day or to leave them alone all day. It breaks their spirit. #dogsofinstagram #gsd #germanshepherd #tryingnewthings #doglover #dogmom #gsdofinstagram