What About the Boys?

It's been almost four weeks since we left sunny South Carolina and landed in London. I can't believe how the time has flown. The first week or so that we were here, both Glacier and Roscoe were incredibly difficult to control. We were stopping frequently for puppy push-ups and Glacier was back to wearing his Newtrix constantly. Within the last week though, Mr.k and I have seen great improvements in both dogs and we're both quite relieved.
I knew Glacier and Roscoe would go through an adjustment period. Everything here smells different and eventhe structure of most street crossings is different. They've had a huge shock and a lot of stimulation in a very short period of time. Not to mention, staying in a flat with five other people was very overwhelming for them. They would  often get crazy excited and cause mayhem and destruction with their coffee table height tails. They still swipe the coffee table clean on occasion, but most of their anxious behavior has started to subside.
What bites about this whole situation is that they have just finally started to settle in and next Friday we'll be moving them again. The only good thing is that they have both been to the new flat a few times; that way it won't be completely unfamiliar.
With this settling in comes a good work ethic. Both dogs have relaxed enough to focus on the task at paw. Their heads are mostly pointed in the right direction and stopping to sniff a particularly good smelling lamp post has decreased drastically. I've even been able to work Glacier without the Newtrix the last couple of days.
This afternoon we wandered up to a local cafe run by a Turkish family to have breakfast. Although we walked with a few friends, Glacier and Roscoe guided Mr. K and I carefully through crowds, across busy streets and around puddles. Their guiding was controlled and dependable, which was a huge change from some of our earlier outings. It used to be that Glacier was so excited to get out and work that I was being dragged along behind him, nearly powerless to stop him if he wanted to go faster. He was also insistent on sniffing and no amount of correction could deter him. I knew it would all subside, but I could feel my patience wearing thin and I was beginning to worry that the work we had in retraining at Leader Dogs for the Blind was for nothing. Since Roscoe was being a nut as well, I had hope.
Don't they say, "good things come to those that wait?"
Well, I think our waiting and patience have paid off. Of course they're not perfect, they are dogs, but improvements have been made and I have confidence in Glacier's ability to get me safely from one location to another.
Both boys are crashed out on the couch beside me. I think all of this working wears them out, but as I've said before
"a tired dog is a good dog."