Every dog has a story waiting to be told.
We adopted Markus from the Empathy For Life rescue shelter in South Korea in November 2017. Having lived on the streets, Markus developed reactive behaviour and the shelter had issues locating a home for him because he was said to be aggressive and couldn’t get along with other dogs. Because of this, he went unadopted for over a year.
When we adopted Markus, we were prepared to work with him and were glad to discover that the description of “aggressive” was unwarranted. Markus is a reactive dog. His instinct is to avoid other dogs and he may growl, bark or lunge if provoked, but will not attack or bite. Through trial and error, we learned rather quickly that he did not enjoy being in dog parks and confined spaces with close proximity to other dogs. Rather than putting him in that situation, we take Markus out to the backyard we call the Pacific Northwest where he enjoys exploring the great outdoors.
Let us be the first to admit that we aren’t outdoorsy people. If you’re looking a guide on multi-day hikes where we tough out the elements in a tent, that’s not us. Our pace is, let’s say, just above a casual afternoon stroll. We’ll push it here and there, but we mostly hikes for some sort of reward at the end like a view or a waterfall. Honestly, the easier, the better. We’re based in Vancouver, but we’ll often go down the I-5 to Washington, Oregon and other parts of the Pacific Northwest.
We adopted Markus with the hope of restoring the storytelling that’s been stripped away from him. Working with a reactive dog is challenging, but through training and learning his triggers, we strive to provide Markus a full life as an explorer in the Pacific Northwest. The Markus Project is our way of documenting his comeback story, but it is also meant to be a guide for other owners of reactive dogs going through something similar.
Every dog is unique in their own way, so our experience at a park, trail or hotel will likely not be the same as your experience at the same park, trail or hotel. Our stories are meant to be a loose guideline of what to expect and to invoke a sense of adventure, if only to encourage other owners of reactive dogs to explore too. We can tell you the rules of the park, but we have no control whether other dog owners will adhere to park rules - like leashing their dogs on leash-required paths - or not. It’s frustrating and we empathize, but our hope is that along the way you, the reader, are able to find a tip or two that’s useful for your own adventures with your dog.