Ok... Trink had been going through a rough patch recently. She was very nervous, would freeze on walks, and just stand there shaking with fear/nerves.

So, I go away for four days, board her, and switch her back to her old food during that time. (She'd been doing fine on it, I switched to a different brand because it was cheaper, but it gave her really soft stools, so I switched back to the first brand.) And when I get back and pick her up... on the very first walk we go on, she's her normal frisky, prancy, happy self. Ears up, tail up, more than happy to trot (and run a little) down the street. Sure, she'll still stop abruptly to sniff good smells and what not, but it's the normal kind of stopping, not the absolutely terrified kind that she had been doing.

So... what gives? Any thoughts on why the sudden transformation? Or do I just accept my blessings and put it down to one of those mysteries of life?

Dogs love their routine. It could be she was put off by the strange food, or even something new in the neighborhood now gone away you didn't even notice.

How have things gone for you? Were you tense about the upcoming trip and relaxed and glad to be back? Any tension or stress will flow right down the leash.

The trip was pretty much a last-minute spur of the moment decision, so it was hectic, but not particularly stressful. And she'd been in this state before I made that decision. Quite honestly, since she had started acting up at the daycare (where she also boards), I expected her to be a nervous wreck when I got her back.

The food might have contributed, especially if it was bothering her stomach. And I'm wondering if the deer rut is over now... there are some in the neighborhood, and that might have bothered her. Or, maybe she thought that if she didn't act happy, I'd leave her at the boarding spot and never come back! :) It's hard to say... nothing seems different that I can put my finger on definitively.