I can hear it like it was just yesterday "you can have as many dogs as you want when you have your own house." It is a statement that was said to me everytime I asked for another dog growing up. And as a grown up I have three dogs and I am very happy about it; yes I would like more but that will come. I love dogs; I have loved dogs for as long as I can remember; why? I don't know that. I did not come from a big dog loving family; we had one toy poodle growing up that we begged for and that was it.

As soon as I was out on my own I got my dogs and have never looked back. My dogs have been mostly standard poodles but in the beginning it was a tough decision. You see I like just about all dogs; of course there are the ones I'm not fond of, mostly the ones that want to bite me that I'm not big on. But in general I love dogs; so when it came time to have my own dogs it was a process. At the age of 18 I acquired an airedale from my sister; her name was Mandy and she was my first heart dog. She was my constant shadow, we did everything together. I decided to add another dog to our family once I got married.

The dogs that I contemplated adding were; another Airedale, a doberman, giant schnauzer and standard poodle. I like big dogs; and yes I love small dogs too but I wanted a big one. As I have written about before I spent the first years of my life with dogs alongside Dobermans. I handled them in the conformation ring for 9 years before picking out my own dog. I was very intrigued with the standard poodle; I'd heard that they were smart, really smart and I wanted to get my hands on one. I called a breeder who had a litter so that I could just go and see what the adults were like. Did I really want a poodle?

Funny, the whole "poodle" issue that so many people have was not an issue for me. To me they were just another breed and held no foo foo stigma in my mind. After arriving at the home of the breeder and meeting the dogs I was sold. It was like a Doberman in a shedless body and so we soon added our first standard poodle to the family. Since that day we have had other poodles; I have a Jack Russell and there were lots of times when I have thought that I should get another type of dog but it is a tough decision. Sometimes I believe that it is just easier to stick with one than try to choose a new breed or mix in all the wonderful dogs that are out there.

I love spending time with other guardians who have other breeds, I love to hear their stories both about their breed and individual dogs. I simply love meeting new dogs and getting to know them so I would say my job training and shooting dogs is pretty much a match made in heaven. Everyone has a story or two about themselves and a dog who impacted their life; I want to hear them. I have decided to dedicate a page on my website for just this; so tell me, I'm listening.

This and that

Luke got a haircut yesterday; and he is none too happy about it. He doesn't mind the actual act of being groomed, it is the after effects that he really hates. Lukes coat is not a great poodle coat as to standard; it is pretty loose and by the time you get down to his legs they are very fluffy; having no substance. His legs are hard to scissor because they are so whispy. Although up around his neck his coat is perfection, thick, dense and curly. When he is in full coat he is heaven on earth to hold, his amazing blonde light curls are what you would love to snuggle with. So, when it's gone he is cranky.

I knew we would have a bed guest lastnight because he was missing his coat. It was sometime in the middle of the night; he must of lost the blanket I covered him in before bed and needed to snuggle. Barely awake I was covering him up and realized that my husband was doing the samething; poor dog he barely gets any attention. All snuggled under the down comforter he fell quickly into a deep sleep and is still there now. Although he misses his coat at night he will be very happy on our run not to be overheating today.

I bought this yesterday for Tilley. Several people have told me about it so I thought I'd give it a try. At 12 Tilley is showing signs of arthritis or at least some leg issues. They just seem to be weakening, it takes her longer to get up and when she comes down the stairs she sort of sounds like she is half falling down the stairs. And I have already discussed the speed of her walking now. The shark cartilage and glucosomine have not seemed to do a whole lot so I'll try this Liquid 5000. I will keep you all updated to its effects which I'm hoping are great.

Tilley has been spending alot of time outdoors lately; she is constantly in and out the dog door. Yesterday I saw her rolling around the grass and then soaking up the sun she lay and fell asleep on the lawn. I love to see her enjoying herself like this. She is so relaxed, her movements are slow as she flops around like a fish out of water; she is scratching her back. She does this for a while and the just lays there upside down in the sun. These are the moments that remind me to enjoy the little things in life.

Monday morning ramblings

Morning; not sure if it's a good morning yet or not I'm having a hardtime waking up. I'd like to hop out of bed but my body is not obliging. Waking up at 5ish is tough, much easier when there is at least a glimmer of daytime out the window. But as soon as I finish writing I gotta get up, really. The dogs are not even considering getting up.

Lastnight I was watching a show on Grizzly bears on NatGeo; it was very good with lots of insight and pretty scarey to boot. They had footage of grizzly bears taking down carribeau and taking on packs of wolves. Wolves have balls I'll tell you; watching them try to hold their ground with the monster sized Grizzly. They deek and dodge just out of reach from those giant paws and claws. Makes me think of the small dogs that think they are so much larger than they are, like my Jessie.

We were walking all the dogs on Saturday and came across a woman with a very old dog. A 17 year old chow, pretty impressive I'll say. It looked very much like a black chow and only the white patches of fur on it's chest gave a hint of the mix it had in it. With it's head slung very low; so low it nearly dragged on the ground it approached my guys. I of course veered off with Jessie and my husband let Luke and Tilley meet this very old man. The lady told us of her dogs younger days in Colorado; when he used to run for miles nonstop. And here he was at 17 trudging along with his companion of so many years. He was obviously enjoying his walk; it was slower and more than likely a bit painful but he was still out walking.

But back to Jessie; her greeting method is that of one with "the small dog syndrome." You come out swinging; let them know right away that you are no "little dog," and they best beware. She is not a mean dog by any stretch of the imagination but she sure comes across as that. She is a VERY dominant dog; and because of this she needs to be taken care of. Not all dogs are cool with being lashed at upon meeting. Jessie has only once been brought to submit and that was when she was very young greeting an Irish wolfhound, but that was the one and only time.

Many small dogs lash out because of fear, hey it must be tough being so small when big dogs approach. This too can get them into trouble as they tend to snap at the approaching dog trying to keep them away. Many dogs will retaliate to a snap instead of backing off as the little one would like. Because of the size difference that we humans have manufactured in dogs we now have to be very careful; careful of the little ones and careful of the big ones.

It always amazes me how a tiny dog can dominate a big dog just through sheer attitude. Jessie keeps many dogs in their place but because of her size I watch very closely who she interacts with. Jessie may be small but she is not fragile like so many of the tiny dogs these days, you know the "teacup pocket pooches." Most small breeds have those questionable breeders breeding them down and down until there is barely enough material to consider it a real dog. These dogs have issues, big medical issues.

Jessie is not that small, she is a hefty 15 lbs of pure muscle. She is like a Timex, she can take a lick'n and keep on tick'n. She is tough, rough and ready to rumble. Like the wolves on the show lastnight, she does not have the heart of a coward and is one big brave girl.

Have a great start to the week all.

Dirt schmirt

You want to talk dirt? I have run into alot of people who do not like to let their dogs get dirty. My breed of choice - (which means that this is the breed I choose to share my life with, (I happen to love all dogs no matter what their pedigree or lack of pedigree may be)) is the standard poodle. The poodle has long held the worst foofoo stigma a dog can obtain and wrongly so. Many poodle lovers do love the big haired, freshly fluffed look of the poodle but do not be fooled by the exterior beauty of the poodle. Like any other dog they love to get good and dirty and to deny them this priviledge is just well....................wrong in my opinion.

That is one reason I shave my dogs down; they do carry more coat in the winter for warmth but other than that, it's off with the coat, the pompoms and anything else that's use is purely fashion. I am often stopped and asked if my dogs are labra- or goldendoodles because they have no telltale pom poms like a typical poodle. I've even been stopped by poodle people who I'm assuming have never given their dogs a bath because they don't have pom poms when they are wet and you can pretty much see what they truly look like in a wetdown state.

Dogs love to have fun, if you have a pure white samoyed, a hairless xolo, an afghan with beautiful flowing locks, who cares? Everything washes off, and if you are worried about mats? Then cut off the excess hair so that you don't have to deal with mats or other things getting stuck up in your dogs coat. Of course if you have show dogs then you can't just hack off their coat but most breeders do take off the coat as soon as the dog is done their show career. If you want to show then you have to stick to the rules of the game but once you're done you can do what you want.

Dogs love to have fun and if that fun means getting dirty charging through muddy puddles and filling their feet with salt water and sand then I say let'm. Of course I do not want to deal with 2 inch thick mud covered feet on a daily basis, been there done that thank you very much; but on the weekends bring it on.

This statement might have a few of you shuddering as you read it but a dog is a dog is a dog. And I for one love to see a dirty one in any shape or size.

Friend or foe

A friend: a person attached to another by feelings of affection or personal regard. Humans have friends; all sorts of friends from acquaintances to true longtime friends but do dogs have friends? Yes they do in human terminology, they have friends and like us they have others that they just can't get along with. But it is much less complicated for dogs, dogs don't play games and dogs don't lie. They either like and trust others or they don't. Dogs do not pretend to like you but actually dislike you.

Some dogs have very outward emotions, easily readable like my Luke. It is very obvious when he knows another dog, his memory is scarey. My guys have alot of poodle friends being that I started up a local standard poodle group. We get together often and the dogs have come to be friends. When we meet at a park, it only takes one quick glimpse of the dogs from afar for Luke to kick into his "yeah, friends routine." His greetings are much more in your face; and there is no posturing, just mad wagging of happiness and a little out of control behavior.

If he is meeting a dog for the first time it is all about posturing, there is a huge difference. A behavior from a friend may be overlooked but not from a stranger. Friends can push buttons, strangers cannot. Watching a wolf documentary the other day was a little shocking in the way a pack treats some outsiders but not others. An outsider who was familiar got run out but that was the extent of it, a complete stranger venturing into the packs territory was quickly caught and killed. A little harsh and yes brutal but very matter of fact.

A dogs emotions are pure, you see it like it is. I have often heard people claim, "I have no idea why my dog attacked their friend." Typically this was an issue, there would have been posturing and communication and the human didn't see it. Dogs throw messages fast and furious; if you actually sit down and watch, and I mean really watch it is amazing how many communications they have. A greeting is a very communication filled one with dogs, reading and delivery is everything. They say everything with their posture, tail, eyes and sound, it is the whole package that must be read.

I think it is very important for dogs to have canine companionship as well as human. That is why I like to have three dogs, they kick it together. They are not hugely demonstrative to one another but take comfort in each others presence. When I watch my dogs walking off leash with their friends it makes me smile. After all the craziness of the initial greeting, the quiet happiness of walking together is inspiring. They are just happy to be chill'n together.

How many people love dogs so much because they return our love unconditionally. They love us no matter if we are rich, poor, thin, fat, nice or not nice people. Dogs attach themselves to us emotionally, and when you have a dog as a friend you never have to question motive or sincerity.

The fearful dog

I have a soft spot for fearful dogs; they don't understand that whatever they are fearful of is really nothing to be afraid of. Just like humans, even if we could explain it to them, it is just not that easy. When Tilley came to us she was quite a fearful girl, not confident in a new environment and quite uncomfortable around men. Fearful dogs need help, they need understanding and above all else patience. There is no quick fix for a fearful dog and if you try a quick fix you risk making matters far worse.

The worse thing you can do to a fearful dog is push. The more you push them to the object of their fear the more problems build. One; they will grow to distrust you, two you will be creating more fear and three they might just break. There is a breaking point in fearful dogs; one that you never want to go near. Many fearful dogs just back off; their answer to the fight or flight scenario is flight. Removing their ability to backoff creates a fight situation.

Fear biting dogs are one of the most dangerous dogs to deal with. Once a dog discovers that biting helps to remove the object of their fear they will use it more often. Unfortunately many fear biting dogs have been pushed into biting because their guardian didn't properly understand how to deal with canine fear. When a dog backs off cringing, it is very important to understand that this is how the dog is feeling. It is our job to create a more confident and well adjusted feeling by slowly exposing the dog to their fear, SLOWLY.

When a new scary person would come into our home; Tilley would hit the back wall and lurk around, head slung low growling so quietly it was barely audible. Not what a guardian wants to see their dog doing but this was the communication that I needed to know how she felt, really, really uncomfortable. So off to work we went. Out everyday, walking into the town, going to peoples homes to visit and taking an obedience class. The obedience class really helped because it was so structured; during a long stay she was right beside other dogs but not interacting so this enabled her to see that it wasn't all that bad.

Another very important factor when dealing with fearful dogs is trust; you must let your dog know that you are the one to go to in need. Fear is a scary emotion and often dogs will simply bolt; they become so fearful that they zone out which is extremely dangerous. There is a difference between trust and coddling; you want your dog to come to you when fearful but not come to you so that you can make the scary thing go away. Your dog must learn to deal. Yes they can hide behind you but don't touch them.

Your behavior is even more important than your dogs behavior in a scarey situation. As I have said dozens of times before; our dogs are watching us. How you behave in a situation will fuel your dogs behavior. If you wrap your arms around them and hug them in close during a fearful situation; you are infact telling them that you agree, this is very scarey. You may need to concur your own fears before tackling your dogs fears. Often when you know the outcome of a situation you may slip into the over protecting mode quickly letting your dog see an issue as scarey when it fact it may not be. Ya gotta chill.

Chill out and do your best acting job. If you are uptight about a situation, there is no way you are going to convince your dog otherwise. So get a grip and control your own emotions, take a deep breath, lower your shoulders and chill. Do not change your pace if you are on a walk, do not scold your dog for acting fearful, DO watch your dogs behavior for the slightest sign of relaxing and praise it. It does not matter if the fear is homebased or out walking, the situation can change quickly and you need to be prepared for that.

What if you are out walking along nicely and all of a sudden a dog comes around the corner? Many dogs have a startle fear; which is a toughie to deal with. If you have been startled as well as your dog then you should immediately go into your chill routine being very conscious of your pace and your body posture. If the situation is in your home, make sure people know that your dog is fearful and what to do and not to do.

Helping a fearful dog is a process achieved by babysteps, some smaller than others. But it is imperative that you never go beyond a comfort zone. And even more important; NEVER, EVER SCOLD OR DISCIPLINE a fearful dog for their fearful behavior. Instead reward the smallest of achievements and the bad behaviors will slowly dissipate.

No sleep and getting out

We had a rough night lastnight, I am once again exhausted. Luke was up several times, he had a weird stomach yesterday as he does often and needed to rush outside 3 times during the night. He is such a good boy about letting us know he needs out; he propels himself up onto the bed and dives off again in such a manner that there is no possible way you won't know that he needs out. I don't mind getting up with him; what I do mind is that I can't fall back asleep. Once you start thinking about stuff you're sunk.

So this morning he is sound asleep dreaming on the end of the bed and his breakfast will be chicken, pumpkin and rice which hopefully he will eat. Whenever the dogs have an upset stomach for some reason it is very easy to fix; often the solution is to skip a meal; that's easy with Luke but he does not have enough meat on him to do this very often so we'll try a bit of breakfast.

Yesterday I had the dogs at a beautiful park where I take them to often. The weather was perfect, cool, sunny and breezy, it was actually amazing for walking the dogs. When we got to the park there was just one other person there without a dog, nice. So I strategically placed us on the opposite side; the park has a path all the way around in a circle so with us on one side I let the dogs off leash. They did their whole walk off leash and it was great. Luke charged up ahead as he always does and Tilley trotted behind at a nice pace.

When I first let the dogs off leash they both charge off and around a corner, this is where the rabbits hang out and the dogs know it. They always come back once all the rabbits have dove for cover and we proceed around the park. This is my thinking time; and yesterday I was thinking about the importance of getting the dogs out. Even as seniors they need to get out of the house; not always for physical exercise but for mental. Dogs go stir crazy just like we do if we are in the house too long. Dogs love to explore new places and finding areas that you enjoy and your dog enjoy is very important.

When you take the time to find new places to enjoy; the experience is really good for your dog. There are new smells, sights and sounds to take in. Dogs these days lead a pretty boring life, they spend most of their time just at home not doing a whole lot. So if you get them out each day for a walk somewhere; and not always the same old park it gives them the opportunity to grow. Not all walks need to be a exercise extravaganza; sometimes just taking in all the new around them is exhausting and wonderful.

No matter where I take my dogs everyday; when we get back home they are much more content with spending the rest of the day lazing around the house. So get out with your dog and experience some life; it'll do you both good.

Off days

Yesterday morning it was apparent that Luke was in a bad mood. It doesn't take long to read his mood because he displays his emotions outwardly; he isn't the type to hold in his emotions. The girls may have bad days as well but they don't show them as obviously, only the tiniest of things let you know it's an off day for them. With Luke you know right away, he is either over the top tail wagging from the minute he sees someone, sort of on the fence about seeing you or won't talk to you.

Is it a fair statement then to say that dogs have bad days? Darn right. Ask anyone who does a competitive performance with their dog; whether it is flyball, agility, dock diving or frisbee they have off days. And because of this I like to take a good hard look at a behavior when a dog is not performing. Even in simple daily obedience, where your dog might always come to you immediately, one day they might just not. Often an angry reaction is the human response but perhaps it should be "what's up with Fido?"

Yesterday Luke was not talking to me; which is very rare for him. He was still following me around but not like he normally does. There were a few times I changed rooms and he stayed where he was. I have a feeling he was perhaps overly tired from his power exercise weekend and not in a cheery mood because of it. So I take that into account when I am interacting with him, I don't push him on his off days. Hey; it's not a good idea to push me on my off days either, you could be seriously injured ;)

If you know your dog inside and out then you should be able to see an off day. Like I said it is not always as easy as Luke who is so visual. Sometimes it's a simple change in their usually very predictable behavior, so keep an eye out and be an extra good guardian on those days and this will pass.

The mounting debate

Well good Monday morning; we're going to get right into it this morning and discuss mounting. Mounting is vastly misunderstood, confusing and left to it's own far too often. Some dogs mount more than others in general, I have noticed though that alot of "puppymill" dogs mount alot. Mostly they have no idea why they are mounting and many slip into a habitual mount or humpering. I'm not sure why so many puppymill dogs are mad humpers but it is more than likely caused by a psychological issue; ripped away from their mother sometimes as young as 4 weeks old, this has alot of damaging effects.

There are three reasons that dogs hump, the first being dominance. This means that it is a male or female behavior; there is no difference between the sexes when it is caused by dominance. My little 15 lb female Jack Russell regularly mounts my other dogs, mostly my male because he crosses the line too often. When I brought a new puppy into our home last year, the first thing on Jessie's mind was to mount it. Mounting is a hierarchy behavior; and is seen in the smallest little teacup yorkies all the way up to our canine ancestors, the wolf.

Dominance mounting is why dogs mount children most of the time. They are attempting to weed out the week and gain a higher status within the pack. This should never be allowed and be quickly stopped and the behavior completely discouraged. Many children need adult assistance when interacting with a status seeking dominant dog. It is important the the child never crawl around on the floor, play dog type games like tug-o-war or run to be chased.

Another reason for mounting is of course the desire to mate; although sometimes a dog has the drive but no knowledge of the procedure. Many young dogs mount and hump and they are much to young to even know what they are doing. It is an instinctual behavior that many practice at young ages and this can get them into alot of trouble. Some learn early on when it is and is not appropriate.

And the last reason for mounting is excitement. It is closely linked with dominance and mating ritualistic mounting but intertwined with the lack of knowledge and experience. Seen mostly in very young dogs who are aroused by excitement. This is where I see the puppymill mounting; which seems to have a general lack of gray matter behind the activity. You will often see these dogs also mounting and hump inanimate objects which often leads to the obsessive humping dog.

Mounting and humping are only one piece of the puzzle, you must pay close attention to the environment, interactions and other body language that the dog is displaying to really read into what is going on. Often it is a simple explanation, sometimes it may seem to be easily explained by sex drive but may be clearly and only dominance. But in all cases it should be immediately stopped, unless of course you are breeding the particular dogs. ;)

Busy weekend

Whoa, where'd the weekend go? It's late Sunday night and I cannot believe it's over already. The weather was great so the dogs got out alot to exercise. Luke went for a huge run yesterday morning and the old gals went out with me. Tilley actually had a spring in her step which was really nice to see and she jumped out of the car on her own before I could get a hold of her. I've been using glucosamine/condroitin and shark cartilage in her food and it seems to be doing the trick.

Then after their morning romps they had breakfast and it was our turn. We went for a huge off road and hiking adventure which was great. There was to be quite a bit of poison oak so the first time we visited the falls I wanted to be sure it was an okay place for the dogs. Luke and maybe Jessie can join us next time but Tilley will stay home, it was alot of walking over rocks and climbing that would be too much for her. While we were at the falls at Holly Jim's we saw a couple of dogs. One was a very athletic young Ridgeback (although he happened to be ridgeless) and another a very old and fat beagle who would have been better left at home I think.

One reason I was leery to bring the dogs was the fact that they might get poison oak on their feet and then jump on me. Back home in Canada, every summer at the cottage I got a case of poison ivy with each year worse than the one before. The year we left to come here I was covered with a severe case of it. The dogs use to pick it up in the woods around the cottage and then share their lovely poison with me. I got it everywhere because they regularly jumped on me when I would come out of the cottage first thing in the morning. So I am extremely sensitive to these type things and I am not interested in acquiring anymore thank you very much.

Today my hubby took both poodles on a walk and said that he too saw a difference in Tilley, very nice.

Curbing leash crazies

Okay I want a show of hands; how many of your dogs go spinning out of control when they see their leash? I thought so. Over the years I've seen so many dogs who just loose it at the sight of their leash in the guardians hands. Sometimes even the meer opening of a closet, the leash closet is all it takes to send your dog into a whirling tornado. This usually starts out small and over the months grows into a huge uncontrolable issue. And why does it grow? Because we fuel it.

Leash desensitizing is one behavior that is very easy to stop. It may take a while and needs commitment, consistency and dedication for the long haul if you want to accomplish the task at hand though. Desensitize: To render insensitive or less sensitive. To make emotionally insensitive or unresponsive. How nice would this be? Imagine picking up your dogs leash and seeing only a slight reaction, maybe raised ears instead of having your dog launch themselves at you? So the goal in desensitizing the leash is to stop the craziness, correct?

Like I said, it's easy. So what do you do? Pick up the leash, at different intervals during the day. In the beginning you put the leash on the floor in a room, leave it there. After a couple days when your dogs stops staring at the leash, kick it when you go by. Once your dog has stopped responding to the kicking, you pick it up and put it back down. Next you will pick up the leash and move it somewhere else, put it on the floor. Perhaps put it on the couch for a couple of days or pick it up and carry it around for 5 min. or so then put it down.

The big secret is the unknown. You are changing the association that your dog has with "the leash." "I might just be moving the leash, or maybe just putting it away." This really helps your dog in the "control" department. Once a leash means walks and only walks; and if your dog LOOOOOOVVVVVVVVVVVVVEEEEEEEEESSSSSSSSSS their walks then it's pretty difficult to calm them. But if the leash movement means lots of different things then your dog is always guessing.

Now here is the icing on the cake; hook your dog up onto their leash and take it off. That's correct; go to your dog, put on the leash and then take it off. Walk away like no big deal. Then put the leash on and let them drag it around for a while, that sure takes the umph out of a leash. What you are doing is taking the almighty power out of the leash. You can even hook them up, walk out the door, and walk right back in taking the leash off and dropping it.

Mix it up, you will be doing your dog and yourself a big favor. Oh and don't get crazy excited about telling them they are going for a walk either.

Think green

With Earth day just yesterday I want to discuss a few green things that pertain to dogs. First the "hot topic" of the day; topical flea and tick treatments. The EPA has just come out with a warning that they think that just maybe the topical flea and tick treatments for pets might not be too healthy.................ya think? I have used these treatments on my dogs; years ago before I thought about this stuff quite as much, and I regret using them.

I honestly don't know how the people who come up with this stuff and promote it sleep at night. "Push the chems people," I can just hear the weekly meeting. "Come up with some scarey looking flea and tick characters for our promos." And the flea and tick treatments that you give internally? Don't even go there. Yes fleas suck, but the fact is they are pretty easy to get rid of by bathing your dog regularly. Plain ole shampoo and water drowns the little suckers. Make sure that you vacuum regularly, especially where your dog sleeps.

I guess it was all the dogs falling ill and or dying that tipped them off that these products may not be so pet friendly. When the directions say not to let children touch the application sight, chances are we shouldn't be doses our dogs with it. But don't stop there with your new healthy thinking, you need to think about the "heartworm" pill that your dog gets and the new vaccines that are coming out apparently to protect our dogs from beasties.

Now let's talk poop; there is literally mountains of it yes? And far too many people are picking it up in plastic bags. Remember the whole get rid of plastic grocery bag issue? Let's not use them all for picking up poop. Don't purchase plastic poop bags. There are many companies that now make biodegradable bags, purchase some. I have found a wonderful supplier for biodegradeable poop bags which does not cost an arm and a leg to buy. I've order twice from this company and give them a four paws up. Unfortunately if something is expensive the product is not likely to catch on.

The focus is on our carbon footprint these days, take the time to consider the carbon pawprint as well.

Talk'n to dogs

I am enjoying the cool breeze this morning immensely; as are the dogs I'm sure. For the past several days they have been laying around the house like a bunch of sandbags, they don't enjoy the sweltering heat anymore than I do. The weather has broken; so we are happy once again.

I was having a discussion with Luke yesterday.................okay Sherri has lost it, she is talking to her dogs. I know what you are thinking and yes I talk to my dogs on a regular basis. They are very good listeners, or at least the poodles are. Jessie tends to listen for a moment and when there is no mention of food; she's over it. Luke is my best listener; I just know he is trying his hardest to figure out what the heck I'm talking about.

Just how much do they understand? Alot has to do with how much you talk to your dogs and how much you have educated them? My guys have a huge vocabulary that they understand. I am forever trying to teach them new words for things that might pop up in their life. I try to teach them the terms for their body parts or at least the ones that I'll have to deal with, ears, stomach, feet etc. Luke being a huge worry wart I like to let him know everything I intend on doing to him; this helps to relax him. He knows that "Mommy see," means that I need to look at something on him. His body posture changes when I say this, he clearly understands versus me grabbing him and tryiing to check something out unannounced which freaks him out.

"Let me help" means I will be assisting him off of something and he is cool with that. Just don't try to pick him up without telling him you are doing so. When you talk to your dog and they are listening; they are waiting for words that they recognize and have a clear association to. It can seem that they know exactly what you are talking about by recognizing a number of words in a sentence. For instance when I say "who wants to go for a walk?" The first word they understand is "who," most dogs who are talked to know this one.

But when a phrase is used repetitively they do understand the phrase. It is the phrase in general they understand, you can say "who wants to eat a toad?" and they still think it is something good. I often use the "who wants" phrase in my photography. Almost every dog will cock it's head for that phrase. But when you are having a discussion with your dog, lots of words are thrown aside. They stand listening for the words they understand, dog, hungry, outside, car etc. Put enough of them together and they can have a clear picture of what is going on.

You can clearly see when a dog understands a word "oh oh I know that one." Especially when you try using words that they don't understand. Some dogs will completely ignore you if you talk nonsense or things they don't understand and then there are the ones who really want to figure it out but can't. Those are the cute guys who turn their head constantly, mine all do.

Some recognition is based on tonal delivery, used alone or accompanied by a familiar word tone can make or break an understanding. If a dog truly understands a word, then tone does not matter, give it a try. Use a familiar phrase like "going in the car" and say it in many different tones, it is very interesting.

My association training comes in the form of "I see a need." Typically when there is confusion I see a need to explain and educate. A very good example is getting one dog out the door and leaving the rest in. As a trainer I see this mass confusion often, people trying to hold back one dog while the other is let out. There are legs and arms used and it is all very confusing for everyone involved. To simplfy this I have added "just" before the name or names of the dogs to come with me. When I say "just" everyone listens carefully and if that is "just Jessie" then just Jessie comes to me, confusion gone.

Talk to your dogs.

Its heat'n up

Good morning, nice and cool at the moment but heating up quickly I'm afraid. Yesterday it hit 100 here; and I was cranky about it. It's just too hot to do anything; and it's not only me, the dogs were strewn around the house completely crashed. Only Jessie got up to greet me when I got home, Tilley was asleep in the cool room downstairs and Luke was on my bed. He was happy to see me but not so much that he felt the need to move from his position.

Unfortunately many dogs die every year from heat stroke. Most in cars but some simply from being out in the extreme heat or being exercised when it's just too hot. I have personally had announcements made over the PA system over a half a dozen times because people have left their dog in the car. Dogs don't enjoy sitting in a car; believe it or not. They are left waiting, just waiting and if it is hot then they are suffering as well. A dog should not be left in a car if the temperature is even 70 degrees, it get's way hotter in your car than it is outside.

When it came time for me to get a new vehicle I steered away from black because of this fact alone. This had nothing to do with my dogs as I never take them in the car to wait. It was because I don't want to suffer from the temperatures that a black car gets, but even my red one heats up. Death can come quickly for a dog left in a car. Dogs cool themselves by panting but if the heat gets to be too much they simply cannot get rid of the excess hit fast enough.

This is a great article on hyperthermia that details what heat stroke is, the signs and what to do if you think your dog has heat stroke. So please if you have places to go and people to see, leave your dog in the safety of your home.

Hip talk

Looks like another warm one today; this is the dogs day off. After much exercise over the weekend they typically take Monday to rest. Not me though; I am at the moment wedged in bed by the poodles but need to wriggle out and get to the gym. Exercise, exercise, we all hate it but love it at the sametime, eh? I would like to briefly discuss Canine Hip Dysplaysia today. In my breed it is something I have kept a close eye on.

Most large breeds are affected by the disease; CHD is a genetic disease that is passed onto offspring. There is still much research going on with this disease and much is unknown. One thing that I did find out recently is that racing greyhounds do not suffer at all from hip dysplasia; definitely something to look into. They are obviously doing something right if it has not crept into their breeding at all.

When one looks at the disease, where it comes from and how you can stop it; there are many factors. The first and most obvious is the OFA test This is when a dogs hips are xrayed and they are given a rating. Excellent - Severely dysplastic. In my opinion only excellent and good dogs should be bred but that is and only if they have good or excellent ratings in their pedigree. You cannot get rid of a disease by breeding borderline dogs.

What is in a dogs pedigree is even more important than the individual dog itself. An excellent rated dog can have a very poor rated background giving it a high rate of producing more bad hips. Environment and nutrition also play a role in CHD; but they cannot come into play if the genetics are not there. Meaning you cannot create Hip Dysplasia in good hips unless of course there has been a serious injury at some point.

Even with the best of research it can pop up; you do your research to find a good breeder and it can still happen. That is called life! The great breeders are doing their work; unfortunately there are alot of not good breeders out there undoing alot of the work out there. But by following strict guidelines, one a good breeder has made for themselves; they must be prepared to pass on a breeding. A good breeders main statement has always been "better the breed." This should be the guideline.

It is all about research, research, research. An excellent puppy pulled from a questionable pedigree will more than likely pass on the questionable.

Learning to walk again

This morning my hubby decided to take Luke for a run in the canyon. As I've said before Tilley has been retired from "the runs." If he is going only for a walk Tilley can accompany them but this morning was the power run. So I decided to take the ole' girls to the park. Jessie has to walk in very specific areas because she is very allergic to grass so we find park areas with little grass if possible.

Off we went; me walking and I mean walking the girls. We got to the park and it is obvious immediately; I have to completely learn this walking thing again. I am known as a speed walker, I am usually on a mission and see no reason to dilly dally walk. My kids are always telling me to slow down so now with Tilley slowing down I have no choice; she just doesn't keep up. Jessie is fine and flies when I need her to although she does have a tendency to sniff for unreasonable amounts of time. You know; each blade of grass, up one side and down the other, geesh.

So not only has Tilley been retired from "the runs," she has physically made me readjust my walking. I have to admit I have a very hardtime walking slow, it drives me mad at a mall when people walk slowly in front of me. For this I have to walk slow, there is no choice. I counted today and it is pretty much one step per second, that's really slow.

Things are really changing around here and we all have to adjust. This will give me more time to stop and smell the roses; what we should all be doing more of.

Sunny Saturday morning

Can't complain about the weather this morning, beautiful sunshine, cool breeze and the birds are chirping.....................................but I'll be complaining this afternoon if the temps reach the forecasted high 80s into the 90s. I love the cool weather, it is the best dog weather. This weekend is the big OC Pet Expo; I've attended every year with my camera but this one I'm missing out on. I've got lots of specific breeds to shoot for my upcoming books.

I had the chance to meet a half a dozen dogs yesterday; all were amazing. Not only were they all gorgeous but adorable on the inside. To be honest I have never met an ugly dog; I don't care what they look like they are all beautiful to me. From the most prestigious show dog to the unknown mixtures they are all wonderful. When I'm doing a shoot it is the eyes I'm looking at; those expressive eyes. And yesterday some very amazing eyes caught my eye.

Capturing a look thrills me; to see a dog who is so expressive with their eyes is a photographers dream; and as a behavior specialist it is magic. And to the plain ole' dog lover in me I just love it. There are so many different personalities; the shy, the outgoing, the obnoxious, fearful, anxious, mellow, nervous and the social butterflies. Every dog is so different; and I love meeting them all. Honestly what better job could one have?

Canine longeivity

The lifespan of a canine is far too fleeting; ask anyone who has lost of loved companion. In terms of mammal longeivity the lifespan of a dog is relatively short. Although not as short as some mammals; the pocket gopher is the shortest lived with a life expectancy of only 20 months. Some whales and tortoises can live up to 200 years. It is surprising that within the dog species itself there are large differences in longeivity of individual breeds.

The breeds with the shortest lifepans are the Dogue de Bordeaux, Bloodhound and Irish Wolfhound with the average expectancy being 6-7 years. And the longest living breeds are the smaller guys; the chihuahua, Tibetan Terrier and Border Terriers. So in the big picture, some of the largest mammals live the longest and the smallest have the shortest time here on our earth. So why then does it seem that the larger the dog the shorter the lifespan?

There are alot of factors that play a part in lifespan. The skeletal system is a major one and those of very large and giant breeds suffer wear and tear on their joints early on. The body of a very large breed of dog has a great need for oxygen which is pumped through the body via the heart. This puts a great strain on the heart. The small breeds just don't have the stress on their body that the very large and giant breeds do.

There is no other species that has as many variations as the dog. There are many differences in coat type, size and structure. Dogs as a whole evolved from the wolf, but from there we humans designed what we wanted in a dog. It is the morphing that gave our dog more or less life so to speak. The wolf lifespan is approximately 13 in the wild and markedly more in captivity. So to generalize the average lifespan our dogs started off with was somewhere around 13ish.

All of my dogs have left me at the age of 13. This seems to be a good age for our dogs to live to. I have known several giant breeds who were more the large size, not so giant and they lived a good long 12 years. Sizing down seems to be a good idea for our dogs. With great medical care and proper nutrition; we may be able to increase these years if we don't grow'm so big.

Luke's story

I've decided to write about each of my dog's entrance into our lives. I was going to start with the Matriarch of the family but Luke had a seizure tonight so I'll write about the young'n in the bunch. Luke seized due to being waken from a deep sleep and thrown into the hectic sounds of Tilley barking madly. This is what usually does it and sure enough he had a bad one. He is fine and sleeping now.

Luke is the baby, at almost 9 he will be my baby until another real baby joins our family. Luke joined us in November of 2000. That July I had lost one of the loves of my life; Clyde, and although by November I was more than ready to add another dog to our family I was not ready for another boy yet.

Luke was born August 16th, 2000 to a blue Mother named Lacey. His Father's name is Chico and from what I've heard of him Luke not only resembles his looks but also his personality. When I first met Luke I was in the process of adding a niece of Tilley's to our pack, things were being worked out. At the sametime a friend of mine had a litter. I decided to have a look at her puppies before they all found their way into a new home.

I arrived that day thinking "this will be fun." She greet me at the door and I immediately met the gang. Mom was on the couch as she had become ill after having the pups and had required surgery; she was resting. This had meant alot of bottle feeding for my friend, that is a huge commitment. Now 7 weeks they were weaned and on their way to becoming dogs.

The pups were in the backyard; they'd had an early start to the day, one had gone on a plane ride to his new home. The whole litter was black except for Luke who was a beautiful light amber color and his sister who was cream. Everyone was asleep, except Luke. As we walked through the yard we discussed the litter; I wanted to know who was the pick, who was an agility prospect, which pup was the timid one and who was the bully.

The entire length of our discussion Luke continued to jump on me and want attention. Finally after putting up with his constant jumping and climbing on me I held him in front of me and asked "do you want to come home with me?" Not even thinking about what I had just said I placed him down as the rest of the bunch started to wake up. They were all very friendly but Luke stood out, bigtime.

I found out that Luke had been the chosen boy for show, he was a looker. Before I left the litter thoughts started seeping into my head; he had definitely caught my eye and he had tried his hardest to wriggle into my heart as well. I said my good byes and was on my way home when I realized that I was still thinking about that little blonde boy. Once home it was all I could do to try to get him out of my head; what had happened?

The plans to ship a puppy from back home fell through; partly because I had a puppy right here in my town who obviously wanted to be mine. It took me 5 weeks of contemplating to come to a decision. With the help from some amazing friends; I made the final call to my friend and asked "do you still have the blonde boy?" I held my breath not really wanting to know the answer; sure that he was already happy in someone else's home. "Yep, he's here."

We drove to Huntington Beach that Saturday and picked him up. He was freshly bathed, he was an armful at 12 weeks, an armful of beautiful soft blonde curls.

To the dogs in our life

Spring brings with it new life; as with every season there is a beginning and an end. This blog is dedicated to the many dogs that have touched many of my friends. It is not easy to let go; there is no choice. Loving a dog is a gift; and in the end a difficult one.

The excitement level is high; everyone is on cloud nine with the new addition to the family, a puppy. How much fun is it to have a new puppy? No matter what breed or mix they are adorable, never met one that wasn't. But in the blink of an eye they are a puppy no more. You look at your dog and there stands a wonderfully mature adult where a puppy had stood not so long ago. How does time pass us by so quickly?

Sitting on the floor craddling perhaps the love of your life, your heart dog, the end is near. From the adorable fluffy bundle that tried your patience at the best of times, to a wonderfully well mannered adult, now a senior near the end. In what seems to be the a heart beat, the end is near.

If our dogs teach us anything; it is to live life to the fullest. Take everyday and do with it what you choose. There is no time to dwell on the negative, always move onto the positive. Keep positive people around you and do what makes you happy. Live the life you want to live; and take joy in the small things. The smallest things in life can be the best; just ask a dog.

There's alot to be said for the little things. A lizard running across the yard is a very exhilarating event, finally getting that one cookie you've been hoping for, sitting on the beach watching the sunset, a long walk in the park, sleeping soundly on your very own bed, someone to play tug o war with and someone to just sit with.

A dog comes into our life and alters it; they teach us to be patient, kind and sharing. Our time with them is a short one; cherish the moments, the small moments that make up the big picture. Now go hug your dog.