I want it and I want it now.

I was standing chatting with some friends; Luke was trying to achieve eye contact with me. I looked at him and asked "what do you want?" He grabbed his bottle of water that hangs off my dog pouch and pulled. He had just had a drink of water; I don't want him drinking too much at a time on a walk so I told him no more. He then grabbed his bowl which is also attached to the pouch; hmmmmm. I do not like demanding behavior; Luke wanted attention and wanted me to stop talking and keep walking. "Knock it off;" I told him making it clear that this was not acceptable behavior. He then gave me a quick look and ran off.

The other day in the park I watched as a young and very obnoxious dog attempted to control his guardian. The dog was off leash when I got there and by it's behavior I knew I didn't want it coming my way. I had Jessie and at 14 and grouchy she will not put up with obnoxious. The woman saw us and attempted to put the leash on; the dog was not helping. He was jumping; spinning and biting her arms and the leash. Once the leash was on he jumped and bit at the leash and her arms the entire time. She was fighting with him but he was winning; I was just glad she got the leash on.

All dogs can try your patience; some will test, some will push. The end result and lesson will result by what you do in return. Many demanding behaviors can seem cute to start with; "oh look he wants to walk himself." So if you don't know what is actually going on you can reinforce an obnoxious behavior. You not only allow it but you encourage it. Yikes.

Leash grabbing and yanking is a very common demanding behavior. Your dog may not feel like being on leash or want to go in an opposite direction as you want. They grab the leash and start pulling; or they start jumping up at you and biting. You may try to pull the leash back and a game of tug-o-war starts. That was easy; your dog simply had to tug on the leash and you oblige with a game. The annoying jumping resulted in a game of push and shove; it may not be fun to you but your dog got the attention he was seeking.

Depending on the demanding behavior will factor in how you should react. Ignoring is the first step; it is often all that is needed. If you watch dogs interacting they too use ignoring to deter attention seeking behavior. But if it is a persistant type dog or a behavior that has previously been reinforced; ignoring will often create a "gets worse before it gets better" situation. The best reaction is to nip it in the bud so to speak; at the first sign you must react. Often it can be avoided in entirety if you are quick enough. When you see the first sign of leash grabbing or whatever the demanding behavior is you do something else. Something that creates an incompatible behavior. Doing some heeling; learning a new trick, pick up the pace of your walk, do direction training, work on your dogs catch. By creating an incompatible behavior situation you get rid of the demanding behavior. But as is typically the case you must have good timing; you want to avoid any idea that the demanding behavior caused a good reaction; meaning reinforcing of bad behavior.

A good example is; Luke is demanding attention from me. So as to not create a reinforcing situation I will ignore him; walk away and make like I am involved in some other activity. As soon as he is distracted from getting my attention I will pick up the lead and get into some serious obedience training. If he decided to bite his leash while on a walk for some attention; he would not get it. He would get a huge sigh of disgust from me and ignoring. Defusing an attention seeking behavior is very tricky; you must take the utmost of care to have your timing down and in no way reward it.

If your dog is displaying a demanding behavior; think about what their agenda is. What are they wanting? Watch, ponder and learn. Many dogs bark outside so that you will then come and let them in; works doesn't it? Nudging at your hand while you are watching your favorite show is a great way to demand attention. Staring at the soaked tennis ball at your feet works like a charm. If they stare hard enough; you throw it right? Often these are the small things that mess up a good relationship; just who is in charge? And when you look at your relationship closely you may discover that it is not you at all that is in charge.

What I've learned in 35 years

Sunday will be the official day marking 35 years that I have been involved with dogs. It is my 48th birthday and it is 35 years ago that I dipped my toe in before throwing myself in entirety to the dogs. There have been times of lull and other periods of just so many dogs; but in 35 years I've learned a lot about dogs and life with them. When I started with dogs it was in the show ring; this is a place where many people get sucked into the dog world. It was a bit different for me as I did not have my own dog in the ring; at 13 years old we had a middle aged toy poodle at home. The dogs I had in the ring were the pride and joy of others.

Over the dog years I've had success, failure, happiness, sadness and everything in between. The canine learning curve has been huge; looking back I often am left shaking my head wishing I could take back some time. "If only I'd known then what I know now;" but I didn't and I cannot go back in time and change the wrongs I've done, no one can. So you learn and forge ahead. There came a point; a very defined turning point in my dog life when everything changed. It was the catalyst to my existing life and a moment I am very happy for. The day I shaved it off; you can read about that moment here.

Since that monumental day; things have been heading in a different direction for dogs and me. That day was over 20 years ago; which I cannot believe, but sure enough it was. And in those 20 years dogs became a bigger focus in my life as well as the behavior, emotion and well being of the dog in general. My early experience with dogs was the world of dog shows; that moved onto training in the most conventional method, just choke'm. Having my own dogs from the age 18 I had the chance to delve further, further into the dog mind. What I saw when I really looked into the psych of the dog was amazing and I was hooked big time. Far more interesting and awesome was the interior of the dog; sure the exterior is amazing, I love to look at dogs. But it is what shows itself on the exterior yet comes from the interior that has me completely enthralled.

Canine well being has become my quest; are they happy? When you research the real canine you discover that they have clear needs; are they being met? Just where does the dog fit into our human world? Are humans evolving along with the dog or are we falling short? There are so many questions; but dogs are a big part of our life, they just are. Do we adjust our lives appropriately to make sure that the canine fits in nicely? There are many areas where humans fail dogs severely; this is downfall. Our areas of failure need attention. We choose to have them in our world, we should make sure it is working and working well.

Dog behavior is not a science; there are always new findings and new ways to look at reactions we have not seen before. I can never get enough with regards to researching the canine. Whether it comes in the form of behavior, health, structure or training I love it all. And now I also capture the very essence of the canine digitally; this seems to be the icing on the cake. Being that watching dogs is about my favorite thing to do in the world, shooting them seems to fit that bill. So from the mere age of 13 when I was smitten by the image of a canine; 35 years later I am a gonner. Long lost to the world of dogs and I couldn't be happier.

The Dr. Phil show

I'm not sure if you all saw the show or not just the other day; it was on animal abuse. I just feel like I need to comment on the show being that this blog is all about dogs. First; I completely understand that the show was done for ratings although I am very happy with the stand that Dr. Phil took on the subject. I feel very strongly that we need to see these horrible things; they are out there, they exist and to hide your head in the sand because you just can't bare to see it does nothing to help the situation. I don't mean that you need to subject yourself to watching all the horrors but you cannot simply hide and pretend these horrific things do not exist. Dr. Phil put it out there for all to see.

In my opinion the guest that he had on talking about his dogfighting career was a monster. It is honestly mind boggling to me that creatures like this exist. One thing is for sure after listening to what he had to say; and that is there is no changing a monster like this. I could literally go on for hours about what he had to say about his actions but I'm not wasting my time on it. What I do want to discuss is the fact that videos can be made and sold for profit on the subject. I feel that the people making these laws should be held responsible for the abuse. How can you make the act illegal yet be able to sell videos of these atrocities? Freedom of speech is what they claim to be the basis of the reasoning???????? How about not allowing dogs to be tortured?

Sadly this is but one tiny fraction of abuse. There are many speaking out to save animals; these hard working, dedicated people and selfless in their act. There are many others; creatures who have not an ounce of compassion within them. These are the ones that need to be stopped. Can you change someone who sees no wrong in hurting animals? I don't know; I would imagine there are many different levels or degrees of lack of compassion. What I do know is that this is what we as a society should be focusing on. Spread the word; educate others, take these acts out of the hidden dark corners and shine a pointing finger on them.

"Do not hide from the truths of the world; see, absorb, contemplate and act, make a difference." SR

"The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated. " Ghandi

Supervision on bone day

Yesterday was yet another bone day for the pooches. As the girls get older they are needing a good old bone to chew on; a lot more often. I took three bones out of the freezer Sunday evening; they sat until yesterday morning in the refrigerator. Then at noon I put them onto the counter to warm up a bit. There was much interest in the bones; I swear the dogs can be on the other side of the house and know the exact moment that the bones are taken out. Luke is the first in the kitchen; he adores bone days.

After a couple of hours on the counter they are ready to serve up. The next question is "what am I going to do while they chew?" Bone chewing is a very supervised event; I don't want any scuffles. All three are very good about staying with their own bone but I don't want to open a can of worms so I supervise 100% of the time. I decided to make some cookies; dog cookies, poodle cookies to be specific. First time using my new poodle cookie cutter ;)

So while the dogs chewed I mixed,rolled and baked cookies while keeping one eye and both ears directed outside. Even though Luke is the most excited about chew day; he is also the first to be "over" the bones. So it is Luke who decides how long the chew lasts. Yesterday he was very quick; he was pretty much over it in 45 minutes, which was not long enough for my liking. Luke came into the kitchen to see what I was doing; leaving his bone to the others. Luckily the girls were more than involved with their own bones to notice that Luke's bone now lay unattended. I decided to try to spark a bit of interest back into the bone chewing for him so that he would get a bit more teeth cleaning.

We went out together; Luke watched me intently. I went over to Tilley and started the bone trade; Tilley's is traded for Jessie's bone, Luke gets Jessie's bone and Tilley gets Luke's. This always leads to more enthusiastic chewing "a new bone." So Luke chewed for another good 15 min., and the girls enjoyed their new chew. After the 15 minutes Luke came in again; he went into the living room. I was just finishing up my last batch and then I was going to gather the bones. After a couple of minutes I heard chewing. Oh no; not on the cream carpet, yep. Luke brought his big raw meaty bone into the living room to chew. That was my sign that chew time was over.

With cookies done and things to do I commenced the bone pick up. As I've said before; the bone trade really helps to eliminate the "loosing your bone" idea at my approach. After the bones are gone there is the scrap sniffing left to do. Once that was done it was into the kitchen to check out the fresh baked cookies. They all enjoyed chowing down on a poodle cookie; but I think Jessie especially like chomping the head off of a poodle.

Those eyes

The eyes have it; much of the information that you need that is. Even in a situation when you are dealing with identical body posture and tail positioning you can have different eye communications. The other day I was getting ready to go out and Luke came into my bathroom; his body said nothing out of the ordinary, his tail was held at it's normal high level but his eyes spoke volumes to me. "What's wrong?" I asked him and he immediately lowered his head and came close to me. Luke has a mole on the top of his muzzle; he had damaged it while lizard hunting I would presume and it was bleeding. I kissed his face; cleaned him up and put some ointment on it. He got a hug and was on his way.

Luke happens to be one of those dogs that has extremely expressive eyes. He is very easy to read which I love when I am looking for feedback. Eyes don't lie. Without changing position a dog can give a serious threat or warning with their eyes. A hard stare is typically the first warning an offender receives. It can be deliver with no change in posture and then escalates from there. Further threatening eyes are accompanied with a frozen posture but in a dominant dog displaying an escalated threat, toe standing, hackles up and tail held high. Even submissive fearful dogs use their eyes to warn. There body will display their lack of confidence but their hard stare is still a warning.

Luke often displays what I call googly eyes. This is when he is in an extreme relaxed mood and interacting with someone in his close family. His eyes will often close slightly and he blinks slowly. There is no mistaking happy googly eyes. A dog's communications are a full package, body stance, tail positioning and eyes. The eyes are often the first glimpse of a behavior and if you are watching closely; the eyes may give you enough information to stop escalated behaviors.

Not all dogs are great communicators. Many dogs that approach us when we are at the park have poor manners; or are uneducated in the ways of the canine. When a dog makes a direct approach they typically get into trouble. The same goes for direct eye contact; it is used to communicate dominance. So if a young puppy approaches a strange adult in a straight line with direct eye contact they are almost surely going to be reprimanded. There is an etiquette to be followed in the canine world; and not all dogs understand this. Canine interaction repetition can be the quickest solution to a dog with a low understanding of this protocol.

It is amazing how a dog can completely defuse a situation by simply looking away. When I greet dogs I do not give direct eye contact and after quickly analyzing a dog I then adjust my greeting appropriately. Many dogs with submissive behavior issues can be very easily helped by not looking at them. I have been called to many submissive peeing cases when eye contact is the problem. Upon entering the house I never look at the dog; tada!!!!! no pee. Sometimes you can even talk or touch the dog but don't look at it or the pee starts to flow.

Although direct eye contact is normally a dominant gesture; our dogs can learn that it is a good thing. It may be very difficult for a submissive type dog to learn but with small steps, lots of praise and reward they can learn to give "good" eye contact. Eye contact is a sensitive subject in the canine world; but oh those eyes.

Boundary training

Boundaries; everyone has boundaries, even our dogs do 'or at least they should. After much contemplation I thought that I would tackle this subject today. We've had a lot of work going on at our place this weekend. Lots of trees and bushes coming down and an old fence that was barely standing was finely removed. This fence was a secondary fence; it was basically a marker where our flat yard ended and the slope started. There are still fences between our house and the ones behind us though. It feels very weird and I was extremely curious as to how the dogs would approach this new environment.

The fence that was taken down was only 3 feet but enough to keep the dogs on one side. They were told only a couple of times when they put their feet up there that this was not an option. So even when a cat was on the other side it was well ingrained as a boundary. So when they first saw it gone there was much curiosity; sniffing, backwards leaning just in case something came down and they had to tear off. Luke is the most curious; but only slightly. There is a clear line where the grass ends and the dirt starts that was once behind the fence but is now a part of our yard.

The dogs are not sure if they should check it out; they understand that this was an off limits area. I took a good amount of time yesterday to go out and consider just what we will do with this now fenceless area. Luke was with me and watching me closely as I had a look around. I'd already decided how far I would allow the interest to go as far as the dogs going down the slope. So when he took his first step; ears up and full attention on me although not looking at me he was stopped in his tracks. By watching his body language intently it was clear that he was testing the waters.

The most important boundary for any dog is an exit that could lead to them being injured or killed; like your front door, side gate or garage. It should be very clear that they are never allowed to exit any of these areas on their own. One word and one word alone should allow a dog to cross a boundary. This is one area of training that needs to be very strict; no slack or casual "oh wells." When I train these types of areas as boundaries I do not put a verbal cue on the behavior; it is simply the law. So even if you are not around and a side gate blows open, hopefully your dog will think twice about going through it.

Boundary training is fairly simple; of course depending on your dog and their desire to go through a boundary. By stopping any crossing and rewarding a dog for not following you over a boundary; it is done with baby steps. First the boundary is established; then you work on going over the boundary and not having your dog follow. Treats should be tossed back over the boundary to your dog. Then you work on time spent over the boundary and then the stimulus is added. Pretending a neighbor is talking to you from the street or bouncing a ball on the other side of the boundary etc. Small steps are the way to achieve success and you should receive success at each step before moving to the next. Too large of steps can result in failure; don't set your dog up to fail. You will never regret setting clear boundaries and proofing them.

Learning boundaries leads a student to a clearer comprehension of the boundary itself. This then helps in dealing with the challenge of grasping additional lines in the sand.

To the Mothers

Happy Mothers Day to all of the Mothers out there. Mother :maternal tenderness or affection, caring for, tending to or someone to lean on. How many of you call yourself your dog's Mother? I know I do. When we say this; we clearly understand that we are not our dog's Mother, most of us do anyway. So why do we call ourselves out dog's Mother? It is very simple to reason that we have accepted that our dogs fall under the Mother's blanket of care. There are many stories of animal Mother's being the most fierce with regards to protecting their offspring. You don't want to cross a Mother's children.

Interfere with a Mother's children and you will be dealing with a fierce opponent. Fierce: violently hostile or aggressive in temperament b : given to fighting or killing. I have met a few canine Mothers who had no intention of allowing me to see their puppies. Even the best and most friendly female dogs can make a complete turn around when they give birth. I am never phased by this "come near and I'll kill you" message, I understand it completely. So for those of us who have stretched our circle of protection to encompass our dogs, you too understand the length we will go to protect our furkids.

I always tell people that I have 6 kids; 3 human and 3 fur. As our human children get older they need us less, so we often turn our attention to our furkids. A furkid always needs our care; there are degrees of needed care from puppyhood to senior dog but they need us and we need them. It feels good to care for our dogs; and they give us back far more than we could ever give them. Being a dog Mom is a wonderful thing; for those who have never tried it, I suggest you do.

I'm a dog Mom and proud of it; say it with me. Yeah; it is our day so have a wonderful one and enjoy being a Mom; whatever kind of Mom you are.

Hair to the rescue

Good Saturday morning; as usual I am snuggled up in bed with the hounds. It's later of course; being that it is Saturday. The dogs enjoy a slow start just as much as we do; a nice change of pace from the get up and go weekdays. They've had their cheese and toast; the girls have only a tiny bit because they tend to pack on the pounds easily. But Luke get's a load; anytime he is in the mood to eat we take full advantage of it. He is looking pretty good these days; he's on an eating role.

I wanted to discuss something this morning that one of my members from the Facebook group "The Standard Poodle" posted yesterday. I was totally blown away and being that our group has close to 1000 members now; well, that's a lot of hair. The post was about this group called Matter of Trust located in San Francisco. The group is helping to solve the environmental oil disaster by using hair, both people and animal hair. If you watch the You Tube about this hair solution; there is a part where they take a material made of hair and put it into a bucket of water and oil, what happens is amazing.

This effort is something that everyone can help with; dog owners, groomers and people groomers as well. ;) The recent oil spillage is catastrophic; who knows what long term effects will come of it? So now we dog lovers can help and it's really simple; so check out the website and get brushing and cutting.

Join their Facebook here.

Times are changing

Change is good; even sometimes when it doesn't feel good it can be a good thing. As canine guardians we are all faced with decisions we may not want to make. As our dogs near the end of their life; we are often forced to reconcile the end. In the wild our dogs would die a much earlier death; being debilitated they would naturally slip away. But being in our home and cared for around the clock; a dog can live a much longer and happier time. Although there still comes a time when we must let them go; this is simply a reality.

I often wish that when it is my own dog's time that they could peacefully go in their sleep. Laying on their favorite bed; relaxed, comfy and happy. Don't we all wish that for our loved ones when it is their time? But unfortunately we guardians often need to make the decision; when a dog is no longer happy, no longer wanting to go on. It is this time that we must as their guardian make the decision that none of us want to make.

There is a change coming for this time and I am hoping that it snowballs. Doctors like this one from Lap of Love come to your home and in a calm and familiar surrounding; let your dog peacefully rest. I have a very good friend who is a veterinarian who does the same and it is a welcome change.

For many dogs a visit to the veterinarians office is horrifying. My own dogs are petrified when we have to go and the state that envelopes them while they are there is not how I want them leaving me. No dog should have to spend their last minutes in such a state of fear. The end is never good but having someone come into your home when the end has made itself clear is so much more bearable.

As canine guardians we do our best to care for and keep our dogs healthy. We focus on exercise and mental stimulation throughout their life. We teach and guide them through the day to day trials of living in a human world. And in the end it is all on us to make the final decision. We know up front that our dogs will typically leave us far before we are ready but we must deal with this fact the best we can and in our own way. But now there are options; very welcome changes in the way things are done in the end.

We all know that our dogs are here for a good time; not a long time. In the end; there is definitely an overwhelming sadness for our loss. But with it should be a huge celebration of a life that we were lucky enough to share. I applaud the veterinarians who have made this clear choice; our dogs deserve at least this.

Off leash?? On the street??

Seeing a guardian walking with an amazingly well trained dog off leash can a beautiful sight. I am often asked from clients "when do we work off leash?" Yesterday as I arrived at the park; I unloaded Jessie and she started her sniff session immediately. We hadn't even left the spot where I had dropped her when I saw a couple heading our way. They were being followed by a very tiny yorkie; maybe 3-4 lbs. The dog was off leash and the couple was very much involved in a conversation as they walked passed us and up onto the street. I then realized that they were not going to check back on their dog; and the dog was coming to see Jessie.

The tiny yorkie had no apprehension when she approached Jessie. Because of Jessie's lack of good vision now she didn't see the little dog until it was right on us. She immediately postured and set about to teach the little dog a lesson in who the Queen of the world was. She was cut short when I opted to not engage in the lesson and got her moving on our walk. The little yorkie now a good 30 feet behind her owners trotted off with one glance back at Jessie. The idea of this tiny little dog on her own inspired this blog.

When is it a good time to have a dog off leash? I admit that having my dogs off leash and running free is just about the best thing. The dogs are free to run and play without restraint; but, there is a time and place for it. And I feel that a street in any shape or form is not the place. Anything can happen and in a split second a dog can dart after a cat, become spooked and bolt, or just forget their training and run off across a street. For me it is just not worth any risk of incident or accident to have a dog off leash while walking on a street.

The degree of reliable recall; having your dog come when called is also a big factor when considering taking off the leash. Of course if you never take it off then your dog is never going to get the off leash experience they need. Finding safe spots to have your dog off leash is getting harder and harder. There are dog parks which are a great safe place but many are too small and when you add too many dogs into a too small park you end up with a stressful situation. There are some amazing huge dog parks that I've seen online, lakes and acres for the dogs to run off leash, wonderful.

I often see people walking down the street with their dog 2-3 feet behind them off leash. I don't get this at all; adding a leash to this situation is basically like putting a seatbelt on as you set off to drive somewhere, a safety precaution. Adding a leash to a dog that is walking right beside you just makes sense and as a guardian it is your job to keep your dog safe.

Let's face it; we live in a leashed dog society. And although I do feel that leashes are overused there is definitely a time and place for them. Walking on the street is one place a dog should always have a leash on; they deserve that much from us.

Complicated yet simple

I often hear myself saying "who knows what goes on in that little head of his." This statement is most repeatedly about Luke; my thinker. He is a complicated yet simple guy; most dogs are very simple, simple in the good definition of the term (easy to understand). When you understand dog's; I mean really understand the way they communicate; learn and associate, you can then more readily "get" your dog. I am often called out to solve a strange behavior. A behavior from a dog is in simple terms; a reaction to an action.

Many behaviors can be figured out; dissected until you find the base cause and then sometimes we just never know why a dog displays a certain behavior. Dogs learn through association: connected, joined, or related to. They don't deal with long explanations; hidden agendas or mind games like humans do. Dog's don't hide behind the truth, they don't lie and they don't attempt to be someone they are not. All of this lends itself to a simpleness; that is as I said earlier, simple if you understand dog.

Take separation anxiety; how many people think that when a dog destroys things in your absence that they are angry and doing all of this destruction to show you? I know that almost everyone I speak to who is dealing with this considers their dog to be displaying their dislike for their owner leaving. Dog's don't do spite: a malicious, usually petty, desire to harm, annoy, frustrate, or humiliate another person; bitter ill will; malice. Dog's react; and if they are upset by the fact that you are leaving they will react in a form that anxiety causes. This often takes the form of pooping or peeing, chewing or trying to come out to find you.

Another example that I love "my dog only comes if I yell COOKIE." Let's take this statement apart in pieces. What happens when you yell cookies? The dog receives a cookie; correct? So when you call your dog COME; what follows? Usually the dog doesn't listen; there is nothing in it for the dog and you the owner probably get mad. You may voice your feelings or simply give up; hence the dog learns that come is either bad or neutral. It is a much better idea to come when you hear COOKIE. Without knowing it you have tapped into the way to train a reliable recall. ;)

I love to watch canine interactions; the number of these connections are down at my house being that many hours are spent in deep sleep. But when they are awake and communicating it is fascinating. Just yesterday Luke was laying on the bed beside my computer as I typed away. Jessie wanted to lay on the bed as well; both are dominant personality dogs. As she approached Luke froze so slightly it was almost undetectable by the human eye; but very much detectable by the canine eye. She immediately turned her head and backed onto the bed; it made me smile. She defused the situation simply by turning her head and not making a direct approach, simple.

Dogs are constantly learning; and you may be teaching things you don't want to teach your dog. This is often the cause of mysterious behaviors. "Everytime I talk on the phone by dog barks." Hmmm; do you get off the phone and address the situation? Do you speak to your dog immediately? Your dog knows how to get your attention without a doubt. Barking is sometimes caused by our reaction itself. Barking get's attention; when you need attention, bark.

Once you figure it out; it is all very simple yet fascinating.

Grey muzzle

This past weekend while out running some errands my husband said "look at that face." I looked over to the left and saw a small black dog with it's head out the passenger window. It looked like a chihuahua mix; solid black with a very grey muzzle which immediately gave away her age. Her eyes told of her years of experience; and that she was happy and content. This is a wonderful site; I love seeing happy old dogs; in their golden years and being taken care of and loved.

Sadly it is the old ones who often find themselves in rescues and shelters unwanted. Many people pass by these old dogs not wanting to have their hearts broken in the near future. But dogs in their golden years are usually easy; they don't require much training or exercise. What they do need is a soft bed; a gentle hand and a loving heart. Of course there may be adjustments to make; adding another dog to your home takes patience but the result can be life altering.

Opening your home and heart to an old dog is a selfless act; there is no expectations of all the exciting and fun things you may do together for years to come. No; it may be a very short time that an old dog shares your life, and that short time may be an amazing one. Many people I talked to who have adopted old dogs have told me the most amazing stories of love; life and laughter with these golden oldies. The more you offer of yourself to a dog; the more you get in return. What you may have considered a good deed often ends up a monumental moment in your personal evolution.

Our home is a very different one from several years ago. It is quiet and non hectic; there is no loud and rough dog/dog play anymore, that was in the past. There is more snoring; slower paced strolls have replaced our power walks and there is a much greater need for patience. But when I see my ole gals so deep in sleep it makes me realize that this is how it should be; there should be no cares for old dogs. Yes things are very different with old dogs; but it is all in the stages of a dog's life. These golden years are the more reflective ones; time spent remembering the good old days and dotting on our beloved seniors. Second hand old dogs may have lived a life that you are unaware of; there past a mystery. But at the moment they need your love; consider adopting a grey muzzle the next time you visit a rescue or shelter. It will do your heart good.

Can you see me now?

Good Monday morning; I'm watching the sun come up as I write this morning and am reminded of Jessie who has little vision left. Very sad but she does very well by using her memory. Unfortunately there are dogs who cannot see simply because they have hair in their eyes. I'm an eye fanatic; for me a dog must have a clear range of vision and if that means that they get an eye trim then that is what must happen.

We have a regular OES (Old English Sheepdog) at our park; he is very cute and when I first met the dog I could see his eyes, which meant he could see. Well he is now sporting the more traditional blind style that the breed is known for. I remember as a youngster; I was speaking to someone who had OES's. I asked if they could see; "yes, they can totally see." And I was left to ponder how this special breed could see through a wall of hair. Well; they can't, bottom line.

No dog can see through a ton of hair. For those of you who have long hair like me; you know how annoying it is when your hair is in your face, right? Imagine not only a couple of strands but a whole whack of hair right over your eyes; it must drive one crazy. So I'm a fan of the snip and see; yep, cutting the hair around the eyes so that your dog can see. There are many breeds and mixes that need the eye trim; mine is one of them. And when they are carrying a bit more coat an eye trim is always in order.

If one of my training clients is having difficulty seeing; I recommend the trim. I show the owner how to tell what needs to be clipped. Hold your dogs muzzle in the palm of your hand; move down to eye level with your dog. Look down their muzzle into their eyes checking for hair obstacles. Often the top of the muzzle needs trimming as well as the area directly around the eye. I remember one canine client who simply could not catch; as much as the owner worked on it, it just was not happening. As I watched the non progress I realized that the dog could not see because of a mass of hair on the top of her muzzle. We did a quick utility clip and presto; like magic she was catching in moments.

Often behavior issues can stem from a lack of being able to see. Dogs can become fearful or aggressive if they are unable to view the world as they should be able to. Hair in a dog's eyes is a big issue with me; I don't care what breed or mix you have, cut it. If you show your dog and they must keep their blinding locks then pin it up or tack it down but make sure that your dog can see.

And to squelsh the long lived myth that dogs can see through hair; well they can't.

I love my job

Looking down at my arms I smile at the scratches and band-aid on my hand. Seeing these scratches means that I have either 1. had a great gardening session which I love or 2. that I had a puppy shoot. These scratches were from a puppy shoot and she nailed me good. Those puppy teeth do it every time and to me they are remnants of a great shoot. I've been shooting a lot of dogs lately; I'm working on another book. I often feel the urge to pinch myself just to be sure that I'm not dreaming; my job is hanging with dogs.

As a trainer I'm there to teach or fix; but as a photographer I'm simply there to capture and have fun, nice. A couple of weeks ago I was headed down to the marina; the California sunshine was beaming in my Xterra window as I headed west. I arrived to meet a huge and lovable guy and his guardian. I couldn't wait to get started and we headed out to the boat; that's right I was shooting a dog on a yacht. I first got to shoot the boy on his yacht and then captured him riding in a boat with a huge grin on his face; it doesn't get a whole lot better than this.

There was the shoot the day before at the park; action shots of a dog having fun just being a dog. I spent nearly an hour watching this guy have a blast; running, jumping and retrieving his toys. He had an amazing red coat that flew in the wind as he tore by in pursuit of his ball. The shots turned out amazing. A couple of days before that had been my puppy shoot; a blonde bundle of squeezable cuteness. Sometimes I just cannot keep my hands to myself and I need to get a good fix of puppy.

Last week I had one of my favorite shoots; a walk in a wide open field to shoot a gal who loves to run. The task at hand was to capture her in motion and motion is what she gave me. How great is it to see dogs running simply for the love of running? Acres and acres of wide open space; canine companionship and great canine conversation with the guardian, darned nice.

To be a dog photographer you must have a bucket full of patience. It is not typical for things to run smoothly or without a good amount of challenge. I'm lucky that all my years of training have offered me a never ending supply of patience when it comes to dogs. I can easily shoot 300 or more shots in one sitting but I'm always aware when I've got the shot; that one I'm looking for. And after the shoot there is always time to chill with the model; a perk you could say.

Exercise; seeking the balance

With our busy lifestyles today; many dogs do not get enough exercise. Many behavior issues can arise from a lack of exercise for our pooches. As the canine conscious guardians seek out ways to get their dogs exercise requirements met; they may go overboard. Can one over exercise their dog? Yes. I've seen it often in the high energy breeds; Labradors, Siberians, Setters and mixes. Owners who never miss a day at the park; they arrive at 6:00 and don't leave until after 9:00. That is a lot of running and stimulation.

As with runners who become addicted to running; there is a snowball effect. The more you run the more you need to run to feel the exercise satisfaction. When you exercise your dog to extreme; it is important to allow their body to heal. Like our own body; exercise is great but recovery time is essential. Vast amounts of exercise without time to recover can be damaging to the body. Over exercising can actually become an issue of its own. A dog can become accustom to expelling monumental amounts of energy on a daily basis so that they crave more and more to reach a relaxed state.

Along with too much wear and tear on the body; a dog can become overstimulated mentally. Dogs need down time; it is a time when they can fully relax and recuperate. Just like over exercising the body a dog's mind can be over stimulated. Dogs that become adapted to high levels of continuous mental stimulation may be easily agitated by a lack of or lower level of external stimuli.

It is a balancing act; finding the perfect amount that satisfies but does not over stimulate both mentally and physically.

Jumping up

Jumping up; almost everyone with a dog has dealt with it or is dealing with it. It is a very common behavior for dogs; dogs greet in your face. When I take my girls out for a walk and we return; it is a very in your face greeting that they receive from Luke. Unfortunately our face is up high; so dog's feel that they need to jump up in our face to greet us. They are not being bad or showing disrespect; they are simply greeting us in the only way that they know how. It is up to us to show them alternative ways to greet us. And if you have an very excitable type pooch then you may have more work cut out for you.

The old caveman way of stopping a dog from jumping was to knee them in the chest. Another option was the step on their toes method or knock them to the ground. First off violence is not the answer and secondly what horrible things to do to your dog when they are simply wanting to greet us. You really have to take the "bad dog" out of an exuberant greeting. So just how do you teach a dog to stop jumping up to greet you?

The method I like the most is the "four on the floor" routine. Small steps are the key to success once again. You cannot take a dog that is accustom to propelling itself airborne and expect it to simply stop cold turkey. So you start by asking for four feet on the floor and rewarding it. Treat delivery should be via the floor and it may take a while for your dog to realize that there are treats being dropped onto the floor. I like to use good ole cheerios or Charlee Bear Treats which make a nice clicking sound when they land. Often a sudden light bulb goes off in your dog "oh the place to be is here on the ground where the treats are." Keeping your hand behind you; try to drop so that the treats seem to appear simply by achieving four on the floor.

Along with this method you should also ignore jumping. That said; if you have a 140lb airborne hound, ignoring is not always easy. For these guys I find that teaching a "place" exercise really helps. Teaching a dog to go to a certain spot; bed or carpet when told and being rewarded for it can make the difference. Once your dog gets the whole "four on the floor" the rest is up to you.

The biggest problem with jumping dogs is the humans that they are greeting. "Oh Fido; ooooh look how cute you are, we missed you poochie." All this while hugging and kissing and over stimulating your dog. You can really help your dog in the jumping department by calmly greeting; or waiting to greet until your dog calms. Often when I get home the dogs are wound tightly; everyone is panting and circling in a frenzy, not good. So I will walk in the door and past the crazed hounds into the kitchen and outside. I make like I have some serious puddering to do in the yard and will only greet once everyone settles.

Humans think that the problem is within a jumping dog; and yet the problem lies in ourselves. Both fueling and teaching are on us. Teach your dog how you would like them to greet you and you'll both be happy.

I'm back

I'm back; I've been away for a week and it is good to be home. Believe it or not we had sunny 70 degree weather and snow in Canada on our trip; very cool. We received a wonderful homecoming last night and it feels great to be back with the dogs. I miss them like mad when I'm away and this trip away did not supply the dog companionship that I needed. I often am surrounded by family dogs but not this trip. There were a few scattered meetings here and there; one really great shoot but that's it. So I was in need of some canines when I got home. Enjoying breakfast in bed this morning surrounded by my dogs did the trick and now I'm back in the swing of things.

We had a new petsitter this trip away; she was wonderful. It is so important when you go away that you have someone you have complete trust in to care for your dogs or you simply don't have a good time. We've been very lucky with our sitters and so far the dogs have loved them all. It can be very time consuming researching and interviewing sitter candidates but in the long run more than worth your time and effort.

Recommendations are very important; if other people have used a sitter and love them then that is definitely a starting point. After interviewing the person; do you feel 100% comfortable with leaving your dog's in their hands? If you don't then keep interviewing; you really need to go with your gut with this one. We opt to have a stay in sitter; I think it is the best way to go. But there are other options for your dogs when you are away. Many doggy daycares do overnights and if your dog is one that is accustom to going to daycare that can be a great option.

Let your neighbors know that you will be away so that if anything is out of the ordinary they will take notice. Make sure to leave lots of information about your dog with your sitter; I basically write a novel. I feel like the more individual info you give them the better they can deal with anything that might arise. Like I always write; dogs are all individuals so throwing them all in a bucket and treating them as a whole is just not the way to go. My pack consists of three very different personalities and it is important for me to let the sitter know just who they are and how they react to stimulus.

Making sure that you feel just as comfortable as your dogs will while you are away is essential for a good trip for all.

So glad to be back. ;)

Runners

A couple of days ago; one of my daughters said to me "I don't get dogs that run away." She said that she didn't understand having a dog that wanted to run away from their guardian. I have to admit the concept of someones dog running away has always left me puzzled. I have never in all of my years of living with dogs had a dog that wanted to run away from me. I'm sure there are days when running away might have crossed their mind just like my kids may have had the same thought but in general they like it here. As a trainer I know many people who's dogs want to run away and there are many reasons for it.

Many times a dog wants to run due to genetic make up. Take sitehounds for instance, it is a well known fact that you don't allow them to run off leash. They love to run just for the pure joy of running. They are also triggered easily to moving objects; which means they are gone before you know it. My JRT is the same, she has a feather trigger switch. Sledding breeds would also be in this running category although they do not trigger, they love to run. But in all of these cases the dogs are running after something; not running away from their guardian.

There are the scent dogs who follow their nose. Often they become lost in their scent voyage; finally looking up I'm sure that they realize that they are far from their home, their guardian and where they want to be. Beagles are one of the most common breeds that "take off." Again, most of the time the beagle is not intending to run away; they just can't help following their nose. And for this reason alone, these type of scent breeds need alot of training and consistent work on their obedience skills.

Boredom is probably one of the biggest causes of runners. Life in a backyard can be pretty darn boring; so given the opportunity of hopping the fence and having fun, many dogs take the risk. "Escape artists," is how they are tagged; these dogs who seek excitement outside of their own domain. Who can blame them though, many are labradors, border collies and other over energized breeds and mixes. Once they have a taste of what lies on the other side of the fence; the old saying of "life is always greener," is a factual statement.

And then their is the sad reason for running; no connection to home or guardian. No dog should ever feel this way but sadly many do. Their guardian more than likely sees them as "the dog." Now I know they are the dog but you know what I mean when I say "the dog." No bonding, no amazing relationship, just no connection at all. This is sad for both species, to never know how a dog can change your life if given half a chance to do so. Give and take, it is a simple process; but one which requires an open heart and open mind.

I know that dogs love to run but to have your dog run away from you emotionally is something entirely different. If you know anyone who has not connected with their dog; give them a glimpse into the amazing mind and heart of a dog by telling your story of dog love. I have met many people who are absent of a canine relationship even though they have a canine; and I always try to explain what they could be missing out on.

Obedience

Obedience is important, but what exactly should your dog know? I am a big fan of obedience, it is a way for us to communicate with out dogs without having to man handle them. There are a few body positions that are important and rules they need to know. Obedience is a vague word in itself and there are many meanings. The first dictionary definition is: the act of obeying; dutiful or submissive behavior with respect to another person. This pretty much sums it up I think.

I speak more of behavior rather than obedience now and use the term obedience more for the military style competitive aspect of behavior. I definitely want my dogs to listen to me and teaching them to take a certain body position when linked with a verbal cue is important. The first and most important of course is the "come" behavior. Others that they should definitely know and comply with are sit, down, stay and wait. These to me are the bare minimum which every dog should understand and be able to perform.

I do not like to see dogs being controlled by physical means. Yes, there are always going to be times where you need to control your dog physically. But in general you should be able to control your dog verbally or vocally without relying on the physcial grab. This is only achieved with alot of repetition, training without distractions and working up to high distractions. Stay is one of the most important and one that most people don't really train to perfection. Many people tell their dog to stay but in their head they don't expect it. All behaviors need fine tuning over the years as most dogs tend to slip when we tend to get slack.

Rules are the same; taught and learned through repetition. Rules are more unspoken but taught the same. I have alot of rules, no jumping out of the car until told to do so, no jumping on the couch unless invited, no boltint out an open door etc. These have all been ingrained into my dogs heads and yes every so often they forget themselves and are rereminded of the rules.

By teaching body position verbal cues and rules you can communicate with your dog without the need of physical control, nice.

How long do they remember?

"Do you think they remember me?" This is often the question when friends and family visit after a long absence. The answer is not always easy to see. Depending on the individual dog it can be difficult to see recognition. But if you know your dog's every tiny behavior; this means watching, always watching you will know if your dog remembers.

How does your dog greet people they have never met before? Often there is a huge difference between strangers and friends in a greeting; sometimes not. Sometimes there is one tiny little behavior that only you could recognize for recognition. Two of my dogs are like this; only the tiniest of behavior lets me know that they remember the visiting person.

Then there is Luke; Luke is a clear read because his behaviors are so large. That said his behavior vary drastically with dog people and non dog people as well. He is a very complicated boy but watching his behaviors are very educational. What I see in Luke is a pumped up version of what my girls display.

I believe dogs remember a whole lot better than we do. Dogs know people intimately by scent, not only by visual. Because Luke displays his emotions so largely I can learn a whole lot more from him; I love it. Luke knows alot of young men; my son is 18 and has a large ring of friends who come and go. When a large group come over Luke will very quickly find the one he has not met before. He pushes by all the known scent until he finds the new one.

Several years ago when my son was younger we had parents coming over more often. It was very interesting to see Luke act like he knew people that he had never met before. When it was a parent of my sons bestfriends there was an obvious recognition from Luke; "oh you belong to that guy." One quick smell and he felt like he already knew this person.

Did Tilley remember her breeder yesterday? She spent the first 8 weeks of her life with this woman. She met her again at about the age of 1 year and then there was a 10 year span. I believe she did; one sniff and Tilley allowed a hug, this is completely out of the ordinary for Tilley. She was not threatened in the least by the close proximity which is something I look for in Tilley's expression.

Like elephants; I believe a dog