Puppy placement

It's hump day yet again; the morning is a quiet one with all three dogs snuggled in bed, locking my legs in place.  I have my cup of java, now what to write about?  I have once again been dealing with a lot of puppy issues and trying to finish up my puppy training book.  So I thought I'd discuss  the theory of temperament testing and puppy placement.  I love hearing how people ended up with the dog of their dreams; how when they locked eyes initially it was love at first sight.  Unfortunately it's not always this way and far too often the dog they chose to bring home is not the dog they should have chosen.

This choosing a puppy thing goes for all breeds and mixes.  It makes absolutely no difference what type of dog it is; big, small, long  bodied, short bodied and everything in between.  In a perfect world; a great breeder who has a litter of puppies, sells those puppies once they hit the ground.  Meaning that they should only accept money once the dogs are born; otherwise they could have a great deal of money to return if their dog only pops out a couple or should some not make it through the birthing process.   Many breeders only accept deposits as a prospective puppy buyer may not find what they are looking for in a particular litter. 

Like people; dogs are very individual and what one family may consider as desirable traits, another may find to be quite annoying.  Maybe you want a dog for flyball; that means you are going to want alot of drive in your puppy.  If you are a quiet couch potato family; drive is going to drive you over the edge.  Perhaps you want a dog to do therapy visits to hospitals; you will want a very friendly pup that loves to be handled.  But far too often people choose puppies for the exterior; the shell, the cute factor.  Of course their are litters where the puppies are very close in similarities; Mom is great, Dad has a wonderful temperament so the picking and choosing of puppies is an easier process.  This may mean that there are several puppies who would fit the bill.

But don't you want the best fit?  I do.  One of the most important things for me when looking for a puppy is the touchy feely part, I want a dog that wants to be with me constantly.  One who loves to be snuggled and kissed.  So I would not choose the puppy who doesn't give me the time of day and goes about busying herself.  Let's face it; all puppies are cute, I've never ever met an ugly one.  But it is the inside of the puppy that you have to deal with most throughout your lives together.  Even if a breeder does not do "official" temperament testing they should be able to direct you to one or a couple of puppies that would best suit your family situation. 

I know many people who were given their puppy out of a litter; they had no choice in the matter "this is your one."  And they could not be a better match; good breeders want a good match.  Of course a great breeder will take a puppy back if for some reason it should not work out; but they would prefer to do it right the first time.  In all honesty; most people do not know what to look for in a puppy.  It is overwhelming to visit a litter and try to pick; they are all adorable.  When you do; visit a litter things may not be as they seem.  The puppy who is most awake and keeps coming to visit you may be the dominant pup in the litter; and the fact that everyone else is sleeping is why you don't see this.  Maybe one of the sleepy ones in the corner; the one that can't keep their eyes open is the most lovable little munchkin but at the moment she is very very tired.  So you pass her by. 

Questions; ask tons of questions when choosing a dog.  If the breeder simply says "nice puppy" for every one you pick up; this is not an attentive breeder.  Breeders should use words like feisty, trouble maker, love bug, snuggler, first out, first one to walk, thinker, adventurous, etc.   And if a breeder says to you "you don't want this puppy," listen.  Breeders; you should step up and give all the information that you can if you are having people choose their own puppy.  Don't just sit back and hope that they choose the one you think that they should choose. 

There are many online sites where puppies are shown in the cutest of poses; big flowers, cute blankets and baby paraphernalia all around them.  A number or name is listed beside each puppy; you simply call up and order the puppy.  This is not a good breeder; good breeders don't sell puppies like this.  There is a good chance that it is a mill.  It should be difficult to get a puppy; if the breeder is a good one.  You will have to fill out forms; perhaps be put on a waiting list for the next available litter.  A good breeder will want to know all about you and your family; this can help to match the best puppy to you.  The same goes for rescue dogs; not all will be a match to your family.  The really great recue folks will help to match you and the dog who best fit. 

Choosing the wrong dog is a major contributor for dogs ending up in shelters or rehomed.  Know yourself; know what you can live with and what you cannot live with.

More recalls

2007 was a very bad year; a bad year for dog food companies that is and sadly for many dogs that ate contaminated food before the big recall.  Many dogs were lost because of the dog food we feed them.  Well; there is another big one, Iams.  If you research on the net you will come across lots of good information regarding all the most recent recalls.  It has become very scary purchasing dog food for our companions; as you go through the check out you hope that the bag you throw on the counter is not going to be listed on a recall.  So what are you to do; you love your dog and want the best for him, what food is the best? 

I stumbled upon this website which has a plethora of information regarding pet food; definitely worth a look.  Truth about pet food   There are always going to be food recalls; it happens with our own food often.  But doing some very essential research can minimize recalls done on what you are feeding your dog.  Unfortunately many of the great dog foods out there have gone bad; and by bad I mean that they have been bought up by the big conglomerates.  You know the ones that buy up anything and everything that might turn a buck.  P&G is one of those as is Colgate.   P&G recently purchased Natura Pet foods which make Innova, Evo and California Natural.  Well; you can check those OFF your list of foods to feed now as well.   Another  great read is Pet Food Politics written by Marion Nestle about the 2007 recalls. (link below)

When a great dog food company get's bought up by the big guys; everything changes.  Gone are the small batches; local ingredients and care put into the food.  It becomes the money maker; the conglomerate basically buys the name and trust of all the people who put their faith in that name.  Education is the best protection against poor nutrition for our dogs.  It is a monumental task to stay up with all the company purchases, recipe and source changes but there are groups like Truth about pet food that make it their goal to keep you informed.

As well as keeping informed about pet food you may be interested in looking at a real food diet for your pooch.  I have just finished reading Raw & Natural Food for Dogs by Lew Olson, PhD.; and it is by far the best dog nutrition book I have read to date. (link below)    Lew Olson PhD; explains how to feed  raw, cooked homemade and if you are a kibble feeder, how to add additional nutrition to that as well.  There are diets for specific health issues that many dogs have like joint issues, gastric problems and simply being a senior.  Taking the leap from kibble to real is a scary one; Lew Olson PhD; makes it clear and much less freightening.  It will defintely be my go to book for a long time.  

Whatever you are feeding your dog; read up on the product.  I like the small companies who are using human grade products; it is important to me that they also purchase their ingredients locally.  There are a few organic dog foods out there which is nice to see and that list will be growing quickly in the near future I'm sure.  As they say; you are what you eat, and that goes for our dogs as well.

Picking up on signs

We had the poodles at the park yesterday; we were slowly walking around the field letting Tilley stretch her legs and go after her ball a bit when I saw a poodle friend in the distance. We are accustom to meeting at this park and the dogs always look forward to a greeting. This particular dog is a very young exuberant gal and her greetings resemble that of a tornado. She is very submissive and is typically on the ground by the time she gets to Luke; she is simply adorable. As she whirled around I hovered over Tilley; not wanting her to take an impact. But the youngster steered clear of Tilley seeming to know; did she sense that Tilley was somehow different. I had met this same dog last week when I only had Tilley with me; she had displayed the same contrasting behavior then. When she greets Luke it is a rough and tumble greeting, very exuberant.

I often hear stories of dogs exhibiting completely opposite behavior which is typically not seen when they encounter an elderly, very young or fearful person. The dog seems to understand that they need to change their behavior for this particular person. Can dogs sense emotion? Do they understand our age and our slightest physical handicaps? This question is quite controversial but those who have witnessed it firsthand are clear on their answer.

My husband is dealing with kidney stones right now; for anyone who has had these little buggers you know that they are extremely painful, comparable to childbirth. On Saturday he had a very bad time and paced around hoping that the pain would stop before we headed to the hospital. Watching the dogs; especially Luke, it was clear that he knew something was up. As you know he is my constant shadow; but he never left his Dad’s side. He stood inches from him; tail at half mast (which was also very strange) with a small wag every couple of minutes. This was very much out of the ordinary for Luke; he was quite subdued. And when my husband lay on the living room floor both poodles lay by his side; watching him with concern. Then Jessie approached him slowly; her face directly at his height and only inches away, she stared at him until he acknowledged her presence. There she stood; just staring.

It is fair to say that we give off an abundance of information via scent. Emotion causes the secretion of hormones in our body; depending on the current influencing emotion we will emit a wide variety of scent. Our dogs can smell 50-100 times more accurately than we can; which makes it easy to consider the idea that they can indeed smell what we feel. As our emotion change so does our body chemistry and our dogs can pick up on this.

But it goes beyond only scent for a dog; as dogs rely strongly on body language as well. Tilley’s posture is very non-threatening; she has always had a very neutral stance and this is one of the many reasons that she accompanied me on numerous fear and aggression cases over the years. Now well into her senior years she is even less threatening; even fragile in her posture and other dogs seem to clearly understand this. Elderly people who may be unsteady on their feet also give off body language; often scary for a dog who has not witnessed it before. But many dogs take this as a cue to calm down and settle; they may even lay down on their own.

So as we deal with our day to day lives and react as humans do; our dogs are constantly watching. My husband was acting very out of the ordinary which my dogs picked up on immediately. He most likely smelled very different; of course we are not capable of distinguishing this but it is nothing for our dogs. Dogs are being used to scent cancer cells; they can alert people to an oncoming seizure and pinpoint a body within a massive pile of rubble. It would make sense that they can pick up on our subtle emotional changes through scent. Accompanied with their amazing ability to communicate through body language; they are able to visually extract the smallest of facial expression and body posture. So the answer to the question; “do they know?” Of course they know.

Tell me

Have you ever wished you could tell everyone; something you had learned or experienced and you wanted to share it with the world?  This is one of the reasons that I love to blog; when I find new products, or simply new important information I want to share it with as many people as I can reach.  There have been times in the past that I have shared information; only to hear "oh I wish I'd known this sooner."    I have come across a new website that I believe is a wonderful way to share; and in a very important way.  This website allows you to rate a breeder; explain your experience either good or bad.

For all the wonderful breeders out there; you are going to love this.  For all the unscrupulous breeders who care about money alone; not so much.  The website is called The Breeder Ratings and is just up and running since June 29 of this year.  With more traffic to the site and people sharing their experience; there will hopefully be less sadness, and more pressure to step it up.  There is an unbelievable difference in the good and the bad; even more between the horrific and the above and beyond amazing breeders.  I have seen a good selection from just about every category; there is no comparison.  When I find a breeder who does it all right; who cares about the puppies so much, from the day they are conceived to the day they are in new puppy owners hands I like to spread the news. 

If you have had an experience; both good and bad I suggest you visit the site and tell others.  I believe this site will help others in the near future.  Families who may be or will be duped by the bad; may just be stopped before the purchase by hitting this site first.  Education is never a waste.

Memory lane

Honestly; how fast does time pass us by? It seems like only yesterday I was discussing the addition of a Jack Russell to our family. Having done a small amount of reading on the breed I wasn't quite sure if we really wanted a Jack. Now here we are 14 years later and our little Jessie is still going strong. Her eyes, ears and nose are failing but that little tank body that is typical of the breed is holding up. Sure she sleeps longer than she use to; definitely more soundly but we know that she’s look’n good when we constantly hear "how old is your puppy?"

We've been through a lot in 14 years; the good, the bad and everything in between. As I sit and watch Jessie sleep; her breathing is heavy, she is completely relaxed and surely dreaming of the chase. There were days in the past that I would have loved to see her sleep; those days when I was off and running to catch her at the neighbors house, yet again. Being a Jack Russell; Jessie is trigger happy, it takes but the slightest of movement to set her in motion. In fact the number one cause of Jack Russell death is being hit by cars. Once they get onto movement they rarely come back before they are done with their hunt. At the age of fourteen there are very few occasions where she might bolt now. Keeping her on leash has nothing to do with chase these days; but lack of hearing and vision.

The stories that this little gal could tell; charging down groundhog holes and being retrieved by the tail, falling 30 feet out of a tree after chasing a squirrel up. Jumping and catching a bird in mid flight and swallowing it down in entirety; no need to chew. Waiting patiently at the top of a critter hole; knowing full well it was in there. She waited for it to make an appearance; and again, it went down whole. She took on a skunk and lost; attempted to take down a few very large dogs and was caught in the nick of time.

Jacks can climb; boy can they climb. We had a chain link fence that she regularly scaled to reach the critters that tormented her from the other side. The higher we built; the higher she climbed. There was no stopping her until we built a prison like enclosure with inward leaning fencing. That stopped her; but only just. She tried to dig out; as the chipmunks screeched at her, driving her over the edge. But we had covered the entire enclosure with gravel making it very tough for even the mightiest of Jacks to dig with their tiny feet.

When Jessie joined our family we also had Clyde; a 5 year old male standard poodle. Clyde was a love; a real pushover and it took her mere days to conquer him; leaving him to do whatever she said. It was amusing to see a tiny 12 week old 8 lb. dog push around an adult male weighing in at 50 lbs. She wielded such power; she took what she wanted and left him with the remnants. But it worked; somehow this little pushy; headstrong gal wiggled her way into even Clyde's heart and he adored her. He was wary none the less.

And now she rules over two nearly 50 lb standard poodles. They have learned well and know to listen up when she speaks; deek when she snaps and duck when she leaps. At 14 she needs help to withhold her status; we are happy to oblige her. She misses a lot of what goes on around now; but one bark from the big dogs and she is screaming mad and ready to protect her territory. There is no messing with a Jack; they are a lot of dog in a tiny body. A Jack Russell is a force to be reckoned with; tenacious, stout, durable, unyielding, intense power houses, and one of the cutest most loveable little munchkins around.


If a Jack shares your life; you may need one of these.

Are we clear?

Over the many years that I have worked with dogs; things have become very clear for me. Knowing how dogs most easily learn; seeing through the issues and basically delivering a lesson which will be clearly understood by the dog. But as I watch others in their attempts to teach new behaviors or manipulate their dog in some way; clear is far from what I see. We humans tend to flail around as we strive to teach our dogs. We also have a tendency to grow frustrated quickly if our dog does not seem to "get" what we are teaching. The secret is to make it simple; get rid of the excess, creating a clearer picture.

Dogs communicate through body language and vocal sounds. The visual is far more important than vocal; sounds typically only come into play afterwards or if needed for impact. Touching has a huge interference effect when teaching; with each touch you remove your dog from it's current thought path. Let's say you are in the process of teaching the "down" behavior. You want your dog to lay down on your verbal cue. You lure them down with an object of food and as they start to go down you cannot help but touch their back. Your dog's attention is immediately on the touch; removing the brain from it's previous path, going down. Your dog instantly slips into the google effect of a touch and out of education mode.

Touch should be reserved for after the fact; a reward for completing an exercise, placed strategically after the lesson is learned. Touch has huge array of effects on dogs; from interference to over stimulation. Luke is very easily stimulated by touch and used during a training session can send him into an excited frenzy. Teaching should be touch free; saving touch as a reward used strategically as each individual dogs ability to handle it.

Movement is also a huge obstruction in learning. Have you ever seen a dog who can go through their paces with only hand signals? Pretty impressive eh? Well; dogs actually learn hand signals much quicker than the verbal cue, anyone can teach visual cues to their dog. In fact most dogs learn their own visual cues for just about everything we do. Ever go to reach for your running shoes and your dog is instantly excited? They know what running shoes mean and have come to watch for the slightest hand movement towards them. But; one of the biggest obstacles in learning is too much movement. With too many visual cues we confuse our dogs; leaving them in a fog. Arms flailing around; body movements, up and down, we are all over the place. You need to keep that simple as well; clear for your dog. If you signal your dog to come to you; typically a big "come to me" swooch of the arm, that's it, do not make any other movements if you want to send a clear message.

Our dogs are constantly watching us; they notice the most infantesimal visual cues. So when we attempt to communicate through visual cues alone we must again cut the clutter and simplify. Stop moving about; stop adding what we consider as training hints of arm and body motions. Adding extra movements to a visual cue just adds confusion. Take note of what you are doing with your body as you attempt to communicate with your dog. Simple, uncluttered, touchless communications are the way to a clear picture for your dog.

Becoming your dog's one and only

"I want the dog to like me more than my husband;" she secretly whispers to me. Even though her husband is not home at the time; her actions speak volumes. This owner feels like a traitor letting me in on her little secret. She is not alone; most of us want our dogs to love us most, it is human nature. When I'm out at an appointment and come home to three very happy dogs; hearing that they have been pining for me, even though everyone else is home, of course it makes me feel special. I am told by many Dad's in the family that they wish their dog liked them more.

So how does one go about obtaining the highly desirable position of the "special" one in your dog's heart? Well; you cannot just tell your dog who the one is, it is done with time, quality time. Typically if there is a stay at home Mom; that is the person who becomes the one. Of course not always; sometimes when Dad or one of the kids get home from work or school there actions fill the void left by the one at home all the time. Just because someone is home for the largest percentage of time does not mean that they have sealed the deal; they may not have a connection with the dog.

Time and attention is what is required to be an important person in your dogs heart. There are relationships and then there are RELATIONSHIPS. I go for the RELATIONSHIPS; when you put everything into it; you get everything out as well. So if you are the person who spends less time with your dog because you are at work all day you can make up for that with quality time. I have always been the one in our house that does the dog stuff; feeding, grooming, training, walking etc. The other members occasionally do these things but I'm the regular doer. Several years ago I had a very bad leg injury; my husband had to take over the dog walking completely, this act alone shifted relationships. Not only was he now playing a major role in the dogs lives but he was connecting like never before.

To become an important human in your dogs life you simply need to give of yourself. Sometimes it can be a struggle; often personalities clash and connecting can be a challenge. Many of these strained relationships only need the help of a professional; someone on the outside looking in to see where the problem lies. Once you become an important human in your dog's life; things evolved. There is nothing like a great relationship with a dog; nothing.

A disc in the tree Luke communicating with Sally

What's going on here?

Boy; she's worked up about something.

Ahhh; there's a Frisbee in the tree!

I need to get Mom.

I'll give it a go.

What?


















Okay; I'll try again.

I just can't reach it.

I'm sorry; I can't get it.

One more last ditch attempt.

I'll set the stage; Luke was attending his very first "official dog birthday party." It was a party celebrating the 10th year of his best friend. He was enjoying romping with his poodle friends; socializing and catching up. One of his buddies is a white Frisbee loving gal named Sally; she's pretty engrossed with her disc, Tilley style obsessed. So while the gift opening commenced; Sally's Mom put her Frisbee in the tree. This kept her otherwise occupied from giving compelling eyes at everyone so that they might toss the disc for her. Sally kept very busy trying to get the disc out of the tree; and all this commotion caught Luke's eye. He watched her intently for a while; tried to figure out what she was doing when he spotted the disc in the tree.

Luke is quite accustom to discs being in trees; we used to play Frisbee daily when ultimately it would end up in the tree at some point. He would locate it and communicate to me where it was and that I needed to get it for him. So; yesterday he first tried to do just this, he came to tell me there was a disc in the tree and they needed help. I didn't oblige; the disc was suppose to be in the tree. So he went back and spoke to Sally about this. He decided to give it a go; when he tried to get it she stood back and watched hopefully. He couldn't quite reach; so he backed up and pondered a bit. He is not the type to hurl himself aimlessly in the air like Sally was doing; her enthusiasm runneth over.

They spent a good long while discussing and attempting to get the disc out of the tree. I loved watching the communications between the two; the team work they opted for in their mission. At the beginning of the disc in the tree situation; Sally tried meticulously to get it out of the tree. Then her excitement and anxiety took over as she jumped everywhere; often no where near the Frisbee itself. Luke on the other hand saw them problem and attempted to solve it calmly. When he couldn't he came to get help from Mom; and with that availing no results they worked together to find a way.

Inevitably the party ended and the Frisbee came out of the tree. The disc girl was happy and Luke had long forgotten about the disc in the tree; he was simply ready to go home. After all he too will be 10 in a couple of weeks; the Frisbee retrieving from trees should be left to the young'ns.

Keep on truck'n

It amazes me; some dogs are such troopers. I've been dealing with a lot of medical issues lately with my old gal Tilley. I wrote a blog a couple of weeks ago about one issue that she had and thankfully has since moved on from. Then last Monday she started with something new; a look was all I got in the beginning. Knowing my dogs so well; a look is all I needed to know that something was up. That look turned to complete paralysis of her front legs by Tues. morning and we were off to the vet.

After a full examination it was obvious that something was going on with her spine. Only a week before she had had a full diagnostic x-ray done. She was given a heavy dose of prednisone and pain meds. She was bad; really bad, her front legs were completely buckled over and she could not right them. Tuesday was a rough day; but only an hour after a shot of cortisone she was sitting up. The vet had given her a 50-50 chance of getting better; it was that bad. And soon she was on her feet trying very hard to right her feet that had gone wrong. Now a full week later she is at the moment lying on my bed peeking over my laptop. We are not out of the woods yet but her ability to bounce back simply amazes me, she is one tough cookie.

I am in the process of weaning her off of her pain meds. They are addictive; you must take weaning time so as to not trigger withdrawal symptoms. We don't need that on top of everything else so by tomorrow she should be off and I will have a clearer picture of how she is really doing. She will be on prednisone every second day for another week and then that's it. Hopefully it will have given her body the chance to heal whatever had been going on.

Just last night I had the honor yet again to photograph Courage. My first meeting and shoot with Courage was the end of June; he looked wonderful and was truly inspirational. Last night he just amazed me; Mr. Social at his obedience class. He played with all the other dogs; visited all the other canine guardians and was generally having a great time. He gave me a huge greeting; and touching his wonderful soft coat and now much heavier body made me smile. What a dog. Not only has he put his past in the past; but he has moved on with gusto.

I sat watching him go through his paces as he worked with his guardian through the lessons. He has a enthusiasm; strong work ethic like any German Shepherd I've trained with. There is an intensity about him; as he stands taking his surroundings in. And the connection between his guardian and he is unmistakable. The interactions are subtle yet profoundly moving. A simple touch from his guardian alters his whole aura; a joy to witness.

Giving up is not an option for dogs; as long as they have fight left in them, they do so. Whether it is illness; abuse, being lost or injured, they have a determination in them that can be simply put.................amazing.

The backyard

We spent a good amount of time in the yard this weekend; lots of work to be done. We've been in this current house now about 3 years; and there is a never ending stream of fix-ups to get done. This weekends fix was a fence replacement; we'd taken down an old dilapidated fence that had been given a heavy white coat of paint to hide its truth when we moved in, so it had to go. Once the fence was down I realized that our two old girls; Tilley and Jessie could possibly fall down the hill and not be able to get back up. The fence it at the top of a small but steep hill; unfortunately not usable land so it is simply fenced off.

We have a pretty nice sized yard; for Southern California that is. Back in Canada we had 3 acres; and boy do I miss it. Having dogs and land is a wonderful thing but it is not a prerequisite. I don't know how many times people have said to me "we can't have a dog; our yard is too small." A yard should never be thought of as the only source of exercise for a dog. Even dogs that live with huge properties love to get out and see the sights; it's good for them. Imagine never going anywhere? How awfully boring and sad for a dog. Dogs love to check things out; especially new things.

A small yard should not hold you back from getting a dog. There is a whole big world out there for you and your dog to investigate and stretch your legs. Dogs need mental stimulation along with there physical exercise. When you look at a backyard and see only a small area with no room to run; there is also no external stimulation, you must get out and explore. I know lots of people who do not want a big back yard; the bigger the yard the more work to be done. Many of these folks are out all day with their dog and the yard is simply a place to piddle when needed. If I only had my Jack Russell living with me I could suffice with a 12" square of grass as a yard.

It truly amazes me how builders put 4000-5000sq ft homes onto tiny little pieces of land. The yard is big enough to go out into and turn around and go back into your monster house. Back ways round if you ask me but no one is asking me right? So if you are one of those with a tiny backyard; don't let that get in your way of enjoying life with a dog. Much of our quality time is spent at home snuggling on the couch or bed. I enjoy our yard with the dogs; they typically watch me as I garden and there is enough room for some short ball tosses or a brawl now and again. But we get out; even with these three oldies it is important to get out of here and smell new smells; see new sights.

A yard is simply that; a outdoor space at home. And although home is where your heart may be; there are a lot of parks and open spaces outside of that yard to run and explore in.

Not so fresh and clean water

Good Sunday morning everyone; what a great day. The only sound I hear is of distant birds; no barking dogs today, what a nice surprise. My neighborhood is a very barking one normally and at times it is ridiculously loud. I spent a good part of yesterday going through old pictures; I was looking for a particular image but thoroughly enjoyed the process. Looking back can be an amazing experience as it conjures up old memories. I know I've taken a lot of photos over the last 6 years of shooting dogs but seeing some of them made me realize just how many. I found this above image and thought that it would be great to discuss the water that our dogs drink.

Clean fresh water is a must for dogs; but it's not always as fresh as you may think. Two common parasites that can be transferred via water bowls. There are a whole slew more but these are the ones you see often. When I first got Luke he was a dirt eater; weird problem but he loved to grab a mouthful of dirt whenever he could. After contracting coccidia and giving it to the other dogs I was determined to stop this bad habit. And after being told by the vet; "once a dirt eater always a dirt eater" the challenge was on. It was fairly simple and the dirt eating stopped. Both coccidia and giardia are parasites that cause diarrhea and left untreated can be life threatening especially for puppies. With continual diarrhea can come dehydration so both must be treated and fresh clean water should be given to your dog.

Visiting dog parks is a great social activity for dogs and owners alike but the water and surrounding area can be a parasite haven. You should bring your own water when you bring your dog out for any type of exercise. Heading them off from the bowl at the park can be difficult but worth the effort. One new water bottle that I love is from Dog is Good. It allows your dog to drink without a bowl; making it easier not to share water and germs with others.

If your dog does contact one of these lovelies you need to get immediate treatment. Also; both are highly contagious so keep away from areas where they may be spread to other dogs. Summertime is the worst for both; with the higher temperatures and the larger number of dogs frequenting these places the risk of infection goes up.

Before Luke contacted coccidia; I'd never heard of it. But once you've experienced a parasite that goes through all three dogs at the same time you tend to steer clear of infectious areas. I hear about giardia far more than coccidia but both are equally disgusting and highly undesirable. Dry parks will be your safest bet; bring your own water and keep your dog's nose out of the public water bowl.

Status

Good morning, I thought I'd talk about Status this morning. We have alot of status seeking behaviors going on right now in our house so it quickly came to mind. Right now I think my status seeker is downstairs under a blanket sleeping. He is a huge sleepy head in the morning and often does not rise with the girls. He stays in bed until he is good and ready to rise and you only get a greeting if he is in the mood. What a guy.

So what exactly gains and looses status for you in the dog world? Believe me I have lots of examples so that you can truly see how the dog mind works.

Anytime your dog makes a decision where you are involved can be a status escalator. Do you throw the ball each tiime the slimey thing is dropped into your lap or at your feet? Up for your dog, down for you. When your dog stands staring at the cookie cupboard in the kitchen; do you go and get them a cookie? Up for your dog, down for you. Does your dog barge out the door each time it is open? Up for your dog, down for you.

Now this is a big one and one that few people "get." Do you lavish attention on your dog the minute you enter the house? You got it, you have just lowered your status. Of course many or all of these behaviors are not bad for all dogs, many dogs have no status seeking secret plots in their daily agenda. For these non status seeking dogs it doesn't really matter if you mess up or not as a guardian. No two dogs are alike so dog behavior modification is not a science. And those who use "one" method to work with dogs are not educated in true dog behavior.

I have a very good pack to work with, all very different; infact they are at opposite ends of the spectrum behavior wise. Luke is my challenge when talking about status seeking; actually Luke is my challenge for just about everything. Tilley is pretty much perfect and never does anything wrong and Jessie tries hard; but she is a true terrier afterakk. Status seeking behaviors can be very small, so small that they can go unnoticed until they are large enough to become serious. But if you stay on top of them; status seeking behavior will remain just that, seeking not obtaining.

One biggy is the ownership of prime realty. Does your dog have the best, most comfortable spot in the house? Does your dog growl at you if you try to move them from the position? Is your bed a war zone? For many this is a daily obstacle and it should not be. If your dog growls when you attempt to move or dislodge them from a certain spot in the house; then they should not be allowed to have that certain spot. Usually this is the bed, so they get the boot TODAY.

I know only too well how difficult it can be to change some of our own behaviors. Afterall your dog is so adorable it can be very difficult not to hug and kiss them all day long. But if you have an attention seeking type dog; like my Luke it is not a good thing to do. Here is a good example: A new visitor comes to my home and immediately upon seeing the dogs lowers themselves to dishing out all kinds of attention. Next, my visitor stops their direct attention to my dogs and starts to walk into my home. This is where Luke swings into action; barking and lunging and acting the fool.

One minute Luke is being rubbed by the visitor and loving it and the next moment he is acting like he never saw this person before; so what is going on? In Luke's mind; this person came into his home and was immediately demanded to dish out worshiping attention from the dogs. So right away the visitor established a low rank by handing out attention; leader types don't dish out affection for nothing. So Luke; as the true low man in our pack takes it upon himself to do some pushing around. He doesn't get to do it often so takes advantage of it when he can.

It is very easy to turn behaviors around with dogs although some behaviors that have been inplace for a longtime can take some maneouvering by you and your family. Going for walks is a very common situation where status is involved. Does your dog grab their leash and act like a maniac until you are out and on your way? Take control today, do not take a step out of your front door until your dog is under control.

It is very important for you as "top dog" to be in control at all times. This does not mean that you have to run a military camp; it may if you have a bunch of hard heads but if you have an average dog then it means that you need to be calling the shots. If you sit down and think about your day interacting with your dog you will soon discover that a good portion of it is controlled by your dog, turn it around today.

Greeting responsibility

Push him down; knee him in the chest, tell him "off." Ever hear all these directions when you visit a friends house? I've been to many houses where the dog not only joined me on the couch but proceeded to clamor all over me, pull the tie out of my hair and basically sit on the top of my head. All while the owner coached me to "push him off." All of this behavior is no biggy for me; but not everyone wants to be accosted like this. And if I really wasn't comfortable with it all; is it my responsibility to fight off the love attack? No.

The most you should expect from a visitor into your home is for them to ignore the dog. Asking your visitor to ignore the dog is tough enough all on it's own. Now of course if the dog is delivering a powerhouse UFC style greeting; ignoring is going to simply leave your guest unprotected. So it is up to you; the owner to control your dog and protect your guest. You cannot throw your hands in the air and give up; you gotta grab the bull by the horns and control that greeting beast. Often the ignoring routine works wonders; it can build confidence in a fearful dog and take the wind out of a pushy type but for those who loose it when visitors come over, ignoring may not be enough.

So what are you to do if you have an overly exuberant greeter? Training, training, training. Before you can expect even the smallest advance in behavior you must prepare for the scenario. By using baby steps you teach your dog the greeting procedure. My favorite procedure is to teach your dog to assume a "place" position at the bell ringing stage. They are taught to stay in the spot until released by you. The place should be located so that the dog can see the front door but far enough away so that they can achieve success. This does several things to help. First; it gives your dog something to do. You cannot just say to many dogs "stop going crazy." Without going crazy they don't know what else to do. So we give them; "place" and reward them for doing it.

Next; it lets the dog get accustom to a visitor in the house while they are at a distance. They have time to acclimate; time to calm themselves. Release time is up to you; but I suggest you wait for a "chill" state before releasing the hounds. All of this training must be done without anyone in the house; it has to be rock solid before even attempting the ringing stage. Once you add a visitor you must do it in baby steps as well or you are simply setting your dog up for failure. Train for success. If you train hard and make it very positive then when you do add the bell, it becomes the cue to go to their place.

I remember working with a little 4 mos. old black lab. She was just the best "place" dog ever and so enthusiastic. She loved the place exercise so much I swear she was smiling the whole time; I know I was. Watching this little gal charge to her bed at the sound of the door bell, truly amazing. There she sat with a big grin on her face awaiting her reward.

You can teach several visitor etiquette scenarios to your dog. Another could be that your dog sits by the door and stays there until released. You could send them up a set of stairs out of the way to wait on a landing until released. You can train many different scenarios and use them all. When you do release your dog; they should be allowed to offer a somewhat calm greeting to your guest who is hopefully not doing their own form of exuberant greeting and destroying all of your hard work.

Once you get into the training routine the skies the limit.

Have you thanked your dog today?

She signaled to her Great Dane to go down; he obliged and she immediately said "thank you." "Good" I told her and reached my hand out to give her a celebratory handshake. She'd told him to down many times and he had done it many times; but this time was different. With a puzzled look on her face she reached out and shook my hand as I said "thank you for thanking your dog." We both smiled and I explained. When you thank your dog for doing something you have asked them to do you are in a good place. Your mind is positive; far from a place where too many people's heads were at just a few years ago and may still be today. A place where it is do it or else way of thinking.

It is not the actual words that are spoken; it is your mindset that is important. When you thank your dog for doing or not doing something that you have asked; it typically comes without thought. This in itself is positive; you are truly thankful that they have obliged and acted on your wishes. Sure there are times when you will ask your dog to comply with some sort of behavior and it will be a "because I said so;" situation. We are after all the rule makers.

Dogs tend to listen and comply far better than humans do. How often do your children jump up and do whatever you asked them to do immediately upon asking? Not so much right? But if and when they do; we thank them, correct? Just last night I asked my husband if he could grab me a Skinny Cow Drumstick from the freezer; he did and I thanked him. It would have been very rude to have not; very unappreciative of his obliging behavior. So when I ask my dogs to go lay down and they do; I thank them. When Luke sees me digging in the garden and decides that the activity of the day is digging; I quickly ask him to STOP. When he does I thank him; and tell him that he is just the best boy. It is pretty amazing when our dogs stop doing what they want and do what we want them to do.

It is especially amazing when a dog obliges us without force or bribery. Throughout my years of group training; I always made a point of praising those who thanked their dogs. I didn't want to hear it each time they asked their dog to do a behavior but at least once throughout the class I liked to hear it. It simply meant that they were in the right mindset for training. It may seem like such a small act; "thank you," really? But I never asked for anyone to say it in class; I just made a point of congratulating those who did. Before long everyone was in the right frame of mind. Educating your dog should never be done in an angry state of mind. If it's not enjoyable why would your dog ever want to be a part of it?

Most dogs enjoy being praised; puppies enjoy it but opt for a food reward over words in the beginning. As your relationship grows and your connection to one another strengthens; praise becomes a very desired feedback. When I use praise I use it in accordance to the behavior given to me. Let's say Luke is running free at the park; he sees another dog across on the other side and decides to go. As he sets off I call to him "NO." A word I save for each individual dog's worst offense behaviors. Telling him "NO" is a complete contradiction to what he wants to do. He jams on his brakes; looks at me and I praise him immediately, his body posture changes. I then call him to me; he looks over his shoulder at the other dog, I give him a reminding ah ah.............Luke come. At that point he usually opts for the lavish gushing that he is going to receive and bounds in at full goofy speed. He gets a big "thank you;" along with "you are the best boy in the world," stuff that makes him googly happy.

Thank you is a small phrase but packs a powerful message.

Listening to your dog

I don't know how many times I've been at a dog park to photograph and seen dogs who wish they were not there. The owner is sitting having a lovely chat while the dog watches the clock tick away until the time when she can leave. The dog in its entirety is saying "I don't want to be here." Every dog is an individual and not all dogs want to socialize. I'm not talking about the ones that are dog aggressive; the ones who simple are not interested in romping around with strange dogs everyday; or any day for that matter. Tilley is one of these dogs; she has always drawn people with their dogs wanting to play with her. Especially when she was at her flying peak; people would stand and watch her "get air" going for her Frisbee and then ask if their dog could play with her. I was always apologizing; "she doesn't play with other dogs, sorry."

Tilley and Luke both love the beach; swimming and running through the shallow water and basically getting good and dirty. Not Jessie; she wants nothing to do with the beach, although she does love to catch frogs at the edge of a pond. So when we visit the beach; Jessie stays home. It is important to know what your dog enjoys doing and what they do not enjoy doing. Each and everyone has a different criteria for fun; something very personal that makes them tick. For Jessie it has got to be digging for critters; she was bred to do this and loves it.

I've worked with people who desperately wanted their dog to be a therapy dog; one that visits hospitals and brightens the patients day just by a touch. Unfortunately some of these dogs would have hated the job and I had to let the guardian know this. Having a therapy dog is a wonderful thing; if the dog enjoys being touched by strangers on a daily basis that is. Some dogs love it; you can just see the immense pleasure they get from it as everyone gushes over them. For many dogs this would not be what they called fun, or even enjoyable in the least.

Life is short; unfortunately even shorter for our dogs so spending it doing things you hate is not ideal. Some dogs love to run; run for the sheer joy of running. Perhaps you hate running; as I do, I'm a walker but Luke LOVES running so I find a field where he can be off leash and he runs like the wind. He runs and runs until he's spent; there is nothing more amazing to watch. Maybe your dog is a couch potato and you are a runner; some dogs are just not meant to run so you go run, get those endorphins going so you are happy. Then come home and snuggle up on the couch with your dog. It's not an either or; it's an everyone is happy thing.

But chances are; in time you will love whatever it is that your dog loves. I've met so many people who are involved in activities that they never thought they'd find themselves in. "My dog loves this;" as they beam with a smile from ear to ear. I met a guy at the park the other day hooking his Siberian up to a harness and a skateboard; the dog was frenzy barking just like a typical sled dog. We talked about Urban mushing which he was involved in and I've had the honor of photographing. He said when he can't get out to mush he pops on the harness and skateboards with his dog. He said "it's the best thing I've ever done."

More often than not you can find common ground with your dog. All of my dogs love to walk; off leash in a big open space. This is pretty common ground for all dogs and dog lovers. Watching your dog be free; smelling, exploring and running without a care in the world. It's probably my favorite thing to do; watching them have fun is my fun.

Dealing with pain

Dealing with pain is very individual in humans and just as individual in canines. Dogs typically hide their pain; or at least they try very hard to hide their pain. Showing pain displays a weakness and in a pack, weakness within a pack is undesirable. Evolution has taught dogs to conceal their pain; even severe pain may only be barely visible and only to the dogs guardian. Often it is in the form of odd behavior that we realize that our dogs are in pain. Over all my years of living with dogs; all have been very different and that goes for how they display their pain as well.

Tilley has got to be by far my hardest read; she is a master at concealing pain. My male Clyde who lived with us before Luke was the worst; he was a screamer. He had no problem letting everyone know he was in pain and it was a prolonged agony he liked to portray. If you stepped on Clyde's foot he let out a blood curdling scream that went on for a solid minute or two, it was horrible. Tilley on the other hand will quietly pull her foot away and simply give you a brief eye contact.

In the wild; weakness can get you killed. You are a target for predators if for some reason you are physically handicapped and even within your own pack; the other members may cull you to protect themselves. So you don't let anyone know if you are in pain. With our own dogs; this can leave a canine guardian in the dark until the pain is so severe that the symptoms start to show. And at that point it can be past the point of return. This is one of the reasons that watching and knowing your dog and their behavior so well is highly important.

The signs can be so small; a tiny limp can result from a year long of hiding a sore leg. Less robust excitement about food, a walk or ride in the car can mean big trouble. Many dogs resort to aggression when dealing with pain which can be read as a sign that a dog is going bad. Any abrupt change, ever so slight; some form of behavior out of the ordinary for an individual dog can be a result of pain. This should always be addressed; it may not be the cause but it may be.

Dogs are truly masters of smoke and mirrors. It is up to us to see through it all.

A place to rest

Dogs love to sleep don't they? They sure do a lot of it; much more than we do. Where they choose to sleep is very interesting and as they age it can change drastically. If you are a longtime reader then you know that I am a big fan of dog beds; you simply cannot have enough. I like to have dog beds in each room; if they don't want to use them that is fine but it is there if they choose to sleep on it.

Young puppies don't go so much for comfort; it is more like wherever they happen to drop. They can be found in the strangest places; fast asleep without a care in the world. But if they are awake and looking for a place to sleep; chances are that they will choose a tiny spot under a chair, table or couch. This is why crates are a fairly easy transition for a puppy, they like small places. Somewhere with a roof makes them feel safe and secure. I've seen many puppies try to continue to squeeze their constantly growing body into a favorite tiny spot. It is not long before they start falling asleep with their head under their tiny replacement cave but their body no longer fits.

So as they grow and mature their sleeping spots change. Many youngster dogs will sleep anywhere; not giving comfort a second thought. Temperature often plays a big role in sleeping; I know in the hot summer months that many of my dogs have opted for the kitchen floor. Comfortable it is not but tile is very cool and they will regularly sleep so that their whole stomach is touching the tile. Many Northern type breeds prefer to sleep where it is cool; some even choose a tub. A bathtub is nice and cool plus it is like a small cave type bed as well.

Body type can play a large role in where dogs sleep; just like the Northern breeds may like cool, the less coated breeds search for the warm spot. A choice position where the sun beams in warming their body; a spot outside under the strong sun, near a heat register or under the covers. Jessie use to love to sleep with us when she was young. She would wriggle her way down to my feet where I was sure she couldn't breath. There she slept for the whole evening; she loved it.

Many dogs like to sleep where you are; these are the shadow dogs. Luke is a shadow dog and where I am is where he sleeps. His most common sleeping spot is right behind my computer chair. It is not a good spot for him because he jumps out of his skin each time I move. I try to get him to lay on the bed beside me so he doesn't have to move every time I move but he doesn't like that spot. Jessie likes to sleep where she can see me but comfort now plays a huge role in resting spots for her so she uses the bed beside the computer.

As dogs age; comfort starts to factor into where they sleep. A sore body needs a soft place to lie down. Tilley really goes for comfort and she can be found mostly on the leather couch downstairs. Once she is down for the afternoon; she's good for hours without a stir. If you have ever slept a night out in the yard on the ground with your kids on a "camp out," you know that comfort is very important. A dog needs a comfy place to sleep; if they choose the floor or ground over the bed you have offered on occasion then fine but they should be offered the comfort.

Seeing my three old dogs change over the years; it is obvious that as a senior, comfort plays the biggest part in a place to rest, and like I said "puppies, not so much."

Nutrition - eggshells

Well; I was some excited on Friday when the dogs charged the door; guarding their home from the silent dark shape filling the window in our front door. As I quieted the pack and reached the door he was gone but I knew he had left me a package. They never ring anymore; just drop and run, ah the UPS guy. It was my coffee grinder or in my case my egg shell grinder. Up until now I've been using a mortar and pestle but I've grown tired of manually grinding the shells and there was a backlog of shells on my window sill. So after hearing that many people use a coffee grinder to do the job I got on Amazon and started my review search. I never purchase without reading reviews now; and the grinder was going through the same procedure.

So I bought the Toastmaster one which received a rating of 4 1/2 stars; a must for my purchase. And at 9.68; a deal.
I immediately unwrapped it; viewed the very short instructions and got to work grinding the huge bowl of eggshells I'd collected. It works like a dream and in minutes that large bowl was ground down to a small sized container; nicely tucked away now in the cupboard. Nice. A good long supply of ground eggshells for the dogs calcium supplement.

Calcium is extremely important if you are not feeding feeding raw bones and you feed your dog a real food diet without bones. Eggshell should NOT be given to dogs that eat commercial dog food or kibble. I give my guys bones to chew all time but the amount they get from them is small as far as calcium consumption. Their bones are more for teeth cleaning. Because my guys are old and Jessie simply doesn't chew food; even huge food I don't like the idea of feeding her bones. If I give her a chicken wing she will just swallow it; 100% guaranteed. So they must have a calcium supplement; eggshells, simple, cheap and plentiful.

Calcium link

Having sunny side up this morning; don't toss the shells!!!!

Car sick dogs

As I said yesterday I will discuss car sickness and dogs this morning; it is a common problem and an easy fix. Almost all dogs are car sick as youngsters; but if a breeder has made a point of getting their puppies out in a car from a very early stage you may be one of the lucky ones and dodged a bullet. I remember bringing home Jessie; a tiny white bundle of adorable she rode on my daughters lap, my daughter was 9 years old at the time. The kids were all smitten; oooooing and awwwing and trying to pick a name when SPLOSH. Jessie puked on my daughters lap; of course there was a commotion, lots of GROOOOOOSSSSSSSSSSS so we pulled over and cleaned it up. She rode the rest of the way down the country roads on my lap.

All of my dogs have been car sick dogs except for Luke; it is very common. Being someone who gets motion sick myself; I understand completely. And I feel for dogs as they start to drool; long strands of saliva hanging from their mouth, their eyes filled with "I don't feel well." It is a horrible feeling. Some dogs get over it quickly and on their own; others need help and if you don't step in and assist in their rehabilitation the issue can lodge in their brain and cause unnecessary prolonged vomiting in your car. Basically what happens is that your dog starts to relate the horrible feeling of motion sickness to the car.

Tilley was one of these associated vomiting dogs. I noticed very quickly that she would start drooling before we even got into the car. So it was all in her head; I hate this phrase but it was all in her head. So we had to re-associate; and that is what you must do to help your dog get over their car sickness. Just like most behaviors with dogs you need to go slow; baby steps. If your dog is like Tilley and started before even getting in the car you need to start there. I would put Tilley's collar and leash on and head towards the car. We would stop at the car; I'd ask her to sit and give treats, tons of praise and then we calmly walked away. And did it again and again until she was giving me a positive response to approaching the car.

Next we worked on just opening the car door and creating a positive response. It is important to give all the treats and praise while in the "bad" zone. This puts the focus on building positive right at the correct place. When you walk away from the car or get your dog out of the car you are to say nothing. You want to build the association that the car is a great and wonderful place, not getting out or moving away. So from there you move slowly to sitting in the car for treats a praise. Only do this for very short time span and only move onto the next step once you have complete success at the present step.

You then progress to you sitting in the drivers sit and tossing treats back to your dog. Make that a great place by simply chilling, chatting and getting treats. When you have success there you start the car; don't go anywhere as this is a big step and you must ensure a positive association to it here. Your next step is to simply back out your driveway and drive back in; always quit while you're ahead. Don't push it; be happy with small successes. The next step is down your street and back again and from that point in time you build on time.

Make sure not to feed your dog before any of your car sick training. A full stomach is detrimental to your hard work and dogs tend to vomit much quicker on a full stomach. Use special treats that are only given in the wonderful, amazing and glorious car. Of course with all this training there are a few dogs that will remain motion sick; it is sad because it is a horrible feeling, I know only too well.

Good Friday morning-heat

I'm sitting here answering emails before I start my blog when I hear a weird noise. One of those "what is that?" noises. I stop typing and listen trying to locate where the noise is coming from. It's Tilley, she's snoring. :)

Ah; love Fridays, after a week of being sick, I'm extremely sick and tired of coughing. I'm spent. The weather has been horrible; so hot that you can't make it out early enough to beat the heat. Here in Southern California the worst time for really hot weather is September...................it's not suppose to be July. Apparently the temps are suppose to be coming down by next week so with that and the fact that by then I will have passed this wonderful cold onto someone else, we should be good and back on track.

Speaking of heat; it is just getting hotter as the summer progresses, that is everywhere, hot just here. And it is every year that we hear of dogs becoming ill or dying in the heat. I don't know how many times I've written articles about the heat; and I know I've read even more but people still do stupid things with their dogs in the heat. Of course the car is the first issue; leave your dog at home in the summer. This is simply a good rule to follow. There are all sorts of temperatures thrown around that if reached dogs should not be in the car at; but just leave them at home where they are nice and safe.

What about walking? This is the one that makes me really crazy because so many people do it. It is 95 degrees out and at 2 or 3 o'clock in the afternoon guardians grab their dog and say "great day for a run." Now if our dogs could talk they would probably say something like "you are joking right?" "I'm not going out in this heat." And they would be right to baulk about jogging in extremely high temperatures. If you want to run in the heat; hey go for it but think twice before dragging your dog along. Dogs are much closer to the ground than we are; and there is a good chance you are running on pavement or concrete where the temps really sore.

My advice about running or walking for that matter is to take off your shoe and step on the surface where you are expecting your dog to join you. Can you easily leave your foot there for a solid 30 seconds without cringing? Even if the surface is just hot and not scorching hot; it radiates heat upwards making the temperature much hotter where your dog is located, especially the shorties.

Humans sweat to cool their body; dogs cool themselves by panting but it is not nearly as efficient as our sweating. It is imperative that you recognize your dogs regular panting versus frantic panting. Heat stroke can happen quickly in a dog; if a dog is unable to cool their body as fast as it is heating up, you can be in big trouble. Normal body temperature for a dog is between 100 and 102.5; going beyond this and rising needs immediate attention.

Heat stroke survival guide

Dogs that participate in performance activities in the summer are definitely more apt to run into problems. You must take great precautions to keep them cool. Often our dogs make better choices than we do; opting to lay in the shade on a hot day instead of jogging. Being that we are suppose to be a smarter than our dogs; we should know to take the lead from them and just chill in the heat. Get out before it gets hot or after the sun goes down in the evening. Last night we took the gang out at 7:30; it was still warm and the heat was still radiating from the path at the park. We opted for the grass, cut the walk short and walked at a snail pace. Then we all enjoyed a movie in the AC once we got back home.

Enjoy the summer but take great care in the heat.