Signals



Signals, it's all about signals.  Dogs communicate via body language and vocal sounds when needed.  So often I hear "what the heck was that about," from an owner reacting to a behavior that they could not explain which their dog exhibited.  More than likely the dog gave off lots of clues as to what was coming but they were missed.  This leaves a human with their hands in the air saying "what?????"

We had a meeting the other day with a little dog.  Luke approached on his tiptoes as he often does and sniffed the dog.  The other dog seemed okay; a bit apprehensive but wanting to interact.  I was watching the interaction like a hawk and saw the small dog's tail start to rise and tongue flick in and out.  "That's it" I said, the dog is uncomfortable.  "What?"  the other person said to me and so I explained.  So small, almost humanly undetectable, the other dog had signaled that she was not comfortable.  Luke being Luke wanted to establish that he is the King of the world and had ignored her signal.  Had I not intervened, the little dog may have felt the need to snap to get her message across.  This is when the humans often say "what the heck?"

Some dogs are more the silent type and opt to use avoidance instead of a whole pile of signals.  Even though avoidance is simply turning away from the situation; it in itself speaks volumes and should be heeded.  Avoidance can mean several things and be used in many different types of situations.  Often when Luke is outside Elsa will stalk him; he sees it coming and turns his back to her to diffuse the situation.  This ignoring technique works very well unless she is persistent and can out wait him.  It is also used when a dog feels the need to remove themselves from a situation.  Jessie often used avoidance when she found an exercise too difficult; typically involving food.

Avoidance is a commonly used signal but it should not be confused with shutting down.  Shutting down is when a dog is so overwhelmed that they actually shutdown mentally.  Nothing can be learned once a dog shuts down and it is to be avoided at all costs.  If you really want to get inside your dog's head then you must learn to read their signals.  That means all the tiny ones that we usually miss; although many people miss even the largest signals and then have their hands in the air and a giant question mark over their head.  Dogs are not humans, they tell it like it is.  They will show you how they are feeling; not in human communication methods but canine.

I regularly see people trying to get their very unwilling dog to interact with another dog or human.  The dog is signaling like mad but the human is ignoring all the signals.  So when the dog growls or snaps at the other dog or person they are aghast.  It is very sad that humans put their dogs into these situations and then are totally and utterly shocked that their dog acted like a dog.  

Once you can read your dog and become accustom to reading them regularly you can work on behavior issues must more readily.  If you see the smallest glimmer of a signal letting you know what's on your dogs mind then you can get in there and work with it before it get to an unworkable level.  I am a watcher, I am constantly watching and when I see my dogs react, I immediately react.  Ears, face, body and tail; they are all in it together.  The slightest movement from any of them can mean something, but what?  Be aware, constantly alert to your surroundings, your dog's body language and your own responses.  When each of these important parts connect; then we are aligned.

A little chin hair - ya gotta smile.



Standing at the lights, Luke, Elsa and I waited for our walk signal.  We were on the PCH (Pacific Coast Highway) and heading home after leaving the beach.  There was only one other person at the lights waiting.  In the summer months, this particular crossing is usually packed but yesterday it was just us and one other guy.  He was young, in his late 20s maybe and he glanced back over his shoulder at us when I told Luke and Elsa to wait.  Then he did a double take and smiled, then laughed.  Finally he said "is that the boy and she is the girl?"  Pointing at Elsa as the girl.  I wanted to say "you're smart," but I didn't.  I said "yep."  Then he apologetically said "I had to laugh, I've never seen a beard like that on a dog."  I smiled because he was now smiling and talking about Luke.  The guy admitted that he loved it and he thought that Luke probably loved it too.  Very cute.

Just before the light turned green a young family approached and I heard "look at that dog Mommy." We got our walk signal and head across the street to the car and a much awaited drink of water.  We love the beach so we take advantage of it as much as we can.  As of June 15th you can only bring your dog on the beach before 9am or after 6pm until sometime in September.  But the beaches will start to get much more crowded now that the kids are getting out of school so I don't mind missing the big crowds.

I don't think that we ever go out when I don't hear comments about Luke's Goatee.  I had to laugh when one woman asked me "did his groomer do that on purpose?"  Perhaps she thought that Luke's groomer had missed a spot?  No matter, she thought that it was adorable when I told her that it was in fact done on purpose.  Funny.  If people don't come right up to me and ask about Luke's goatee, I hear it from afar.  "OMG look at that dogs beard," "look how cute that dog is," "look at his chin hair" and many more.   But it's not always the comments that let me know that people enjoy Luke's goatee; sometimes it is just an expression.  Smiles, laughs and maybe the slightest glimmer from the stoic type  let me know that Luke has made a connection.

Often the goatee throws people.  Most folks don't know that my dogs are poodles from the get go because they aren't clipped in the traditional poodle clip.  Add in some chin hair and their mind is completely boggled.  I've even been asked "is this normal?" from someone perplexed by the chin hair.  But it is the smiles that Luke elicits with his chin hair that makes me smile.  Sometimes just looking at something makes you smile, doesn't it?  I know that when I look at Luke's amazing face that I smile; but that is because I know the amazing dog inside.  Although I too would probably smile even if I didn't know him.  The fact that he can squeeze a smile from even the gruffest types is pretty cool.  

For some reason Luke's chin hairs seem to make people happy and in this day and age that is a wonderful thing.  Much like when people smile watches Elsa display her youthful zest for life.  There isn't a great deal of thought or reason put into it, a smile just appears.  It really is the little things in life isn't it?  I watched a 5 month old puppy brave the waves yesterday as he charged in with reckless abandon.  That split second of impulse made me smile.

Photo Wednesday


Elsa's introduction to this new water container.  She has been retrieving toys from the kiddie pool for sometime but never this thing.  First we had the ball just hover a few inches from the top.  Notice how clear the water is?  It takes but a few retrieves to start getting murky.


She closes her eyes and just goes for it.  What a girl.



And again. 



Then Luke decides to show her that he is actually the pro at this game.



Eyes still closed.


Closed.


Luke wants another try, they love this. 


But he misses the ball which can slip away easily if they don't really grab it.


A floater


My trusty assistant replacing the ball.


Brave girl, eyes open now looking for the ball.


Got it.


Luke has another go.  What fun.  The game is short lived, 5-10 minutes and then we move onto another game.  

The under appreciated carabiner.


Got Carabiners?


Gear - implements, tools, or apparatus, especially as used for a particular occupation or activity; paraphernalia.

I love gear; I don't know why, I just do.  I'm not your typical gal that gushes over diamonds; no, give me a really cool and useful piece of gear to make my life easier and I'm all yours.  :)  I like rugged, quality, well thought out equipment that is economically priced.  Utility is my middle name; and my products of choice are typically very plain and very useful.  Maybe I was a mountain climber in my past life; but ropes and carabiners are some of my favorite items.  I have a couple of ropes in the back of my xterra, just in case and carabiners literally everywhere.

Carabiners are actually very useful little things.  You can get them really cheap or really expensive; depending on what you plan on doing with them.  Mine are just the cheap ones as I am not planning on holding my weight or my dog's weight on them.  They simply hang around until I need them.  I have one on my car keys so that I can unhook just what I need and don't have to carry around a huge, massive pile of keys everywhere.  I have several on my dog pouch for random items that I don't want to have to carry.  I use these a lot.  I have a water bowl attached to one; I hang a water bottle on one if we are going somewhere that there won't be water.  Plus, I use one for my flip flops at the beach so I am hands free. Anything I don't want to carry gets hooked onto the carabiner.

I have a couple of giant carabiners in the garage that I use for everything.  Leashes, gardening tools, extra bags, you name it.  Most of the carabiners that I use do not have a safety latch; these are the ones that I hang general stuff on when needed quickly.  I have a couple that have a latch and a few with locks.  These type are required when you don't want whatever you've hung on it to fall off.

You can get little tiny carabiners to hang ID tags on your dog's collar.  That way you can move the tags if you change collars.  There are miniature sized carabiners which are appropriate for smaller jobs.  So many sizes for all different needs.  The carabiner is one of my "go to" items with dogs.  In my opinion they are overlooked and under appreciated.  I don't always use a carabiner, but when I do, it makes me happy.


The whole package



Walking down the streets of Greenwich, CT we encountered two very friendly dogs.  One was a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, the other a Springer.  Both dogs saw us; us being Luke, Elsa and myself.  They lowered their body posture and wagged furiously with their tails at half mast; they wanted an interaction.  I glanced up to see the humans attached to the end of the leashes; who gave off nothing friendly or interested looking in having interaction.  In fact they radiated a very strong, not interested vibe.  Luke and Elsa stopped very briefly to say hi as I took the signal from the owners.  They were not concerned with the obvious eagerness of their canines for a social interaction.  It was in fact as though their dogs and we were invisible.  A whatever moment.

Every dog is different; every person is different so when you put the two together you will come up with a vast range of social teams.  Approaching a canine/human team is always interesting.  Like the women in the streets of CT, there are those humans who have no desire once so ever to interact even when their dog is dying to say hi.  The range goes from these types all the way to people who are dying for an interaction with an extremely fearful dog who wants nothing to do with any human or dog.  Their desire to interact goes against everything their dog wants and they react only from their own desire.

There are those who will walk right up to you for a greeting; knowing full well that their dog is not dog friendly.  Much like the woman with the doxie who approached Elsa and I about a week ago.   I don't know how many times I have had to veer off of the path to get some distance from a human/canine team that is not in sync.  Typical an imbalance of awareness falls on the human team member.  People just don't pay attention.  They don't consider their dog's behavior before acting.  We have passed by puppies who would have benefit hugely from an interaction but the human doesn't consider this.  They walk past, not seizing the moment and lose out on a good interaction.

Positive canine interactions are always good.  Nothing bad comes from a good interaction.  The more good interactions your dog has with other dogs the less impact the bad ones leave.  That means you must read and read quickly before interacting.  Often when we are out on a walk we are directly approached by a team and after speed reading an assessment we step off the path, giving us some much needed space.  My attention to detail as far as the other canine/human team gives me the information needed to make a proper analysis.  Sometimes it is the dogs behavior; sometimes the human's, that gives me pause.

There is a canine/human team that we regularly run into.  The dog is an over exuberant large brown Labrador; the owner is an older oblivious woman with no control.  She indulges her boy to the extent of allowing hugely rude behaviors.  Luke is not fond of Labs to start with; he has learned that many are over the type rambunctious types.  So I typically get space when we approach Labs.  When we see this team coming we get a lot of space.  She walks her dog on an extension leash and does not reeling in once so ever.  So at 15' we usually cross to the other side of the park and move on quickly to avoid her and her dog.  As nice as he is it is not going to end well due to the woman's inability to control her dog.

I am always talking about reading dog behavior; it is essential if you truly want to understand your dog.  But it is not just your dog or the dog species entirely that needs reading.  When we head out into the world together we are a canine/human team; and as such we must monitor other dogs and their humans.  Even humans without dogs must be read; many have no idea how to interact with dogs.  Many do everything completely wrong, having never been educated about canine/human interactions.  It is an interesting thing indeed when you head out into the world with your dog.  The very old saying "the more people I meet the better I like my dog," is as they say...classic.

Likes and dislikes




"He won't eat that," I told my hubby as he offered Luke a piece of turkey on his couch.  A dog that doesn't like turkey?  What?  Well, he actually likes turkey but it must be offered in the correct corresponding scenario.  One does not just eat turkey on the couch at random moments; well at least Luke does not.  Elsa? darn right.  For most dogs, food is food and it is welcome at any time and any place.  Each has their own taste, likes and dislikes.  But Luke takes it one step further; he is after all a very complicated and emotional boy.  

Luke likes to eat; but only what he likes to eat.  With it being the correct food it must also be offered just so.  He is the first dog that I have ever had likes this and I truly hope to be the last.  It is a constant challenge to get food into him.  I guess he is closer to a human with regards to his eating habits.  We have things we eat at certain times of the day and sometimes we are just not in the mood for a specific item.  I am atypical as far as morning food; I like good hearty stuff for breakfast.  Don't give me a bowl of cold cereal and expect me to be chowing down with enthusiasm, no thank you.  I don't eat eggs.  I will take some lasagna, peanut chicken or bacon/avocado sandwich though.  But offer me up a salad for breakfast?  Yuck.  Any other time of the day I'm in.  I eat a lot of salad but not for breakfast.  

Yesterday I decided to cook up some liver I'd gotten for the dogs.  It is getting harder and harder to find liver so when I can get it, I do.  Elsa has had chicken gizzards and seemed to like it; she's also had beef liver but in a very small amount.  As soon as I pulled the liver out of the pack; before it was in the pan, Luke was on the scene.  This in itself is rare; but he knows what he likes and liver is one of those things.  Elsa was in the kitchen as she typically is during food preparation time.  So, to switch things up I chopped two liver steaks and added in some meatloaf.  Luke was obviously very excited about the idea of liver for dinner.  

We head outside, which is Luke's dining preference right now.  I put his bowl down first as I always do and then placed Elsa down.  She did her customary sit before being released to eat and I headed back to coax Luke. I am so use to his feeding ritual now that seeing his face down in the bowl, shocked me.  I guess it had been a while since he'd had liver.  He was chowing down; so I sat in the chair beside him and enjoyed this very rare moment.  Looking over at Elsa I noticed another rare moment; she was not eating.  Well, she was sort of eating; she was picking through her food to find the meatloaf pieces.  She most definitely had her nose turned up at the liver.  Elsa loves food but she is not a huge raw food fan although she is getting there.  This liver was not to her liking; it is after all very strong.  It just about turned my stomach just cooking it.  But it is that strong beefy aroma and flavor that gets Luke every time.  Elsa, not so much.  

So I sat watching Luke feast and Elsa pick.  It made me think of how very different they are.  Luke is such a poor eater and here he was devouring his liver.  Elsa is a great eater but not a fan of this strong smelling, weird textured stuff.  Even stranger was what came next, hovering.  Luke hovered while Elsa picked through the liver.  The only time he ever hovers over her food bowl is when they have raw meat.  As I said, she is not a raw fan either and unless I flash fry it she tends to leave a few pieces in the bottom that she just cannot stomach.  Luke's favorite food is raw beef and obviously liver.  

Wolves aren't picky; so why then are so many dogs picky?  Well, wolves were never offered a nice sauteed liver steak with organic red pepper.  They were not given a chance to sample so many different culinary dishes before choosing which they preferred.  No for wolves it is just about eating and survival.  Look at the crap that so many people feed their dogs without any regard to nutrition, let alone taste.  A big bag of dry pieces of overly processed, low grade stuff.  Many of the low grade dog kibbles don't even register in the food category for me.  It would be much like eating a Twinkie.  Lots of stuff in it but nothing that you could really consider food.  

Do I enjoy catering to the canine palate?  Mostly.  Other times I would just like Luke to eat, just eat.  It does make me very happy to give them food that they really enjoy.  Luke also loves sausages and when we have them for dinner it is one of the rare moments when he appears on the scene.  Luke likes flavor, he always has and to him it is not just about sustenance.   I guess I could call Luke a canine "foodie."  He is ever discriminating and my final taste tester as far as new canine recipes.  Whether it is a food or treat recipe the goal is always Luke's approval.    If Luke will eat it, anyone will eat it.  :)


Guarding in public


Elsa has taught Penny the joy of sharing.  


Penny was attacked a few days ago.  Rest assured, she is fine now.  She was at the dog beach in San Diego when she saw a dog playing with a ball, a Dalmatian.  She approached and was about to check out the ball when the dog attacked; grabbing her by the neck and shaking.  My daughter stopped the assault and made sure that Penny was okay.  Then the owner slowly meandered over and said asked what had happened.  The owner of the Dalmatian made several mistakes; the biggest one was not being there to see what happened.  If you say "what happened?" in this type of situation then you failed your dog.  This is an all too common scenario, ball aggression and it is NOT okay.  Guarding.

I remember the almost identical thing happening to Luke when he was just around eight months old.  We were at the dog park when he saw a dog playing with a ball and thought he'd join the fun. As soon as he approached the ball she hit him and hit him hard, knocking him to the ground.  An Australian Shepherd that had no intention of sharing her ball threw him to the ground, gave him a few chomps and left him there not knowing what happened.  No it was not okay and the guy who owned the dog was not okay either.   He was an idiot; he saw the whole thing and was obviously unfazed by the behavior. We had a quick run around for a bit of fun before heading out.

Toy or object guarding is NOT appropriate in a public area.  It is not okay anywhere but if you are dealing with such an issue at home, leave it there.  Do not bring a dog that doesn't share well to a place where dogs are going to want to share.  That or leave the items of sharing at home.  Many dogs are just fine if they don't have their own objects to guard.  When you enter into a dog park, beach or open area your dog may be required to share.  That means that other dogs may approach and want to interact with whatever your dog has.  If your dog is not okay with this then you should not be putting your dog into this situation.

I would not bring out raw meaty bones when we have a play date at our house.  Toys are typically fine, Elsa loves to share because it means that there is a pending game.  If a dog guards a toy or attacks another dog for looking at or touching their toy, you have work to do.  That dog should receive immediate feedback and depending on the severity of the objection to sharing; removed and worked with before returning.  If it is just a slight objection then feedback and try again.

If you see your dog guarding, really guarding; not just playing keep away then you need to address this.  True guarding starts with a frozen posture, then a hard stare.  Some dogs who are true guarders and regularly frequent the dog parks opt to go right to attack mode.  They have warned so many times that they skip this step.  That or their warnings are missed due to being at the dog park/beach where fun happens.

Guarding is a very natural behavior for dogs; teaching them not to guard is our job.  If you have an object guarding dog then stick to running and playing with other dogs.  Teach them the meaning of leave it and drop; for those times when someone else brings an object to the park.   Yes guarding is a natural canine behavior but it is NOT okay to allow it in a public setting.

The beach


The above photo was taken at a different beach visit.  



Yesterday Luke and Elsa went on separate walks.  I've been getting Elsa out on her own more and more, it is very important.  Alone time had been put on hold for a while due to the loss of both Jessie and Tilley within 3 weeks of each other.  Several weeks after Tilley's death Luke started displaying separation anxiety; of course this was also due to being in a new place. So we were pretty much together for a good amount of time after that.  Enough time to let Luke adjust to losing his life long companions and being alone.  We have been doing alone walks for a year now but I am focusing more and more on them.

So Luke and I walked the park and then Elsa and I head for the beach. I waited a bit longer in the morning to head down because I wanted it crowded and it was.  We first hit the beach and as she always does, Elsa went crazy.  As soon as she hits the sand, sheer joy takes over.  She digs her toes into the sand hard; she barks and growls and carries on, she loves it.  Once we got down to the water we had a cool experience.  There was a sea lion in the surf, not twenty feet out.  I stopped to watch is roll and play in the waves when it stopped and swam in a bit.  It hovered directly in front of us and stared.  I thought that it was staring at Elsa.  Soon Elsa shot her nose up in the air and looked out to the ocean and she saw it.  Her ears went up and she stared at it staring at her intently.

We must have stood there a full five minutes with the two staring at each other.  Then the sea lion headed out a bit further into the waves to play.  Obviously it had enough of watching Elsa at that point.  Cool, very, very cool.  So as the sea lion did, we too moved on and headed up the beach.  There were no other dogs to see but lots of screeching children, running and playing in the sand.  Elsa had a few more outburst of joyous "I'm on the beach" behavior and then we headed for town.

I love Laguna Beach, it is a cute beach town which is nearing the tourist season so even on a Monday it was getting crowded.  First we stopped at the restrooms which are being renovated at the moment.  There was a metal ramp going up to them which I thought might pose an issue for Elsa; we've never walked on a metal ramp.  It was an issue and by the time we reached the restroom she was shrunk down but still moving.  When we came out she did not want to go down it again so we will most definitely be going back there to do it again.

We only ran into a few dogs and they were not the type you interact with unfortunately.  They yapped and barked at the end of their leashes so we just moved on.  I am hoping to bring Elsa with me on some book signings so she needs to get use to crowds.  We've done super socializing from the get go and Elsa has already had a great many adventures in her short life but now we need to go further.  Now that Luke is feeling okay when left alone at home we are heading out.  The difference between Luke and Elsa's responses to life is life experience.  Old dogs are typically mellow; they don't get flustered by new things and take everything in stride.  I love watching the difference between old and new.  When we run into something strange, Luke trudges on while Elsa takes notice, reacts and then falls into place seeing Luke's response.

Getting out and seeing new things, different things is so very important.  Soon the beach will be off limits during the day time hours to dogs so we will head down for the next week or so and take advantage of it and the early crowds.  Oh yes and we will hit the metal ramp again; until it is a non issue.


Too much exercise?



Too much exercise?  Is there such a thing?  Humans can do too much as can our dogs.  I work out, I work out a lot but I am not a gym rat; although there are many people at my gym who seem to always be there no matter what time I am there.  I am in and out, 30-40 min. and I'm done.  Yesterday we were at the park and there were quite a few dogs there.  I do not let Elsa off leash unless I am sure that she will not bother anyone so she wasn't off as much as she usually is.  After a short rip and tear in the field with her chuck it I hooked her up thinking it was enough for the day.  Just like humans, dogs can get so much exercise on a regular basis that they need more and more to satisfy that desire.

I have been at the dog park and met many people who are there every single day for hours and hours.  They do nothing different and have admitted that they started out with a much shorter time at the park.  But their dog now seems to need more and more to relax at home.  Can they really become use to a certain amount of exercise and need more?  Yes.  Folks who have a high energy dog and are looking for a way to rid them of a bit, often end up at the dog park.  It becomes a crutch so to speak and depending on the dog, can demand more and more time.

Running can become addictive; just talk to a true runner.  Those who run upwards of 20 miles a day; everyday and it must be everyday.  They have a hard time not running.  It becomes a way of life.  Just think about your high energy dog who is satiated by being at the dog park for two hours a day.  They are so use to this amount of energy release that anything else will not suffice.  If they are not given this release; behavior issues can arise. At home they may pace or destroy things.  The longer this goes on the more they need in terms of energy release.  Makes sense right?

But dogs do need exercise, some more than others.  Many dogs are happy as a clam going for a slow stroll around the block.  After all, sniffing is way up there in importance with exercise.  Elsa is a very high energy girl (not hyper, there is a huge difference) as was Luke when he was young.  I like to give them a fill of running; running is so important to many dogs.  Running just for the sake of running; but I am also very careful to do offer other things as well.  Sometimes a walk at a very busy park can wear a dog out simply by social interactions.  Walking at different parks, places or areas is so very important.  I get bored with the same place very easily; like us dogs need a change of scenery.

Change it up.  I'm not saying to not exercise; I'm saying switch it up.  Dogs need to be able to relax without spending 2 hours at the dog park.  Needing that sort of release will really handicap a dog.  When you do exercise, use moderation.  Lots of running, yes but not a crazy amount and not at the same place every single day.  Offer your dog variety.  If your dog loves to run then run them; but don't over run them.  Don't over stimulate them by spending hours at a dog park.  Get in, get your fill and get out.

Having a dog that can relax and be relaxed at home is pure joy.  Getting them out on a daily basis is important.  Life gets pretty darned boring behind the same four walls day in and day out if you don't take them out into the world.  But switch it up; give them what they need but don't create issues by overdoing.


The ear drop



The ear drop, I am always looking for it, especially in puppies.  But I also like to see it in adult dogs as well.  Dogs communicate hugely with their ears.  Of course a dog with upright ears has a more distinct visual display compared to the big floppy ears that can be more of a challenge to read.  Signs, there are so, so many signs that dogs give us and ears play a big part in all of the signs.  The other night my husband was out with the dogs right after work.  They'd had their greeting and were outside just simply enjoying each others company when I got my camera out.  Luke and Steve were having a moment so I captured it.  But I also capture many signals as a side bonus.  Steve had just got up off of the lounge and was moving away.  Elsa was watching what he was doing in the first image.  Then he directed his attention to her and spoke; her ears immediately dropped in a submissive respect.  Love it.

This ear drop is what I am always looking for in a puppy.  It is not a full on body drop to the ground submission but more of a quick respect signal.  I have seen puppies do this when adults appear on the scene and what follows depends on the interaction.  With canine and humans that live together it is typically fleeting and easily missed; I'm glad that I was able to capture it.

When our little Granddog Penny is over you can see her ear drop very clearly.  With those huge upright ears of hers, you'd be hard pressed to miss it.  Even still many people see it but don't notice it.  The small respectful ear drop it quick; normally they are down and up again within seconds.  It is different than the full on submissive dropped ears.  The photo below shows a full submissive drop accompanied with body and tail submission.



The quick ear drop signals to the recipient, acknowledgement and respect.  A dog who is highly alert and in a dominant state will not drop their ears.  Many puppies do not offer the ear drop for several reasons.  One is that they are distracted to the point of not noticing or acknowledging.  Two, they may not have had the interactions needed to create this response and three, they are a very dominant type and dropping their ears is something that may take a great deal of work to achieve.  Even then it may only ever be offered to a single person or canine member of the pack.

All of my dogs have offered ear drops but not always right out of the shoot.  Jessie took a while to offer as she was a very dominant little lady.  The absence of the ear drop is not a bad thing; but when it is never offered to you the "leader" then there is work to do.  Some dogs will drop their ears easily, others need more direct contact.  All dogs are different and what one feels as an ear drop moment, another may not.  I like ear drops, it is the tiniest signal that your dog is aware that you have entered the picture.

When I am looking at a litter of puppies or a single puppy; the ear drop does not need to be directed to me but I would like to see it directed to someone.  When I see an ear drop from a puppy when their Mother appears, nice.

Someday She'll Fly


available here - Someday She'll Fly 
also on Amazon.com


It's here and I'm very excited about it.  Someday She'll Fly is the second book in the Luke and Elsa series of children's books.  Each book encompasses a life lesson for children told through Elsa and Luke's daily antics.  The books are narrated by me; being that dogs cannot talk and I'm not a fan of talking dogs.  All the illustrations are images from of their life; captured on a daily basis.  The images are worked up to create an illustrated feel after months of picking and choosing the ones to grace the pages of my book.

This book features Elsa with a few cameos from Luke (of course), Tilley and Elsa's friend Hank.  From the day Elsa joined our family it was clear that she was not satisfied with her life solely on the ground; as she spent much of it in the air.  The book came into it's own after shooting literally hundreds of leaping, take offs and flying Elsa images.  Her enthusiasm and dedication to the pursuit of being airborne play a huge part in the book.

Follow Luke and Elsa in the day to day on their brand new FB page - Luke and Elsa.

Life is full of lessons and sometimes getting a message across to children is not an easy one.  Tell it through some adorable pooches and the job is made much easier.  Dogs hold a great wealth of knowledge for us and our children.  Their actions alone can offer a plethora of stories to be told.  I am lucky to have both Luke and Elsa in my life to learn from and photograph daily.  They teach me about life through the eyes of a canine and I share it with you.

Onto the next book, there is a shelf ofthem waiting to be written.

Did you miss the first book in the Luke and Elsa series?  When Luke Met Elsa - available here.  
                                                                                  Also, get it on Amazon.

Action/reaction


This young Weimaraner did not want to interact with Luke.  She is appropriately not making eye contact to let him know.  


"Now Daisy, that's not nice; you need to learn to be nice," she said as she pulled her dog away from Elsa.  The woman had walked up to us at the park; she made a b-line directly towards us and asked "is that a doodle?"  I shook my head saying "no just a poodle," for the twentieth time.  This same woman has asked me over and over again.  It is strange when someone sees you so many times and doesn't remember at all.  Anyhow her dog is not dog friendly; but she moved in quickly as I tried to walk around her.  Her tiny dachshund let out an aggressive response, even though they approached us and Elsa returned it to both their surprise.  I was a little surprised myself but Elsa is getting older; she is becoming more protective and doesn't take kindly to those type of interactions and nor do I.  Honestly, if you know your dog is not dog friendly then why?  Why interact?  It will only lead to a negative response from everyone.

I let out a disapproving sound and we moved on.  As we came around the park again there they were; we made a big circle to avoid another interaction.  I made no eye contact and neither did Elsa; we were there to enjoy ourselves.  So many people I see who deal with their dog and behavior issues have a big conversation with their dog about it.  Sure I talk to my dogs, I have big long conversations about all sorts of things but when it comes to behavior it must be dealt with in something that a dog will understand.  You must react, not talk, react.  That means with your body and sound.

ie.   Last night I was filling the dishwasher when Luke was finishing up his dinner.  Elsa was done already and moving in close to Luke and his bowl.  I made my disapproving sound which is MMM MMM and Elsa gave me a quick glance and stopped moving forward but did not move away.  She knows just how to bother Luke enough to get him to move away from his bowl, Tilley did as well.  With just a touch to his tail he will be flustered enough that he cannot eat.  Poor guy, the girls figure him out easily.  I wanted her to give him some space so giving her direct eye contact I took one step towards her.  Her ears went down and she backed off.  "Good girl" I said and went back to the dishwasher.  Behavior met with behavior.

Reactions must be delivered instantly, direct and with enough meaning.  A reaction should not linger; it will do more damage than good if it is left to smolder.  It should be short, sweet and to the point.  Timing is everything and if you miss the moment, just move on.  Dogs do not get messages given at the wrong time; they simply relate it to something else.  Association, it is all about association with dogs.  So if you have a nice long and serious conversation after they display some unwanted behavior, guess what?  They are going to display it again.

A couple of years ago, two bully boxer girls knocked Luke to the ground when he got out of the car.  It was unnecessary, rude and very unexpected for both Luke and I.  The owner of the two very rude girls told them that it wasn't nice, they shouldn't do that and asked them why they had.  Did this do anything to curb the rude behavior?  NO.  What it did was enforce the rude behavior; leaving me shrugging, shaking my head and fuming.  The dogs see this nice conversation as enjoyable and reinforcing.  

As much as dogs understand our words, tone and posture do a whole lot more as far as delivering a message.  Most of the time my reactions are simply sounds; knowing that a reaction needs to be delivered in a timely manner it is whatever happens to come out.  Best to get something out in an appropriate time limit than wait for the perfect word for the occasion.  A long drawn out lecture does nothing but make a human feel like they've done something.  But let me tell you, you've done nothing but reinforce the bad behavior.  





 


This and that



Good morning everyone.  I hope that you all had a great long weekend with your canine companions.  We did for sure, got lots done around the house and spent most of our time at home. Luke and Elsa had a great weekend as well.  When they weren't out on their runs they spent the day hanging outside with us.  We worked on door boundary with Elsa a bit, she is amazing.  She is probably the fasted to have caught on to this lesson out of any of our dogs; although they have all been great at it.  As a tiny puppy she learned the rule and we just keep proofing it.  Enforcing is the secret to door boundaries.  We did a bunch of gardening out front with the door open while she lay watching us. She is such a good girl.

Their Dad took them down to the canyon where they love to run but Luke took a major wipe out yesterday.  He ran up a small hill and came tumbling down apparently.  Taking a head dive into the dirt and tweaking his whole body.  Poor guy lost his footing and has really injured his front left leg which is his bad one.  He spent much of yesterday hobbling from resting spot to resting spot.  Last night I gave him a tramadol before bed,which is a pain killer that is safe for dogs to take.  It may have helped for the pain but made him extremely restless.  It was a rough night, not much sleep for any of us.  He may have a bad sprain so it could be a while until he is up and himself again.  I will give him a couple of good rest days and hopefully that will help.

So there will no walk for Luke today or probably the next few days at least.  Not an easy task when your dog gives you those "puppy dog" eyes.  There are many things that you will have to do as a canine guardian that are not easy.  Emotions play a huge part in the life we have with our dogs so doing things that are upsetting for them is never easy.  But as the caretaker we must do things that are best for them and often that means leaving them behind.  So Luke must stay at home and heal; it won't be easy looking into those eyes when Elsa and I head out but it has to be.  He will not know why he does not get to go but at least he has gotten accustom to having alone time.  I often take them for walks on their own and this is one of the reasons why.  If dogs spend their time together always then times like this can truly be unbearable.

Luke is a very emotional guy; being injured puts a great deal of stress on him.  Staying behind and not getting to go for a walk is stressful but it will probably still be harder on me and my heart strings.  At the moment he is sleeping as is Elsa after a very rough night.  Hopefully he will feel a bit better once he warms up for the day.

Now go for a great walk with your dog.  :)

No sniffing?



Yesterday I took Luke and Elsa out separately.  I was walking down the path with Luke when I heard a statement from behind us; "see how she is letting him sniff, you should never do that."  I didn't even turn to see who it was; my thoughts were on today's blog.  No sniffing?  What?  We meandered down the path further as Luke sniffed every plant, bush and piece of grass that he wanted.  He stopped now and then to have a snack; we chat a bit and keep on going.  Our alone walks are pretty glorious.

So what about this "no sniffing" opinion that came from behind me?  Well, this is my opinion on the statement.  Sniffing? Yes, when you want to indulge your dog.  But if you want to go for a power walk, jog or play chuck it; then the sniffing needs to stop. I am often asked by clients "how much should I let them sniff?"  Should your dog drag you around directing every step?  No.  Should your walk only be sniffing?  No.  But should you allow your dog to sniff?  Yes.  It's what they do.

Many trainers will tell you "no sniffing," even famous ones but that is beyond stupid.  If you allow your dog to sniff you are not enabling a dominant behavior.  Sure there will be dogs who want to sniff the whole time and when you don't want them to, they shouldn't.   Walks are mutually beneficial; to make it all about you or all about the dog just doesn't make sense.  A walk is a time spent together; enjoying each other's company.  But the fact is, if it weren't for your dog you probably wouldn't be out on this walk so let them enjoy what they love to do.  At least for a while.

I like to give my dogs a good opportunity to sniff; it is what dogs do, they read their peemail on a walk.  The more new places you go the more new scents to sniff.  I probably allow 1/4 of the time spent on sniffing.  That can be on-leash sniffing or off running around sniffing on their own.  But it all depends on the dog; some are sniffers, some are not.  My little Jessie (JRT) use to sniff each blade of grass up and down, it took her forever.  But it is was what she loved to do; that and dig.  So more time was allotted for her sniffing time; especially as she got older.

Elsa is a crazy sniffer but her sniffing is more of a constant.  She sniffs the ground as we walk and if a dog has walked right ahead of us she sniffs each foot step that the dog took.  It doesn't often interfere with our walk but is just an added activity while we walk.  Luke likes to stop a lot to sniff.  He gets to sniff often but then there are times when I want him to get some more exercise and we just walk with no sniffing stops.

Life is far to short to not stop and smell the roses or any other scent for that matter.

Hi, nice to meet you.



I remember saying to my husband a year and a half ago; "I can't wait to meet her, I wonder who she is?"  That statement was about Elsa and I wondered who this little blonde ball of fur would be; that is as she grew and became Elsa in our family.  Each dog is an individual and getting to know them for who they are is pretty amazing.  I saw a photo the other day; one of many that I see cross my computer either via email or FB.  The image was that of a puppy mill and the dogs inside that no one would ever know; it made me horrifically sad.  Their captors don't know them; there's a good chance that no one will ever know them unless they are rescued.

Dogs are such complex animals; each has their own personality, temperament, likes, dislikes and quirks just like we do.  Discovering all of these things about our dog or any dog is a gift unlike any other.  I often pass dogs in the park walking with their human and wonder who they are.  You can easily tell the humans that have taken the time to get to know their dogs just by the way that they are walking.  Some people will never know their dogs; they are just a dog to them and that is and always will be sad.  The more years that I spend with dogs; my dogs and dogs in general, the more impact they have on me as a dog person.  Things that matter once may have fallen away and things that I never considered in the past are now of great importance.  Life changes you.

There is someone there inside waiting to be discovered.  When you tap into that amazing being inside of a dog you will grow; you don't have much of a choice.  But you must get inside to do that.  Big, small, short, tall, round, long, hair, smooth or curly; they all have someone amazing inside.  Far too often we label a dog for their exterior; if the owner has not got to the core of who their dog is, it can be very sad.  Often the small ones are treated like precious little angels dressed in tiny outfits and treated as a small human.  The big rough looking type are treated how they look and not given the chance to share their wonderful individual personality.  Exterior is just that and nothing more.  The heart of a canine is where the goods are; the important part of who a dog truly is.

They are all dogs; no matter what size or shape they are all dogs just like we are all humans.  BUT, there is a huge difference in us all, correct?  So is there a huge difference in each and every canine.  Within each is a bucket load of individualism that is there for the knowing if you take the time to discover it.  I love meeting new dogs; what you see is what you get.    People often try to be someone that they are not; dogs never pretend to be someone that they are not.  When you meet a dog you truly meet them.  Take the time to see the difference; they are much more than just dogs.

Food, puppies and kids.

Above photo owned by Just dogs with Sherri


As the child walks into the kitchen the dog freezes.  Like most, the child notices nothing and continues on her path to the dog.  It is a neighbors dog and the little girl simply adores him.  As she gets closer the dogs turns to give her a direct hard stare; a clear warning but she sees nothing to deter her.  The closer she gets the warnings grow stronger; the dog is now frozen with it's head low in the bowl and growling.  Still the little girl approaches; even with the dog growling, giving a huge teeth display and hard stare she stretches her hand out to pet the dog that she has grown to love.  The end result to this interaction is euthanasia.  Sad.

How many things went wrong in this situation?  So, so many.  The biggest and most obvious is the lack of supervision.  I am a Mother of three human children and many dogs over the years.  I am also a huge advocate of intense and high levels of safety surrounding both.  No dog and child should ever be left alone unattended, bottom line.  I have talked to people before who said that if they could not trust their dog and child alone then they wouldn't have the dog.  Well, I am here to tell you that no dog and no child should be left alone unattended.  It is a recipe for a disaster.  You might have the greatest dog ever; one that loves your child and all their antics.  But if you are not present then you don't know.  You don't know that maybe your child might accidentally fall over your dog, step on them or do something that they shouldn't.  Children do not always act appropriately, we all know that.

There is also the known fact that the dog eating was not okay with people around their bowl.  Perhaps it was just an issue with children; maybe not, maybe the dog is not okay with anyone around their bowl.  This is sadly one of the biggest scenarios when children are bitten.  That and general resource guarding.  Unfortunately most people do not know how to change a resource guarding behavior.  In fact most people make the problem worse by taking whatever is being guarded away.  By taking the object away; you further enforce the need to guard in your dog.  Makes sense right?

I have asked clients if their dog is okay with family members around the food bowl.  They then tell me "yes of course we take her food away all the time."  Hmmmm, not good.  You cannot expect a dog to just get use to having their bowl removed.  They might be fine until one day they snap.  The snap could come from being yelled at or hit for showing any aggressive signs when the bowl is removed. It is just a horrible recipe for a huge accident to happen.

So what should you do to prevent food bowl guarding?  If you are starting with a puppy it is very, very easy.  I recommend that everyone do this; no matter how great your puppy is about their food already.  Continue to do this well into adulthood.  I still do it with Elsa occasionally and will continue.  Guarding is a very natural behavior for dogs.  Many puppies will give it a try to see what happens; others tend to have a stronger guarding instinct.  But for all puppies you do the same thing; and that is to change they way they feel about you around their bowl.  Make your presence or that of a human around their bowl have a really great association.

You start out by dropping really great food into their bowl while they are eating.  From there you move to putting your hand in their bowl with the really yummy food (something that is better than their meal) and dropping it in.  You want to monitor body posture; sometimes even a puppy will freeze, ever so slightly so watch carefully.  What you want to create is a relaxed situation that has your puppy anticipating your approach.  Approach = something extra yummy being put into the bowl.  Once you have that then occasionally take the bowl away for a moment; make some stirring noises in it and place something extra good in there, returning it to them.  Now it is better than before you took it away.

All of this creates a "what ya got?" attitude instead of "keep away from my food," reaction.  It is one of the best and most important things that you can do.  I know that many people feed their dogs in crates or a closed off area for safety or convenience reasons but it does nothing to teach food guarding safety around people or other dogs for that matter.  By isolating when you feed you can create a whole pile of problems.

This is all regarding puppies.  If you have an adolescent canine or adult dog who already has food guarding issues there are many more steps and much more safety needed to rehabilitate.  That is a whole other ball game and one that you need to call a professional in for.  Make sure that it is a positive trainer if you do call one; not like the guy on television.

If your dog does not have any guarding issues then it is never too late to start the routine that I have laid out.  But, if you are working with an adult dog; take great care and watch for any warning signs.  They can be very subtle but almost all dogs warn; we humans just fail to see them.  Proofing your dog against food guarding is one of the best things that you can do for them.

RECALL - repost

This is a repost from last summer.  Many people have asked for a blog on a canine recall and because I've already written about it several times I am simply reposting this one.





RECALL:  to call back; summon to return.

This is probably one of the biggest issues that we have with dogs.  The whole idea around calling your dog to come to you often instills panic, doubt and negative thoughts in general.  Do you call your dog and just know that he or she will not come?  Teaching your dog to come to you reliably takes a bucket load of work and it should start on day one.  Practice, practice, practice.  The whole process is a priming for the big event.

I have to say that Elsa is very good at her recall.  She hasn't always been, when she was just a young puppy she never came when called under fun environmental stimulus which is entirely normal albeit undesirable.  You need to do a great deal of training for the recall, that is if you actually want your dog to come.  Some dogs never get any training around the come behavior.  Their owner simply belts it out every now and again and expects them to come running across the field and into their arms.  Hmmmm.

Extreme positive association must be placed on the word 'come' or whatever word you plan on using.  It makes no difference as to what word you use, but use that one word all the time.  NEVER, EVER put any negative association onto the word.  If you even once call your dog with the word 'come' and then scold it, put them in a crate, leave the park or dog park, leave to go to work then you are placing a negative on your word.  Even one negative association can slow things down or bring them to a complete halt.

If you do make a mistake and as we discussed yesterday; as humans we do make mistakes, then fix it.  If you call out "come" and then realize that you are indeed leaving for work, don't.  Treat your dog for coming, go out into the yard and throw the ball around or play for a bit.  Once you have erased your error with time; go get your dog, bring them in and now you can go to work.  Rectify the mistake.

Seize the moments.  Yesterday when I was out with Elsa she spotted a pine cone.  This was after her chuck it time when we wander around doing training.  She didn't know what it was and put her head down and went to discover.  Her interest was high so I took this moment to practice.  I called her "Elsa come," she stopped on a dime only feet away from the cone and ran to me, sitting right in front like the amazing girl that she is.  She got a few treats, praise and then was immediately released to go see what that thing on the ground was.  Had I not allowed her to go and see the pine cone afterwards then the whole thing would have been negative.  What she learned is that it was not negative, she got the food and got to see what that strange thing was.  This is an essential part of it all, knowing when to not call and when to call and release.

I have taught her to come to the word "leash" as well.  She is always rewarded and then hooked up.  I do not want to tarnish her "come" so I have implemented an additional word.  It may very well become tarnished and not elicit a lightening speed response but that's okay.  It is one of those "it is what it is" things.

So if you have not trained your dog to 'come,' get out there and get working on it.  Dogs don't simply come on their own unless you have created a "coming is a great thing," idea.

Over and over and over.



We've all heard the rule, "say it once and once only."  But there you are wanting your pup to sit and having asked now, twelve or more times you give up and walk away.  I see people over using verbal cues all the time, even dog trainers.  Many ask their dog to stay while holding their hand up and repeating stay, stay, stay.  Like the arm waving overload that tends to confuse matters of clearly understanding; so does the over use of verbal cues.

When I teach a new behavior, I rarely use a verbal cue.  Of course sometimes a cue will just slip out as I have been training for so long, it just happens.  But I like to keep the words out of the scene until the dog has a grasp on what we are doing.  Whether shaping or luring the behavior; it is done so without any verbal coaxing.  This way the dog can think clearly and without the clutter of extra words thrown in that typically confuse matters.

Once a dog has the understanding of the behavior and is somewhat reliably offering it; I will then add a verbal cue to it.  If you consider a behavior that in the process of being learned; there is a great deal of waiting.  Both when shaping and luring a behavior you must wait for the dog to carry out a certain degree of the behavior.  You may be working in baby steps so each section of the broken down complete behavior is rewarded.   The steps are repeated over and over again until you reach the final full behavior sequence.  At that point you work on reliability; meaning that the dog will perform the behavior at a good rate of success.  But what happens if your dog does not comply once a behavior is reliable?

First off most people under train a behavior; they put too much emphasis on a newly learned behavior.  Many people think that because their dog can do a sit up and bow trick at home that they can do it at a crowded park.  Some dogs can but most dogs need training in that crowded park before considering it a reliable behavior.  Once a behavior is reliable and that is not to say that it is 100% reliable; dogs will be dogs and there is always that unknown factor that can interfere.  But when a behavior is reliable and your dog does not fulfill the behavior with a positive action then do you ask again?  Yes and no.  Yes if you know what you are doing; no if you are just repeating a verbal cue in hopes that your dog will respond to the second request.

Repeating a verbal cue is enforcing.  No behavior should ever be left to fizzle out due to frustration.  Just yesterday Elsa dropped her ball when we were doing retrieve work to smell something that caught her nose.  I called to her "bring it," and she gave me only a slight indication that she had heard me.  I immediately started walking her way with every intention of picking up the ball and ending the game.  But halfway there she looked up at me; she knows that I mean business so I said to her again, "bring it."  She immediately brought me the ball and dropped it at my feet.  She not only understood that I wanted the ball brought to me but that if she stops mid way I'm doing something about it.  Even though the game of chuck it is a fun outlet for her; we are either doing it or we are not.  This is not the time to be sniffing around and smelling the roses.  I grab some serious run time when I can get it so she must be serious and dedicated enough to give it her all.

If I ask my dogs to do something and they snub me, I act immediately.  There is no time like the present and that is the precise moment that you are not responded to.  Timing is everything but you must also weigh in external stimulus; the environment and those within it when a dog does not comply.  They are not robots and I do not expect my dogs to not react to things around them.  That said I will work through a new distraction or stimulus to get to the positive response stage.  Dogs have to learn about responding in different environments, distraction levels and interruptions. There is most definitely a time and a place where verbal cue repeats are required.  But they must be used strategically and not simply said over and over again.

Too many people keep repeating a command in hopes of a positive response from their dog.  When they do not receive it they give up in frustration.  That is where the biggest problem falls, giving up.  Your dog learns very quickly that a verbal cue means nothing .  After several attempts you will grow frustrated and let the cue fizzle out and die.  No verbal cue should ever end on a negative note.  If you are not given a positive response, then use it until you do.  But don't just stand in one spot and continue to do the same thing over and over in hopes of receiving an alternative response. Act, teach and guide your dog to success.