Just smile

                                                          Luke's very happy and relaxed beach face.

To smile is to be happy right?  Not always, in humans a smile can be a hidden agenda or mask to hide what is really going on.  Being that dogs don't lie; a smile is a smile.  But a smile does not always mean happy.  There are two types of smiles that dogs have.  The first and most common is the happy face smile; the "look he's smiling" face.  This one is not truly a lip pulling back smile but a facial relaxation which lends itself to the image of a smile.  Luke gets his "happy face" on when we are at the beach.  It most definitely signals a happy dog but it is not a true lip curl smile by definition.  Luke's happy face is produced by a sense of relaxation, calm and satisfaction.  You must look at the entire message to get it; a mouth held in a similar position but lacking the relaxed eyes and ears will not look like a happy face. 

The second smile is one that is very misunderstood; especially from those who have not witnessed it.  I saw my very first dog smile from a very large Doberman.  It of course startled me until I was informed of the meaning.  From that moment on I have loved dogs that smile and we have been very lucky to have two smilers over the years.  Tilley was my first smiling dog and Elsa is our second.  This type of smiling also includes signals from the ears, eyes and body but is very mouth related.  The dog actually pulls back their lips to display their front teeth; and if they happen to open their mouth at the same time you might just get a full mouth of teeth displayed.  I have heard many people gasp at this display.  It can be scary when you do not know what is going on. 

I remember years ago when I was volunteering at an Animal Shelter.  I walked up to a cage where a very sweet looking Dalmatian stood.  As I bent down at the cage door to talk to her she flashed me a toothy grin, sweet.  Another volunteer had told me that she bared her teeth at her.  There is a vast difference between the two;but not if you don't understand dog communications.  I let the other woman know what she was doing and why.  She like many other people had never seen a true smile from a dog and until you have you don't quite get it; even if someone has explained it to you. 

The other day when Elsa and I met up with my friend Judy and her dog Lucy, Elsa smiled.  Elsa does not smile at dogs very often.  I have seen her smile at Luke in greeting but not other dogs.  Lucy most definitely got lots of smiles; it was the cutest thing to see.  She was so happy to see her friend that she was smiling big toothy grins at her. 

Teeth displaying smiles can be used in greeting or submission.  The meaning of each is entirely different; although each resembles the other.  When Elsa was very young she smiled often when encountering very dominant adult dogs at the beach.  This is a sign of submission which is used to signal no challenge and a sense of being low man in the pack so to speak.  Puppies often smile in submission; along with a lowered body posture, dropped ears and squinted eyes.  Puppies who do not submit to older dominant dogs often receive physical reprimands until they do.

Greeting smiles are a very personal thing.  Tilley saved her smiles for her family and only her family.  Within her family, Brad received the most.  As she got older, it was only Brad who received her smiles unless we were gone for a very long time or something very exciting was going on.  She would also display a greeting/submissive smile for over the top home comings. 

Elsa on the other hand rarely does submissive smiling although if I catch her doing something she shouldn't be doing and make a big deal about it, she will.  She does offer greeting smiles all the time and I just adore them.  She's what I call an Elvis smiler; most of her everyday smiles are delivered with just the right side of her mouth.  If we are gone longer than normal then it starts with the side and moves to a full mouth smile.  Her smiles are accompanied with slight eye squints only sometimes, it really depends on our home coming.  When she was smiling at Lucy there was no squinting, just smiling. 

The biggest smiles that Elsa has displayed recently was when her Dad returned home after being gone for a long time.  She could not stop full face smiling.  The smiles were accompanied by snorting caused by the extreme curled up lips she was offering.  It was quite a display body wiggling, snorting and smiling; one that is hard to explain other than pure joy.   Elsa smiles on a daily basis but the degree of smile directly coincides the occasion. 

Over the years I have seen Luke almost smile.  But smiles can be very difficult to see because the dog is typically wiggling, has a lowered head or is leaping around.  He is a huffer, when he is happy he open mouth huffs but I have seen on several occasions, a very small lip curl sneak in. 

There is a big difference between a relaxed face giving off a smiling image and a true smiling dog.  If you've ever been the recipient of a true smile, you will completely understand the difference.      

New day, new digs and fun.

So how do you like the new look?  I didn't change a whole lot; just enough to give the page a little face lift.  We have another year ahead of us; as of January 1st, 2014 you had 364 more days until the next.  What are you going to do with this year?  It is always the question, new year, now what?  With each new year we can change, promise ourselves to be a better person, do more etc. etc. etc.  What about if we all just decided to have more fun?  That is after all, what our dogs would say to do.

Fun - something that provides mirth or amusement; enjoyment or playfulness.

We all know what fun means; at least our own personal meaning of it.  But do we make fun a goal in our life?  I don't think often enough.  We should do something that we consider enjoyable each and everyday; but too often life gets in the way of fun.  Several years ago I made a very bold statement while bringing in a New Year.  "I'm not doing anything I don't want to do anymore," was the gist of it.  What that one phrase did was change my whole outlook on the fun in my life. 

If things work out for us, we all have many years to look forward to.  Our dogs have much less than we do; sad but true, their lives are far too short on this earth.  So fun is even more important for them.  Do you strive to give your dog fun?  I do.  Offering them an outlet for fun on a daily basis is big time fun for me; it is one of my favorite things to do.  Does it take a lot of time?  Money?  No.  That is one of the great things about fun.  You can have fun in a moment, anytime of the day and you can have it several times a day.  Fun is what you make of it.  Fun is a very individual thing.  What is fun for me may not be fun for you at all.  Your dog may consider fun to be retrieving a ball non stop for hours fun (Elsa), while another would never think of this activity as fun.  Another might want to swim all day long; maybe romp in the snow or hunt lizards, all fun but not for everyone.  Like us, dogs are all different.

Finding the perfect combination of what you and your dog consider fun can take time.  Dogs are easy, the hard part is finding the right activity that we consider fun as well.  I see lots of people out walking their dog every day who are clearly not having fun.  What is it about walking their dog that they don't find fun?  They have put the walking of their dog in the 'chore' category instead of the 'time spent with their dog' one.  I for one love walking my dogs.  It is a time that I give to them; it is all for them but the fallout from it is my enjoyment. 

Having fun feels good.  Giving fun feels good; when the two are combined, well it's just plain awesome.  Fun is just too wonderful to schedule once a week or twice a month.  Fun should be had everyday.  It is one of the simplest things to achieve and accessible to everyone.  Fun can be found just about anywhere; but if you are not looking it might just pass you by.  Don't let fun evade you this year; do it, have it and enjoy it.  Make your own fun and offer it up to your dog daily.  Our dog's know how to have fun, now if we could all just figure it out as well. 

Gone but not forgotten. Tilley.

As I was discussing working on my next novel with my son Brad; I talked about going through the whole Tilley thing again.  He shuddered at the thought of reliving it just as I realized that it had been two years.  Two years today we lost our amazingly beautiful Tilley to a mass on her spleen.  The whole story will be told in my new novel; which will hopefully be out before too long.  I am not one to mark days of loss but I just relived it all on paper only a day ago.

Time does lessen the hurt; I always try to share this with people who have lost a canine companion.  It is true, reliving the event of losing Tilley has been much easier than it was reliving the loss of Jessie.  Two years have passed now; making it much easier to think about it all.  When I wrote my first book PBJ and me, it was all still very fresh and immensely sad.  Writing the section on the day we lost our little Jack Russell Jessie had been extremely painful.  I wrote and cried; with tears pouring down my face I told my story.  If you have read the book you, know that I held nothing back; I told it all like it happened.  It was very difficult.  But now two years after losing our wonderful Tilley, it is much easier.  I do not miss her any less two years later but it does hurt less.  There have most definitely been tears shed as I relive the story of losing her but to a lesser degree; all due to time passed.

Life goes on as they say; but memories stay with us forever.  There is never a day that goes by that I don't think of her.  She was one of the most amazing dogs that I have ever met, let alone lived with.   She taught me many life lessons that have helped me with other dogs.  Thankfully Elsa got to share several months with Tilley and learn what she could.   Just the other day as I was tossing the ball for Elsa, again; she lowered her head and pounced on the ball exactly like Tilley.  The moment took me back and I stood thinking about Tilley; before Elsa dropped the ball once again at my feet. 

I feel so lucky to have shared Tilley's life with her.  She was one of those dogs that everyone loves.  People always wanted their dog to play with her; and they wanted to get to know her.  She loved people; especially men and tolerated other dogs.  It wasn't that she didn't like them she just loved her own dogs, Luke and Jessie.  They were an amazing pack.  She was an unbelievably amazing dog who's memory lives strong in my heart. 

Scratch and dent sale

As I was surfing around the net this morning I noticed several sites that were selling off "damaged" goods.  These were not tech type shops selling computers or TV's; they weren't kitchen appliances or home goods, no these were puppies.  Yep, damaged puppies with an illness or defect of some kind sold for a discounted prices.  The note below the damaged puppies was "will need extra care and financial support."  I thought I was reading it wrong for a second; this had to be a rescue right?  Nope, I reread the page and it was most definitely a Puppy Mill. 

Puppy Mill - A place where dogs are bred strictly for money.  No care is taken with regard to health or care of the breeding dogs, nor the puppies. 

Imagine, just imagine.  Not only is the owner of the Puppy Mill pumping puppies out left and right; but they are selling them off at either full price, marked down or with a major discount depending on the health of the dog.  Wow. 

Of course puppies can get sick, they can be injured or have malformations even with the best breeders.  But what separates a miller from a good breeder is what is done with that puppy.  If several puppies in a litter have health defects then the Mother of that said litter needs to be spayed.  The ill puppies need to be cared for by the breeder.  If someone is interested in a puppy with an illness they should be offered it at no cost to the individual; being that they there is a good possibility that they will have to invest a great deal of money to help the dog.  The puppy should not be sold at a discounted rate due to scratches and dents. 

When someone decides to breed dogs; there are all sorts of reasons behind that decision.  One major one is money and I have seen the worst of them who do it for money.  But not all people who do it for money are as obvious as others.  Some have cute little websites that show clean puppies for sale.  Others even keep the dogs in their homes.  But when the bottom line is money then corners will be cut.  It is just how it is.  Standards are lowered both with the health and care of the puppies and who the puppies are sold to. 

In the mind of a Puppy Miller, puppies are a product.  They produce the product and sell it, that's it.  Much the same as people who produce inferior products to sell; knowing full well that it is a bad product and will break.  They don't care, all they care is that they get your money in their hand.  I was appalled reading about ill puppies being sold for a discount.  The standard of a good breeder is extremely high; they will not bend nor cut corners to save a buck.  Their code of ethics is a one for any breeder to strive for.  Scratch and dent sale on damaged goods?  Disgusting, just disgusting. 

Just dogs.

                                    Penny, Elsa, Luke and I having a snugglefest. 

Just dogs with Sherri, "oh what do you do with dogs?"  Is a question I hear often.  I have shortened the answer due to the practice of offering up what I do.  I do dogs. 

I am:

- first and foremost a dog trainer.

- a dog photographer.

- a dog writer. 

Trainer

To elaborate a small bit.  I started my life in the conformation show ring at the age of 13 years young.  From there I went on to train with conventional training methods (choke collars).  In the mid 90s I discovered positive reinforcement training and never looked back. I have taught years of group obedience classes; then moved on to private in-home training where I was able to do more personalized behavior modification.  I am now offering email behavior consultations.  I love that I can help so many people with one on one assistance on their everyday to serious canine issues.  Giving people the tools to help make living with their dog a smooth one is about as good as it gets for me.  Being able to reach those in remote areas and help anywhere in the world is remarkable.  Help is just a click away. 

Canine behavior is by far my biggest passion; it is where my love of photographing dogs stemmed from. 

Photographer

 Specializing in action photography and the canine/human connection.  It started years ago when a camera was left in front of me.  It didn't take long to discover that I loved capturing the very essence of a dog.  I very quickly worked into many of the big dog magazines; having been in many, had feature photo spreads and covers.  But it is the private shoot that really charges me; capturing a dog for the person who loves it.  That or capturing the love between the two; the canine/human connection. 

Stopping  a moment in time; one that you might never see otherwise is as they say, priceless.

Writer

I needed more, I have a lot to say and writing seemed the way to do it.  I have been writing this blog for years, almost 7 years now.  Pretty crazy when I look back at the beginning.  So this blog gives me an outlet to share dogs with you all.  When I hear about new canine related things; I like to share them with you.  When my dogs and I experience new, weird, crazy and interesting things; I like to share them with you. 

After blogging for years I put my love of writing and photography together into my children's books.  The Luke and Elsa series.  If you have not seen or heard of them; check them out on my website books page.  I am currently working on book #3 in the series which will feature other dogs as well as Luke and Elsa. 

There is also my novel PBJ and me (which is on my book page of my website as well).  A book that came from a trip, an adventure that changed everything.  I had planned to do a cross country photography book with the trip but it quickly became much more than just pictures.  I am currently working on the sequel to this book which will hopefully be out soon. 

I also have a training/behavior book for the new puppy owner that is very near completion.  Stay tuned for the news on that one. 

But wait, there's more.

Canine behavior, photography and writing are my main work; the stuff that fills most of my days.  But there is more, I am working on some new treats which will hopefully be available soon.  There is also the canine related gear that I am working on.  Testing canine related products for lots of big dog companies.  Nutrition, grooming, grooming products, dog related human gear and the list goes on and on and on.

So what do I do?  Dogs, Just dogs with of course me, Sherri.  :) 

More on leash aggression

Yes, I've written about leash aggression over and over again.  But after a trip to the park and witnessing two episodes of it I just have to discuss it further.  Luke, Elsa and I had just gotten out of the Xterra and were on our way to the open area of the park.  It is nice going out with both of them; but it is getting harder for Elsa as Luke slows.  She is very good at walking slowly but you can see her chomping at the bit.  As we rounded a corner I heard the jingling of dog tags behind us.  Glancing over my shoulder to see who was coming; I recognized them immediately.  A woman with her two Siberian Huskies; I see her often, running through the park with her dog.  I like that she runs with her dogs; Huskies need to run and she obviously takes the time to give them what they need.  But on this day as they ran up beside us, I could see their hair going up.  Hmmmmmmm, hadn't noticed this before; perhaps it was because she always runs down the middle of the field. 

They broke their running pace and started to grumble.  Soon it was a frenzied barking and the owner pulled the leashes to a full stop.  She tried to get them under control to go again but she only ran a few yards before they started up once more.  By this time Luke was all puffed up and grumbling himself; Elsa joined in with a bark or two.  The barking became more frenzied when I noticed the prong collar.  I wanted to tell her but there was no way to have a civil conversation among this chaos.  Luke, Elsa and I had never stopped walking; we had not changed our pace and I told them very calmly that "we don't care about this stuff," as we continued along.   She ran off and as she got distance her dogs quieted.  Association, it is all about association for dogs.  The more the dog strained at the leash the more pain he received at the fault of my dog's presence. 

We made our way around the whole park; a big walk for the old guy.  As we came to the end I watched another case of leash aggression unfold in a magnitude I had not seen in some time.  A nice woman with her tiny toy poodle was walking quietly and calmly down the path.  At the end of the path were two Chihuahuas and a small white fluffy dog.  The sound coming from the three dogs at the end of the path was that of sheer frenzied scream barking.  Each dog was held by a human so there were three dogs and three humans there in a bunch.  They stayed on the path which surprised me; moving off and giving their dogs some space would have been a good idea.  As the woman with her poodle approached they got louder and louder and displayed redirected aggression.  Snapping at one another out of frustration; it was an insane situation.  The woman with the small poodle picked up her dog and walked by and on her way. 

I had a choice at that moment, to go pass or not.  I chose to walk pass, but with a great distance between us and the frenzied pack.  They never stopped their barking once the woman had passed by them.  They were far too worked up at this point and needed a huge intervention to be able to stop.   When we got close enough for me to see what was going on, I was shocked.  Each person was hitting the dog they had on a leash.  There was yanking, hitting and yelling coming from the owners of these dogs.  When I saw the one with the fluffy dog take a magazine and hit his dog I stopped dead in my tracks.  I could not go by without saying something; but could they even hear me?  I made sure that Luke and Elsa were calm; it was a very stressful situation so I didn't want them freaked out by it.  Elsa was sniffing around and Luke was just calmly watching. 

"You are making the situation worse," I yelled to them.  "Every time you hit your dog you are creating a negative association to dogs being near you," I tried to yell at them.  One girl heard me and stopped hitting her dog.  "Don't hit your dogs," I said loud and clear.  Now all the owners were facing me, listening.  I explained further, although I'm not sure how much they could hear.  I told them if they continued like this that their problem was going to become much worse.  They seemed interested as I tried to explain how the dog's brain works.  I told them about rewarding minute moments of silence with food treats.  But with the frenzied barking ongoing it was difficult to get anything but "don't hit your dog," across. 

Leash aggression is very, very common.  The more aggression that your dog hears as they walk by other dogs the more apt they are to display themselves.  What you do with that display makes all the difference in the world.  Yanking, yelling and even hitting is a human attempt to stop the behavior.  The dog takes all of these displays from their human as a very negative situation.  The human is stressed which stresses the dog further.  The yelling, yanking and hitting creates a hugely negative association to the presence of other dogs. 

If you have a dog with leash aggression:

Don't stop walking, do not slow, just keep going.
Stay calm, even if you have to pretend.
Do not tighten up on the leash; if you have to, do it so that your dog cannot tell that you are.
Give yourself and your dog space.  Step off of the path.
If you have to change direction or turn around, do it calmly.

You can either make it worse, or better.  I opt for the "we don't care about these things," approach.

Fiesta Island continuation

What a cutie.

Nice looking young Vizsla, but a bit too intense for Penny.

She didn't like being chased by this dog.   Lots of signals in this shot.

Lots of canine communications.  This bloodhound was fun at first but then got fixated on Penny which she didn't enjoy.  Elsa checking out the dog and checking on Penny.  She is very protective of her little Bull Terrier.  

She was submitting like crazy and got scared of the dog after a bit.

It just went on for too long and too intense.

A moment of play invitation from Penny. 

Then running away again.  

Elsa doing what Elsa loves doing.  

Hello 2014

Well, a Happy New Year to everyone.  Over the holidays we took Elsa down to visit Penny and Nicole again.  We took another trip to Fiesta Island.  Here are some of the pics, continuation of photos on tomorrows blog.

So glad to see Elsa enjoying the water.

Penny loved chasing Elsa, chasing the ball.

Inseparable.

A beautiful doberman who wandered by very shortly.

Penny wasn't too sure if she wanted to meet this guy. 

Penny followed a dog way up the hill.  Watching us from up above.

Elsa went in up to the point of having to swim, that is the next step. 

Dad throwing the ball in the water again and again and again.

Penny loves to run with her Mom.

This little guy was determined to catch Penny, hilarious. 

Elsa's ball was too far for her to get so Penny went in to get it.  Then a Golden joined them.

More tomorrow.  :)

This is it.

The last day of 2013, wow; where does the time go?  Honestly, it seems like only yesterday that I was writing the last blog of 2012 and my These Are A Few Of My Favorite Things blog.  Here we go, another year.  I am really hoping that this is a good one for everyone.  One of the great things about blogging is being able to go back and look at what I've blogged about to jog my memory.  I have a horrible memory so being able to read my past blogs is great. 

I have to say that this year was most definitely better than the two before.  But I'm still hoping that the next will be even better.   Luke turned 13 years old this year; Elsa 2 years, another birthday is always cause for celebration.  Nothing monumental occurred except for the bee sting incident with Elsa.    There were few minor scares with Luke but nothing that didn't pass without anything serious.  If you have just joined as a follower of this blog; feel free to go back and read the years before.

Just about everything was covered this year; grooming, general maintenance, vaccinations, behavior, nutrition etc, etc.  I pretty much blog as I live my day to day.  When we go through something I try to share it with you all in hopes that it will help someone, even one person and/or their dog.  By far the largest readership was seen on my blog about "tail amputation, or docking."    I hope the blog answered some questions for folks and helped others come to the non docking change.  It's happening albeit slowly.

As we end this final day of 2013 and I look back; I think it was a good one.  There were MANY changes in this house and I'm sure there will be many more in the year to come.  I want to thank you all for your continued support of readership; both on this blog and all of my FB group pages.  Have a wonderful day today and a safe evening.  We'll see you next year.

Sherri

A houseful of dogs

Snoop

Good morning, we had a wonderful Christmas and Boxing Day.  I hope that you all did as well.  Here, we had 5 dogs in the house.  Luke, Elsa, Penny, Snoop and Luna.  It was a juggling act as this was a first for Luna meeting Luke and Elsa.  Snoop and Luna are my daughter and her fiancé's dogs.  They have been in this house a lot but not shared a space until this weekend.  Snoop is a 13 year Pekingese who at this age is not interested in interacting with other dogs.  He is cute as a button but likes to keep to himself so they made sure that he had was able to do that.  He also suffers from a very bad back so being in the mix is not a good idea at all.  He is perfectly happy staying in bed all day; and was given lots of alone time in the yard and other areas of the house.

Luna

Luna is the newcomer; she joined their family with Snoop, back in August.  She is a rescue and an adorable one at that.  She looks to be a mix between a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel and a Japanese Chin; weighing in at only 11 lb., she is small in comparison to Penny, Luke and Elsa.  It was apparent from the get go that she was going to push; she is a very dominant little female.  Snoop and Luna had their words when she first joined them but now get along wonderfully.  They have a different relationship; they are happy to simply coexist without much, if any interaction.  Knowing that Luna is very dominant and pushy; we had to take great care to introduce her to my pack.

Luke is very social and even if a dog growls, he will typically turn and walk away.  That is other than his occasional leash aggression thing.  He likes most dogs and at this age doesn't really care much about interaction.  He is happy to sit on the sidelines and watch.   Elsa is also very social but as she is maturing she is not a fan of being growled at.  She will retaliate and there in lies the problem of Luna being in our house "Elsa's house."  I knew that Elsa was not going to be okay with a strange dog coming into her home and growling at or trying to dominate her.  So we have waited for their introduction and it had to be on neutral territory.   With Luna having been in the house before, even in the backyard with Luke and Elsa watching; they were already quite use to her smell and look.  So the stage was set.

We met at a field close by.  The dogs would have lots of room to be off leash; which is very important if you think things might get weird.  Close, cramped quarters are a big no no with iffy dogs.  So Luna, Luke and Elsa were set free to run and not everything went great.  Elsa pretty much ignored her for the first while because she thought I had a ball.  After realizing that I didn't she went to finally meet Luna.  Within minutes Elsa was chasing Luna was running full speed; they were both having a blast.  We stayed quite a while and they were just fine with each other.  Luke got on his tiptoes to meet Luna as he could also tell right off that she was a bossy type.  She took Luke cue as reigning Top dog and backed off; she even seemed drawn to him.

Back home things would be different.  Penny had already met Luna several times but they didn't quite mesh.  They are pretty much complete opposites but the fact that Penny doesn't care at all if dogs growl at her is a major plus because Luna growls at Penny a lot.  Growling is as far as it goes so I know that with more time the growling will stop; although maybe not with Penny.  Watching Luke and Elsa around Luna was fascinating.  They started out in the yard; again more room to move around and away if needed.  That went well until Luna went under the patio table and claimed it.  She growled at Luke as he passed by; he only got on his toes and kept going.  He isn't much for getting into it anymore.  Elsa and Penny ignored her which was good.

As I thought, inside the house was much different; more growling and tension.  They are not ready to hang out for the whole day in the house yet.  Luna needs to learn that she cannot claim people, places or things before we can do this.  But they did spend a while in the house; that was when everyone was in the garage or moving around which went well.  As soon as she is given the chance to claim something she takes it.  So there is work to be done until all is running smoothly.

Merry Christmas

Turkey - repost from last year.

We had a great weekend and I hope that you did too.  We are into Thanksgiving week and the topic of turkey is here once again.  No doubt you will be seeing a great deal of information on many of the dog sites about not feeding your dog turkey.  I don't know how many times I read that it was dangerous to feed turkey to our dogs a couple of years ago.  I'd heard enough, so I went on a serious research mission.  I headed to all of the folks who I trust and rely on first.  "Of course dogs can eat turkey," was what I was told.  I already knew this of course but with all the NO TURKEY talk I wanted a straight answer.

So where has all of this NO TURKEY talk come from?  The problem is not with the turkey at all but the fixings and the feeding habits of those dogs who have problems.  What I found was that the largest problems are from people feeding their kibble eating dogs a big turkey dinner.  They like to throw the extra skin, gravy and stuffing in their bowl as a treat and then are surprised that their dog is upset afterwards.  Had they simply added a few pieces of lean turkey to their dogs meal, they may have been fine.  Dogs that eat a consistent diet of kibble have a difficult time eating different things.

DOGS CAN EAT TURKEY.  They just should not eat stuffing, gravy and lots of extra fat.  My dogs eat turkey all of the time and they will be eating it this season as well.  If you feed your dog a regular diet of kibble then be careful when you add other foods in general.  Take your time and make sure that is lean protein.  Many dogs end up in the emergency by being fed a very fatty Thanksgiving dinner after eating kibble all their life.  Their body cannot deal with it.  Just imagine if you lived on Rice Krispies your whole life and then you were allowed to indulge in Thanksgiving dinner with all the fixn's.  I can guarantee that you would be sick.

Take extra care during this time of year.  If you want to share the turkey with your dog then do it in moderation.  That means that if you only feed your dog kibble, a few pieces of lean turkey will suffice.  But if you feed your dog real food as I do then your dog will be able to have much more turkey.  Save the extra skin, dripping, gravy and stuffing for the people.  They too will probably suffer from a very rich dinner but that is all up to themselves, right

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I know that many of you will have ham or roast beef for Christmas dinner in lieu of turkey.  No matter what you are having be careful what you share with your dog if they are not use to eating things like it.  Don't be sucked into those eyes staring at you; pleading to share your plate of stuffing or gravy.  It's just not worth the aftermath. 

Have a wonderful Christmas Eve. 

Sherri and the gang. 

Home for the Holidays

                   Visiting and having fun at Grandma's house. 


Home for the Holidays is what it's all about.  I love the Holiday season, I love spending time with family and having everyone together.  This of course can be a big change from the norm; which can mean some confusion for our canines.  The more activity that your dog is use to the better they will be able to adapt to the hustle and bustle that can come along with the Holiday season.  If your dog is use to a more calm and quiet lifestyle; then the commotion of having everyone home may just be too much.  Watch for the signs. 

Often when we come together; we bring dogs who do not live in the same household together.  That can mean stress, watch for it.  It can also mean exhaustion like with Penny and Elsa; no sleeping and just playing.  There are signs when they have had too much; which is when I separate them for a naptime.  Things get going to fast, literally.  Elsa starts to get a little more loud and Penny zooms.  That is when they both need a time out.  Left to their own they would continue; so human intervention is needed. 

Celebrate me home - Kenny Loggins

Lots of dogs are not happy to have a houseful of family and friends.  For those types, do them the favor of offering them a safe and quiet spot.  We had a party at our house on Saturday; it was actually my sons party so the house was filled with friends.  Both Luke and Elsa were out at the beginning.  Elsa was whipping everyone with her tail; Luke was socializing but staying close to me.  After about an hour they went upstairs to bed.  They had enough socializing for the evening and with  more people coming, space was getting a bit tight.  At that point Luke was more than happy to hit his bed and be quiet.  Of course Elsa would have loved to stay out and socialize but Luke needed her with him.  So they had a bit of both which was just right. 

There are many dogs who do not do well with anyone different in the house.  They need your help to be feel safe and secure.  Don't force them to enjoy the crowds that you enjoy.  Having a dog that is uncomfortable or past their comfort zone is not a good thing.   Offer them what they need to feel okay and then you can enjoy your friends.  The Holiday season can be wonderful, but it can also be very stressful for our dogs.  Know how much your dog can handle and still feel at a level of comfort.  As I always say, "they are all different."  At this time of year many dogs are pushed beyond their comfort zone; know your dog so that doesn't happen. 

Each is an individual

 

 

We are all different and our dogs are all different.  Same breed dogs are different from one another as is a whole litter or puppies.  Temperament testing is a big eye opener if you've always thought that "a puppy is a puppy."   "All my puppies are about the same," is a common statement from those who do not do temperament testing.  Although dogs are fairly simple once you understand them; they are also very complicated.  Different, like us they are all different.  Of course within breeds there are certain common traits; but that is not always a given.  Do you know how many people I know who are very sad that their Labrador hates water?  Or that their Golden Retriever wants nothing to do with retrieving? 

Dogs have likes and dislikes; just like humans.  But the one thing dogs don't ,is pretend.  This makes them a much easier read than humans in that what you see is what you get.  Of course they will often use avoidance in a situation but if you understand that too you will be able to see it.  The more dogs I meet the more I see the individualism.  All of my poodles have loved to retrieve; they have also all been amazing guard dogs (didn't know that about poodles did you?)  But as far as the little things, like eating, affection, bold/shyness; they have each been very individual.  Luke has always been a very confident dog; he is a dominant dog but not obnoxious about it.  If a dog confronts him he will typically walk away.  He is very much a lover not a fighter.  He is very emotional; the most emotional dog that we have ever had.  Tilley on the other hand was on the shy side; but solid as a rock.  You could not startle or shake that girl for anything. 

Each is such an individual; taking the time to learn those small differences is very important.  What one likes does not mean another will.  How they perceive stimulus can differ hugely.  What one sees as a threat, another may see as a friend.  One dog may read dogs well while another goes in blindly.  It is so very important to know these small differences in your dog.  Are they a good communicator?  I see a lot of dogs out there that are very poor communicators; much like many humans I know.  But unlike humans, dogs do not pretend or lie so a read is a read. 

A dog can be summed up in a few words; as a general typing of personality.  But there is so much more to each as an individual.  Knowing the little things that make your dog tick can be secret to living together in harmony.  Look inside for the answers. 

Fleece

I'm heading out this morning to get some fleece.  Fleece is one of the most versatile materials you can have around when you have dogs.  I use to have bags full of it but alas I've actually run out.  So I'm off to Joanne's today to stock up.  Recently Luke has been feeling very spry and decided to play more.  Playing more means tug-of-war with Elsa; which means that toys are being destroyed and spread everywhere.  Tuesday night my family room was covered with fluff; yesterday it was my office.   Looking down at all the fluff I disappointed to see the toys ruined.  Elsa has just learned not to ruin her toys but they cannot stand up to the tugging between these two.  But, I am so happy to see Luke wanting to play again that I'm off to Joanne's to buy fleece for more toys.

Previous blog on braiding toys with fleece.

When Jessie and Tilley were with us I used fleece everywhere and everyday.  It covered every bed in the house which were covered first with an absorbent pad and then fleece.  Jessie's bed had fleece in it that required washing everyday.  She could not wear a diaper in the end as her dementia caused her to turn circles in her crate.  The diaper would just fall off within minutes; fleece kept her dry as it tends to be very absorbent.  She had a whole pile that were hers alone piled on top of her crate and cleaned everyday.  Fleece is great for blankets on chilly nights and to keep in the car.  When we travel, fleece is kept on top of the bed for the dogs.  Plus fleece is a great thing to bring into hotel rooms for a familiar bed spot. 

When you buy fleece, there are two types; stretch and non stretch. The stretch is much nicer than the non although it is a bit more work, muscle wise to braid.  The stretch is easier to braid but you have to braid it very tightly for a good end result.  The non is hard to braid as there is no give.  So I always buy the stretch type.  Fleece is cheap too; wait for it to go on sale.  It always goes on sale as it comes in all the seasonal patterns and collars.  You can get remnant pieces for even less than sale price. 

Fleece is my favorite material to cover beds in the house as well.  You can buy colors to match your décor and it makes keeping beds clean much easier.  I absolutely  hate pulling beds out of their cases to washing; so keeping a fleece blanket on top means less washing the whole bed.  Fleece stays put better than most other fabrics too. 

So I'll be braiding today.  Miss Penny is coming over tonight so there will be much tugging going on I'm thinking.  Fleece braids are a great gift idea for your dog this Christmas too.  :)

Controlling that ball

                                           
                                            The ball of a tennis ballaholic is never far away. 

 Aholic - A person who has an addiction to or obsession with some, object or activity.

As I turn to leave my bedroom, I notice Elsa standing just outside the door.  She looks strange and I wonder what's up with her; that is until I notice a tennis ball at my foot, again.  Elsa is a tennis ballaholic; yep, I have to admit it, she is.  I know a lot of people who have tennis ballaholics but hate to admit it.  Come on, say it with me; "my dog;s name is ______, and she is a tennis ballaholic."  There that wasn't so bad was it?  Dealing with the affliction of the tennis ball is not quite as easy and deal with it, you must.

Drive - to strive vigorously toward a goal or objective; to work, play, or try wholeheartedly and with determination.

I could tell that Elsa had drive from the get go; she loves nothing more than retrieving.  Ask her if she'd prefer a steak or a retrieve and she will choose the retrieve every time.  So, with that information I must be strategic.  I do not leave tennis balls just laying around; but if and when I forget, I pay for it by rolling my ankle.  That is because Elsa continues to put the ball at my feet.  If I'm sitting down, it goes in my lap.  If I'm on the double lounge outside, she will roll it to me until I throw it.  If I don't throw it she will just stand there and stare at me, I think forever.

But she is not as bad as some.  She is at the moment looking out my office window with a tennis ball beside her.  She has carried it around for a while this afternoon and placed it at my feet in the kitchen while I bake, over and over again.  But I will not throw it; there is a time and a place and the place is not the kitchen.   It will be going away shortly.  She can forget about the ball if it is away; but it must be out of sight or she will just stare at it, willing it to jump off of wherever I've put it.  She will stand there for a longtime before giving up.  So for her sake, it goes in the garage with the rest of the tennis balls.  Elsa's drive is easily controllable, the way that I like it.

Tilley on the other hand was out of control, for a while anyway.  She too was a tennis ballaholic but when the ball was put away; she switched that obsession onto shadows; which she learned were a pretty reliable object.  It started when she was only four months old and continued until her last day.  A dog with true drive to catch and retrieve will typically do so with any object.  Tilley would catch anything; Elsa is learning to retrieve other objects.  It takes a few tries and then she will happily oblige.  But the tennis ball seems to be the prize possession. 

So how do you control a tennis ballaholic?  Limits and training.  You must limit the ball access and control the ball yourself.  The ball belongs to me and I allow Elsa to play with it when I say.  The training part is much  more difficult in that she must learn to leave the ball when it is present.  We are working on her "leaving it" when it is thrown and not taking other's balls.  This is a tough one for her; if a tennis ball is out, it's hers.  She is not possessive over the ball but she is very strategic.  She knows how to wait it out.  She hovers looking for the fraction of a second when the other dog let's their guard down to swoop in and nab the desired ball.

I do not allow the tennis ball to run our lives; I make the rules and I control the ball.  This is essential if you want to control a tennis ballaholic.  When the simple act of reaching for a tennis ball sends your dog into the "ready" mode, you know you have work to do.  A tennis ballaholic needs to learn to control themselves.  It can be a ton of work; all they know is to chase when they see the ball.  You need to teach them that they can achieve control.   Rules and regulations must be implemented to tennis ball games or the ball becomes an object of  the out of control mode.  When your dog is a tennis ballaholic, you can use the ball as a reward for behaviors; making it easy to train for control behaviors. 

                                   Here Elsa performs different tasks before the ball is thrown. 

But along with limits and training you must also offer your dog an outlet for the drive.  Elsa does a daily 'chuck -it' time.  It gives her the chance to chase, retrieve and run.  Elsa loves to run, almost as much as she loves to retrieve; she is a sporty girl.  Without control being placed on the ball; the ball could easily become a huge issue instead of a controllable obsession. 

This and that and friends.

Good morning, I'm up before the birds today and not too happy about it.  I've been waking up when  my son is up for work for about a week now.  Once I'm awake at 4:30 I can't get back to sleep, even with Elsa snuggled up close and snoring.  So I get the day started early, which I do like.  I've got my giant mug of coffee and some turkey meatloaf; yep, give me leftovers for breakfast any morning.  I'm not a morning food type of person; I'd much prefer a plate of lasagna, lentils or like this morning, meatloaf.  Elsa has had her share and is already back asleep.

Luke is still curled up in his massive bed; covered up with a fleece blanket, he's not budging anytime soon.  He doesn't eat this early in the morning so I saved him some meatloaf for when he is ready to open his eyes.  I love the fact that he is so comfortable in his bed and doesn't seem to be bothered that Elsa gets on the bed in the morning.  I ask him everyday if he'd like to come up in the morning; he is allowed up on the bed only when I'm in it and awake.  He's only taken me up on the offer a couple of times; mostly he rubs his head on his pillow and goes back to sleep. 

Yesterday afternoon Elsa and I headed over to the park to meet a new friend.  A new friend for Elsa that is.  A friend of mine and I have been trying to get the two together for a play date for quite sometime and yesterday was the day.  Friends are important and not just for us; it is great for our dogs to have friends.  We don't do dog parks so having lots of friends to hang out with is wonderful.  Elsa and I are heading to the marina this week to meet another friend for a walk.  Luke will go for his walk early and then be ready for a nap when we girls head out. 

It's funny how different dog friendly places are friendlier than others.  The Marina is a great place; we very rarely run into cranky dogs or people there.   Other places that we've visited are not so friendly.  It a thing that you can only know by experiencing each individual place.  I prefer places with space, elbow room.  I like to be able to move away if I feel the need which can eliminate possible issues.  The Marina gives us that and it's beautiful to boot. 

It is a busy time of year and getting busier by the day.  Getting out and about to meet friends is wonderful, both fur friends and human.  I love watching Elsa meet dogs that she has met before.  It takes but one meeting to be placed on her "friend" list.  Her behavior is entirely different from dogs she knows versus dogs that she has never met before.  When she sees a friend, who she may have only met one time, six months ago she gets her hinge on.  She resembles a dog with a hinge in the middle as she wags and wiggles.  She ADORES human friends as well; she can barely contain herself when she gets to meet up with friends.

It's going to be a warm one here in Southern California; Luke and Elsa got their haircuts just in time.  Even though it gets very warm some days here in the winter; it can get very chilly and downright cold at night.  Thursday is going to much cooler; almost 30 degrees cooler than today so I'll be dog sweater shopping for Luke and Elsa.  If anyone knows of great sweaters with lots of stretch for big deep chests, please let me know.  I have a very hard time finding a sweater or coat for Luke as he is built much like a Borzoi, very deep and narrow. 

I'm up early, it's dark and the sun is not even considering getting up yet; but, let the day begin, right?   

Got any play dates on the calendar? 

Humans gone wrong.

We headed towards a large flight of stairs; with their heads down, both Luke and Elsa ascended them to the top.  We were done our walk; had our fun and it was time to head home.  Staying close behind Luke just in case, we got almost to the top when we were approached aggressively by two large dogs.   We had been about to take our last step as they moved in on the stairs blocking the way.  Startled to say the least; we all fell back needing to take a step or two back down.  This was easy for Elsa and I, but not Luke; his legs buckled with the dogs in his face and he collapsed on the side of the stairs.  I quickly moved up ahead and yelled at the dogs.  Their hair was up and they were growling; my hair was up as well.

"NO," I yelled, "get out of here," to no avail.  I may as well have been talking to a brick wall as they say.  The owner was some distance away and I yelled at her too.  "Put your dogs on leashes," to which she replied "I just live across the street."  Not knowing what that had to do with anything I told her again "leash your dogs."  She had no leashes and she had no control over her dogs.  Luke tried his best to keep the dogs away with a big gruff lunge which made his poor old legs buckle even more.  I was fuming. 

The girl grabbed her dogs by the collars are tried to drag them away.  At that moment I thought to myself  "I might be on these stairs for a while."  I looked around to check on Luke for a split second when a third dog came to check out what was going on, really?  A large English Bulldog who also had to be dragged away.  Not a great ending to our lovely walk.  But then came the kicker; the girls boyfriend (I'm assuming) walked up and past me.  He was shaking his head and laughing as we managed to finally get off the stairs.  I knew the type of person he was immediately; he'd done nothing while this was all going on and now moved by like he owned the place.  Laughing, the laughing at what happened got me.   So I yelled out "don't shake your head, your dogs knocked my old dog down."  Which he so politely yelled back "eat s*&t."  Nice.  We shared some heated words before I turned and head for the car.  I loaded Luke and Elsa up; check on Luke with some kisses and huge and headed home.

The whole way home I went over what had happened.  What kind of person does this?  Their dogs assault another and they yell at the person who's dog got hurt?  Well, I had to find out; if I was going to blog about this I needed more information.  I wasn't done yet, I turned the car around and head back to the field.  I stopped before getting to the field when I saw them.  Their Bulldog was out in the middle of the road as I pulled over.  Obviously the no leash thing was working well for them, not. 

So I asked "why?"  Having no idea what I was in for but assumed it would be more of the same.  It was, very much "don't tell me what to do," attitude.  I tried my best to remain calm so that I could get the information I was looking for, not an easy task when I was fired up to the level that I was.  The only answer I got on that Saturday morning was attitude and that was in fact the answer.  I told them if it was turned around and my dogs had done this that I would have apologized, not attacked as they did.  I asked what adult man yells at a woman like he did?  Thinking that my son would never be such an idiot.  The guy somehow took my question wrong; thinking I was calling him not an adult and said "I'm 25 years old and I can do whatever I want."  Well, there you have it. 

"I'm sick of all the a&;%ho*es in this neighborhood" he said looking down at the dogs.  Ahhhh, others had complained about them and the dogs; I was in no way the first.  The guy said that nothing had happened and that we in fact had come after them.  Hmmmmm.  He left muttering under his breath; leaving the girl there to explain.  I asked her and although she wasn't yelling or swearing at me she most definitely had a chip on  her shoulder and didn't care at all what her dogs were doing.  She asked me what I wanted her to say.  I didn't want her to say anything.  She also thought that she had some right to let her dogs do whatever; by stating "I've lived here 24 years."  She kept going back to the fact that her dogs were off leash and that was not my biggest issue.  My issue was in how it was all handled.  She then said in a very non apologetic tone "I will try to be a more responsible dog owner."  Which I took as my cue and turned the car around and head for home.

I realized after talking to these people that the guy was one of those angry people who have a sense of entitlement.  There is no reasoning or even discussing with them; he knows everything and everyone else is wrong, pretty much.  I ran into the same type a few weeks ago in my car.  Having the right of way I pulled out in front of him; but he must have owned the road that I was driving on.  He flipped  me off, screamed and yelled; tailed me and basically tried to intimidate me.  But that was not enough for this guy, he must have stewed all day because that evening I got an email about what I'd done; he'd created a new email address just to send me an email.  (A little scary)  Again, what sort of man does that to a woman and then thinks that he is in the right?   No man with any sense of being a real man would. 

Luke was fine, Elsa was fine and that was what was important.  I will always step up to intervene when needed to protect my dogs.  As far as what came after?  Stupidity, it was as simple as that.  When dealing with people like this; the best thing to do is to walk away.  Make sure that your dogs are okay and report the incident.  I have no doubt that these dogs have already been reported.  It always amazes me when people don't learn from life experiences.  They continue to plod away doing the same thing and expecting different results somehow. 

The worst thing about the whole incident is the lack of compassion.  Knocking down an old dog, or any dog for that matter should bring with it a sense of apology.  Shouldn't there be something inside you that feels bad?  Sadly I think there is a great deal of compassion missing in many people these days and the sense of what is right and wrong.  So yes, humans gone wrong. 

One dog we will not approach

   As a positive reinforcement trainer who is concerned with the canine/human connection I do
not support the use of these barbaric collars.  They only cause more problems in dogs with problems and without.

When we are out on a walk; I am constantly reading body language.  On leash greetings are far more complicated than off leash, so I am very choosy about who we say hi to.  With our recent visit to OR; both Luke and Elsa had more than their fair share of cranky greetings.  Cranky greetings can lead to your own dog becoming cranky in defense.  Nice dogs can be hard to find; but even nice dog greetings can go wrong.  I watch body language and gear; one dog that we never say hi to is a one wearing a prong/pinch collar.

For those of you using prong/pinch collars, read on before you get cranky.  Prong/pinch collars work by delivering a pinch; hence the name that the collar was given.  I have had sooooo many users of these collars tell me "they don't even hurt."  Well, tell me then how they work?  What is the premise around it?  You can't, there is no other form of correction except the pinch.  That is how they are meant to work by delivering pain when the dog pulls.  This pain is the reason that we don't say hi to obvious prong/pinch collar wearers. 

Association - the connection or relation of ideas, feelings, sensations, etc.; correlation of elements of perception, reasoning, or the like.

Elsa and I came across a nice young Labrador wearing a prong collar.  He was also at the end of an extension leash and a very inexperienced owner.  We had no intention of meeting with them; but as we passed the dog ran towards Elsa excitedly; that is until he hit the end of the leash and got an almighty pain delivery.  He then turned from a nice guy into a frenzy crazed dog.  The association was quite clear; other dogs in the vicinity mean pain.  The owner yelled to me "he's sort of out of control;" ya, you think?  But the cause of the problem remained illusive to the owner; even though it was quite clear. 

Many trainers throw a prong collar on a dog who needs control training.  When the dog lunges or becomes unruly at the approach of another dog; they receive a yank, which is meant to correct the bad behavior.  Sadly what the yank does is to further fuel the dogs unruliness.  Even if a human does  not yank on the leash; a lunging dog will deliver the pain themselves, causing the association.   It is all very easy to understand if you just sit back and think.  So many people use prong/pinch collars; many hide them under a plastic cover so that they don't feel the shame that putting those metal barbs on our dog can cause.  Yep, good ole human guilt is at the core of the prong/pinch collar cover.  I saw one the other day; when I realized what it was the woman hung her head and said "yes, she still needs training."  It wasn't a moment to teach so I just shook my head and moved on.  Sadly it was a very nice little dog; hopefully she won't be ruined by that collar in hiding. 

Dogs who approach to say "hi" often are fine until they get closer.  The closer they get, the more excited they get, the more they pull and BAM, the pain delivery; right as they are close enough to your dog to get aggressive.  So we basically stay away from prong/pinch wearing dogs; that is if we can see the collar.  Does the collar mean that it is a bad dog?  Oh no, it means that the owner doesn't understand what they are creating and we don't want to be involved in that process. 

Major cling on

Always checking on Mom's whereabouts.  

I'm sure that some of you were wondering where Luke was in yesterdays blog.  He was very obviously missing from the photos and the beach.  Well...Luke was at home; yes, he had to stay home.  I'd been wanting to go to the beach for a long time with Nicole and Penny but knew that it was too much for Luke.  One rambunctious hit from a joyous youngster could end him up in the emergency so we had not gone.  But, knowing that it would be so good for Elsa; I had to finally bite the bullet; tell him we'd be back and go. 

Early Tuesday morning Luke and I headed out for a nice long and leisurely walk.  He is getting slower and slower these days but every deliberate step is time spent together.  I learned to do this snail walking with Tilley after she was hit with Vestibular.  Luke's aging body is the cause of his slow walking; it is time to smell the roses.  So we made our way around the park; going a bit further than normal so he'd be good and tired.

Leaving him at home is not an issue; Luke is use to Elsa going out for walks without him.  He is always waiting patiently in his bed and very happy when we return but he is fine.  This trip would be much longer; we were going to be gone for a big part of the day.  This is when you have to put your heart on the shelf and use your head.  Elsa needed this and Luke simply couldn't come.  So with the decision made to go I just did.  We have a dog door which Luke uses all the time; he has his beds all over and his couch.

Elsa hovered on that morning; she knows after Luke, it's her turn.  I took more time getting ready so she kept a very close eye on my movements.  As soon as I picked up my keys she started spinning.  I remained very calm and told Luke that I'd be back; this is what I tell them if they stand at the door thinking that they are coming with me but are not.  "Momma be back," I said to him and he ran to his bed and got comfy.  He was tired, good. 

So Elsa I head down to San Diego and had a great time.  I thought about Luke often while we were gone and then swooshed it out of my head, "he'd be fine."  He was fine.  When Elsa and I got home he gave us the same greeting that he does when we go out on our normal walk.  I remained calm and very "no big deal," as I made my way to the kitchen and then outside.  No over the top big greeting, I kept it simple.  He took my cue and went to lay down on the outside bed.  Happy that Mom was home he glanced over his shoulder once again to make sure.

The next day when it came time to go for a walk; Luke never left my side..  He wanted to make sure that  we were all going.  We did go for a walk together; it is important to mix it up so that they are never quite sure what is going on.  He was a cling before the walk; a tad more worried than normal but still fine.  Today will probably be another alone day.  As he gets older the difference between the two is growing.  These are not easy decisions but they must be made for the good of both.  Head not heart decisions must be made.

I remember being at the beach in CT one day with Luke and Elsa.  A woman with a very old dog was there; walking very slowly down the beach.  Of course Elsa went bounding over to visit and the woman got very mad; then I got very mad.  When a dog is that old and frail you do not take them where young dogs are running around off leash, it is not fair for anyone.  Yes, you take your old dog out to enjoy walks; even on the beach, but not where there is risk of injury. 

It's not easy but it must be done, we have to think with our head sometimes.