Giving Thanks For Your Inner Dog

Over thanksgiving with lots of youngns and furryns running about - the former creating messes in the kitchen, the latter lapping them up - I found myself pondering the two most thankful creatures I know: kids and dogs.

Sure, neither tends to say "Thank you!" without prompting; but both kids and dogs have a unique ability to truly appreciate and enjoy the littlest of gifts in the fullest of ways.

It occurred to me that just as people are said to have an "inner child", each of us has an "inner dog" as well. Its that part of you that sees the world around you as infinitely enjoyable. The part of you that sees every item around you as a new sort of toy or game. The part of you that is equally entertained by exploring under the couch, as exploring a mountain. The part of you that wants everyone in the room just to stay put and cuddle, because you know thats really all that matters. The part of you that wants to leap up and smother your loved ones with kisses whenever they come through the door, even if they were only gone for sixty seconds taking out the garbage - because you know theres nobody else in the world more perfect than them; never has been, never will be.

Our inner dogs cant come out and play all the time; that probably wouldnt do anyone much good. I doubt if many Wall Street traders or prosecuting attorneys could get much work done thinking and feeling in the ways I just painted above. But at least sometimes, probably every day, we need to let our inner dogs out, take them for a walk and follow their noses. See where they go, what they do; follow their lead for a change.

Sometimes it helps to have an outer dog, to remind us what our inner dog is seeing, thinking, and feeling. No doubt that is one reason we have and love dogs: to wake up our own inner dog, so he can have someone to play with.

So lets give thanks to all of our dogs - outer and inner!

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What You Know About Your Dog But Dont Want To Talk About!

When you’re certain in getting a dog, Ill bet you dreamt about the countless times youd have with your new best friend. Nonetheless, there are things that you need to deliberate in order to keep your pooch healthy and happy. Things that possibly youd rather not even think about!

 When you visit your veterinarian he may request you to bring a urine sample from your dog. How do you do this? Your dog confidently wont be able to hit a sample bottle. The coolest way to complete this is to tape a polyethylene vial to the end of a yard stick. While your dog is playing, position the container beneath his urine stream.

 This is stress-free to do with male dogs than female dogs but you can habitually get a tester with one or two tries. Your veterinarian will need as fresh a sample as thinkable so if you wont be compiling the sample to the vet right away, keep it chilled until you bring it in. Your veterinarian will be examining the sample for a range of stuffs like bacteria and crystals. If bacteria are found it possibly will mean that your pooch has a urinary tract infection and will most probable necessitate your dog to be put in a sequence of antibiotics. Crystals form in the urine when minerals bind together, there are numerous different kinds of crystals and these are peak often treated with prescription diets.

If your veterinarian requests for a stool sample it might mean that he doubts that intestinal parasites are troubling your dog. They can acquire these by eating fecal matter from carcasses, unsavory things and another affected animal. You will want to get in a fresh sample. The doctor will inspect it under the optical microscope and look for telltale eggs of parasites. Commonest parasites are roundworms, roundworms, whipworms, hookworms and tapeworms. Several of today’s regular heartworm treatments also protect against hookworms and roundworms. If you’re living in the country where your dog stays outside for much of the day, he may prerequisite to be cured with a tapeworm wormer on a trimestral basis. Other diseases alike coccidia, can also be seen under the optical microscope from your dog’s stool sample.

So, now you can discuss about those unpleasant things! Its imperative that you are accurately educated and can identify signs and symptoms so that you keep your dog as in fine fettle as he can be.

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DONT Train Your Dog!

Brad and Cassius
in sunny California

An old friend of mine who lives in California updated his Facebook page with this post this morning:

"Got completely locked out of my place tonight. Thought Id check the back patio door one last time before leaving, still locked... THEN MY DOG RAN INTO THE ROOM, STARTED JUMPING UP ON THE WINDOW, HIT THE LEVER AND UNLOCKED IT! True story."

All I can think is, thank God he never enrolled Cassius in obedience school and taught him "No jumping"!

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Dog Aggression Dos and Donts

Kekes just playing here, but I might have nightmares!

Not sure what it is about the brisk fall weather, or the alignment of the planets (or more mundanely, as it turns out, the management of which "keywords" are triggering my Google Adwords account), but Ive sure been getting bit a lot recently!

In the past month Ive been growled at, snapped at, and bit by tiny little Yorkies and Chihuahuas with Napolean complexes (I have in my bag of tricks a pair of leather gloves that I call my "Chihuahua gloves"), prey-aggressive Pits, environmentally anxious Blue Heelers, a sizable resource-guarding Ridgeback, a Great Dane with no manners, and one very intimidating German Shepherd who even succeeded at latching onto my coat through the tip of his muzzle!

Im pretty good at neutralizing an aggressive reaction so that it doesnt really do me any damage; the most Ive suffered recently is a few holes in my leather shoes, my jacket, and my folder of handouts. (In that least case the owners can really say their dog ate their homework!) The main thing is that I dont see aggressive tendencies as signs that a dog is a "bad dog", but rather as a clue to an unbalanced emotional mindset that is wanting to be healed.

Head over body means dominance

- except when accompanied by a bellyrub. :) 

Unfortunately many peoples initial or instinctive reactions to dog aggression are often exactly the wrong thing, precisely what you DONT want to do to ease or resolve the situation.

• Many people overreact when confronted with their or other dogs signs of aggression. Overreacting never helps, and can often exacerbate a tense situation. Stay calm. Extremely few dogs will continue to attack someone who remains calm and exhibits neither fear nor aggression of their own.

• Dont punish the dog. This can often escalate the aggression, and where it does succeed at removing precursors to aggressive behavior like growling, it only creates a more dangerous creatures. Signs of aggression are often adapted for precisely to AVOID violence, confrontation, fighting, or other unpleasantness. Growling, ears lowered, tail tucked, mouth taut...these are all signs saying "Go away! I dont want to hurt you!"

• Many people get scared, angry, or embarrassed that they have a "bad dog". Instead try to figure out what is causing the aggression (is it fear? dominance? protectiveness? guarding?) and make a plan (probably with an experienced professional) to help heal that injured mindset.

In my opinion however, the most common yet detrimental reaction is to immediately remove whatever is causing the aggression. For instance I see it all the time in dog parks, when two dogs get into a minor scuffle because the play got too rough or one is trying to dominate the other, the owners scoop their pups up in their arms, worried, embarrassed, and angry at each other, and high-tail it out of there. Think of what just happened: the dogs growled and snapped at each other, which caused their enemy to disappear! It worked! Youve just rewarded your dogs aggression. Reward means reinforcement. If it worked this time, be sure theyll do it again - only quicker next time.

"If i hide in the corner no one will see me."

Or in fear cases: the dog gets scared at the sound of a bus, or the approach of a bigger dog on the sidewalk, and you cross the street. The fear emotion and behavior succeed at saving your dogs life, as far as he knows. The fear worked! Once again, it is reinforced.

In resource guarding cases: you try to take your dogs bone, and he growls or snaps at you so you give him the bone and say "Sorry!" and tiptoe away. Again the aggression is reinforced. 

With pack protection: your mailman comes to the door and your pup barks and snaps, so you duck back inside with Fido. You survived intact; your dog thinks he just succeeded in saving you from the evil mailman.

The right reaction to aggression is to "Correct, redirect, reward". By "correct" I again dont mean "punish"; what you want is to simply stop the bad behavior. Its a subtle art to do so without rewarding or punishing; a clap, snap, turn, block...often just relax and wait for the tension to pass and ease. The exact reaction is situational but the goal is to put an end to that reaction. "Redirect": you tell your dog what you DO want him doing instead. Sit, lie down, walk, come to you...it doesnt really matter. Because what youre looking to do is "Reward": give praise, belly rubs, treats, walk, run, play, give the bone back to chew, or release to go back and socialize. With 90% of dogs that have snapped at me, a few minutes later Ill be running with them in the park, throwing a toy for them, sitting peacefully with them on the couch, or rubbing their belly. These "reparative experiences" are crucial and far too rare for most aggressive dogs.

Stop the bad behavior, get the behavior you want, then reward it. 

Easily said. Not always so easily done.

Which is why I need new gloves for Christmas.

:)

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