Here's one of world's greatest descriptions of a dog: "[Gander looks like] ... the canine version of a forgetful old literature professor in a corduroy jacket with patches at the elbows." I've never met Gander, but the photos of him remind me of a grown-up, bachelor party version of Little Orphan Annie's dog, Sandy. With muscle and gravitas. Sort of a "Sandy joined the Marine Corps but still plays with marbles" kind of dog. And Sandy is a hero, there's no doubt about it. Gander is the dog that Freedom Service Dogs placed with a man named Lonnie, who suffered from PTSD and autoimmune issues that can make mobility almost impossible some days. Lonnie sums it up simply: "Gander saved my life." Before he got Gander, Lonnie rarely slept and had paralyzing panic attacks several times a day. Read More
Archives for May 2013
Dog Bite Prevention 2013
It is Dog Bite Prevention week, and I am inspired to repeat a post I wrote last year about that topic. I don't usually repeat blogs, but I've seen so much pain and suffering (and I don't mean physical) over this issue that I am inspired to put it out into the universe once again. Several of you responded with some extremely thoughtful comments and interesting cases: It would be great to hear if you have any updates. Meanwhile, here's my piece on preventing dog bites, a bit different from the standard advice: From May 18, 2012: A million years ago, my first Border Collie Drift lept up and nipped a man's nose at the Wisconsin State Fair. Even though the man was clearly not injured, with virtually not even a red spot on his nose, I was shook up and appalled. He was furious. "Your dog Read More
Confrontational Techniques Elicit Aggression
Remember the movie Groundhog Day, in which Bill Murray wakes up every morning to repeat the same day, over and over? That is a bit of what it feels like to write about the value of benevolence in dog training, and the problems associated with aggressive, confrontational techniques. And yet, I just can't stop, because there is still a flood of advice about using force and confrontation to correct a dog for ..... (fill in the blanks).... because 1) misbehavior is a sign your dog is attempting to dominate you and 2) you can only counter it by using force. Sigh. Those of us arguing that we should be teaching our dogs, rather than forcing and threatening them, have an excellent study by Veterinary Behaviorists to support our perspective. Meghan Herron, DVM, DACVB, Frances Shofer, DVM and Read More
Something To Chew On
Birds gotta fly, fish gotta swim, and dogs gotta chew. At least, that is my belief, backed up with virtually no research whatsoever. This belief is based on 1) understanding that the impressive teeth and jaw structure of a dog is the Swiss Army knife of dentition, able to tear, rip, shear and crunch without having to switch tools, 2) the inclusion of long chewing bouts in the natural behavior of canids, 3) that an internet search on "chewing in dogs" leads to a multitude of articles on how to stop dogs from chewing, suggesting to me that dogs are highly motivated to do so, and 4) the observation that a good chewing session appears to relax my dogs as well as a long walk. We all know that dogs need to chew, and thus pet stores and the internet are full of appropriate things for them to Read More
Resource Guarding: Treatment and Prevention
Years ago, I took care of a gooey-sweet adolescent Border collie, (Tilly, I'll call her) who flattened her ears and folded like a bird's wing every time you said her name. She was responsive and polite, and the other dogs seemed to like her as much as I did. It was especially rainy when she visited, so I appreciated that she never objected to endless paw wiping and toweling off, not to mention body checks for ticks and dental inspections. One morning I saw that she had grabbed something from the leaf litter in the woods, the kind of "something" you figure would be better off melding its way into the soil rather than ending up in the stomach of even the hardiest of dogs. I couldn't tell what it was, but it looked well on its way to rotting itself into organic mush. Probably not the best Read More