It's been a few days since the bombing in Paris, and yet, of course, it still resides, like a black tumor, inside of my psyche. First, I want to say that I am so so sorry--to everyone directly involved, and to those indirectly involved and to the entire world community that is trying to find a way to cope with the consequences of evil. If you know my work, you know that I never mention politics, but I find that this is one of the times that world events overshadow everything but the primal reality of being human, and all the good and the bad entailed in our species. Sometimes the amount of suffering in the world feels overwhelming. And yet, there is only so much we can do, and sometimes one of those things is to provide solace to ourselves and those around us. Coincidentally, I have Read More
Archives for 2015
What does “Licking” Mean?
Someone once told me that her dog, Barney, was clearly anxious because she "lip licked" every time she asked him to sit or lie down. That's seemed to be a reasonable conclusion, except that the dog's tongue always flicked out laterally to sop up a stream of drool every time he heard the cue. I suggested that Barney was anticipating the food, and was salivating and licking in anticipation. This incident is a great example of the pitfalls of acquired knowledge: As we improve our ability to "read" dogs, it is easy to worry about expressions or movements that might, or might not, be indicative of distress in our best friends. I thought it might be an interesting exercise to look at all the contexts in which dogs lick, and our best guesses about what it means when they do. ANTICIPATION OF Read More
Is Your Dog Safe Off Leash?
When IS it safe to let a dog off leash? I've been in several conversations lately with people who live in rural areas, and those who live in urban or suburban environments. What became clear was that, in their case at least, the dog owners in the country couldn't imagine having their dogs restricted on leashes or fences, and folks in the city can't imagine letting their dogs off leash outside of a fenced area. Our discussion reminded me that I'd written a post several years ago about letting dogs off leash, and because it's such an important topic--balancing a dog's safety with his or her enjoyment--I thought it was worth reprinting. I'd be interested to hear what you think: What is your criteria for letting a dog off leash?? From January 2013, (written after letting Tootsie off leash Read More
Halloween Costumes for Dogs?
First, and most importantly, I need to apologize to Willie. I needed a photograph for this blog and I exploited Willie to get it. While Maggie played with a neighbor's dog, went on a long walk in the woods, and worked sheep at a friend's, Willie got to 1) lie on the rug and 2) put on a Superman costume so that I'd have a picture for the article. When I went to buy a costume for the photo, my local, large pet store (Mounds) was almost out of them. The shelves were basically bare. Lots of empty shelf space, suggesting that lots of people had bought Halloween costumes for their dogs and cats. (Costumes for birds? Please tell me there aren't any...). According to the National Retail Federation, pet owners spent $350 million dollars on costumes for their four-legged family members. That's a Read More
Sheepdog Clinic Heaven
Willie, Maggie and I spent the last three days in sheepdog heaven at a Patrick Shannahan clinic hosted by Laura Wentz. Imagine watching brilliant dogs work white wooly sheep framed by the reds and oranges of fall in the midwest. Sweet. (And okay, a tad chilly when the wind came up.) I brought the camera along and got some good photos of Patti Summer's Shay (fitting, since she is always taking great photos of other people's dogs). This image is a great illustration that sheep herding is not just about your dog going to the right or left around the sheep, or walking up when told. It's about communication between the dog and the sheep, and what the sheep learn from the dog's behavior (and vice versa). Here, a balky ewe is evaluating Shay, and deciding how committed Shay is to taking Read More
- « Previous Page
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- …
- 10
- Next Page »