I am grateful for so much. I often spend time every morning thinking about what I am grateful for, but it seems especially meaningful at this time of the year. Here’s just a few of the many things I have to be thankful for:
I am grateful for Willie’s smiling face and his pink tongue.
I am grateful for the times when he sends his joy spinning out into the universe.
I am grateful to have Lassie still in my life and to be anticipating her 16th birthday party.
I am grateful for the black circle around her eye, and the little brush of black on her ear.
I am grateful for Sushi’s soft, creamy fur, her cat ears and her cat eyes and the fact that she is so very different from my dogs.
I am thankful for every day that I get to spend with her. I am becoming more allergic to her every week, and am trying many, many things to make it work, but am aware that my days with Sushi might be limited.
I am grateful for the colors of fall, the beauty of nature and the amazing luck I have to be able to live in such a beautiful place.
I am grateful to Jim, who has been like air and water to me for nine years. I am grateful to all in his family, and all in mine… how incredibly lucky I am to be a part of their lives.
My own list will go on for pages and pages, but here’s one more . . .
I am grateful for all of you who read this blog, and participate in a conversation about the amazing relationship we have with animals of another species.
What are you grateful for? I would love to know.
rheather says
First off I’m thankful for the turkey that’s going to feed me and my carnivores today-and for several more days of leftovers too!
And secondly I’m really thankful for positive training methods. For years I resisted the idea that they might just work(I thought you had to have some secret skill?) but they are giving me a way to work with a ‘crazy’ pony who responds to pressure based techniques by running away. So now I’m having to work my brain!
And thanks for the information you put out in the world-it’s made my brain go WHAT?! in a good way so many times….
Michelle says
I am grateful for Dahlia, my wonder mutt of indeterminate origin (ok she’s like a Border collie/retriever mix, but it’s still unknown). I’m grateful for the way she smiles when I rub her belly, the way she rolls over if I ask her if she wants to go for a walk, her ability to make her own decisions about where she wants to go on walks. I’m grateful for her soft black fur which is so wonderful to pet, especially on a stressful day.
I am grateful for my partner, David, who brings me much smiles and laughter and shares my love for Dahlia and for music.
I am grateful for my musical gifts.
I am grateful to have finally found out why I’m losing my hearing in one ear and to know that it’s able to be corrected by surgery.
I am grateful for vacations in Vermont and time off of work!
Have a wonderful Thanksgiving to all!
Marisa says
Trisha – in addition to the typical things I’m grateful for, I’m grateful for you and your books. My husband and I continue to struggle to find a middle ground in how we raise our dogs — a middle ground that is important to me because our childhood and parents are so different — and without you, I wouldn’t know where to begin to describe how I feel about my dogs. You put into words the feelings I can only begin to describe, so aptly, beautifully, and simply that he understands.
After much heated debate about how to “discipline” dogs who misbehave (my take: we’re giving him too much freedom; his take: we need to teach him to know better than to destroy things), I handed him “The Other End of the Leash” and we took a time-out until he read it. It was as eye-opening to him as it was to me, and we’re having productive discussions rather than emotional arguments.
Without your books, I wouldn’t know where to begin to give and get my dogs what they need, I wouldn’t know how to go about fixing problems I notice, wouldn’t be able to look in their eyes and feel like I’m doing the right things.
And without your blog, I wouldn’t understand — at such a deep level — why Border Collie’s have to have a job, a real job, and how frustrating it must be for them to be house dogs! I love Willie!!
So, I’m thankful for you! I recommend your books to people with new dogs who have that bewildered look and they’ve always been as relieved and comforted by them as I am. Someday I’ll get to be thankful that we made it on one of your Africa trips — someday!
Carolyn says
Friends –both online and off. Family — scattered far away. Health — improving after a year of breast cancer and Bruce diagnosed with diabetes. Bruce — my partner in all thing. Our sweet Maggie — a joy in every way.
kate says
I’m a Canadian but would love to contribute in giving thanks if that’s okay 🙂
I am grateful for Daizy (it’s her 8th b-day today) my Border Collie in a Beagle suit I call her, for my supportive friends, family and the rest of my rebels.
If it wasn’t for Daizy being such a crazy party girl puppy, I never would have found Dogsmart who introduced me to Dr. McConnell’s books and training methods.
I was so over the top happy to hear that we would be using treats to train that I could barely keep my composure until our first puppy class. I still find it baffling when people turn their noses at using treats to train their best pals.
It’s been such an amazing, mind expanding process to be able to share such a rich life with my dogs (George, another beagle, Keegan an Aussie). They make me laugh, and I just love them to bits. We’ve had a ton of fun and have overcome so much. I’m still in awe at some of the things we’re still learning, even 8 yrs later.
The weather has been crummy, so we now play indoor soccer. Daizy is the forward, loves to push and paw the ball around, Keegan helps me in goal. I finally made a video of it so people wouldn’t think I’m making it up! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GGI5Rlih6Ec Luring, shaping, prompting…it’s all so much fun.
Lastly I love being able to give fosters a boost with some new social skills and adorable tricks to help their chances for a forever home.
This journey has also made me grow as a person and become benevolent and compassionate to all I meet, human species included 🙂
Thank you Dr. McConnell for your life’s work and this blog!
Warm and happy Thanksgiving wishes to all those across the border!
cheers,
kate
Pike says
I am thankful, for my beautiful animal companions who allow me to love and to laugh a lot:
Gorgeous, willful, loving, pushy, playful, intelligent, stubborn and oh so independent Ronja, who is teaching me to deal better with my limits in general and with aggression (hers and mine) in particular.
Adorable, sweet, cuddly, reliable, always hungry, old Sparky
Frances says
For family and friends who love me and whom I love; for my tiny dogs (Sophy the papillon, 12 months, and Poppy the toy poodle, 5 months) who fill every day with fun and interest (and the occasional puddle and worse!); for my two beautiful cats, who can still play the kitten at times; for a warm, comfortable house to come home to as the winter closes in; for all the people like Patricia who generously share their knowledge and experience to make it easier for the rest of us to make the same journey; and for finding, at 58, that I am living very nearly the life I dreamed of as a child of 8, and loving every minute of it!
Betsy C says
I am grateful for my family (which includes our dogs, of course!), for without them I would be lost. I am also grateful to all of the educated, humane and positive behaviorists and trainers out there who have inspired me to launch the second career of my dreams. It is much more than a career; it has been a life-changing and challenging experience that has allowed me to grow (at a rather advanced age in my life!) more than I ever imagined. And every day I try and go out there and touch the lives of one more family and one more dog…what a blessing to be able to do such noble work!
Meg says
I would like to give thanks to a sweet, sensitive, soft, mellow, deep, clever soul, a Bichon who stole my heart and changed the focus of my life. Thank you, Theo, for leading me towards therapy work, training, and Patricia McConnell. It’s not always the difficult dogs who change our lives. Sometimes it’s the too-good-to-be-true dogs who make all the difference.
lin says
I am thankful for my dog, whose anti-social behavior opened a huge new world of knowledge up and who, in her gradual old age, is finally mellowing. For our kitty, who puts up with doggie jealousy and brought me back to my childhood love of cats. My husband, who exasperates me and makes me laugh like no one else can. My parents, for still being around and forever being excellent role models. I am thankful for my job, which provides me with intellectual stimulus, a decent living, good benefits, fun and conscientous co-workers.
I am thankful for the Internet, which brings us your blog, so we can benefit from your wise, well-written thoughts, and hear other good advice, and also brings us pure marshmallow fluff like icanhazcheeseburger.com
hopey says
I too am grateful for my partner (now husband) of 7 years, without whom I would likely never have learned just how good I am with dogs. Thanks to his dogs — Trixie, the sweetest Rottie you’d ever meet, and Zena the Great Pyrenees [I can’t tell you how much I love it when you post pics of Tulip!] — I learned that “I speak dog”. Now I’m a dog breeder with my first litter ready to go to their homes. I’ve done a 3-month dog training internship, and now understand much more about canine behavior than virtually all the breeders I know (which, unfortunately, isn’t saying much.) Without my husband, none of this would have come to pass, and I’m grateful. I dearly miss the dogs we used to have, and love the dogs we have now. I’m grateful to have the luxury of working with dogs every day instead of slaving away in an office.
Mary says
The best things in my life are free. They make me realize that things and possessions have no power over me. I am grateful for everything that reminds me about it daily:
My husband, who gives me foot massages after jogging
Our dogs licking my nose clean every chance they get 😉
Seeing their eyes light up
Laughing together
Treating our life as a shared journey
and many, many other things that make me smile, cry and feel alive….
Happy Thanksgiving!
Our boys:
http://picasaweb.google.com/italienischewindspiele
Karen says
I’m thankful for my dog Axel who is the absolute love of my life, my other dog and my 4 cats who trail me around the house like my own personal entourage, my husband who understands how much I love my animals even if he doesn’t exactly share my feelings, and for Trisha’s books and the positive training methods I’ve learned and shared that have changed my life so dramatically. I grew up in a very critical environment and now I seek (and find!) the positive everywhere I turn. Okay, almost everywhere. It’s a journey, but one I’m grateful to be traveling.
Laurie says
I am grateful for you, Dr.McConnell and for your dog to dog aggression DVD. It saved my dogs life. Walking my reactive dog down an alley, an aggressive dog jumped the fence and came after us. Advice from the DVD ( which I’ve watched 4 times) came back to me instantly. I stepped in front of my dog, told the dog coming at us, in my most authoritative voice, “OUT”. I know the instruction was to say “Sit” but for some reason “out” came out. The dog stopped in his tracks. I threw some treats on the ground in front of him and we walked away unscathed. I felt so empowered… and soooo grateful. Thank you.
Sherron says
I haven’t commented here before, but I’ve been reading your blog for a few months. I’d like to chime in with what I’m thankful for, if that’s okay.
I am thankful for my entire brood of fur-babies. They really are like children to me. The young ones challenge me; the old ones challenge me; the feline ones REALLY challenge me (not being a cat-person per se), but I would not be the same person without them in my life.
Sherron says
Okay…pressed Enter too soon or something…
I’m thankful for a great job that allows me to be able to care for my pets. They’ve haven’t exactly been cheap this year, but that’s the way it goes sometimes.
I’m thankful that I live in a city that allows me to have so many pets.
I’m thankful for the rescue group I foster dogs for. They are a small operation, but even so, they’re making a big, big difference!
I’m esepcially thankful for the donors who have made it possible for the rescue group to keep doing their work.
I’m thankful that I didn’t die of a broken heart when a puppy I fostered and fell in love with found his forever home.
I’m sad that his brother’s home didn’t work out, but thankful that he’s back with me so that he doesn’t have to be bounced around from place to place.
And I’m thankful for you, Trisha, because I’m outnumbered and often outsmarted, but you give me hope that someday, I’ll have beautifully-behaved dog-friends who don’t steal things off the counter, or let themselves out of the back yard anytime they wish, or destroy my furniture, or…Hey, a girl can dream! 🙂
Amy W. says
I’m thankful for many, many things – here’s the short list: my family, God’s grace, my education, and of course MY DOGS! I’m also grateful (and relieved) they can’t speak. Oh, the stories they could tell on me! 🙂
I am also grateful to the brave men and women who serve our country in the armed forces. Thank you.
Ann says
I’m grateful for Jimi the Wonderdog, my 8-month-old puppy and Skippy the Wonderdog, my 13-year-old elder statesdog. They are both treasures and they keep me young.
I’m also very grateful for your books, your radio show (I miss it!) and the standards of intelligent, compassionate dog handling you established at Dog’s Best Friend. They’ve been great resources for us. When I make decisions about how to handle my dogs, I hear your voice in my head, Dr. McConnell, giving good advice.
Holly says
I am grateful for all the usual things….good health, good children, people who love me (even awash in dog hair), a job that pays good money and has benefits. But the one thing associated with your blog and my dogs that I’m grateful for is the internet. Without it I would never have found how to use a clicker and so many of my animals would be trained less kindly. The clicker taught my mare to trust me and believe in me, it brought an old dog away from anxiety and fear, it brought me clients who still call me today, asking for advice or just to tell me about their newest puppy.
Anna says
I am thankful that while my heart was breaking at the loss of my heart dog two new puppies came along to help comfort me. For 11 month old Rudy who is a laid back, sweet and lovable clown and who appears to want to be an agility dog which will require a large learning experience for me. For 14 week old Penny who is sooo adorable and showed me yesterday that my suspicions were right and I need to learn more about how to help a shy dog (a shy corgi who would have thunk it). And while I lost my 13 year old male cat Sunny this month my 12 year old cat Pattie is still here to add to my life (I too am alergic to cats).
Betsy C says
This is off topic, but I’m very interested to know what Dr. McConnell thinks of this LA Times article about these Great Pyrenees sheep guarding dogs that attacked a mountain biker in Colorado. You are in a unique position to comment on both sides of the issue!
Thanks so much.
http://www.latimes.com/news/nation-and-world/la-na-sheepdog-attack27-2009nov27,0,7742604.story
Jennifer Hamilton says
I am so very thankful for all the insight you have given me on how better to understand and communicate with dogs. And even though I rarely comment on them, I am so thankful for the beautiful images you share with every blog. (I think of them as my little click/treat you have given me as a reward.). And I know there are millions of dogs out there that are so very thankful that you helped make their owners more fun and rewarding and so much less scary and unpredictable.
P.S. I have been battling an unusual allergy for five years and have taken every treatment and drug imaginable. After numerous specialists, one doctor on a whim suggested an old treatment used for asthma and dog/cat allergies…an inexpensive. 0ver-the-counter nose spray called NasalCrom. It was a miracle and my allergic reaction disappeared as long as I use the nose spray regularly. Although my allergy is not to cats, I share this because it was commonly used for dog/cat for decades until prescription drugs were developed and NasalCrom lost it’s luster. Since NasalCrom is over-the-counter, has no side effects and only costs about $12, I mention it in case no one else had yet. I tried over 15 medications and went to many specialists over several years. I could have saved a whole lot of time, money and discomfort if someone had suggested it earlier. It’s been a miracle for me…just wanted make sure you were aware it was out there.
Startulip says
I’m thankful for your blog. I don’t like blogs, as a rule. I’m just not into the dramas of others’ lives. I’ve got my own life and dramas to live, but your blog adds to my life, gets me thinking, and most of all, enriches my life with depth of thought. You are always looking to learn and understand, and this in turn teaches me. That, to me, is a blog worth reading. So I’m genuinely grateful for your posts. And do you know what I absolutely LOVE? The photos that you post. These last, of your animals, make me go to my two dogs and recognize how much it’s the small things of who they are that make them so special to me. So thanks, Patricia McConnell, for your blog.
Faith says
I am thankful for my family, biped and quadruped, without whom I would be lost. Life is crazy with 4 children under 4 (a 3 1/2-year-old boy and spontaneous triplet girls) and 3 active dogs, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. I am thankful for my extended family who cared for my children for a week so that my husband and I could go bird hunting. I am thankful for having “seen the light” when it comes to positive training methods because I reap the rewards when I’m in the field with my dogs. By the way, those positive training methods work great on kids (and husbands!), too!
Trisha, I am thankful for you and your wisdom. I was an avid listener of Calling All Pets and was disappointed it was cancelled. Years ago when my brother was young, maybe 5 or 6, he was a caller on your show, and you two meowed together talking about our Siamese cat. It is a priceless memory for me. I am grateful that you continue to pass along your wisdom in this blog. Two words seem terribly insufficient, but thank you.
ABandMM says
Hello, and I hope everyone enjoyed a very happy Thanksgiving!
Over the past couple of years, I have done a re-evaluation of my life with respect to what I wanted out of it, where I wanted to be, and how to get there. It has been a long journey and one filled with a lot of soul-searching and reconciling outcomes not as “failures” but as learning experiences. I have much to be thankful of in my life, and to name a few (but not necessarily in order:)
I am thankful for my dogs: one now at Rainbow Bridge, and my current girl Abbers for getting me through the day-to-day aspects of life, getting up in the morning, going for walks and getting hugs and cuddles. Thank you for your unconditional love.
My Family, who were very supportive of my decision to revamp my life and welcomed me and my dog into their home and gave us a roof over our heads while I worked to make a new life for me and my dog. Another sort of unconditional love for which I am eternally grateful for having.
For the staff and volunteers at the local animal shelter. Thank you for all your friendship and good work. Even though I have only been volunteering for about 5-6 months, I very much enjoyed working with the dogs at the shelter and doing my best to help them learn basic good manners so that when they get adopted, it will indeed be a “fur-ever” home. I have learned so much from volunteering, and it has helped me grow as a person.
For everyone I have met in my life who has shown me a “random act of kindness”. Thank you. I try to reciprocate as much as possible and “pay it forward’.
For everyone who tries to make their corner of the world a little bit better. Even it if is just donating a few cans of soup to your local food shelter, donating time to your local animal rescue organization, or whatever. Thank you.
Kelly says
I am thankful for friends and family . . . I can’t really add much to what people have expressed before me, because they’ve all said it so eloquently.
What I do want to add is that I am extremely thankful for the opportunity to communicate with one of my mentors in the world of canine training and behaviour (that’s you Trish!). I’ve been reading your books for years, and the fact that I can “talk” to you here means the world to me. I’m so grateful for this opportunity – just like I’m thankful for the chance to interact with other animal geniuses on the DogRead email list.
Thank you for sharing yourself with us Trish. I think all of us become better animal partners to the beings we live with every time you share with us and we respond. Not only do we learn from you, but we also learn from each other.
Wishing my US friends a safe and happy holiday weekend.
Angela says
I’m thankful for your open and giving blog that I receive so much insight from. Living in Singapore I don’t get to experience walking through opens fields with my dog while the leaves turn and the seasons change. Your blog is a stop in my day to experience another life. Thank you.
Susannah Charleson says
Let me echo others and say I’m grateful, grateful for this blog. O, this mistakes I have made (some years ago, some …oh … last summer), but O how I am learning. And loving that.
And the photos. These extreme closeups above are just lovely.
Thank you so much for this.
Liz F. says
Don’t have much else to add beyond sharing my appreciation for all of these great comments and for the post that prompted them. Although it probably goes without saying, I really, really appreciate this blog.
Alright, I suppose my own list does include a couple of things not yet mentioned:
I am grateful to be alive at this particular time in history. There are so many breakthroughs we have been lucky enough to experience (scientific, technological, cultural shifts) and many more on the horizon. Such an amazing time to be alive. (I especially appreciate the shift in many people’s understanding of, and attitude towards, their dogs.)
I am grateful for the chorus of stories and laughter that fill our homes this time of year, but equally grateful for the quiet times that follow. To hear nothing but wind in the trees, or when the wind breaks, to hear nothing at all, gives me such a peaceful feeling.
Wishing everyone the same blend of excitement and rest that works wonders on the soul. And thank you so much for making this place everything that it is.
Sirius Scientist says
Thank you for sharing these very touching thoughts with us. Wishing everyone a happy and safe holiday season!
Ellen Pepin says
I am thankful for not being confined mostly to my house (medical issues) like before. I am grateful to my wonderful husband, Joe. We have been married for 25 1/2 years. I am grateful that he loves dogs as much as I do. I am thankful for our two current dogs, Dakota, our shepherd/boxer? mix and my new, beautiful white collie, Tess. I am thankful that I got to spend 11 wonderful years with my shepherd/terrier mix, Nikki. She is no longer here, but I still miss her. She was truly my once in a lifetime dog.
I am also thankful that we have a nice home and do not worry too much about how we can afford a basic, but comfortable life. I am thankful that I am still friends with my brother and sister-in-law. They provided a wonderful Thanksgiving dinner. I am thankful that Joe has a great sister and her 3 mostly grown children. I am thankful that I have some great friends.
Alexandra says
I’m very thankful for all the loving family, friends, and animals I have in my life. I am also thankful for my good health and a job I enjoy, which I have not always had.
I am also thankful you posted that picture of Willie’s smile, Trisha. He is so adorable!
Jan says
I am grateful for a roof over my head and for hot and cold running water, for my animals and for the joy they bring me, for my wonderful family, for my good health and for the internet. Of course there is much more I am grateful for but maybe I ought to start my own blog for that. I am happy I have discovered your blog.
Ignacio says
Love the pictures!
I’m also thankful for my wife and our Lab pooch, who brought a whole new light to my view of the “animal kingdom” and indirectly made me end up a vegan. And to have a good job, which these days seems to be a luxury!
Katie says
I am thankful for my Pete, my Great Pyrenees/Anatolian Shepared cross who has made me change my way of training for the better. To his extreemly expressive eyes which now sparkle when we work instead of looking sad and empty. I am thankful for Tanner, the stray golden who allowed us to give him a home and to Cash our 7 month old standard poodle who is the best behaved puppy I have ever had the opportunity to live with. I am thakful to Dr. McConnell for your books full of information which make it possible for me to have the knowledge to have a better relationship with my dogs.
I am thankful for my parents, my husband and children who have always fostered my love of dogs and horses even though they may not have the same feelings.
I am thankful there are others out there who love their dogs just as much as I love mine!
Mary Beth says
I am thankful for all the gifts and lessons I have received from all the animals who have touched my life in one way or another. I hope I’m able to pay forward all those lessons and to thank the animals who paid the price of my learning by sharing those lessons with others.