Antler Chew Toy Review: Two Paws Up!

If you have a dog who is a really heavy chewer, who can go through chew toys like they are candy, then this chew toy might be for you!

The Antler Chews from Blue Ribbon Pet Supply in Charlottetown have proven to stand up strong to the Schnauzer Trio, and their chewing power. I have had trouble finding a natural, healthy, long-lasting chew for my dogs that can stand up and last longer than a few days to a week. It is now the favorite chew toy in my house, and from morning until night there is always one dog chewing on it; you will also generally find a dog lying in wait nearby waiting for their turn to snatch it up given the opportunity.

The only store to carry them in PEI, Blue Ribbon Pet Supply carries antler chews for several sizes of dogs, and so far the quality can't be beat!

Playing the "bone game". Shimmer dragged the bed into the sunny

spot in the center of the kitchen. Gaci is chewing on the bone,

and the others are patiently waiting for their chance to snag it.



Harley and his Favorite Game

Things continue to go very well for Harley here at my home. We're coming up on a month now that he's been staying with me, and have still come across no serious issues. He continues to come with me on errands to be exposed to his surroundings and is taking it all in stride. He even handled a 12-hour day trip driving with three other dogs and going to different touristy sites with 30 other people, and handled it like a champ.

I've been wanting to get a video of Harley playing his favorite game of all - ball. He will do anything for the ball, anytime, anywhere, no matter what is going on around him. He's quite the comedian with it, and it is one of the more pleasurable times of his day.

I'm also very pleased to have gotten our CGN certificates from Zipper's and Shimmer's test in July. They look very nice, and I think I am going to get a double frame for them and hang them here in the office. A nice memory of the shy, sensitive girl Shimmer used to be and how far she's come, and a plain ole reminder of how Zipper's wonderful stability.

Next we are looking forward to lots of fun in our upcoming Rally trials, with the expectation of one, and the hope of two, new Rally titles!

Two Weeks and Looking Good!

Harley has now been with us here for two weeks.

Any issues about him being stressed about being left alone have seem to have dissipated. He goes to his room quietly and calmly, and will run right in the room when I say "Time for bed!", when I go to work or when it is actually bedtime. No more whining or barking, and he doesn't stir until we get up in the morning. He has had two nights of snuggling up in bed with us while we watched TV, but he is still sleeping in his own room at night.

He's settled right down with the eating pattern, and he's now eating in the kitchen, two meals per day, along with my other three dogs. We are working on his sit/stay during feeding time while I set down his dish and he waits patiently for his release word. His targeting and down behaviours are coming along nicely as well, and he's started to gain a bit of interest in puzzle toys, although he clearly doesn't *get* them. He'll eat the treats that come out, but doesn't really get the concept of pushing them around to work for his food.

I've been taking him outside to play along with Gaci and the ball. Gaci's not much of a ball player, but she loves the chase, so we've been playing games where he catches and brings back the ball, and Gaci races him down and back. In the beginning he was a bit guarded, and guard-y, of the ball with her, but he's beginning to understand that she's just having fun running with him, and doesn't want the ball. He's taking a bit of a rest though for a few days since he seems to have overexerted himself a bit and was tender on one leg after playing. I'm guessing he just jumped a little too much or stepped into a little rut in the ground, but all is well, just needs a little rest for a couple of days.

He had his first haircut with me this past week too, as he was pretty scruffy! And he was just the most perfect guy, didn't flinch at all and stood nicely the entire time I clipped, combed, and scissored him. The next task to tackle will be his nails, as they are quite long, but I figured that was enough for one day for a new challenge. Baby steps!

He really is developing into the most affectionate, sweet little guy. He loves his rubbies and he loves his snuggles, and is just looking for a little dose of attention here and there without asking for too much. And of course, he loves his ball!

A couple of photos of him and Gaci playing (30 foot line attached). He is the one who always has the ball in the photos.

One Week In

So we're one week in with our *new addition* to the home. Things have settled out a lot since that first day that I was met with a terrified, shaking, sad dog. He now greets us in the morning, and after work, with a wagging tail and looks forward to his snuggles and attention. He spent the weekend being cared for by my parents, and he took to them as well, so that is now four strange adults under his belt that he has developed the beginnnings of a trusting relationship with.

He is still coexisting with my own dogs quite well. They don't really interact with each other, aside from the occasional bum/facial sniff, but they are all for the most part relaxed with each other and he has developed an interest in watching them play, sometimes resulting in a wagging tail and so far we've had one brief play bow and a little "garuff" of interest.

Since we now have the foundation of a working relationship, he is learning to lay down and to target my hand with his nose. We will be soon starting on Karen Overall's Relaxation Protocol as well, which he will derive a lot of benefit from I think. All of these behaviours will come in handy in the future both in terms of working out in public and if he is deemed rehomable. Regardless, though, he enjoys his time interacting one-on-one and enjoys learning, and he is a lightning-fast learner, let me tell you! After discovering for myself his intense joy of any and all forms of balls, we are using that as a big reward in different situations. He has more drive to work for a ball than he does with food, although now that he is destressing and his body is returning to a more relaxed state, he is becoming more interested in food as well so we switch up between the rewards depending on the exercise.

His housetraining is perfect. He eliminates quickly outside and has not had any accidents in the house. I'm not 100% sure, but I think he is even *asking* to go out by going to the door, although time will tell how consistent that is.

He did have a a bit of a difficult night settling down last night. He is such a velcro-dog at heart, a real soft dog, that we are combining controlled freedoms with some alone time in his room, as I don't want to risk developing *too* strong a relationship right off the bat that is too dependent on us and results in separation issues. It will come in time, he is just stuck in that middle grey area between fear and trust right now, that will take some time.

Two Days In......

So we've settled in a bit after two days.

In the beginning, the only way to describe our little man was shellshocked. He was suspicious of everyone and while he walked on leash with me, he remained at the end of the leash seeking escape, eyes wide as dinner plates and shaking heavily as everything he knew had just been ripped out from under him. He took up refuge under the kitchen table, and then under the bed in *his room* that I had set up for him. We did end up removing access to under the bed, so that we could safely handle him to get him outside.

Treats were a no-go for the first day altogether, although two days later we did share a philly cheese/steak wrap and he did approach to take several pieces of steak from my hand. Although he did reject the pure salmon and freeze-dried chicken. He only ate his supper after we had gone to bed and we could hear him crunching kibble in the other room.

The next day he got to meet my guys through baby gates and expens, and while not over friendly, he did not appear to be too worried either. They spent the full day seeing each other with no contact. I continued taking him outside to do his business, and just spent time sitting with him and being there. Only making contact if he wanted, the first day went pretty much touch-free except to put on and remove his leash. However, he did bring a smile to my face when he approached me the following morning while I was on the computer and gently nudged my hand with his nose for some verrrrrrrrrrrrrry small attention. Fast forward to last night I was sitting in the living room with him, I sat on the floor and just sort of looked out the window, singing softly. And much to my wondering eyes did appear, Harley came out from under the coffee table to sit beside me, and nudged my hand again. I gently put my hand down and brushed his back, and when I stopped he placed his head under my hand to acknowledge and give permission to continue. We sat there for about fifteen minutes, following this pattern of 30 seconds of massage and gentle touch, and leaving him to decide if it was enough or he wanted more. It was satisfying compared to the day he came home.

He is still frightened of quick movements and I cannot say there is any sort of trust yet, however I think it's under there and he's trying to reach out. He is now dragging a leash through the house during supervised times, and follows me (and my partner) everywhere when we leave the room. He is now loose with my three dogs in controlled situations, and we'll see how things progress. He's not showing any interest in them at this time, and is quite tentative understandably, but he's also not being inappropriate. He made one totally appropriate warning to Shimmer when she got in his face a little too quickly and assertively, and a quick "Leave It" was a solution to any pending arousal.

Time will tell how further progress is made. I am most surprised, and impressed, with Gaci, who I thought would be the last dog to be understanding of his situation, with all of the issues she has gone through. Yet she is the one who is sending out the most calming signals, is the most relaxed with him, and seems to understand that he is in a bad place right now. Who knows, maybe even she can understand where he's coming from. It's definitely the opposite reaction of when I had my last foster here.  Whatever it is, she seems to know where he's at, and is responding accordingly.

One day at a time, that's all we're at.

A little boy, and his quest for decisions.

I had originally questioned sharing this on a blog, but I figured in the end, no matter the decision, this little boy deserves to have his story known.

I was called in last night, on a more personal note, when a male, neutered, 7.5 yo. Mini Schnauzer bit an infant (approx ten months old - crawling age) that he lived with.  Upon questioning further, it quickly showed that this dog was extremely fearful of the child since birth, seeing as the dog had 7 years of being a loved family pet, and then had it's world turned upside down by a new baby in the home. 

The family's life was also turned upside down. Their beloved dog committed what is often considered the *ultimate sin*, biting a young child. In reality, the baby was being a baby, and the dog was being a dog, with loose access to each other, and it's almost always a recipe for disaster.  While we explain how important it is to socialize your puppy to young children and babies even if you don't have children of your own, as you just never know what can happen, it's easy to think that you have done all that is needed until that time comes that trauma strikes.

As of this writing I have a room set up for this little dog, to see where to go from here. I don't know what the fate of this little dog will be - all I know is that we all agreed that the dog needed to be removed from the home immediately, for both the wellbeing, but also the safety, of all.  The option of immediate euthenasia came up, and was discussed at length, but for the time being it was agreed that I will take him in and assess him overall to see what options he *might* or might not have for a future home. The goal is to discover if there would be an option for a child-free home, or if that risk itself is too high or if there are any other issues presenting that might alter any decisions made for him.

I will update with progress, regardless of what that progress turns out to be. I have some big choices to make in the near future, and that is whether or not this dog can live in another home, or whether euthenasia may be the kindest option. Only time will tell.
So please, please keep this sweet little guy in your thoughts, for whatever ends up being his fate.

It's All About Fun!

I have to say, my dogs are often what helps me get through day to day. Between the stresses of daily life, unexpected changes, and when you can't control the things going on around you, my dogs are always consistently there to make me smile, laugh, and bring me up to a better place. So I just wanted to share some of the fun they bring to me, in some of their *different* moments!

It doesn't matter what I do, or how tiring my day has been. At the end of it all, it's moments like those that make me realize that everything will be okay!

What I learned at my last agility trial

I always hope to bring something home from each trial that I attend, and this past trial weekend was no different!

1. That Gaci is still showing more stress in the ring than I would like. Also, Gaci is more negatively affected by the heat than I first realized. In training situations, she is fabulous, even around other people and dogs. The first day of her trial went super well, and she was focused and driven, and the only reason she did not Q was that she came back out of the chute (last obstacle....gah!!!) when she hit the fabric. The second day, however, she was spent before we even got started. I ended up pulling her out of the run early so that it wouldn't adversely affect her even more. I probably should have scratched early, but gave her the benefit of the doubt.

In talking with my trainer (yep - even trainers still have trainers!!), we are going to go back a few steps again and address some of the stress issues. This may involve paying my entries but only going to the ring for training, and doing 6-8 obstacles and running out of the ring to go for a swim or get a reward, to keep her motivated. Or it may involve her just trialling one day per weekend, before she starts showing signs of negative stress. I am going to up her training around distractions and do more simple training like focus/fun tricks to keep her thinking that the trial site is a great place to be. Time to get back to fun and less on the drilling.

2. Shimmer is going to be a fabulous agility dog! She is surpassing my expectations so much, and she came out with a Q and 1st place in her Starters Jumpers run (which is all I entered her in this weekend). We are developing such a great working relationship between both Rally and Agility that I can't wait to see where it all leads. I have a feeling she'll be a great multi-titled dog. Her level of focus and happiness around other people and other dogs continues to surprise me, considering the natural sensitivity she usually has to her environment. She was a social butterfly with the people, and she tolerated other dogs in close range very well.

3. Shimmer/Gaci both have a limit on how much *close contact* they can stand with each other for one period of time. They spent most of their downtime together either in the expen or the the large custom-built kennel in the van, but it seems that for the ladies the amount of time spent together was a little too much and they started picking at each other a little bit. Nothing worrisome but enough so that I knew they needed a break from each other, and they drove home in separate quarters. The combination of trial stress, first time camping, and just the long weekend was enough to get them a little tired of each other. However, they are playing at my feet as I type this, so I know it's no serious issue. Just something to keep in mind with future trials!

What a great weekend though, I couldn't ask for better weather or a nicer time. I think I enjoyed this trial the most so far, as it was quite relaxing. Once again I learned a little more about the sport, my dogs, and how it affects them, so that I can make changes where needed and continue helping them to be the best they can be.

Looking forward to September's trials. I've only got Gaci entered in two runs as we work on having more fun, and I've put Shimmer into four runs - two Jumpers, a Snooker, and a Gamblers. Can't wait to see how it pans out for her.

Dogs Love Their "Place"

Teaching your dog a "Place" cue - in which your dog goes to its mat and lies quietly until released - has many benefits for dog and human alike.

For the dog, it involves increasing impulse control, teaches a dog to relax in one spot no matter what else is going on around him, and it can become a favorite spot that he chooses to go to when he wants to rest or play with a favorite toy.

For the people, it can come in handy in many situations. If you have a ton of groceries sitting about and want to put them away without Fido being in your way, you can ask him to lie quietly on his mat in the kitchen. If you want peace and quiet in the kitchen while eating, it is handy to have a "Place" cue so that Fido knows exactly what is expected of him. When you have company over, sometimes that company isn't as fond of dogs as you are, but yet you want him to be part of the social scene - well, then he can lay on his mat with you in the same room but keep the peace with your company (although if you are like me, most company knows this is the "dog zone" and the majority of visitors to the home also tend to be dog lovers!!). You can teach Fido that he gets special treats only in the bed and know he will stay in it instead of dragging food all over the house. And besides, it can be just plain fun!

It's great too, because you can also take a mat with you (you can get really neat thin material that you can fold up quite small) and use it in parks, at dog shows, if you are the company at somebody else's house and want to bring Fido along, or if you have to stay in a hotel room and don't want to drag the kennel inside.

Dogs who experience behaviour issues, such as fear, aggression, or just have downright poor door greeting manners, really thrive when they can follow a "place" cue and know what is expected of them. It takes the weight off the dogs' shoulders to try to make decisions (that generally end up being poor ones when they do make them), and to know that we humans have it covered. It can also be a way for more nervous dogs to see people from a safe distance and get rewarded for appropriate behaviour, without being forced to greet people at the door.

Teaching dogs a "Place" cue really does have an endless amount of benefits and will make life a lot easier, and simpler, for the Dogparents. And if you take the time to make it fun, dogs really come to love "knowing their place"!!

Below is a video of Zipper learning to go to his mat and lie down until released. It follows from the first steps right through to completion and performing the behaviour with his housemates. He is still "new" to the process of shaping in clicker training (a process in which you reward successive approximations - small bits - at a time until you end up with the desired behaviour - most of the steps are outlined in the video), so he looks to me for the next step a lot, but I let him work it out so he learns to try things out on his own.

Give a Dog a Job!

As I had briefly mentioned in my "Natural Career Path" blog post, I "employed" Gaci with various jobs at home as part of her treatment in some of the issues she was having. Giving dogs a job to do at home carries many benefits, many of which were what helped Gaci during her transition to the dog she is today.

It exercises the mind. This cannot be understated, as it may be one of the most important concepts. It has always been said that a "tired dog is a good dog". This is true, however a lot of dogs may get lots of physical exercise, but end up with a mind that still has not been stimulated and challenged. Thinking and interactive games ("jobs") really can calm down, and tire out a dog mentally so that they aren't left with pent-up stress and energy they need to release in more unappealing ways, such as chewing, barking, digging, etc. Even ten minutes of challenging the brain can be more effective than a drab half-hour walk on leash around the block.

It exercises the body. It can work to keep the body in shape as well, by focusing on muscles the dog may not use a lot in everyday behaviours. It is fabulous for exercising on rainy days or during storms when you just can't exercise in other ways.

It helps build good manners. Any form of successful training will help to build manners and impulse control, but doing it in the form of fun tasks where the dog can do something actively (like closing a drawer) really makes you relevant and makes it a lot more fun for the dog. This type of fun activity can also bleed over to some of the more mundane tasks like sitting, waiting, and laying down that dogs don't always enjoy quite as much.

It is a great relationship builder. Once again, we live in such a busy society now that any little bit of time you spend directly interacting with your dog will go far in improving your relationship. It can really strengthen relationships by working together to accomplish a task. This way too you generally know where your dog is more often, so that perhaps your dog is not off becoming self-employed in, say, the laundry hamper. It can increase your overall communication with your dog so that you learn to read each other better, and in the end it's just plain fun.

It can boost confidence. This is a bit harder to describe, but giving your dog jobs that she knows she can be successful at, can go a long way to building confidence in other areas. You can see the glimmer in Gaci's eye when she is doing one of her "jobs", and she does it with gusto, to the point where the more eager you get, the more eager she gets, and it becomes a game of how animated one can make the game.

It can help treat or prevent behaviour conflicts. This one applies to Gaci in many ways, in the "treating" part. I was able to use a lot of her fun "jobs" to work through her fears of strangers, her trust in me (that I would handle situations and not force her to make decisions that always ended up being the wrong ones!), her focus on me around arousing distractions, and to build better associations with those things she didn't like. Whenever we have small social functions at the house, generally somebody will ask about Gaci and whether I can bring her out to "visit". Now, their version of visit is generally different than mine, as Gaci does not overly enjoy busy social gatherings. However, I can put her to "work" and let her demonstrate what she can do, and then let strangers reward her, and it takes away often the need of people to want to touch and coo over her. For a dog that doesn't really "like" strangers, she seems to enjoy putting on shows for them!

Some dogs need a job to do. Not all dogs are created equal, in the needs that they have. Some purpose-bred breeds - often seen in the herding dogs, the working dogs (Shepherds, Malinois, etc), and some terriers - do best when they have jobs to do. Not only do they do best, but every inch of their being tells them they need to do something. The realistic part of it all is, if you don't help them by letting them know what appropriate jobs they can do, they can, and will, become self-employed, and find their own jobs to do. But you can prevent many common issues if you pre-empt that, acknowledge the need, and give them things to do before they make up their own games.

So take a few minutes, give your dog a job - she'll thank you for it!