I Bet Teenso Never Met A Dog Smaller Than Herself

Ninna is so small, I had to move her to a different kennel. One that had already been 'Chiuchacha Proofed' or she would be able to walk out between the frame and the gate.

Teenso is fascinated by Ninna, I don't think she realized that dogs come smaller than herself.



Lucky and Jake were equally amused. Ninna, however, wanted to get away from these gigantic monsters. So I scooped her up and put her back in her run.

Helper Dogs verses Price Dogs

I can tell the dogs that live in Price and the dogs that live in Helper without ever checking the owner's phone numbers.

The Price dogs bark at and trains and the church bells, Helper dogs are too used to hearing them. There isn't anywhere in Helper that you can't hear a train or listen to St. Anthony's church bells.

Dig a Hole, Get a Rock Garden

We are having an unusually early false Spring this year. It had just been beautiful around here for the past week. I have been out with the dogs in just my shirt sleeves and it feels great. I have got Spring Fever pretty bad this year, the extended really cold weather was killing me.

I am putting my Spring Fever to work. I started to dig a couple of hole for trees in the play yard. I am planning on putting in a sprinkler system and planting sod, so we are going to need some more trees to shade that sod. This hole is giving me a hard time. For every rock I try to remove there are four others that have to be dug out first. For every giant rock that I can't believe I got out there is always another bigger one.

I have two big ones loose, but I will need my husband to get them out of the hole. And still a few more to go after that.

If you think I have dug too big of a hole, you just don't know how bad the soil is around here. Besides rocks there just isn't much in our dirt. No worms, no organic material, no nutrients - just sand and dirt and rocks. So when I plant a tree, I make the whole at least 4 feet in diameter to give the tree space with real soil to start its roots in. This way the tree gets a really good start and I have a couple of years of trying to improve the soil further out before the tree gets that far.

Chi Chi is a work in progress

She has made a lot of progress since she got here last weekend. She spent the first couple of days running from one gate to the other whimpering to be let out. She finally started to relax on the third day and tried to play with the other dogs. She needs to work on her playing. She is just too rough, shows too much teeth, and growls. The other dogs think they are under attack.

I figured with Gunny she would do fine. That Rott can take anything, but she even had him growling and snapping at her. I can run interference for Chi Chi and break up the playtime when it looks like it is getting too rough, but only the dogs can teach her some manners.

The growling and snapping is a warning to stop. When the dogs ignore her requests to play is when she is supposed to get the idea that she is in the wrong. It took two days for her to realize the gate don't open for dogs, maybe today she will have figured out playtime.

Big, Dumb, and Happy

Isabella

Charlie

This is my usual description for Labradors, but I have a couple of golden retrievers that really fit that bill.

They can make you happy just watching them.



I wrote this post yesterday, waiting to get some better pictures of Charlie. Last night, my husband was doing me a big favor by putting the doggies to bed for me. As no good deal goes unpunished. He ended up being bit by Isabella. I don't know which was a bigger shock the bite or the fact that it was Isabella that bit him. He had grabbed for her collar and she just turned and chomped on him. He was able to put a lease on her and put her in her kennel no problem.

Isabella must have some serious 'collar issues'.

She seems fine today back to her happy self, my husband is also fine, just sleeping in since we ended up in the ER until midnight. This make for the fifth dog bite in 5 years, not a bad track record.

This why I pay for that very expensive Workman's Comp insurance.

Say Hello to The Boys!

This is Teddy, Lucky and Jake. They belong to a lady that I used to work with way back when I was trying to sell real estate. (emphasis on the 'trying' part)

When Teddy was a puppy he used to hang out at our office. He could fit in your cupped hands when he first showed up. Shitzus are really not my favorite breed of dogs, but they are one of the cutest puppies.

Remy is one of my big ball chasing dogs.

And this is how she stares at her toy until I throw it again, or until BB or Daisy steals it away.

I am thrilled that I can now play ball with Remy, Sadie, Daisy and sometimes BB since they will ALL now return balls to me. BB still needs some work, but I honestly think she prefers to chew on a toy over chasing after it.

Big fun this weekend!

BB had a couple of boring days of just me to play with, but she had a fun weekend with all the dogs that showed up on Friday. The Beagle is Bailey and he definitely went home and slept for a couple of days.

I have to figure out how to load up videos so you can see all the action.

I just had the best play time, ever!

That Dog Whisperer stuff really works!

I have been 'one with the couch' for most of this week. When I could wrestle control of the remote from the kids, who where also home sick, I would switch from Nickelodeon to episodes of the "Dog Whisperer".

He was helping a family with a beagle that grabbed everything and anything and just ran with it. Remotes, phones, magazines, newspapers, glasses, toys - if it wasn't nailed down they were chasing him to get it back. This transformation was something I really wanted to see. I have so many dogs that won't release a toy back to me.

I know I can't yank these toys out of the dog's mouths. Tug of war is not a game I am ever going to win. What I didn't know was that I shouldn't even try to pull the toy out, the dogs should be giving them to me voluntarily. The pack leader doesn't snatch something out of another dog's mouth, they expect the dog to drop it and relinquish it to the leader. This I am going to try, but after I am feeling better. I figure that I am tired, sick, and not cut striking figure as the Leader of the Pack this week.

But an opportunity presented itself. I was sitting and BB walked up with a toy in her mouth. I tried Cesar's 'claw' technique. You make you hand into a claw and poke the dog in the next just under the jaw line. This is like a 'bite' from us and that is how a dog would communicate to another dog. One poke and BB dropped that toy into my lap. I could not believe it. I thought it had to be a fluke it happened so fast. When it worked a second time I knew I was onto something.

I had a dog that wanted to play fetch, but whenever Remy would bring a ball back, Daisy or BB would steal it. This makes for a very short game of fetch. I did my best Cesar impersonation, I touched Daisy and said, "SHHH!" and she dropped the ball. This has never happened before. BB got smart and started to stay out of touching range, but I had Daisy bring the ball back to me over and over again.

Best part, they were still releasing balls the next day. Now, I have to get the owners to continue my good work.

Sorry folks...The kids gave me the FLU

And I know I am truly not funny when I am sick. So I will be taking a couple of more days off. Stop by next week, it looks to be a humorous weekend at the ranch.

Timing is Everything

I already knew that you can change a dog's behavior for doing something wrong unless you caught them in the act. Dog only have two modes of thought NOW and BEFORE. Only the NOW matters to the dog, BEFORE is already long gone.

Babies and toddlers also function only in the NOW, but that will have to wait until another post.

What I am learning from the Dog Whisperer show is that if you want to stop your dog from doing something to need to discipline them when they are DECIDING to do the act, not during it and clearly not after the fact.

If you dog dumps your garbage can, and you point at the spilled garbage and say, "BAD DOG!" Your dog is only going to think that spilled garbage is named Bad Dog and thank you for introducing them. You have to interfere just as your dog is switching from normal, ordinary, cutting through the kitchen, 'just happy to be here' dog, to 'Hey there is something interesting here!' mode. Because dogs go from neutral, to interested, to action pretty quickly. You can short circuit this process at interested very easily, but not at decided and acting.

I will give you an example on my walks. If I spot Vector veering off toward the pile of deer bones, all I have to do is call her and she comes back to the path. If I miss the veer, and she is already picking out a treat, I have to walk up to her and make her, "SPIT THAT OUT!" Stopping her approach is a call, and "SPIT THAT OUT!" is a shout.

I had a friend trying to stop her dog from chasing deer with an electronic collar. I think that she failed because she was hit the zap after the chase had begun. You need to teach the dogs not to make the decision to chase, not to stop the chase. If you do the former, the dog won't start the bad behavior and you won't need the collar every time you walk your dog.

I am thinking this is going to be a very important when my kids become teenagers. If I only knew how to apply it to kids.

I tell Dog Stories, He does Dog Impersonations

I got a free preview of the National Geographic Channel this month. So, of course, I have been recording all the of Dog Whisperer episodes. I love to talk about my doggies, that is why I started this blog - I was boring all of my non-dog friends and had to find another outlet.

I watch Cesar on his show and he becomes the dog. He mimics their expressions of fear, aggression, timid, excited - all perfectly. But when he does a particular breed, it sending me into hysterics. He is the dog, it is the funniest thing.

He does a wiggle that starts at his shoulders and going all the way down his body - his is a Labrador.

He snarls and nips - he is the terrier.

He puts his head forward and glares - he is a boxer.


I love this show.

SPIT THAT OUT!

Which to my dogs means, chew and swallow as fast as possible.

Deer carcasses are my nemesis on my morning walks. I know where all the bone piles are now and I have my dogs come back and walk along side of me preventing them from getting at the bones in the first place.

My dogs are starting to out smart me. There is the 'spit it out like mom said, but remember where it is for tomorrow' technique. That one kills me, I can remember the big piles, but not every chunk that they dragged away.

Vector goes for the 'get ahead and chew like crazy' tact and Inertia likes to fall behind and not get spotted. Yesterday, I called for Inertia to catch up and she came happily trotting up with a portion of a deer's spine in her mouth. Like I would not notice that.

SPIT THAT OUT!

So is This Going to be a Fast Day or a Slow One?

I have been doing my walks, I have been wearing my pedometer and what I have learn is that I do not run at the same speed each day.

It feels like I am walking at the same pace, but the pedometer does not lie. I walk the same route and one day it took 20 minutes, today it was 15 and the one day I got to go when it was warm and without my heavy coat it was only 13 minutes.

So my plan is to spend January getting into the habit of walking and trying for the 10,000 steps a day. I vary from as high as 12,000 to about 4,000. For February I am going to try to keep up the walking but try for a better pace. I have to get myself some better shoes first.

And if I can do that, in March, I might even try Dr. Oz's diet. That might be the straw that breaks this camel's back.

So Far So Good

I have been able to keep up my promise to walk my dogs everyday. Well, I do the week days and my husband does the weekends. Trying to get out of walking the dogs is much harder than just walking them, even if it means facing a freezing cold head wind for the past few weeks.

I was planning on putting off the walk until lunch time today. It has been warming up every afternoon this week and it is just great to be out without the heaviest coat, scarf, hat and mittens. I thought we would take a longer walk if I wasn't dealing with frozen cheekbones. Vector however, doesn't like to wait for her stroll. She will huff and puff and stomp her little paws and glare at me until she bends me to her will. No one has a better exercise partner than I. I am going whether I like it or not. It takes more will power than I possess to endure one of Vector's fits. She has my daughter beat in the tantrum throwing abilities.

So, off I go. Really looking forward to spring this year.

Look, George came back for another visit

He is getting pretty big, but he still has those gold eyes and those very sharp puppy teeth.

So maybe they aren't perfect after all

There is a flaw in those little blue orbs, they can get through the fence.

These Girls are just SO LITTLE!

Bella

Willow

If you get to pet them, it is for about a nano second - they are that fast - but it is like petting velvet. I'm in love, can't ya tell. I hope their mommy takes lots of trips.

Look what I got to play with today!

Italian Greyhound puppies!

Forget about scooping the poop, I have the best job, ever!

These pictures don't do these ladies justice, they are just too darn fast to get a good picture. I really should call them 'girls', they are only 4 months old, but ready to run with the big dogs.

Snow is just Mother Nature's way of saying," You Don't Have to Scoop the Poop!"

But Buddy, watch out for the thaw!


Down in the play yard I have to scoop snow or no snow. That is what has lead to my extreme talents in chipping out and removing the frozen solid dog turd. The play yard is kept dog turd free to the best of my ability.

My yard, however is another story. Between my two dogs and all of my client dogs that just have to leave a calling card, it is mess. If we get a day above 32 degrees around here and my front yard will be headed into the bio-hazard level of dirty. I think I better get out there while they are still in a benign frozen state before they resume their land mine characteristics.

More than Two Weeks and Still With Us

Congratulations to the Blue Racquetball!

The real test of these balls will be when Milly shows up. She likes to collect all the toys in the play yard and make a nest of them. She then sits prettily on her lumpy collection and proceeds to shred the toys one by one.

She can clear the play yard of toys on any stay longer than a weekend.

Since I have been talking about how dogs become friends...

...and because I just think of this song every time.


Getting to know you,
Getting know all about you.
Getting like you,
Getting to hope you like me.


Getting to know you,
Getting to feel free and easy
When I am with you,
Getting to know what to say

Haven't you noticed
Suddenly I'm bright and breezy?
Because of all the beautiful and new
Things I'm learning about you
Day by day.

I am not going to be putting this on my resume

Since we are on our umpteenth day of single digit temperatures, I would like to point out that there is a real art to the removing frozen dog poop from snow.

Not part of the skill set I picked up in college and I won’t be putting on my resume, but infinitely useful around here.

I clearly have a most glamorous job.

Never underestimate the destructive power of a bored Labrador

I knew there was something I was supposed to remember about Star. I just couldn’t remember what. She was playing well with everyone, so it must not have been something too important.

Oh yeah, that was it…Star is a destroyer of gates. I remember now that I see her gate pulled into her kennel and wedged at a 45 degree angle. I am supposed to put an extra chain on her run. That was it.

I had to take the gate off its hinges, drop it and un-wedge the top fencing from the gate frame. That was not on my list of things to do this morning.

Don't feed the Freakout

For my kids, I refer to this as "Don't feed the monster." That is when they are throwing a fit, don't add to the problem, more attention just gets you a bigger monster in the end.

If you have a frightened dog, you have to show the dog the right emotion for the situation and not sympathize with the dog. I know this sounds harsh, but pitying a dog only teaches the dog that he is pitiful.

When I get a timid or freaked out dog, I don't put them back in their runs. That only reinforces the idea that running and hiding is acceptable and good. Instead I separate them from the other dogs. Then I rub the dog all over and talk to them in a rabidly happy voice that tells them that I think there is absolutely nothing wrong, that everything is good, happy, and supposed to be this way. Most people go to their dogs with sympathy and try to comfort the dog when is it upset. This is the right approach for the toddler that has just scraped his knee and needs mom to kiss the owie away, but it is exactly the wrong thing to do with a dog. Dog don’t need or want commiserating, they need to be shown what their mood should be. Dogs are more empathetic in picking up our moods. So being happy around a frightened dog and they will become happier. Sit and sympathize with their fear and their fear will increase.

This had me worried

I had to get used to Cesar’s use of energy in describing dog behavior. His book keeps repeating that if you want to be in charge of the dogs you have to have the highest energy. That does not bode well for me. Anyone who knows me knows that I am a slug most of the time. The dogs should be all over me, but I am in charge for the most part. There are a few dogs that have to be reminded that since I pay the mortgage I get to be the alpha dog – including my own dogs. I might not have the energy to run with a pack of dogs like Cesar does but I must have the air of authority to my kennel dogs.

Best part of this job

I love winning over the timid dogs but it is even better to watch a timid dog go from a tucked tail and laid back ears to a rambunctious player busy jumping all over his new found friends with a new found level of self confidence.

Dufus pulled a spectacular transformation while she was here. Dufus was playing to a tough crowd when she first arrived. The new dog is always in for the gauntlet of sniffing when they first come out to play. In the dog world, the new butt is the one to smell. And this can be hard on a dog, 1 dog is no problem, but sometimes it will be 5, 6 or more dogs all trying to ‘get to know you’ all at the same time. Even I would be overwhelmed with this much attention.

A happy, confident dog will stand still and let everyone get a nose full and then will go up to each dog individually to get his shot at an introduction. This is a perfect doggie introduction; everyone has shown the height of canine etiquette. And playtime can now start in earnest.

I wish this happen every time but you know not everyone has the best manners. A dog that is frightened, skittish, and basically not confident will not be able to stand still and let other dogs do the smelling. They will run, and get chased which only makes them more frightened, skittish, and even less confident. This is where I usually step in to let the timid dog get a break. I try to just get the new guy on one side of the play yard and keep the other dogs away for a bit. I try not to put the dog back in his run, because that just reinforces the idea that being afraid and running away is the proper behavior.

Just like for people, the only way to build up a dog’s confidence is to have him act with confidence and succeed at it. This is how I pull this off at the kennel. Take Dufus, she was freaked by Tessie, BB, and Izzy all trying to ‘meet’ her all at once. I am freaked out by having Tessie, BB, and Izzy all trying to do anything to me all at once.

These are what I call my ‘players’, they can play with any dog, any time for as long as the other dog can last and then some. Using the Dog Whisperer’s terminology, these dogs are high energy dogs but they are all completely without aggression. I don’t have to worry about fights, but that doesn’t make them any less intimidating.

I let those three play together for about 10 minutes before I introduce Dufus. This should get us past the initial ‘I just got let out of the run’ wanton abandon. Dufus was shaking but stood her ground to be smelled. SO far so good, but she didn’t have enough confidence to make them stand for a return smell. So she would run up behind each one while they were preoccupied wrestling with the other two. Sneaky, yes, but also effective.

Once she had her ‘introductions’ Dufus was running with the big dogs and having a great time. Tail up, ears up giving Izzy a run for his money.

Along comes Happy, who is anything but happy. He is so skittish that he is running like a maniac to get away from anyone who is trying to sniff him. I shoo Dufus and Happy onto one side of the playyard and keep the other dogs away. A perfect match. Dufus is no threat to Happy so he can relax and start to play. Happy went from freak-out to playing in record time. When I brought all the dogs back together, the freak-out reappeared. But Happy has now got the hang of being a dog with other dogs and is just all over BB and Tessie. I am now having a hard time getting Happy to stop playing and go back in his kennel. My work here is done.

How I win over the shy ones

When I get a very timid dog, I don’t try to win them over with love. Loving on a freaked out dog will only add to the freak-out. You have to let the dog come to you. My technique is to sit in my chair and let my hands just dangle. That allows the dog to come up from behind me – no pressure from me – and sniff at my hands. If he comes up with the courage to walk by me I will swing my hands out slightly to rub down the dog’s side.

“No sir, that wasn’t a pet, I am not trying to love on you, no sirree, I am just sitting here, no threat, no pressure, just doing nothing all by myself”…Well, the dogs actually buy that act.

This works like a charm for me, I haven’t had a dog that I cannot win over with this technique. Thanks to the Dog Whisperer, now I know why it works.

I never thought about this before seeing that Dog Whisperer show. When I rub my hand against the dog’s side, I am getting my scent on him and his scent on me. And in the dog world is “the beginning of a beautiful friendship”

How to be the Top Dog in your pack

There are two things that your dogs needs more than anything else. More than love, tummy rubs, ear nuggies, kibble, biscuits or his own spot on the couch - exercise and a leader.

Lucky for you, you can get both birds with one stone. WALK YOUR DOG.

Your dog need a lot of exercise and being let out into the yard is not it. Dog want, need, like, love....fill in your own suggestions here...to walk. Wolf packs wander the entire day. I watched the wolves at the Brookfield Zoo this past June. They had a decent sized enclosure and they were totally in charge of it. The group worked it way across the entire area, looped around and did yet another patrol. They were molting pretty bad so they looked terrible, yet decidedly happy. I think the happiest of all the animals in the zoo.

I know you and your dog can't walk together all day. I few lucky farm dogs around here get that gig, but most dogs are family pets and the best they get is a walk once a day.

So, you want your dog to be happy, get him his walk. If you want him to be really happy and very well behaved you have to LEAD him on his walk. Dogs function in a pack, pack have leaders, and you are supposed to be the leader.

This is how you lead.

Your dog should be next to you at all times, never in front.
He is not a marlin and you are not reeling him in, throw away those extending leashes. Get a fabric mesh lease with a heavy latch, look for the lobster claw ones. Get a metal choke chain for your dog. The reason for the heavy latch and the chain collar is to focus your directions to the dog at his neck, that is were dogs communicate their dominance to each other.

Now, I learned how to have my dogs walk right next to me on a slack lease with no tugging from John McCurdy over in Price. That was 11 years ago and I can still walk, easily with both dogs by my side. It is still nothing less than a miracle to me. If you are in my area, I highly recommend that you have John train you to train your dog. If you are not so lucky, you will have to find a trainer to help you.

Meanwhile, I will try to explain the basics of HEAL and Lease Training:
Put the collar on so that when the lease is held tight the collar pulls up tight, but that when it is slack, the weight of the latch releases the chain of the collar. This is simple to see and impossible to type out. Try it, you will get it.

Pull the collar up to the top of your dog's neck just behind the ears.

Have your dog on your left. Hold the lease with just enough length to get to your left hand, hold the end of the lease in your right. The left will reinforce commands with a pull of the lease, and the right is looped in the lease in anticipation of the bolt. (which we all know is coming)

Say your dogs name and 'Heal!' and start to walk. Walk straight, turn, walk, turn, walk, to the left, to the right, straight for awhile. Every time your dog gets in front of you, away from you, stops to smell something, anything that is not with you and paying attention to you. Turn and make the dog follow with you.

That is it. Do this for 15 minutes or more each night and your dog will be walking with you in no time. Then it is time to try the same lesson where there are distractions, start walking your street or get a friend to train his dog along with yours.

You want your dog to behave when there are eleventy billion exciting things to smell, chase and bark at. That is when your training really counts.


Now, get out there and walk your dog.

I was taking my own advice, but today is awful, it is like being sand blasted with snow.

Another day of grumpy dogs for me.

"Daisy, you are a DOG."

I don't know what kind of conversations you have at work, but I have ones that go like this.

"Daisy, you are a DOG."
"Daisy, they are all DOGS."
"Daisy, be a DOG - you will be happier as a DOG."

"Come on, Daisy, smell his butt!"
"Get it over with, just do it!"
"Smell his butt!"
"BE A DOG!"

I thought I had the perfect situation, three little dogs all equally skittish and unsocialized, Daisy, Scruffy and Kaizon. This should work like a dream. They will figure out how to play together and then they will be able to play with any dog. Daisy was just not buying into my plan. Finally, yesterday morning she did it. She stuck up behind Scruffy and Kaizon and did the most polite thing a dog can do - she smelled a butt. The second lesson in doggie etiquette is to stand there and return the favor. She wasn't quite ready for that level of civility but she did walk away slowly acting like she didn't notice Scruffy 'back there'. A huge improvement over squealing and running that she was doing. They were playing together in no time.

I figured with one more day, I could have gotten Kaizon in on the playtime, but Daisy went home last night. Too bad.

And now back to obsessing over Cesar Millan's book.

I am really fixated on this book.

One, I can't wrap my head around the idea that there is someone else who spends seven days a week with dogs.



Two, even I don't going running in the hill with a pack of dogs. I may be nuts, but I do have my limits. I can't run.

Three, I am endlessly pleased that I have been doing the right things all along and even more pleased to understand why they work.

Four, I can't stand how easy it was to get my doggies to get along so much better. I thought they were good before, now things are really great. And my own dogs' behavior has greatly improved.


That photo is from the National Geographic photo gallery
http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/channel/bestofngcweek/images/gallery/photo_dogwhisperer.jpg
He must just shock the BLEEP out of people who meet him on the trails.
People would really be talking about me if I headed into the hills with my wards.

My Salvation

The Blue Racquetball.

I was complaining to one of my clients about the dogs' ability to destroy tennis balls faster than I can buy them. He told me he only buys Blue Hand Balls for his dog.

I figured it was worth a try. I could only find Racquetballs, but they are blue and they seem to be holding up. This hasn't been a very rigorous test of the life span of a blue racquetball - I only have 3 dogs in the kennel. One of them was Roxy and she had one wedged in her teeth for at least 3 days straight. I have yet to have to clean up a pile of blue rubber shreds - I take that as a positive sign.

Only problem so far is that they are smaller than tennis balls and therefore harder to find. I did discover that you can kick them and get a much more satisfactory flight than that of a kicked tennis ball. This is important attribute to remember once the ball is no longer blue, but rather a lumpy brown conglomeration of spit and dust.

SNOW DAY!

I found someone who likes them even more than school kids.





Though not so much, me.

Separated at Birth?

For these two, it might actually be true and not just a Saturday Night Live skit. I alway thought these two boxers looked alike, but this is the first time they are both here together.





Duncan has a few pounds on Roxy but I was just happy to see they were wearing different styles of collars. I guess I could alway tell them apart by the tennis ball, Duncan does not share Roxy's enthusiasm for balls.

My New Toy

I got a pedometer for Christmas. Yes, I too saw that Oprah episode with Dr. Oz and his new diet book. He has a plan for getting rid of stomach weight and I would love for it to actually work. Part of the plan is to increase how much exercise you get and that is where the pedometer comes in. His plan suggests that you need to increase the amount you walk to 10,000 steps per day.

Meanwhile, I had finished the Dog Whisperer's book and was feeling pretty guilty about not taking my dogs for their walks anymore. Cesar make this point over and over in that book, your dog needs more exercise than love. And face it, I need more exercise than cookies, but that ratio has been reversed for years.

So, when the kids went back to school, I headed out with the dogs. I have managed to do 4 days in a row - so far so good.

There are just not enough tennis balls on the PLANET to satisfy this group!

I actually have a dog that will bring the ball back, and we all know how rare that is. Gunner loves to play fetch and he brings the ball back and kinda rolls it at me. If I am not fast enough, and face it, I am NOT fast enough, one of the other dogs will grab the ball and keep it.

I have to have enough balls for Roxy to have one in her mouth, and BB needs one, and Cassy needs one and Sunny likes to have one , too. I bought the doggies 9 new tennis balls for Christmas and all was good for a few days.

Now it is not even New Year's and almost all of the tennis balls have been destroyed.

Gee, I guess dogs aren't that different from kids.

Packs don't have Vice Presidents

This is something that I learned from Cesar's book. I thought that packs had a pecking order from the alpha dog down to the weakness member. But it is more of a family organization then a corporate one. The is the top dog and sometimes a mated pair of dogs are the leader, but after that everyone is equal. This was a big eye opener for me.

I run into trouble with dogs that are just too aggressive in their play. I can usually solve the problem by controlling the mix - I figure out who can play nicely with who, and then I just separate the dog groups. Or if a dog is still too rough, they get a time out. This has served me pretty well and I determined long ago that time out work so much better on dogs than my kids.

I decided to try out Cesar's theories on dog behavior - if I insist that I am the top dog then all the dogs in the play yard automatically become equals. So for the past two weeks, whenever I had a mounter, or a herder, or any dog that growled while playing, I put them on a lease and walked them around, I had them sit for me, and for a couple of them I laid them down on the ground and held my hand over their necks until they relaxed.

DON'T TRY THIS AT HOME, at least that is what Cesar says...I say you might have very good luck with your dog.

I noticed that as soon as I let the dog off the lead or up, he was ready to play and at a much more acceptable level. It was freaky how well it worked. Only for some of the dogs, herders in particular, did I have to do it over and over again. Testing the limits, is what I call it when my daughter tries to see if see can get away with something - this time.

I tried with two of my problem dogs, they can't play with anyone else they are becoming a menace in general. I thought I had done some good with the first short session on the lease, but they were even more aggressive during the next playtime. I told their owner to go get some professional help training their dogs - they are a dog bite just waiting to happen.

Hey, I am not the Dog Whisperer after all, just the babysitter.

Dominance, Submission, and Discipline

Sorry folks, this is a PG blog and that only refers to your relationship with your dog. I was thinking about Cesar Milan's book again. He talks endlessly about dominance, submission, and discipline in how to treat your dog. He admits that these terms get him in trouble with modern American society. We think of all these terms in a negative connotation. We don't want to dominate our dogs we want to love them.

(We don't want to discipline our kids either, we want to be their friends.)

Well, this doesn't work well with dogs because dog are born with a innate sense of how a pack should be run. To dogs, these words are not bad, they are how the world works and works well for them.

(And you all, can tell me how that friendship thing is working with your kids. I was not surprised to hear that Cesar gets letters saying that they tried his way with great success with the dogs, so they are trying it out with the kids.)

Dogs want a pack with a strong leader. If you won't be the leader the dog feel obligated to take on the job. In his mind, someone has to do it. Now, you dog innately knows his place in a pack. Deep down he knows if he is leader-material or if he is not. So if you are abdicating your spot at the top and letting your dog take it, you may have promoted him beyond his temperament. I am sure you have worked that kind of manager. He has the job, but not the skills to handle it. You have created a boat load of stress for your poor dog.

You need to be the top dog and let your dog be just a dog in a pack. That is where he will be the most happy.

Coming up: Why there are no 'coup de etat' in the dog world, and How to be the Top Dog in your pack, Packs don't have Vice Presidents

It's all good again.

Enough of the snow has melted for Digger to find his tennis balls and all is right with the world again. Well, his world anyway. With Digger flying across the play yard over and over again, the dogs can now play together. Moe and Bear have settled their differences, with a bit of help from me, and are having a great time playing keep away from each other. As long as Bear stops darting in and taking Digger's ball, we are all good. Except for me, there is still enough snow to turn that tennis ball into a slobber-slush-ball and my gloves are starting to ice up. But that is where Roo comes in, he only wants to be loved. I give him a big rub down every time I throw that slobber-slush-ball. That way I am staying one step ahead of frostbite.

It is no fun when BB goes home...

I had a great day yesterday. We had a snow storm and the dogs had a blast playing in the snow. They were a pretty good group of dogs after they settled in. Digger just wants to play ball and he brings the ball back every time, unless BB steals it. BB was keeping Moe and Little Bear running at top speed. That kept Little Bear from attempting to herd the other dogs. I didn't understand why the other dogs seemed to hate Little Bear, but then I saw him bite Roo on the tail. That would definitely put me off.

But all was good and happy and fun to watch. I took a bunch of pictures, I'll have to post them later.

Then BB went home and everything went to hell. Moe and Roo have to be separated from Digger and Little Bear. Without BB, there is no playing only growling and tush nipping. Digger can't find any tennis balls in the deep snow so he is just lost and Daisy, a puppy, can't get the big dogs to play with her. So both sets of siblings end up standing at the gate barking at each other and no one gets any exercise, except me. I get a pretty good work out jumping up and down just trying not to freeze over.

There is actually someone who spends more time with dogs than me!

I picked up Cesar's Way, a book by the Dog Whisperer, Cesar Millan.

I can't tell you how great it feels to find someone who is crazier about dogs than myself.

Cesar stresses that the best thing for our dogs is to let them be just a dog amongst other dogs. A pack existence is what our dogs were designed for and long for. Most of my dogs are a single dog in a house full of people. They haven't been with other dogs since they were puppies.

Owners often tell me that their dog is better behaved after staying at my kennel. Since I know I didn't do any training on the dog, I alway figured it was just because the dog was worn out. But after reading this book, I think Cesar might be right; getting to be just a dog, with a bunch of other dogs, and finding that there are people who think just like you, must be heaven.

I know it did me a world of good to know I am not alone either - Thank you, Cesar!

Maybe it sounded funny at the beginning...

But this dog's name is Dufus and she is far too cute to have such a name. She needs an old fashioned, girly type name like Sally or Sadie, MaryLou, or Dolly.

I feel a little silly and a bit mean when I call, "Dufus!" across the play yard.

It reminds me of a friend who married a guy with a dog named Brown Dog. She said she felt every time she called the dog, it was like she had forgotten the dog's name.

"Hey, you, the one with the fur!"
"No, the BROWN one!"
"Come!"

PUPPY!

Look at those eyes, they look green to me. Isn’t he just the cutest thing? I don’t even need to write something funny about George, just post more pictures of the cutie pie.

Hey, that's my ball!

This is Murphy and that is his ball. Oh, joy! He finally got it back from Roxy. I didn’t think that was going to work out, but all is well and I didn’t have to risk a forearm prying a ball out of Roxy’s mouth.

Happiness on Four Feet

This is one happy dog. Happy doesn’t really cut it for Katy…she is exuberant, joyful, giddy, nutso, bonkers…if you could bottle this dog, no one would need prozac ever again. This dog makes you happy just watching her. And she is just so darn cute on top of all that joy. I love the one flop ear.

Sorry about the lousy focus but between the subject’s speed, and the subject’s spit on the lens, I was lucky I got anything at all.

Her owner called her a Long Hair German Shepherd which is a new one on me. But that is why I record the dog shows – just to see all the weird breeds that never show up on my doorstep.

Scottie

Check out the stripe on his face. It looks like he flinched when the angels were pinstriping him.

I had a heck of a time getting this photo; he flinches at the camera, too. Katy, however, shows no fear – she licked the lens, twice.

and the award for Scaring Erica Brainless goes to....

Eunice!

Congratulations, Eunice, you managed to stop my heart. Eunice is just not herself this week. As you might remember Eunice does not think she is a dog and when she first came here, she didn't think she was a 'dog-person' either.

The dogs seems to grow on Eunice. Every stay she would stay out with the other dogs for longer and longer amounts of time and even started to play with them. I knew she would never be a dog, but a 'dog-person' I could settle for. When Eunice is DONE, she goes and stands by her kennel door to be let back in. She plays for awhile, but like my grandma, when she is done with the kids, she is just DONE.

Not this stay. Eunice has been playing with or ignoring the dogs kinda randomly and she has taken to being the last dog put away. This is definitely a new development and how she managed to scare me. It was bedtime and so the play yard is pitch black. I get everyone put away, but no Eunice. I call, no Eunice. I search, no Eunice. This is where my ability to jump to the worse case scenario comes in....she escaped, she's lost, she got hurt, she got kidnapped, she got killed, she got killed and eaten. It is truly amazing how far and how fast I can jump to conclusions.

Picture the chicken with it head cut off approach only with snow boots.

There she was standing perfectly still in the far corner of the yard and looking at the neighbor's house. I had to grab her collar and walk her back to her run. Very weird, but it has become the routine. Eunice doesn't come when I call and I always have to lead her back to the runs. She just doesn't want to go back to her kennel.

I think she is mad about this long stay. I bet she can't stay mad at her owner though. My dogs try to give me the cold shoulder when I have been gone too long, but their tails are alway happy to see me.

Too Smart for Her Own Good

That must be it. Roxy is just so darn smart, she has come full circle to stupid.

Sometimes I have to divide my doggies. When dogs don't get along, I shut the gate that separates the play yard into two areas. Only problem is that I can only be on one side at a time.

Roxy, being a rather smart dog, figured out that she could stuff a tennis ball under the gate and I would be able to pick it up a throw it for her. She brings the ball back, shoves is under, I throw the ball over the fence - repeat, repeat, repeat.

Only problem is that Roxy shoves her ball under the fence even when I am on her side.

What's in a name?

I mess up people names all the time. I have never been able to remember names and I am famous for trading people's names with those of their friends. UGH. But I can remember dog's names. Why, I just don't know, are they somehow stored in different part of my brain? When I was selling real estate, correction TRYING to sell real estate, I could always remember the dog's name but never his owners - the ones actually buying or selling a house. This was my first clue that I had somehow ended up in the wrong business. My bank balance, or lack there of, was another.

I think I made the right career move this time.

Well, maybe. I seem to be mangling even the dog names this week. I kept calling Goofy, Gunny. Goofy is huge and fluffy, Gunny is a Rott and just huge. I called Remington, Maggie, but that is a little more forgivable, those two are identical. And then there is Shilo.

Pronounced SHY - LO, not SIGH - LO.
"Oh, honey, did I just call you a barn? So sorry."

Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow!

Because, snow is just Mother Nature's way of telling you that you don't have to scoop the poop.

Labrador-Rottweiler MIX?

No, Buddy is more of a SPLICE than a MIX.
He has a Labrador head and a Rottweiler body.

Modern Medicine vs Animal Husbandry

I have been subjected to a number of medical test this week as the doctors try to figure out what is wrong with my stomach. So far every test has come back - negative, normal, just fine, or nothing wrong.

If I wasn't just SICK AS A DOG, I'd be as HEALTHY AS A HORSE.

The Yawning Dog Ranch Guide to Vacation Planning

There must be something in human nature that causes people with 3 week vacations to forget about the dog until the last minute, whereas those people only going away for an overnight will call 6 months in advance.

I just turned away a 3 week stay at my kennel because the middle week of a cruise is Thanksgiving week. Not the best advanced planning that I have witnessed.

Having to say 'Sorry, no room at the inn.' to people has led me to some very important lessons.

Don't Travel For Holiday's
I have tried to follow this rule all my life, and now I have the perfect excuse,"I just can't. The kennel is full and I have to stay home."

Move Your Holiday's
My mother invented this rule. We once had Christmas - tree, stocking, gifts and all - at Thanksgiving because my older sister was pregnant and due just before the actual Christmas. It was fun to roll the two holidays together, turkey on Thursday and a Christmas ham on Saturday. This also created the longest, most restful Christmas break that I ever experienced. I resurrected this rule to have Thanksgiving the Saturday before with my parents and the REAL Thanksgiving with my husband's family. Try this yourself, it could save a marriage.

Know When to Go
This is something I didn't know until I started my kennel. These are the empty weekends at my kennel. The ONLY empty weekends my kennel. And if my place is empty, everyone is staying home. So, GO, Travel! Get while the getting is good! You should have the roads, airports, hotels...everything all to yourself.

Mark your calendars...
The last 3 weeks of January
Everyone is fat, tired, broke and holed up at home.
All but the Valentine's Weekend in February
Too cold, still broke, still holed up at home.
March or April, the middle two weeks of which ever month does not have Easter
Caution, some people have already gotten their tax refunds back, so some vacations due occur at this time.
May, feel free to travel anytime except for Memorial Day
Everyone is too busy with end of the school year programs, graduations, and packing for their June trips. I especially recommend Las Vegas for Mother's Day. The weather is perfect and the town is just empty. I guess taking mom to Sin City to celebrate has not really caught on.
Stay home June, July and August, if humanly possible
The entire country piles in the car and goes to another part of the country. No one is home, they are all on the road.
September, skip Labor Day
But the rest of the month is good. Everyone is either recovering from an August trip or the kids are back in school.
October
Excellent for travel, since the kids are stuck at home plus the weather usually cooperates in October.
November, the week and weekend prior to Thanksgiving
I have had 3 days straight with no dogs and only 3 bookings for this weekend.
December the weekend after Thanksgiving up to Christmas week
The weather is better, the airports are not mob scenes and the cities look their absolute best already dressed up for Christmas.

And best of all, when you call for dog reservations at these times, I will be able to say, "no problem!"

A Day Off?

Today, I am off to lecture my husband's engineering class on resume writing and interviewing. Normally, I would be thrilled with a chance to teach, but this particular class meets at 6:45 in the MORNING. ugg.

My husband tried to sell the idea by pointing out that he would take my morning doggie-duty.

A very kind offer, but if he is going to get up with the dogs I want a reward of staying in bed, not getting up even earlier and driving into town.

But, I have accepted and off I go to make sure these engineers know how to get a job.


Only thing, my husband gets to sleep in anyway - turns out the kennel is empty. I haven't had a day with no dogs since January and I don't even get to enjoy sleeping in. ugg.

Winter's Here!

Well, at least it is here for this week. It was 70 degrees last Thursday and in the 30's on Saturday. Those kinds of weather changes can give you whiplash.

I just have to remember to watch out for too much doggie love - this is the time of year for dog spit-induced frostbite.

Have you survived The High Holy Day of Refined Sugar?

We had an all day candy based frenzy around here. Except for me, who is diligently trying to stay on a no sugar diet. Let just say that I went as Grumpy for Halloween.

Now, you don't have to stay out of the kid's candy but do keep Fido out of it. Chocolate is not poisonous to dogs - it just ups their heartrate and blood pressure. For some smaller dogs that is enough to give them a heart attack. Not my dogs, though. Vector once ate 3 dozen chocolate chip cookies in the middle of the night and we only found out when she didn't eat her breakfast in the morning.


Be careful and go ahead keep all the chocolate for yourself - you are just doing it to protect the doggies.

Happy Howl-ween!

Yes, even I have dressed my dogs up for Halloween. It was my daughter's first Trick or Treating and she went as a vampire. So I made black bat wings for my two black labs. I must say they did look great, but because you can actually go Trick or Treating in the dark in Utah, no one really saw them.

This year I have a Queen and a Ninja to escort around the subdivision. The dogs will be home hogging the couch.

Pumpkin Chucking!

I spent the day down in Moab witnessing the First Annual Pumpkin Chucking Competition. Open to both sling shots and trebuchets.

Now, this is not normally a sport I follow, but my husband has his engineering students building catapults this semester. CEU set down 5 teams, 4 trebuchets and a sling shot. The pumpkin flying was amazing to watch as was the trebuchets self destructing. It is the height of engineering skills to be able to throw a pumpkin, wreck your catapult, and then rebuild it in time to throw again. I was truly impressed.

As you probably know, Moab is a dog kinda town. And this event was no different almost as many dogs as kids. I was a little worried about the 'pumpkin chucking' turning into 'pumpkin fetch'. Does having a dog retrieve your tossed pumpkin affect your overall distance score? I didn't get a chance to ask the judges about that. I can report that indeed many pumpkins were injured, but no dogs were lost. Though I did see a Corgie dining on pumpkin guts.

Oh, yeah, they have to been some of my dogs.

I was driving home the other day and spotted two dogs hanging out the back windows of the car in front of me. My favorite game, Do I Know That Dog. You might think I know every dog in Carbon County but most of the time I don't know the dogs I spot while driving. These two had me stumped a boxer and a yellow lab, that was a pretty unique combo. I couldn't remember a set of sibling dogs with a boxer and a lab of any shade. I guess those are not one of my dogs after all.

Then they passed my driveway and the two went nuts in the back seat. Oh, yeah, those have to be one of mine. Yes, of course, Daisy and Maggie. They aren't siblings - they are 'cousin dogs'. Daisy's sibling is Lady and as the resident Shitzu, she must be riding shotgun. Grandpa must have all the grand dogs out for a drive.

The Westies Are Coming! Defend Your Flank!

Ah, what a cute westie. You can check out all the new westie designs by clicking here.

If Sharon can just make one of a westie jumping up and biting someone on the butt, I have just the owner to buy that one for.

PowerFUR

My daughter was trying to write 'powerful' but got 'powerfur' instead. My husband told her, "PowerFUR is what Inertia has."

You just can't get rid of that dog's fur - it's everywhere, it's everywhere.

Birthday Parties

I just survived a small herd of seven and eight year old girls here for my daughters birthday. (I people tell me they can't understand how I can be surrounded by dogs all day.)

I was reminded that I never did throw a birthday party for my dogs. I had it all figured out, we would invite all of their doggie buddies over and have a cat shaped pinata full of milk bones , plus a bone shaped cake for the humans.

My 'girls' are now 11 years old - I have really procrastinated on that party. Maybe next August, I can pull it off. They won't be too old for a pinata, right?

Oy, it is going to be a long weekend.

Let's see...

Goofy can't be with Sam. Goofy is in love with Sam and Sam is vehemently against this idea. I don't want to have to explain how a Westie ate all 120 pounds of Goofy to Goof's owner.

Sam cannot play with Beau. They are both Westies but I believe that Sam was showing too much attention to McKinzie and Beau tried to defend her honor. McKinzie high tailed back to her kennel and I had to break up the boys growling at each other. We are not going to have a rematch. I even had to move Beau and McKinzie to another kennel because the boy decided to to take the match indoors and through the fence.

This is why the play yard has two parts. BB, Emma, Sam over there. Goofy, Miss Daisy, Beau and McKinze over here.

Of course, Goofy and Sam have to meet at the gate and bark at each other.


It is going to be a long and LOUD weekend.

The neighbor dog has a fan club.

The house next door just sold and I was delighted to find out that they have kids that can play with mine. I was estatic to find out that they also had a dog, a Jack Russell named Jackie.

Jackie likes to come down to the fence and check out the kennel dogs. She runs back and forth from the top of the play yard to the bottom. My doggies just have to follow along. I don't think the running is wearing out Jackie too much, but it is a workout for some of my dogs. Thanks, Jackie.

Puppy PINNED!

Match goes to Remy.

I think this hold is actually illegal in Utah.

This is the place for No Holds Barred Puppy Wrestling.

Running with the Big Dogs

I just don't get puppies often enough. Terry has made friends and wrestling partners out of all the dogs at the ranch this weekend. It is weekends like this that I know why I do what I do.

This is how most of my shots turn out.

I get many photos with dog parts in them instead of dogs. It seems that where my camera is pointing and where I think my camera is pointing are two radically different things.

Great shot of my shadow, don't ya think?