Naughty Dog's Day

Where Not to get a dog - revisited

So, after researching extensively to find the information stating that breeding a bitch every heat cycle was better for both the dam and the puppies, without result, I e-mailed Iams regarding the research cited on the North Country Kennels webpage.  This is the message I sent on their "contact us" page:

"I am looking for research Iams has done regarding benefits of
breeding every heat in dogs"

This was their reply:

"Thank you for taking the time to write. I wish I could assist you with your
inquiry.  However, this is not really our area of expertise."

For the full letter, please e-mail me

Also, if you are from North Country Kennels, and can supply a link to or hard copy of the research, I'd be more than happy to look at it, just use the e-mail link above.

As it stands, this is just one more example of the lengths to which puppy mills will go to convince you that they are NOT a puppy mill.  No way would they condone the evil puppy mills do, and that they are a fine, upstanding place to get a well bred puppy.  Don't fall for it.  Rescue one of the many dogs or puppies out there who is desperate for a home, or find a person who breeds for the love of their favorite breed, who lives to produce the most perfect example of that breed possible, who sleeps next to the whelping box lest one of their precious babies gets accidentally smothered by mom, who goes to great lengths to raise a happy, healthy puppy, and who actually CARES that their little baby is going to an appropriate home where it will be loved and cared for the rest of it's life.

Where NOT to get a dog

    Check out this website:   North Country Kennels

    I'm hoping you will never buy a dog from a kennel like this. Why?  Well, for starters, puppy mills are not always places where dogs sit in dingy, dark cages, with matted coats and goopy eyes.  This kennel is a puppy mill. They are, in fact, the definition of a puppy mill!  They factory produce 21 (TWENTY ONE!) different breeds of mutts.  At least they admit that they're in it for the money. Rest assured, these people are not breeding for any legitimate reason - a love of dogs, the desire to breed the perfect example of a certain breed - no.  If the bottom suddenly dropped out of the puppy market, these dogs would be dropped quicker than a hot potato.

    Buying a puppy from North Country Kennels is just about like buying a car.  Fill in your personal information, select the mix you want, enter preferred size and color, put in your pick of personalities, and enter shipping details.  There are also fields to enter whether or not it's a surprise (a surprise puppy is always such a good idea!) and whether or not anyone in the house is allergic to dogs.  This particular field, I think, is so that they have proof down the line; just in case you complain that Sally is allergic to her hypoallergenic little designer - factory produced puppy.

    Oh, and make sure, before you submit your puppy reservation, that you send that deposit!

    Then there's the misinformation and discrepancies:

• In their FAQ section, first they say you can't visit puppies because they had one incident where a visitor brought a "virus" (never named) and gave it to a puppy, later on they say that after the puppies are 6 weeks old, they are brought to the shop where visitors can visit them to provide socialization.  Makes absolutely no sense.
• When asked why there are no pictures of their adult dogs, they have cute little responses: "Some of the dogs are just not that happy standing on a grooming table, with a strange, noisy, object shoved in front of their face (the camera, click, buzz, whir ;-) ) How many of you like your photo taken?", and "Taking dog photos is very hard. The person holding the camera can't just reach out and adjust the dog. The person holding the pup can't see what the camera sees. AARRGGHH! Maybe it wouldn't be so hard if we weren't so picky :-)".   Um.  It's just not that hard to take a good picture of a dog.  So what's the real reason there are no pictures?
• I'm still searching for verification of this, in regard to the question "How often do you breed?":  "With the females, a year or two ago, we would have answered that with once a year. Iams has done a study over the past several years, with over 7000 females, and 17,500 litters, that shows that breeding every heat cycle (on average, females cycle every 6-10 months) is far healthier for the female dog and the puppies too."  Can't you just hear them?  "Wooohooo, Lucy!!  We're gonna be twice as rich!!".  I've searched, and e-mailed Iams.  No luck so far.  We'll see.  Standard practice is to give females a rest between cycles.  And really, if you feel your dog owes you something for her upkeep, does she really owe you more than 3 or 4 litters?  Wouldn't it be nice to then spay her and place her in a good home, instead of breeding and breeding until she just doesn't make puppies any more, and than euthanizing or, hopefully, placing her?
• To the question:  "Why do some puppies eyes stray from center?" They respond: "Remember, the pups have had their eyes open for only a few weeks. (my comment:  Generally a puppy's eyes open when they are about 2 weeks old, give or take a day or two.  At 8 weeks, a puppy's eyes have been open for 1 1/2 months) The muscles around the eyes are still weak, so it's common for one or both eyes to stray to the side for a few more weeks yet. Shih Tzu and Pekingese (and their mixes) have the weakest eyes as puppies because they have a rounder skull."  I don't know, maybe this is a common problem.  But I can say that I've seen a lot of puppies, and this is generally not a problem.  Of course, if one or both of the parents has this trait, the puppies are more likely to have it.  That's why reputable breeders would spay or neuter any dog exhibiting this trait.

    There's enough fodder on just this one site to give me ammunition for days.  Are the puppies cute?  Heck yeah!! They're adorable.   Poor things.  Because these people don't care.  If you've got the cash, you've got yourself a puppy.  In fact, that seems to be their only screening method. These are not people who sleep next to the whelping box to make sure everybody is OK, they don't worry about the homes they're going to, if they'll be loved and cared for, what will happen if they have to be re-homed.  A health problem doesn't leave them sleepless for days, wondering where it came from and if they could done anything to prevent it.  These people are a nightmare.  Pumping out as many puppies as possible and not giving a damn what happens to them.  Next time you're at a shelter, take a look.  Maybe you'll see a North Country Kennels dog, just waiting for a new home!

   

Pick It Up!

    Just got back from a walk with the dogs.  Four of them tonight.  Of course, everybody had to poop, so there I was, trying to keep one hand on 4 leashes as the dogs weave an intricate macrame, simultaneously picking up poop with the other (bagged) hand.  Gotta do it, though, right? 

    Apparently not, since our mysterious sidewalk pooper is once again in the neighborhood.  People, I ask you...What kind of person lets their dog take a dump in the middle of the sidewalk, and then just calmly walks away and leaves it there?!  No wonder people hate dogs.  Geesh.

   

Petco: FDA & US Marshal's Raid Distribution Facility

Ah, Petco.  Is it that they don't know, or just plain don't care, that rats and birds spread a wide variety of diseases, in addition to just plain dirt (and worse)?  I'm thinking it's the latter, because I'm sure they were informed during the FDA's April inspection that they needed to clean up their act.  Did they?  No.  A subsequent inspection in May found food still in filthy and unsanitary conditions, At this time, the FDA requested that the US Marshal's office seize all food at Petco's Joliet, Illinois facility which was slated for distribution in 16 states, including Michigan. No illnesses have been reported from consumption or handling of the contaminated food as of yet, we can only hope it's a trend which continues.  The FDA is advising consumers to wash their hands with hot soapy water after handling bags or cans from this distribution facility, and to wash any containers which may have come into contact with the bags. Personally, I say just throw it out!  Why take the risk?  If you feel your pet may have become ill from eating this food, contact the FDA consumer complaint coordinator.  Here is the complete FDA news alert.

Every time I see one of these alerts, I'm just a little happier that I don't feed my dog's commercial dog food, and the time I spend cooking up their food becomes a little more worth it.  If you would like a complete, balanced diet formulated for your dog, please contact us.  We'd be happy to help you out.

Been a Long Time

My poor blog, hanging out in cyberspace gathering dust while my life goes crazy around it!  Well, luckily things have now settled down and I will be writing regularly again.

Teddi, my foster Leonberger is still here, and still waiting for just the right home.  While still somewhat shy, she has progressed remarkably quickly, and is a much happier dog now.  I'm hoping that she will soon have a family of her very own.

The daycare has been hopping with lots of new dogs coming in,  and I've also been busy baking treats and putting together a new line of canine skin care products.

Now that I'm back, I hope you will be, too. 

The Evolution of Training Methods

When I first started training dogs back in the dark ages, one of the most popular, well known trainers advocated such things as "hanging" dogs (lifting their front feet off the ground and letting them dangle from their choke chain, the de rigueur training collar at that time), and brutal "corrections", yanking the dog off its feet to correct it for pulling.  This was the trainer for the Disney movies.  Eee gads.  One day I found a book by Martha Covington Thorne, who long ago met her beloved dogs at the bridge.  Suddenly I felt like I was doing things correctly when I tried to make my dogs happy while working with them.  Then came Carol Lea Benjamin, Barbara Woodhouse, Brian Kilcommons, Karen Pryor, and many others.  To this day, Carol Lea Benjamin, is, to me, the epitome of a dog trainer.  More about that later.

Modern dog training, for the most part, is all about making your dog happy.  There are, of course, still some of the old-time jerk, twist, and tie them in knots type out there, so if you're looking for a trainer, make sure you observe them in action prior to either signing up for a class or placing your pet in their hands.

There are so many methods for training dogs:  "NILIF" training, where nothing in life is free, advocates giving no attention or treats without making your dog work for it (sit, stay, come, or whatever).  Clicker training (operant conditioning and behavioral modification are other names for this method) uses a clicker to give your dog a marker, a sound that tells your dog "you did that just right!".  The click is a promise to your dog.  Once your dog knows a behavior, you don't t have to click every time, and can eventually phase the click out completely, but if you click, you have to treat. Teaching how to clicker train would take this whole post, or more.  It's elegant, easy (once you know how to do it), and effective.  There are "positive only" methods where bad behavior is ignored and good behavior is rewarded.  There are pack driven, wear your dog out and he'll be too tired to misbehave methods.  There's "natural training" which emulates real life - sometimes you're good, sometimes you're bad, and you're "rewarded" accordingly.  This is the style of Carol Lea Benjamin, Brian Kilcommons, Barbara Woodhouse, and other popular trainers. It's a common sense approach which most closely emulates the way we humans interact with each other.

I'm what "pure" clicker trainers would disparagingly call a "cross-over" trainer, or "a trainer with a clicker".  I've been training a long time, and I just don't think a single training method best fits every situation.  I use all the above methods, other than the old-time, heavy handed approach, depending on the dog and what behavior(s) I'm working on.    For Bruce, who needs to learn a specific set of behaviors for an employee training video, I've been doing a lot of clicker work.   It's the most expedient method of getting him from point A to point B in this situation. In general, I follow a more natural training approach.  The way I see it, in real life, whether you're human, wolf, or dog, there are limits that need to be respected.  If I've walked, played with, fed, and watered my dog.  Made sure he's had a fulfilling day, and he still insists on sitting in the doorway, chewing the molding, he's going to go into his crate for 15-20 minutes.   If he's heading down the bad-dog road, he'll spend some time learning that NILIF.  When I want him to learn how to turn on a light, I'll probably teach him to "target", and use a clicker.

The bottom line of all this is that while there is no one right way to train a dog, there's definitely a wrong way.  Your dog is your buddy, your pal, your friend.  She depends on you for so many things, not the least of which are to keep her safe and fulfilled. Dog's love to have a job, overcome obstacles, and succeed.  Learning basic commands is a good way to start.  So find a trainer you like and trust.  Someone your dog likes as well, although this may take a little time, since good trainer's are, by nature, "alpha", and tend to radiate that in their bearing around dogs.  Find someone who is kind, but firm, and hasn't lost their joy in dogs.  This may not be easy.  You may need to talk to several trainers.  If possible, set up a private lesson before you commit yourself to a 6 or 8 week class.  It's worth the effort.  You'll be happy, your dog will be happy, and soon, with a little work, you'll have your very own socially acceptable dog.   

 

Our Multilingual Dogs

Our dogs are far more amazing than we frequently realize.  If we could read them just half as well as they read us, training would be so much easier! 

First, of course, they can hear us.  But for a dog, hearing is just a very small part of the dialogue.  Their noses put ours to shame. Picture a postage stamp sitting on a bandana.  That's the difference in the area a person's olfactory cells cover (the stamp) compared to the area a dog's cover (the bandana).  An experiment conducted by researchers at Duke University found that a fox terrier, selected at random from a group,  could, after three weeks, detect the scent of a fingerprint on a glass slide when compared to four unused slides.  When the researchers placed the slides outside, exposed to rain, wind, and dust, the dog was still able to pick out the slide with the fingerprint after it weathered for 24 hours.  Our dogs smell everywhere we've been, and every emotion we feel.  That's pretty amazing.

Then there's body language.  Not only do dogs communicate amongst themselves in incredibly subtle ways, they learn at an early age the body language of humans.  Whatever you're feeling is expressed in the way you move and hold your body.  And your dog knows exactly what's going on in that head of yours.

And that's where we, as dog lover's, often fail, and why I think some people just seem to have a natural knack for training dogs.  When you get right down to the basics of training dogs, it's pretty cut and dried.  One of my biggest challenges in training people to train their dogs is in getting them to put their whole body into it. Everybody seems to know that you should praise your dog in a happy voice.  But we're not fooling our dogs, they really couldn't care less about a squeaky voiced sound of approval, although for many of our dogs, that's as good as it gets.  I've also had people who only wanted to use "positive methods" to train their dog tell me that when their dog does something wrong, they cross their arms and turn their back.  Wow.  That's a pretty big slap in the face to a dog, and not what I would call only using positive methods. Not that I think there's anything wrong with doing that, I find it very effective for jumping and certain other problem behaviors, I just think it's interesting that someone who feels saying "bad dog" is wrong doesn't look at this as a "punishment", when, in my opinion, most dogs will take a "bad dog" over a turned back any day of the week.

So don't leave your dog feeling unfulfilled and always hoping for more.  When you call her and she comes to you, make happy eye contact, smile,  open your arms wide, and  tell her how wonderful she is in your best "good girl" voice.  Let your praise radiate from your whole body.   If she finally sat or stayed or downed the first time you asked, make it a party.  Conversely, if you've fought to get compliance from a dog who knows exactly what you're asking for and just doesn't feel like it, you still need that whole body praise, even if it comes from your victory in winning the battle, but minimize it, and save the horns and confetti for the really good behavior.  If your dog is an excitable sort, especially if you're working on stays, you'll have to tone this down, of course, but still, your dog will know whether you really care about that perfect sit or not, so don't her down, make your praise come from the heart.   

Walking the Dogs

My daycare dogs go for a walk 3 times a day, and I gotta tell you, some walks are just more fun than others.  This is largely dependent on the weather (everybody, please, I'm begging you...shovel your sidewalks!), and what dog's I have here for the day.  Today was cold, but dry.  Just the kind of weather that revs all the dogs up.  And I had Whimsy, Olive, Bruce, Zachary, and Hannah.  All under a year old, except Hannah, who's a year and a half, and all between 35 and 70 lbs.  Having this many boisterous dogs in hand at one time makes for some interesting moments.  Whimsy or Olive grabbing a stick, then wrestling each other for it.  Zachary bounding along, trying to interest someone, anyone, in saying "Hi!" as we pass.  Hannah focused on the trees, looking for squirrels.  And handsome Bruce, the rock star, trotting along beside me, loose leash,  like teacher's pet.  When I can spare a hand to pat him on the head I'm rewarded with a big tail wag and some bouncy steps. 

One of our favorite walks is through downtown Ann Arbor.  There are low walls to hop up on and walk along, lots of people to greet, the scent of asian, italian, and greek cuisine, and, best of all, alleys.  All the dogs pause, noses lifted, when we pass by the alley that runs between Liberty and Williams.  Eyeing each other, they frequently try to make a break and follow their noses to the canine nirvana of day old alley pate.  We weave, wobble, and bounce our way along, and it generally sounds something like this:  "Whimsy! Olive! Girls, stop that!  Hannah, honey, quit pulling.  Zach, stay on this side, don't say "Hi".  Good boy, Bruce!".  Glances our way range from amused to horrified.  One day as we passed by the downtown post office there was a dog tied up to the railing.  I gave it a quick "hello" as we passed.  We hadn't made it to the end of the block when a guy ran up to me, and in all seriousness said "Hey!  You forgot one!".  He didn't look quite convinced when I explained it wasn't "mine".

The dogs love their outings, and for the most part, so do I.  Ann Arbor is a great town to walk around, and I love my little daycare buddies.  But I'm no saint.  By the time we're heading down the last block toward home, I'm more than ready to take everybody's leash off, fill up the water bowls, and pass out treats.  It's just about this time that, as I have all the dog's waiting to cross the street ("wait" is the one thing they all do to perfection) someone walks by and says "Wow, what good dogs!  Wish my dog behaved like that!".  And I think, "Oh, you little angels!".