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Dogs in General

Info, Tips, Health

Thinking of Adding a Dog With Young Children in the Home? Here’s an Important Check List.

dogkid1When is the right time to bring a new puppy or dog into the family?

Rarely is someone in the position of being in the perfect time/perfect place — home most of the time, big fenced yard, older or no children, significant dog experience, familiarity and experience with the intended breed, etc. But there are varying degrees of “the right time” based on the individual’s experience and life situation, which should include some combination of the aforementioned.

There are also … Read More

How to Choose and Introduce a New Dog to an Old Dog

From the Mail Bag: Renee asks: I have a mini Aussie a little over a year old. I’ve been thinking of getting another dog as a companion for her. I am home most of the time, so I have time for two. I play with Sierra a few times a day throwing Frisbee, etc. but she still badgers me to play at times when I’m busy. I thought having another dog may be good for her. My sister visits every Read More

Dog Separation Anxiety– How to Help

One of my blog buds has asked about Separation Anxiety, so I thought I’d share some info on what has helped two of my dogs who had Separation Anxiety.

First, let me state, I am neither a professional trainer, behaviorist, nor vet. Anything shared here should be run by your own team of professionals. It’s also just plain helpful to include their support and knowledge in your program.

Depending on the severity of the Separation Anxiety (SA), there are several … Read More

How to Find a Good Dog Trainer

There are lots of trainers out there. Some certified, some not. Some positive, some traditional. Some good, and some bad. So how do you go about finding a good one that meshes with your values on dog rearing and training protocols?

If you’ve been a regular reader of this blog, you know that I favor relationship-based training. And you also know that I don’t think very much of Cesar Millan’s, or Jon Katz’s approaches to training. Just stating my … Read More

How to Introduce a Kitten to a Dog

I’ve received several requests asking that I share how I introduced Finnegan, our Maine Coon cat to Kiera and Graidy, our two dogs at the time (Wink came after Finn).

First, a little background. When Kiera was a puppy, we had a cat with whom she got along just fine. And Graidy had been tested on cats by his rescue group. So I knew that both dogs, even with high prey drives, stood a good chance of eventually being fine … Read More

Scientists Decode Dogspeak

From LiveScience:   Scientists Decode Dogspeak: Software analyzed barks sparked by fights, strangers, playtime

 

Artificially intelligent Dr. Doolittles can understand dog barks as well or better than humans do.

These findings suggest computers might significantly help people comprehend animal communication.

Scientists tested artificially intelligent software on more than 6,000 barks from 14 Hungarian sheepdogs. Six different kinds of barks were taped:

Read More

Crufts 2010 Freestyle Winner

Crufts is the largest dog show in the world. It’s held in March every year. And while it has all the usual judging of Best of Breed, etc., I love watching the agility and freestyle parts of the program. Talk about a working and playing partnership with your dog…!

Here are this year’s winners, Richard and Pogo, of the HTM (heelwork to music) Freestyle.

And Mary Ray is one of my favorite performers. Simply amazing.

Read More
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