The Dog Blog

It is simply amazing how technology has allowed us to control and manage nearly ever facet of our lives for our convenience. We multi-task at work and at home, programming the TiVo, the Roomba robotic vacuum, even our preferred ring tones, etc. In our world, where everything is prerecorded, edited, and set to our specifications, I'm seeing more new pet parents whose lives are strict routines in which their time is critical.

Not surprisingly, a new puppy or dog coming into their lives can present major inconveniences in their compartmentalized lives. They discover that the wants and needs of their new pup cannot be programmed or scheduled as easily as the TiVo. The dog's needs happen at all hours, even at 4:30am to use the potty. This was not on the agenda!

In 1990, I wrote an article entitled, Eugenics or Dysgenics, for my Behavior column in the American Kennel Club’s Gazette. Since then, the problem of inbreeding and the resultant health problems and decreased life-expectancy of pure-bred dogs have worsened considerably, largely due to the over-breeding of a small number of males in any breed.

Last night, the BBC aired a documentary entitled Pedigree Dogs Exposed — the results of a two-year investigation into dog health. The program showed Boxers with epilepsy, Pugs with breathing difficulties, Bulldogs who were unable to mate or give birth without assistance, plus a prize-winning Cavalier King Charles Spaniel with a condition that occurs when the dog’s skull is too small for the brain.

Accept, as I do, that among the wonderful features of the creatures that they are, dogs are creatures of habit and habits can be formed in a variety of ways. Further, since they inhabit our homes and lives, it is our job and responsibility to shape them into what we want (using positive methods of course). It seems to me a wise thought that once shaped into your minimum standards, that you use powers of observation to note mutations as they might occur and decide if they are

a) beneficial or useful or desired in which case you randomly reward them;
b) neutral/don't matter and no one gets hurt and you can reward or ignore; or
c) behaviors that probably should be redirected/reformed because someone can be annoyed or worse -- it can be downright dangerous for either dog or others.

Trainers often complain about owner non-compliance and lament the inability to inspire a sense of urgency in new puppy owners. It’s not that trainers don’t like people (for the most part), but it is that trainers often see the sad results of an under-socialized, shy, untrained dog when adolescence comes storming through the door. We know that every puppy, no matter how cute, is at risk of losing its home if certain things don’t happen within a certain timeframe.

Wilson came to my Adolescent Manners class when he was on the brink of his 16th week. He was painfully shy. He was interested in the other dogs, but far too nervous to play. He wasn’t entirely keen on being handled by new people either.

The other day I was with a client with two 4 month old golden retriever puppies that needed some training attention. I was asking my routine questions of the owners when the puppies broke out in a play session. Suddenly one puppy was screaming while on top of the other. We rushed over and saw the top puppy had gotten his bottom jaw caught in the other dogs collar. Fortunatly we seperated them without incident and no one had any serious injuries. Had we not been there however it could have had a much different outcome.

We in the dog world have all heard the stories warning of this common danger yet few of us have actually witnessed it. I can assure you however, once you do it will change the way you look at those collars.

For over a century, there has been a tremendous debate regarding human behavior and personality—neatly called “Nature versus Nurture.” The central question is ‘what is more important to determining personality—a person’s genetics or how he was raised?”

Though the jury is still out regarding people, this debate was settled a long time ago in the animal kingdom. Anyone who has cared for creatures of any kind knows that animals are born with the foundation of their ‘personality.’

In other words, a pet’s nature tends to closely resemble the parents’ natures. Anxious animal parents are more likely to have anxious offspring. Our ancestors understood this by domesticating pets through selectively breeding the social animals in order to create more social offspring.

5 AM. I wake up to Lassie's nails clicking on the floor (wasn't I going to trim them last night?) as a boom of thunder shakes the farmhouse. Damn. Why is it that Lassie's slight discomfort of storms has become more serious as her hearing degrades? Surely it should go the other way around.

A puppy nips incessantly. An adolescent dog jumps up and practically knocks guests over. A pushy adult grabs food out of a child’s hand. Are these dogs aggressive? No. Obnoxious? Yes. In need of manners training? Absolutely! But they are not aggressive in the true sense of the word.

True aggression carries an intention to cause harm. Unfortunately, although many dog owners notice signs of escalating threatening behavior, nothing is done until there is an actual bite. Sometimes, if the dog is only biting family members, the behavior is tolerated until the dog bites someone outside the family, as that carries the threat of legal action.

One of the thrills for me in conducting seminars is that I get to meet new people. Meeting “seasoned” trainers which have a few years on them, much like me is a real treat as we can discuss the “old days.” But even more enjoyable for me is to meet the new trainer; the future of our business.

The British are known as being a rather reserved bunch. We like tea and roast beef. We enjoy reading the newspapers on Sunday and moaning about the weather. We applaud stiff upper lips and not making a fuss. We love our dogs, and we regard them as important family members. Mostly though, we like them to cause us minimum embarrassment in social circles. In practice, this means saying hello politely to other dogs in the park, playing nicely when we have time (but not if we don’t) and being calm and sensible when visitors arrive at the house. Without wishing to make it sound as if we are all suffering from some form of insidious national neurosis, being British means enjoying a semblance of gentle control.