BW Sunday #3 - Contemplation in the Woods

FitDog Friday #2 - Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night

Since Mr. N joined our household two years ago, we have gone for a walk every single day (except for four days when he was injured or ill). "Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night" keeps us from those daily walks. Our biggest foe is usually rain but I have a pair of Hunter boots and Mr. N has four rain coats so we go out anyway. He doesn't like it when it is pouring but if it is misting (our normal weather), he puts up with it.

Mr. N in Michigan.

I'm glad August is coming to an end as a variety of circumstances have tried to conspire against us and our walks. It's not enough that we have to cope with an unusually warm summer (Pacific Northwest dogs are not accustomed to weather extremes of any kind). 

We started off August with Mr. N recovering from two foxtails (grass with barbs that burrows into animals' skin) which worked their way into his feet in July and caused a slight limp. 

Then Mr. N was almost attacked by a loose pit bull earlier this month. Luckily, he was not injured but he was really stressed for a day or two (reluctant to eat, throwing up and extra alert). It made me super paranoid for the next couple of days after the incident. I'm always paranoid about loose dogs in general but I was almost too afraid to take him out. 

Then he developed what looks to be a histiocytoma (benign skin tumor) on his foot. We've talked to the vet about it and it seems to be healing. He is currently wearing a boot on one foot. New fashion trend? 

And now according to our local Facebook group, there are two stray pit bulls roaming the neighborhood. They have been spotted at two of the three parks in walking distance. And yes, we do have a lot of irresponsible pit bull owners who live by us. 

Despite all of this, we have walked every single day this month. Do I want to put Mr. N into a protective bubble for walks? Yes. Are we ready for August to be over? Most definitely. And I think I need to bring in some baked goods the next time we visit the vet. 

What challenges have you and your dog(s) faced when trying to exercise?

Out for a walk and practicing "stay."

Wordless Wednesday #3 - Geography Lesson

This is where I live.

Mischief Monday #1 - Desperate Measures

Mr. N is generally a polite dog around food naturally (and some training to keep it that way). He curled up in my lap at an outdoor cafe while I ate a bacon and egg sandwich and didn't look up once. Let alone beg. But sometimes the inner demon just breaks loose. We were at a pet store meeting Mr. N's former foster (who we still keep in touch with). She brought along one of her dogs and a foster dog. We were planning to do some shopping then head out to the park for a play date.

The store staff started handing out treats to all three dogs who were thrilled by their captive audience and the treat bonanza. After awhile, Mr. N decided it was taking too long for his turn to come around and jumped over one of the other dogs to get the treat first.

We were too busy laughing to admonish him while he made off with the treat. In his defense, we never taught him that he shouldn't use other dogs as hurdles.

Primed for mischief. 

BW Sunday #2 - Watching Ducks

FitDog Friday #1 - Portion Control

Every morsel of food that goes in Mr. N's mouth is earned*. No freebies for being cute. Unless we're working on a new trick, it's usually a couple of tricks before he gets a treat. Sit. Down. Roll over. Dance. High five. Back. Spin.

He waits in either a sit or down stay for his meals for at least a minute. I'll do quick errands in the meantime like unloading the dishwasher or doing a load of laundry. He is expected to hold the position even when I am out of sight.

Working for food provides mental stimulation for Mr. N and helps us regulate his food intake. I usually have a prescribed amount of treats and we train until the treats run out. Sometimes I'll use part of his meal to train with if I think he has had too many calories for the day.

People (usually men) who watch me giving a treat to Mr. N will ask is that all you're giving him? Why yes. If I gave him "normal"-sized treats, he would be waddling instead of walking. I usually have to cut up the treats or tear them to the right size. They usually end up about half the size of a pencil eraser or smaller.

It's about quantity over quality. Dogs would rather have more small treats than a few big ones.

*Except for the food that he finds on the street. I have pried bacon from his mouth. He was not a happy pup. Who throws away bacon on the sidewalk?

What do you mean I can't eat all of these?

Wordless Wednesday #2- View from the Coast

I like long walks on the beach.





Tricks for a treat

When we first met Mr. N, he knew how to sit, high five, dance and his name. Since then, his repertoire has increased by leaps and bounds. High five is still a crowd favorite though.

I teach with a clicker (to mark the desired behavior) and use a combination of shaping (breaking down a behavior into tiny steps and rewarding them for each step towards the desired behavior) and luring. Mr. N understands that the click means he is doing something I want him to do and he will be rewarded. Usually with food. 

His favorites are anything with meat in them. He used to eat fruits and vegetables but since he started eating raw, he turns up his little nose at them. We're always looking for new training treats especially those that come in bite size pieces or can be divided easily.

Shaping box behaviors.

We work on a couple of things at once. Right now, we're working on beg, figure eights around my legs and go to your bed from twenty feet away. 

Some tricks are much easier than others. I didn't even have to teach him to walk on his hind legs. He does it occasionally out of excitement and I just put it on cue. Teaching him how to back up took forever. Forever being about two or three weeks.

Mr. N find shaping frustrating sometimes because he likes being right. Lack of direction drives him crazy. He sits there and whines and is like what do you want me to do? He's slowly starting to offer some behaviors unsolicited during our shaping exercises.

The pre-agility class we took was small and consisted of Mr. N and a papillon. The instructor watched both of them work and commented that the papillon is a "flinger" where he offers a bunch of behaviors to figure out what his owner wants and that Mr. N is a "thinker."

What do thinking dogs do? They try to outsmart you. One day, we were working on shaping closing a door and he was getting frustrated. So he decides to speed the process up. He walks over to me and paws the clicker in my hand. Once it clicks, he looks up at me expectantly, waiting for his treat.

This is why people say it's easier to train a dumb dog than a smart one.

Mr. N during our first session of learning how to close a door.

BW Sunday #1 - Fairy Breath of Summer

Mr. N's Origin Story

As with most rescue dogs, Mr. N's life history before he joined our family is spotty. This is what we know.
I refer to his early years as his "Oliver Twist puppyhood." His first family had him from a puppy until he was two. The adults were working long hours and going back to school and he was crated 10-16 hours a day. He also suffered through being stepped on twice by their children which resulted in a leg fracture. Luckily, they had a Banfield Wellness Plan for him.

Eventually they decided that this lifestyle wasn't the best for him and surrendered Mr. N to his foster.

Completely shaved down and wrapped in clothing.

When he arrived at his foster family's house, he had to be shaved down due to mats in his hair. She had to put two layers of clothing on him to compensate as it was the middle of winter. Mr. N was too afraid to take treats from people's hands. Toys were foreign. He didn't know what to do with them. He wasn't housebroken or neutered.

He was also underweight by two pounds or so. Currently, he teeters between 6.5 to 7 pounds depending on the day. When you're that size, two pounds is a significant amount of weight to lose.

His owners were feeding him chicken kibble and he wouldn't eat it. Before having a dog, I thought that if you put food out for a dog, they would eventually eat it if they got hungry enough. And then I met Mr. N. He disdains kibble. Even the expensive, organic, grain-free kinds. He might eat a mouthful or two if he was really hungry but he never ate as much he was supposed to.

He was with his foster family for almost a year. With much love, time and effort on their part, he slowly became rehabilitated. Now, he loves taking treats from anyone. Even babies.

She has food! I love food. 

 And toys are scattered all about our floor. I really must teach him how to put toys back in his toy box one of these days.

What should I play with today?

Wordless Wednesday #1- Leave It

Can I eat now?

Dual Personality

Hobbits happily whittle away their hours with breakfast, second breakfast, elevensies, luncheon, afternoon tea, dinner and supper. Mr. N does the same only with various forms of sleep. Although he wouldn't say no to seven meals a day.

His day goes something like this: first nap, second nap, morning respite, siesta, afternoon rest, post-dinner doze and bedtime. In between, we manage to work in walks, play time and training.

In the middle of his siesta.

He is quite happy to sleep past noon aside from a quick bathroom break and breakfast. But as soon as he senses there might be a possible walk in his future, he dashes out of bed. We're very grateful for his excellent off switch.

I joke that his Yorkie side (all terrier) takes over outdoors and his Maltese side (lap dog) indoors. A few days ago, we walked down to the park and he was literally running circles around a Shepherd mix.

People who see him in one setting don't believe how he is in the other setting. I took Mr. N with me to a botanical garden and met up with a friend there. I was telling her how he naps most of the time at home and she was astounded. A recent house guest only saw the pup at night throughout his stay and told us that Mr. N was so quiet and good.

It's a good thing he sleeps so much. I don't know what we would do with him otherwise. One day we took him for a seven-mile hike, he sprinted after other dogs in the park for about 45 minutes and he came home wanting to play with his toys.

How do you wear out your dogs?

Mr. N at the summit