BW Sunday #59 - Weaver

Mr. N at an art fair

FitDog Friday #48 - Think Lost Dog, Not Stray

I think it's safe to say that most people find Mr. N adorable. He is blessed with stuffed animal looks. He of course thinks that everyone should find him adorable but I'll leave some leeway in there for people who find Mr. N's looks to not be their cup of tea.

It takes time and grooming and baths and dry weather to keep him looking that way.

Long-haired dogs (especially the ones with hair) start to look grungy fast. If it is raining hard or he goes swimming or he hikes in the mud, he looks like a grubby orphan puppy and not a dog who has a home. 

Proof.

Orphan Mr. N. Clearly no one feeds him or bathes him or takes care of him.

He could be lost for a few minutes in the rain and people would think that he's a stray dog whose owners haven't been taking care of him. 

Not to mention he runs thin and when he's wet, he shrinks dramatically to where he's pretty much all skin and bones. It's easy to see how people would think he's starved especially as many people have obese dogs they think are normal. 

So if you find a stray dog, and they are injured or thin or filthy, don't assume that they've been abused and abandoned! They could have been lost for some time or if they are like Mr. N,  minutes would do. 

Think lost, not stray! 

Wordless Wednesday #55 - Don't Look Behind You

BW Sunday #58 - A Pirate's Life for Me

FitDog Friday #47 - Shaping with a Box

You discover many things when you train late at night. Like the fact that when Mr. N sits or steps on bubble wrap, it doesn't pop. Why was he sitting on bubble wrap at midnight? 

Next month's Positive Pet Training Blog Hop theme (co-hosted with Cascadian Nomads and Dachshund Nola) is Positive Training Fun with a Box! 101 things to do with a box is a clicker and shaping game where you treat the dog for any interactions with the box and shape it into a useful (or not so useful) trick. 

Mr. N's default box behavior is to get in and sit in it. 

Your dog may prefer to paw, pick up or sniff the box. Whatever it is, short of outright destruction, it's good! It's the beginning step into shaping a behavior. 

And then you can expand into all sorts of other props and behaviors. Like sitting on top of the Boo Bucket that Mr. N won from Jones Natural Chews. Warning: this is not recommended for dogs just learning to shape. The bucket still has all the treats in it and dogs may decide to just tear the lid off and graze on all the treats instead of working.

I admit to giving Mr. N a "paw up" with that particular pose. He'll jump on top of the box on cue but it's a little unwieldy without practice to jump up on the bucket as well.  

I hope you'll consider joining us for the training hop on Oct 6th (first Monday of the month). Mental exercise is just as important for dogs as physical exercise!

Wordless Wednesday #54 - Doggie Zen

Monday Mischief #45 - Protecting your dog from dog attacks

I've been thinking about how far you would go to defend your dog from another dog for the past week or two ever since I read the story about Clara, a pit bull up for adoption at Petsmart who slipped her collar and attacked a Westie. The Westie's owner stabbed Clara and she was later euthanized (there are various polarizing details but I'm not going to go into them, I've linked to the story).

It's a sad situation all around what happened at Petsmart. And a preventable one. Why would you bring a known dog aggressive dog there and with flimsy equipment?

Mr. N has almost been attacked three times. A couple of dogs escaped their yard and the pit bull came charging at Mr. N. I yanked him up by his leash and screamed and the dog's owner's relatives and a neighbor came running and corralled the dogs.

Another time a stray pit bull was walking down the street. We were about maybe twenty feet away from the dog (he hadn't spotted us yet) when he saw a black dog across the street and ran across the street to attack it. The cops came and took the pit bull to animal control where the owner later reclaimed him (in both cases, the owners said they were pit bulls so it's not just my guess at the breed).

We were at the park and a sight hound mix pinned Mr. N after Mr. N barked at him for almost running him over. The dog wouldn't let go even when Mr. N yelped so I had to run over (I was picking up after Mr. N so I was distracted for a few seconds) and yank him off.

I think it's safe to say that all three times I wasn't thinking rationally. I was in the middle of an adrenaline rush and I wasn't thinking about anything beyond protecting Mr. N. I wasn't worrying about getting bitten or anything else.

If Mr. N was (significantly) bigger, he might have a chance at staying alive but as things are, one good bite or shake and he would be dead. It would be over in a matter of seconds.

I don't know what exactly I would do if I was at that Petsmart but I would try to protect Mr. N, no matter what. And I don't carry any sort of weapon with me so I really don't know what I would do.

What would you do to defend your dog(s)?

BW Sunday #57 - Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head

Hiking with Small Dogs

Mr. N is usually the smallest dog on the trail. I've had people ask if we carried him up and I reply that he considers that an insult. I never have to pick him up unless we're around horses. He finds them irresistible.

He weighs about seven pounds soaking wet and he has hiked for twenty miles and still wanted to keep going. Small dogs are perfectly capable of hiking if they are healthy and in shape.

Getting ready to hike Latourell Falls

I find that hiking with a small dog is not much different than hiking with a big dog. We usually go hiking with Sage (Border Collie/Kelpie) and Sage's human doesn't do or pack anything different than I do usually except for extra water for Sage. Mr. N has absolutely no problem keeping up with Sage. In fact, he usually wants to walk ahead of her.

I take the following on day hikes: small first aid kit, a small H204K9 water bottle, a fleece and/or raincoat depending on the weather, or his cooling vest during the summer and high protein treats.

In the car, I try to remember to keep a spare towel and water-less shampoo because Mr. N is often filthy after hiking. Hazard of being close to the ground. He currently wears a Seresto collar to ward off fleas and ticks.

Mr. N is walked on a harness anyway because of the risk of collapsed trachea (various toy breeds are prone to this) but a harness is especially handy on hikes. I've had to haul Mr. N up by his harness because he tried to dive off a cliff in pursuit of a squirrel.

I don't think boots are necessary for normal hikes unless you're hiking somewhere extremely rocky, your dog has soft paw pads or you're hiking for extended periods. Mr. N walks on pavement all the time so his pads are pretty hardy.

If your small dog isn't used to hiking, I would start with short and easy hikes to build up stamina before tackling harder ones. And keep an eye out to make sure they're not overheated or too tired. Watch for wildlife (hawks, coyotes, etc.) and inspect their paws and fur afterwards to check for burrs, other vegetation or rocks.

Wordless Wednesday #53 - Dog on a Log

Monday Mischief #44 - Dogs Just Want to Have Fun

Normally, it's Sage who finds something disgusting to roll around in. Mr. N decided it was his turn and found a nice pile of horse manure on the trail.

And proceeded to roll around in it.

And roll some more. Sage joined in for a little bit.

He was totally gross and got dunked in the river to clean the worst of it off. I told him, he can have his fun but there are consequences!

Mr. N was due for a bath anyway so I let him roll around in it but he had to sit in the "seat of shame" on the way home.

What do your dogs find to roll around in?