Happy Doggies Make Happy Humans

Benefits of Dog Ownership--Dog Pack Energy

 

When people talk about the delights of having a dog as a member of their familly, they usually talk about the dog-human relationship. I'm grateful for the way our dogs provide us humans with ways to spontaneously get together and share our moments of the day. 

Our neighborhood dog pack is not nearly so orderly as the one in this photo. In ours, the number of dogs and type of dogs vary. We've got humans who are part of the pack as well. Membership varies, and is pretty much determined by when our dog walking times coincide.

 Last Friday evening about 6pm brought our pack of dogs and humans together.

I was walking Krystal, and suddenly she went on alert and began straining at her leash. I looked around, and sure enough, there was Krystal's friend Ruby--a rambunctious black Labrador Retriever. About that time, Ruby spotted Krystal and began straining on her leash. It was a lovefest.

Michele and I greeted each other while we watched our dogs go through their greeting rituals. We started chatting, dispensing treats and enjoying the soft warm weather.

In a short period of time, we were joined by a few more humans. Our pack energy began to flow. While the dogs relaxed on the grassy hill we humans began to share.

I was glad Krystal and Ruby were enjoying each other. Krystal had been on alert for the past few days. Jack the 13 week old German Shepherd puppy (who must weigh about 30 lbs) had been so glad  to see Krystal that in his puppy joy and entusiasm he pouced right on top of her. 11 lb Krystal was not pleased--in fact she felt physically threatened.

I shared how happy I was that Krystal's sense of self was returning and she could enjoy her time with Ruby, a much bigger dog--even bigger than Jack the German Shepherd puppy.

Michelle and her husband shared their weekend plans to go to Charlotte and take their nephew to lunch to celebrate his 21st birthday. They couldn't leave until about 11am on Sat, because Michelle wanted to do her water aerobics class first. We all agreed that was a good idea. I added I was going to Tai Chi on Saturday morning.

James and his wife were headed off Virginia Beach to visit a newly arrived baby in their family. James and I discovered we both do stuff on the Internet, so we had a short geeky conversation about that. In the background I could hear Maureen observing about our conversation to Michelle and her husband.

For her part, Maureen had joined us for the dogs. She's cared for both of them, so they know and love her. She was headed off to Philadelphia for a week's vacation. She wanted to say good bye to Krystal and  Ruby, and get slobber kisses and hugs from both.

I'm grateful for the dog pack energy the dogs bring us. Their gift is bringing us together and providing ways for us to step out of our busy lives, join in pleasant conversation and share with one another. What a wonderful gift.

Thanks dogs. I really like living life in a doggish manner.

Photo by: dregsplod

Bo Arrives at the White House

It's been a long wait, since that election night promise. Finally Bo, the Obama's new Portugese Water Dog has arrived. I've got to say, I love those white sox!

He did rather well, for his first public appearance. He was bouncy and enthusiastic. Those are traits I've seen in other Portugese Water Dogs. Best of all, he didn't freak out with all those cameras and lights.

Did you see Malia getting little Bo to sit? She did it perfectly. She sat in front of Bo while holding a treat, then she raised her hand up. It took several times for Bo to be able to focus on Malia and the treat. But, when he did, his little head followed Malia's hand up as he reached for the treat. And, his little rump went right down on the ground. Malia let out a proud shout, "Oh, good boy!", letting Bo know he had done exactly what she wanted him to do.

While many people are complaining that the Obama's didn't adopt a shelter dog, I'm fine with that. They did what was right for their family. That's what's most important. They researched the dog world, and found the type of dog that was best for them. They had friends helping them find the right dog to invite into their home. And, during this short film clip the girls shared some of what they learned--Malia succeeded in getting Bo to sit, and Sasha shared that Portugese Water Dogs have to be taught how to swim.

It's exciting to watch this family welcome their new dog into their lives. My dog Krystal and I wish them all the best and happiest of times together.

We're also hoping other families find it in their hearts to adopt a dog! It's a wonderful experience.

Oprah's Guide to Adopting a Pet

If you were watching Oprah on Thursday, you were in for a treat. She's added a new family member by adopting an 8 week old puppie, a blond Cocker Spaniel named Sadie.

You could tell Oprah was absolutely delighted to have Sadie in her family. Her happiness was contagious, bringing back memories for me of when I adopted my dog Krystal from a shelter in South Carolina.

Sadie found Oprah during a photo-shoot Oprah was doing at her shelter in Chicago. There were apparently a bunch of dogs for the photos, which will accompany an upcoming O article on adopting shelter dogs. In that special way that dogs have, Sadie latched on to Oprah and nuzzled her way into Oprah's heart.

From the looks of things, Sadie will fit in perfectly with Oprah's media live-style. When the producer brought Sadie onto to the stage, she was a cool composed puppy. Sadie didn't appear to be the least bit phased by all the lights, audience applause, and people calling her name. On top of that, she looked absolutely wonderful in her little spring coat, a Ralph Lauren selection.

Here's the great news. Oprah.com has an entire section on adopting a pet. I've spent some time looking through the content, and I really recommend you spend some time there, especially if you are considering bringing a new pet into your family.

One of the things that makes me feel really good is that Oprah's got all her pet information in the "family relationships" category of her website. She really honors her pets as true family members.

Which Puppy for the White House?

It's refreshing to focus on matters of the heart.

These days the web is filled with people who start out talking about President-elect Obama's promise to his daughters. But they actually end up writing about their first dog, their first puppy. The love for those dogs comes bouncing over the Internet and fills my heart.

I saw a TV news report last night which featured the head of the American Kennel Club (AKC). His office was filled with puppies of all breeds, pure bred and mixed. The pups were bouncing around in that special way they have. I was thoroughly entranced, smiling at all that vivacious puppy energy coming across the airwaves of the nightly news. 

This is a good thing! After this long, contentious Presidential campaign, it's wonderful that we can let our hearts be filled with sweet doggie memories and puppy love.

Many people are weighing in on exactly the type of dog the Obama family should bring into their lives--dog or puppy, shelter or privately bred, pure breed, mixed or mutt. I'm sure there are a few options I've left out.

My hearty suggestion is that the Obama family adopt the dog that is right for them.

With asthma in the household, we've been told they've already begun researching the best breeds for their needs.

This is exactly the approach I recommend.

1) Describe what your own needs are, what your lifestyle is like, what kind of life you live.

2) From that information, describe the kind of life you can offer a dog.

3) Find out what types of dogs fit the kind of life you are offering.

4) When you have your list--go for it. When you find the right dog, you'll know!

One of my favorite ebooks is How to Choose the Right Dog For You.

This book helps people go through the process of figuring out what kind of life they can offer a dog, and which type of dog can fit that lifestyle. It's well written and thorough, but not at all overwhelming.

In the beginning, the author says,

"I've seen so many mismatched pairings of owner and dog over the years troop in and out of my sight that I finally gave in to the pleadings of my best friend and decided to put down on paper what knowledge I have collected, with the thought of helping fellow dog lovers to find the best pairing of dog for them." 

There would be a lot more happy dogs and happy humans if everyone looking for a dog took time to read How to Choose the Right Dog for You.

My dog Krystal adds:

"Two paws up! A dog who comes into the home of someone who read this book will surely be happy."

 

Socializing Your Puppy for Health and Happiness

I've got some important new information that updates my previous post Puppy Love.

In that post I had seen a number of new puppies being walked in public parks by their humans. I was concerned for the puppies' health, since their immune systems are not yet fully developed. I researched on the web, and didn't really find anything specifically telling folks to keep their pups away from public places. So I consulted a vet who gave some clear directions.

• A puppy should have its full set of vaccinations before being socialized--that is usually completed by around 16 weeks of age.
• Any social benefits derived from earlier socialization are offset by the risk of catching a potentially life-threatening illness.

This weekend I attended a workshop conducted by the Animal Behavior Service at the College of Veterinary Medicine, North Carolina State University.

Dr Barbara Sherman, Director of the Animal Behavior Service, gave a presentation on Living in Harmony with Puppies, which brought together several important pieces of scientific information.

The period of 3-16 weeks marks a puppy's prime learning period for socialization. This means it's the most important time in a puppy's life for developing socializing skills with their mom, other puppies, dogs, children, human adults, and other animals.

In fact, this is a critical period of the puppy's life.

• A rich social life during this critical period immeasurably helps the dog in all social aspects of its future life.
• A lack of socialization during this critical period can handicap a dog for its entire life--including  behavior problems whose effects can multiply over time.

The seriousness of this situation is that behavior problems are the leading cause of death for dogs, with millions of them being euthanized every year for that reason--they never developed the social skills to get along.

So how do you balance socialization needs with physical health needs?

You provide play opportunities and contact with friendly well-vaccinated dogs and puppies. Be selective. Don't go to the park for puppy socialization.

• Friendly, easy going,calm adult dogs who allow puppies to explore and play in their adorable puppy ways.
• Puppy classes that ensure all participants are vaccinated are excellent ways for pups to learn to play with one another in positive environments.

Additionally, during this socialization period,it's important to provide positive experiences by having your puppy gently handled by your children. If you don't have children in your household, you can import them from your neighborhood.

I'll provide more information on puppy socialization in future posts.

Puppy Love

Updated important information on puppy health and socialization is available in Socializing Your Puppy for Health and Happiness.

There seem to be lots of new puppies around these days. I'm concerned about their health.

I started noticing them just after Thanksgiving. In really cold damp weather at an art fair here in town I saw the absolutely cutest 7 week old rottweiler. We all petted him, he looked like a miniature bear.

Then my neighbors rescued a 6 week old border collie / lab mix. A gift for their 9 year old son, they adopted the puppy a few weeks before Christmas thinking they could keep him as a surprise until Christmas day. That didn't work, and the pup and his new family were walking around the neighborhood meeting all the local dogs.

Krystal and I have a favorite local park we go to several times a week, and we met a 6 week old cockapoo puppy on one of our walks.

Yesterday, being New Year's Day, dogs and their humans were enjoying the sun and walking around a local lake. We met at least 3 young puppies, one of them a charming Boston Terrier who was so small he was using a cat collar.

After each one of these delightful encounters, I'm always asking myself, why are these puppies out and about? Don't their humans know that young pups don't have fully developed immune systems? Don't they know there's a risk of the puppy catching a potentially life-threatening illness from other dogs?

This morning I did some Google searching, and found only one site mentioning that puppies need to be kept at home until they were 4 months old. No reason was given, however. I went to Ask.com, and had the same results.

There's a reason people don't know this. It's not written about. I looked at a lot of dog sites, some run by veterinarians, and no one mentioned it. These sites did say puppies need to get their shots. But only one site mentioned waiting until the puppy is 16 weeks old to begin socialization.

So I ended up contacting a vet to see if my information was out of date, if there was new thinking on this matter. The vet was very clear--

• A puppy should have its full set of vaccinations before being socialized--that is usually completed by around 16 weeks of age.
• Any social benefits derived from earlier socialization are offset by the risk of catching a potentially life-threatening illness.

With that resolved, the question becomes, is there a polite way to inform these new puppy owners about this health practice of waiting until a puppy is 16 weeks old before socialization? Any ideas on the best way to handle this without coming across as a know it all? What's your experience? Please comment.

Updated important information on puppy health and socialization is available in Socializing Your Puppy for Health and Happiness.