A vaccination that protects against a virus may contain a killed (inactivated) strain of the virus or a live but weakened (attenuated) strain of the virus. The latter are also called modified live virus (MLV) vaccines. Often, several virus antigens are combined in one "shot", and vaccines are available that contain varying number of antigens in many different combinations. Some contain as many as nine disease antigens! - and not all of them are necessary to protect all dogs.
Canine viruses have existed for thousands of years. Today we have tools to combat and prevent many of the diseases they cause. But despite this, viruses linger and mutate in wildlife and domestic dog reservoirs, so it’s important to understand how they work and how to prevent them.
Viruses are not actually living organisms. Containing only one piece of genetic information – either DNA or RNA – they require a host cell to survive and reproduce.
Once in the body, the virus hijacks normal cells and uses them to reproduce. Eventually, the host cells become overwhelmed with new particles and explode, releasing more virus into the bloodstream. The cycle continues. Every system in the body, from the skin to the brain, can be affected by viruses.
Viruses are spread by a variety of mechanisms. In dogs, these include aerosolized droplets from barking, coughing, and sneezing; saliva transmission via bite wounds; and the fecal-oral route (this occurs when a dog eats or licks the feces of an infected host). Urine, ocular, and nasal discharge can also lead to exposure in some cases. Fomites (inanimate surfaces such as bowls, beds, crates, kennel walls and doors, leashes, and grooming equipment) also play an important role in transmission of disease.
Once exposed to a virus, it can take anywhere from a day to weeks for symptoms to manifest, depending on the particular virus.
PREVENTION
There are many ways to prevent infection. Keeping your dog healthy and fit with regular exercise and an excellent diet is the best way to promote a robust immune system. It’s also important to keep up with routine treatments that prevent infections by parasites, such as gastrointestinal worms, heartworms, fleas, and ticks, since the burden of parasites can sap the dog’s health and vitality.
Avoiding social situations where dogs with illness may be present is another good idea. When considering boarding and daycare facilities, choose one with strict sanitation policies and vaccine requirements. Since many canine viruses can be transmitted via infected bodily fluids such as feces and urine, as well as on fomites like water and food bowls, cleanliness is important in limiting spread of disease.
It’s also critical to keep your dog home if she manifests any signs of illness.
Vaccines are a safe and effective way to protect your dog and are available for almost all of the major canine diseases caused by viruses. Vaccinations are not “one size fits all,” and you should work closely with your veterinarian to determine which vaccines are most needed for your dog.
All puppies should receive a series of vaccines until they are 16 weeks of age. Vaccines are generally given again a year later, and, according to the the most commonly accepted canine vaccination guidelines, every three years after that.
Some dogs should not be vaccinated on this schedule. This includes dogs with immune-mediated diseases, like hemolytic anemia and dogs with a history of severe vaccine reactions. Some vaccines may be discontinued for senior dogs after a certain age, depending on lifestyle. Titers are another method that has been utilized to determine when vaccination is necessary. (See “Taking the Titer Test,” WDJ June 2014.)
WHY RISK IT?
Prognosis and recovery from a virus is highly dependent on the causes. The rabies virus, for instance, is universally fatal. Other viruses, like parainfluenza (a mild, often asymptomatic upper respiratory tract infection), may never cause any illness.
As always, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure with regard to viruses.
After nine years in emergency medicine, Catherine Ashe, DVM, now works as a relief veterinarian in Asheville, NC.
Training ourselves (and our family and friends) to stop reinforcing our dogs' unwanted behaviors is a significant part of the challenge.
Ignoring should work, right? One of the first bits of behavior science that we pick up as dog trainers is that behavior is driven by consequences.
• If something good happens after a behavior, that behavior is likely to be repeated.
• If something bad happens, the behavior may diminish.
• And if nothing happens at all after a behavior, there’s often no point to the behavior. It may well fade away.
Those are all true statements. So if a dog greets us by jumping in the air and pounding us with his front feet, or barks demandingly as we prepare his meal, how come he doesn’t quit when we ignore the naughtiness?
KEYS TO UNDERSTANDING
When seeking to change behavior, we start by identifying and describing the behavior. Then we seek to identify the consequence that is driving the behavior. We identify antecedents: We note the situations and environments in which the behavior is likely to occur. We then create a plan to change the consequences and/or the antecedents in order to change the behavior.
I’m going to describe five reasons why “ignoring” may fail as a strategy; each corresponds to failures in a behavior-change plan. They may occur because we fail to identify the consequences that could be driving the behavior. They may occur because we misidentified the emotional state of the dog (an error in identifying an antecedent). Or they may fail because our plan was not complete or we just couldn’t carry it out. Here are five common ways the “ignoring” plan can fail:
1. Other reinforcers are present. A very common reason why ignoring fizzles as a strategy is that paying attention to the dog is not the reinforcer of the undesired behavior in the first place, or it is not the only reinforcer.
The classic example of this is the behavior of jumping to greet. Surely part of the reason a dog jumps on his owner or arriving visitors is to interact with them. It is so tempting to assume that if we remove that interaction –
if we look away, turn away, and don’t speak to him – he will quit that annoying jumping. Good luck with that, though; it rarely works by itself.
The dogs who continue to jump when ignored – what are they getting out of it? One consequence is that they get closer to our faces. We are vertical creatures and it takes a good jump to get up to where the action is!
Also, we have to consider that the behavior just may feel good to the dog, even when he’s being ignored. It’s fun for dogs to use humans as a backstop or a launching pad! Jumping may also be driven by anxiety or over-arousal.
If we use ignoring for the dog who barks demandingly for his meal, we are even more off-track. What is the ultimate reinforcer that results from meal preparation? Food!
Wise trainers pay close attention to what their dogs are doing for the period before such a big reinforcer. Barking, twirling, head butting, hand nuzzling, getting underfoot in the kitchen, and jumping can all be beautifully maintained by the presentation of a meal’s worth of food at the end of it all. You can get any of those behaviors without paying any attention to the dog. Consequently, removing the attention does nothing to decrease the behaviors.
2. People are confused about what, exactly, constitutes “ignoring.” It’s difficult to define and hard to carry out! Ignoring might work in a few more cases – if only we really knew how to do it. Also, it’s hard to define the term “to ignore” without using negatives; you don’t do this; you don’t do that . . . .
What you do is to proceed as if the dog, with her annoying behavior, is not there. That’s hard, especially if the dog is making physical contact with you. And there’s some truth to the “don’ts” in the common definition. It can take as little as a quick glance from us to connect with our dog. They are the world’s best noticers! That quick look, that “Oof” noise, that lurching body movement you might make – all those can be responses to the dog. They affected your behavior and they noticed!
And then there are the things we sometimes try to get them to stop. Turning our backs just gives them a clearer vertical surface to carom off of. Pushing them away – what a fun game! For some dogs, even being yelled at is more enjoyable than being truly ignored.
There are some dogs out there for whom certain behaviors are so driven by attention that ignoring could work. But a good trainer would use it as only part of a strategy for behavior change – and it still has to be done correctly. A great trainer friend of mine teaches her clients a targeting behavior when she implements that plan for dogs who jump. But the behavior is not for the dog; it’s for the person! She teaches her human clients to make eye contact with her (if she is present) or read a magazine (if the client is home alone). It gives them an alternative behavior so they don’t look at the dog.
But that is only a part of the training plan. The dog is learning a behavior, too. She and her client are working on reinforcing a more acceptable behavior that doesn’t include knocking down visitors.
3 We don’t ignore the dog for a sufficiently long period. Even in situations where ignoring might work, we have a hard time sticking with it long enough.
Here’s a different behavioral example: Let’s say your tiny dog has learned to get attention by pawing at your leg. Perhaps she gets picked up, petted, spoken to, or even fed from the table when she does that. How many hundreds of times has that worked for her in your life together?
Now turn it around. How many hundreds of times have your responses to her been reinforced? Hundreds! Dogs are masters of negative reinforcement. They learn to bug us until we do something, then stop (for a while). That’s how your own habit of response got built and firmed up.
It’s jarring for some of us when we realize that to change our dog’s behavior, we have to change our own. After all those repetitions, how are you going to remember never again to respond to the adorable paw-on-the-leg behavior? Perhaps you’ll blow it when you are talking on the phone or messing around on social media. There’s that little foot. You reach down and – darn! You kept the behavior alive.
Even if you are an expert at changing your own behavior, if you can make a plan and stick to it – how about the rest of your family and acquaintances? How are you going to prevent them from reinforcing the dog for that little pawing motion?
This is the situation in which we need to be careful about variable reinforcement. It may not be the best solution for building strong, reliable, cued behaviors in training, but it is fantastic for keeping annoying day-to-day behaviors alive. Variable reinforcement makes a behavior resistant to extinction. So when your dog has nothing else to do, why shouldn’t she revert to something that used to work for attention? Why not try that little paw scratch one more time? You are back where you started if you respond!
One more thing about extinction: The behavior we are trying to extinguish will generally worsen before it gets better. It will typically get more frequent or intense in what is called an extinction burst. How many times do you punch the button for a “walk” signal at an intersection you want to cross? How many times will you click on the “OK” box on the error message on your computer, even as nothing happens, before realizing your computer has frozen up? When that happens, do you ever treat your keyboard rather roughly?
When reinforcement for a behavior is abruptly removed, it can be frustrating. So with our little dog, the paw scratching may get more frequent or harder. The dog may start adding a whine. That’s often when we cave, and that has bad consequences. We just reinforced a long behavior chain of undesirable behavior instead of one little scratch.
4 The dog doesn’t know what to do instead; we’ve left her in a behavioral vacuum.
Let’s say we have correctly identified that the sole reinforcer of an annoying behavior is attention. We have learned how to ignore the behavior and been consistent at that. We have convinced every other person in the dog’s life to do the same. We still have a problem, though. We have left the dog with a void. There used to be something she could do to gain reinforcement and it’s gone. What behavior will take the place of the one we have discouraged?
Left to her own devices, the dog may come up with something worse – and who can blame her? Being ignored is hard for members of a social species. And performing a behavior that has successfully served a purpose for years without getting the expected outcome is unpleasant for anyone.
In my opinion, this can be especially hard on dogs who are otherwise untrained. Let’s say a pet owner reads an article that she should just “ignore the bad behavior” and gives it a try. But she has never used positive reinforcement in the form of food or play to train her dog. Trained dogs usually have default behaviors – behaviors they can fall back on that are desirable to humans and will earn the dog some reinforcement. They have at least some clues about what to try. But dogs who get the “ignoring” treatment when they don’t have a clue what to do instead are in an unfair, even pitiable position.
The outcome won’t likely be great for the owner, either. Since she hasn’t trained the dog to chill on a mat or crate or sit to ask for something, the dog will likely come up with a natural doggie behavior to fill the void. And it may be even less acceptable than the first one. Well-designed plans for behavior change include the teaching and reinforcing of new behaviors.
5 The dog may be too upset to care that you are ignoring him. If he’s worked up about something, he may not be able to change his behavior at that moment.
Until now, I’ve been discussing situations where the dog is not scared or overwrought. But there are whole classes of behaviors wherein the dog is undergoing a sympathetic nervous system fight or flight response. Thankfully, it’s uncommon for people to recommend that we just ignore our dogs if they lunge or pounce at another dog on-leash or stalk humans who are strange to them. But there is a common, emotion-driven behavior where ignoring is sometimes recommended: barking.
Dogs bark for so many apparent reasons. Certainly they bark purely for attention sometimes, especially if they and their owners have developed a little reinforcement cycle for it. But dogs also bark in excitement, as part of territorial aggression, and for many other reasons – including fear.
Fear barking (which mostly coincides with what people call reactivity) can be hard for we humans to identify. We may think the dog is being protective of us. Or we think that it is “fun” for a dog to run through the house to bark at the mail carrier at the door or delivery trucks on the street. We say, “It’s the highlight of her day!”
It took me two or three years to realize that my dog who used to bark in a frenzy when a delivery truck was in the neighborhood was afraid. During those couple of years of my ignorance, her triggers expanded to include a host of sounds. These included the truck engine sound, the truck doors sliding open or slamming closed, the delivery person walking onto the porch, the noise of the mailbox lid or a box hitting the porch, and (the frosting on the cake) the voice of the particular mail carrier who had loud conversations on his Bluetooth headset as he delivered our mail.
None of her barking was for attention. I know from my webcams that she did it when I was not home. And I have observed that the barking was negatively reinforced. She barked all through these scary stimuli, then the truck engine would start up or rev (another trigger) and the truck would finally leave. The aversive things were gone, and she stopped.
Since then I have helped my dog with her fear and barking via classical conditioning. But I haven’t been able to completely eliminate it, since I am not always home when trucks come by. In any case, ignoring her barking had no part in our plan.
MAKE A PLAN
I can’t present a plan that will decrease all annoying dog behaviors across the board – nobody can! That’s the problem with “ignore the dog.” It’s a one-size-fits-all solution that fits almost no situation. But we can decrease most of those nuisance behaviors with a good training plan: We need to identify the reinforcer of the behavior, identify what sets the stage for it, and aim our interventions with full knowledge of those things.
This isn’t always easy. Consider booking a lesson with a force-free trainer to keep from wasting time on non-solutions such as “just ignore the dog”!
This article was first published in Clean Run – The Magazine for Dog Agility Enthusiasts.
Puppies require more calories per pound of their body weight than adult dogs do; they also require higher levels of protein, fat, calcium, phosphorus, and a few more minerals. Feeding them food that is labeled for "adult maintenance" will leave them nutritionally deficient.
Michael Pollan, author of the best-selling books on diet The Omnivore’s Dilemma, In Defense of Food, and Food Rules, once came up with the world’s most succinct guide for a healthy human diet: “Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.”
If only we could come up with something that simple for puppies! The advice could start in a very similar fashion: “Feed food. Not too much….” But in order for the slogan to be nutritionally sound, the next part would be far too complicated to put on a book cover or tote bag: “Mostly quality sources of animal protein, delivered at adequate levels. Same goes for fat. Not too much calcium, but enough, depending on the expected adult size of the puppy . . . .”
There’s more, but you get the idea. There are a lot of factors that have to be carefully considered when feeding puppies – that is, if you want them to grow into healthy and sound adult dogs.
On the other hand, I don’t want to scare anyone; feeding puppies isn’t rocket science. But there are a few little details that you need to attend to in order to make sure your pup grows at an appropriate rate – things that aren’t as critical with an adult dog.
STANDARD ISSUE
The differences between the nutrient requirements for puppies and those for adult dogs are laid out in tables developed by the Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO); these are called the AAFCO Dog Food Nutrient Profiles, and they include the standards for what comprises the legal definition of “complete and balanced” diets for dogs. One lists the nutrient levels required for the “maintenance” of adult dogs only; the other lists the nutrient levels that meet the needs of breeding animals, pregnant or nursing females, and growing puppies. The latter is often referred to as the “growth and reproduction” nutrient profile.
These tables differ in notable ways. Puppies need higher amounts of protein (including higher amounts of many specific amino acids that contribute to the food’s total protein), fat, calcium, phosphorus, and several other minerals than the amounts needed by adult dogs. This is why you must make sure that the food you buy for your puppy (any dog less than a year old) is formulated to meet the standards for complete and balanced nutrition for growth.
Often, dog food labels say that the food contained in the package meets the standards for dogs “of all life stages.” This implicitly includes puppies. If a food is labeled as either meeting the nutrient levels or passing a feeding trial for dogs of “all life stages,” it has to meet the “growth” requirements.
Often – but not always – food that is formulated to meet the needs of puppies has the word “puppy” in the name of the food. Again, if the label indicates that it’s “complete and balanced for dogs of all life stages,” it has met the AAFCO standards for growth (puppies). But if the label says it is “complete and balanced for adult maintenance,” it is not suitable for puppies.
Always look for the AAFCO (for nutritional adequacy) statement to make sure the product you are considering is intended for puppies – and puppies of the size you expect your pup to be as an adult.
Where will you find this information? This is where things get weird: This statement is the most important thing to check on the label of your puppy’s food, and I will almost guarantee that it will be printed on the bag or can in teeny, tiny type. Scan the label carefully for the words “AAFCO Nutrient Profiles” or “AAFCO Feeding Trial.” The block of text containing one of these phrases will probably appear on the back or even the side of the package, and it will reference either “growth” (great!), “dogs of all life stages” (super!), or “adult maintenance” (womp, womp, no!).
CHECK THE SIZE
All puppy foods used to be formulated to meet the same nutrient standards. In recent years, however, animal nutrition experts came to understand that large-breed puppies should receive less calcium than puppies of smaller breeds to prevent their bones from growing too quickly. Excessively fast growth can result in the development of bone and joint abnormalities in large-breed puppies. So, in 2016, AAFCO began to require food makers to explicitly state whether their products contained calcium at an appropriate level for large breed puppies (defined as those pups expected to reach an adult weight of more than 70 pounds).
If the AAFCO statement says the food is for growth/all life stages “including growth of large-size dogs (70 pounds or more as an adult),” it is safe to feed to large breed pups.
If the statement says the food is for growth/all life stages “except for growth of large-size dogs (70 pounds or more as an adult),” it should not be fed to large-breed puppies.
To be safe, if you have a large-breed puppy, or a mixed-breed pup who looks like he may grow to more than 50 or 60 pounds, you should choose foods with the “including growth of large-size dogs” statement. Smaller-breed puppies can be safely fed foods with either statement.
Dog Food Selection Criteria
Hallmarks of Quality
✓ Lots of animal protein at the top of the ingredients list. Plant-sourced protein is less appropriate than animal protein.
✓ When a fresh meat is first on the ingredients list, there should be a named animal-protein meal immediately or closely following the meat.
* “Animal plasma” or blood meal as a protein source.
* Added sweeteners.
* Artificial colors, flavors, or preservatives (such as BHA, BHT, ethoxyquin).
OUR USUAL CRITERIA
Once you are confident that you can identify foods that are appropriate for puppies of the size you expect your pup to be, you can search among those products for diets that meet our usual selection criteria (listed in the box below) and that are in your price range.
Check the protein and fat content of the food you are feeding your pup right now. If his weight and energy are good, try to buy only those foods that contain similar levels of protein and fat. Be aware that these levels range widely. If you start feeding him a product with double or half the protein or fat content of the food you are giving him now, you will see changes in him; his appetite, weight, stool quality, and/or energy may be affected.
Finally, don’t be afraid to try different foods. Pet food companies want to win your loyalty, but the fact is, variety is actually good for your puppy. The more you change foods, the more accustomed his digestive tract will become to a wide variety of ingredients. Also, because each manufacturer’s products contain different levels of each required nutrient (within the AAFCO specifications), by routinely switching products, you are sure to provide “balance over time” and prevent him from suffering ill effects of any potentially excessive or deficient nutrient levels.
Reinforce your dog frequently and generously when he's doing what you want him to do. In most cases, it's less productive to randomize the reinforcement "schedule" than it is to make sure you reinforce the behavior you desire frequently enough for him to understand what you want him to do!
There’s an old saying: “The more things change, the more they stay the same.” Fortunately for our beloved dogs, that’s not necessarily the case in the world of dog training and behavior. Granted, there are still far too many professionals who cling to old-fashioned methods that employ the use of force, pain, and coercion. For them, things do seem to stay the same. However, the corps of enlightened training professionals that routinely read about, absorb, and apply innovations of behavior science grows daily, and I’m proud to consider myself one of these.
Of course, that means from time to time I have occasion to change what I say and how I say it. I sometimes look back at something I wrote years ago and cringe when I realize that, as much as there may have been general agreement with it in the profession then (whatever it is), there is growing or widespread agreement now that it isn’t really so. Here are some examples of things about which I have changed my mind over the years:
* The importance of putting reinforcers on an intermittent schedule of reinforcement.
Early on, when using treats in training was somewhat revolutionary, we “foodies” took a lot of heat for our use of treats. As a result,in the past, we put a lot of emphasis on moving the dog from a continuous schedule (in which he gets reinforced every time – very important when he is first learning a new behavior) to an intermittent schedule of reinforcement, which means he learns to offer the behavior multiple times when asked and gets reinforced only occasionally. Continuous reinforcement, we thought, would make dogs and humans dependent on the presence of the treat in order to get the behavior to happen.
We have come to realize that it’s not all that important to use intermittent reinforcement unless you need the behavior to be durable – resistant to extinction. There is absolutely nothing wrong with reinforcing the behavior every time it happens. And I pretty much do! The Miller dogs are generally on a continuous schedule of reinforcement, even if it’s sometimes just a cheerful “Good dog!”
Remember, “reinforcement” doesn’t have to mean a treat. While I almost always have treats in my pockets, I can also use praise, a toy, petting (for dogs who love to be petted), opening a door to go outside, the opportunity to perform another behavior the dog loves – or anything else the dog finds reinforcing, in place of a treat.
We do know that a behavior extinguishes over time if it is not reinforced and that behaviors that are intermittently reinforced are more durable than others. But how many of us are often in environments with our dogs where we can’t reinforce behavior every time, or most of the time? I can think of a few – a dog in an American Kennel Club obedience trial, a canine actor on stage in a play, a working dog who, by nature of his job, has to work at a distance from his handler . . . not all that many!
In the real world, few owners “over-reward” and end up with dogs who refuse to work unless a treat is shown to them first. More commonly, I see owners who fail at “catching their dogs doing something right” – that is, fail to frequently reinforce their dogs for the behaviors they like to see. Lacking reinforcement, and thus, experience that teaches them which behaviors will reliably result in enjoyable consequences produced by their owners, dogs will find things to do that please themselves!
That’s why I now advise you to reinforce your dogs any and every time you see behaviors you like – looking at squirrels out the window without barking, going to her mat when the family sits down to dinner, checking in with you on a walk, greeting friends at the door with all four paws on the floor. And reinforce these terrific behaviors with anything your dog finds enjoyable – a treat, a cheerful word, a belly rub, a favorite toy, or a rousing game of tug o’ war.
* Rules for playing tug o’ war with your dog.
Use a toy that’s long enough to keep his teeth away from your hands – and call for a “Trade!” every so often.
Speaking of tug, I’ve considerably lightened up on my recommended “rules for tug o’ war” with dogs. Again, sensitive to criticism from the old-fashioned trainer crowd, we used to dictate strict rules for playing tug with your dog. Playing tug even under these rules used to be considered dangerous by many old-school trainers, who warned owners that tug could make their dogs aggressive. I wouldn’t ever go that far – though I certainly wouldn’t advise an inexperienced owner to casually play tug with an already aggressivedog or one who is known to guard resources.
Many dogs love to play tug with their owners, so it has a ton of potential for use as a mutually enjoyable and fantastically reinforcing game. To get the most out of the reinforcing nature of the game, ask your dog to play by some basic rules; to keep yourself safe, play with a few safety guidelines in place. Here are my current rules and guidelines for playing tug:
• Use a toy that’s long enough to keep your dog’s teeth far away from your hands and that’s comfortable for you to hold when he pulls.
• Hold up the tug toy. If your dog lunges for it, say “Oops!” and quickly hide it behind your back. He needs to be polite when he plays tug with you.
• When he’ll remain sitting as you offer the toy, tell him to “Take it!” and encourage him to grab and pull. If he’s reluctant, play gently until he learns the game. If he’s enthusiastic, go for it!
• Randomly throughout tug-play, ask him to “Trade!” Offer him a yummy treat, which he can take after he relinquishes the tug toy to you. Then, offer the toy and tell him to “Take it!” again.
• While you are playing, if his teeth creep up the toy toward your hands, say “Oops! Too bad!” in a cheerful voice, have him give you the toy, and put it away briefly. (This is for safety reasons. You can get it out and play again after 15 seconds or so.)
• If your dog’s teeth touch your clothing or skin, say “Oops! Too bad!” and put the toy away for a minute (again, for safety reasons).
• Children should not play tug with your dog unless and until you are confident they can play by the rules. If you do allow children to play tug with your dog, always directly supervise the game.
• Only tug side to side, not up and down (up and down tugging can injure your dog’s spine) and temper the vigor of your play appropriately to the size and age of your dog. (You can play tug more vigorously with an adult Rottweiler than you can with a Rottie puppy or a little terrier.)
Here are the rules for tug that I have discarded or modified:
• Keep the tug toy put away. Bring it out only when you want to play tug. (There is no logical justification for keeping the tug toy away from the dog at other times.)
• Ignore the dog if he invites you to play tug. You get to decide when tug happens. (What does it hurt if your dog asks you to play? You can always say, “No thanks! Not now!”)
• You should “win” most of the time – that is, you end up with possession of the toy, not your dog. (As long as you allowed the dog to take the toy, and he didn’t take it in an aggressive manner, there is no harm in letting him have it sometimes, or even frequently. In fact, some dogs quickly learn that playing with the toy by themselves is nowhere near as much fun as playing with you.)
• When you are done playing, put the toy away until next time. You control the good stuff. (Playing with you is the really good stuff! It’s fine to let the dog trot off with the toy when you’re done, as long as it’s safe for him to have.)
As you can see, I’ve removed all the rules that insist you always have to be in total control of the game – the ones that were based in the old-fashioned thinking that if you weren’t in total control your dog would take advantage of you and perhaps even become aggressive. We know better now. Happy tugging!
* Leave It/Walk Away
We’ve found that most dogs find the “walk away!” behavior to be much more fun (and thus, easy to remember to do when they hear the cue) than “Leave it” or “Off!” At least part of the reason for this is the emphasis on doing something, rather than not doing something.
Many of us teach our dogs a cue to “Leave it!” (also known as “Off!”) for use in those situations when you see something you don’t want your dog to mess with – whether it’s a pile of cat poo, a discarded chicken bone, a cat crossing the sidewalk, or a snake. I still teach that cue for use when I want the dog to understand “Whatever you are coveting or considering going toward, I want you to leave it alone.” But I also teach an alternative cue, “Walk away,” which means “Whatever you are looking at, I want you to do a 180-degree spin and run away with me.”
While there are many situations where the two cues could be used interchangeably, and some cases where “Leave it” is still the more appropriate choice, I find that dogs respond much more reliably to the “Walk away” cue, simply because we teach them that it’s a fun game. Given the choice, it’s my much-preferred behavior to ask for.
I first discovered this with my Cardigan Corgi, Lucy. She had learned “Leave it!” in her adolescence and responded reasonably reliable to that cue. When she was 10 years old, I learned about New Jersey trainer Kelly Fahey’s “Walk away” protocol, and taught it to Lucy.
Then I did an experiment. I set a bowl of tasty food on the floor, and as Lucy walked toward it, I said, “Leave it!” She took two more steps and started eating. Then I said, “Walk away!” and she spun away from the bowl and ran away from it with me.
The moral of the story and a good reminder: We are almost always more successful asking our dogs to do something (run away with me!) than not to do something (don’t eat that!). It’s one of the basic tenets of positive reinforcement-based dog training.
For complete instructions on teaching “Walk away” to your dog, see the “Walk Away!” sidebar in the “Frustrated on Leash?” article in the October 2019 issue of WDJ.
* Head halters can help – or hurt.
Some dogs find head halters highly aversive, even after desensitization and counter-conditioning efforts have been made with the intention of associating them with good things.
Just like almost every other positive trainer, I was enthusiastic about head halters when they first made the training scene around 1995. They helped many people prevent their dogs from dragging them around on walks, without the use of painful yanks from choke chains or pinching prong collars. With a regular collar, the leash is attached at the dog’s neck; with a head halter, the leash attachment is right under the dog’s head, making it very difficult for him to brace against the leash and pull.Gentle pressure on the leash from the handler turns the dog back toward the handler.
But the more we saw halters used, the more it became clear that the majority of dogs hated them, even after fairly thorough efforts were made to desensitize and counter-condition dogs to wearing them.
Then front-clip harnesses came along and fulfilled much of the same function: giving us a significant degree of control over dogs who pulled hard. It was easy to switch my allegiance to these new products (and we described all the reasons for this in the February 2005 issue of WDJ).
Most dogs accept harnesses without protest, and they are far less likely to do damage to a dog’s neck or spine if they hit the end of the leash hard. (I occasionally come across a dog who finds front-clip harnesses aversive, and I don’t use them with those dogs.)
For a review of front clip harnesses, see “Harness the Power,” WDJ April 2017.
* Modified recommendations for crating your dog.
Some people believe that confining your dog in a crate – ever – is cruel.Never fear: I am still a strong advocate for crating. There are a couple of things regarding crates, however, that I do differently now than I did years ago.
I used to be on board with this common caveat to owners: “If your dog/puppy is crying in his crate, ignore him until he stops crying, or you will reinforce his vocalizations.” I shudder now to think of that.
Okay, granted, if your dog barks a few times, it’s still good advice to ignore it so you don’t reinforce him for barking. But anything beyond that – ongoing, emotional vocalization – needs to be addressed behaviorally. Leaving a dog to cry in his crate for long periods increases his stress and gives him an even more negative association with being crated.
A dog who is stressed about crating but still needs confinement for management purposes needs a gradual program of habituation (a few seconds at first with you right there, then longer and longer, with you gradually removing yourself), or needs alternatives to crating (an exercise pen or a dog-proofed room).
My other change having to do with crates regards size. I used to say that a dog’s crate should be just big enough for him to stand up, lie down, and turn around. That is still true if you’re housetraining – you don’t want the crate to be big enough that he can soil one end and sleep dry and comfortably in the other.
But after he is housetrained, if he still needs to be crated, there’s no reason to continue to deprive him of more spacious quarters.
THE GOOD NEWS
In general, the positive dog training world has made a quantum shift from, “I will make the dog do want I want him to do … I bought him so I could compete with him in agility and he’s damn well going to do it!” to “I will explore options with my dog to see what he would like to do. I’ll be really happy if he wants to do agility, since I love agility, but if he tells/shows me that he would prefer to do nosework, or rally obedience, or canine freestyle, I’m good with that, too.”
Personally, I have also made a quantum philosophical shift. I used to be fiercely competitive with my dogs. My wonderful terrier-mix (and “crossover dog”) Josie had multiple obedience titles and was one of the first 26 dogs in the world to earn a rally obedience title through the Association of Professional Dog Trainers (APDT). I no longer need my dogs to be precise competitors, doing perfectly straight sits in perfect heel position; just being who they are is good enough. Today, while I respect those who find joy in mutual partnership and competition with their dogs, I just want to be with mine, doing barn chores, hiking on the farm, and sharing and enjoying our life together.
As I read through my past writings to find things that I now disagree with, I was pleased to find there weren’t as many as I thought there might be. I went through my articles all the way back to Whole Dog Journal’s inception in 1998, and didn’t find anything horrendously objectionable. Yes, I found some things I would do or say differently now, but nothing that would get me kicked out of the force-free trainer club. It’s always good, though, to remind ourselves that when we know better, we do better.
Author Pat Miller, CBCC-KA, CPDT‑KA, is WDJ’s Training Editor. She and her husband live in Fairplay, Maryland, site of her Peaceable Paws training center, where she offers dog-training classes and courses for trainers. Miller is also the author of many books on dog-friendly training. See page 24 for more information.
A "viewport" in the fence is perfect for this senior gentleman, who wouldn't dream of barking at every passerby. But it could cause real problems for a dog who is more reactive to passing joggers, bicyclists, and dog-walkers.
Given the sensible advice to socially distance, what better time to create a safe, at-home haven for your dog? Here are five ways you can increase your dog’s (and your own!) enjoyment of your yard.
1. Invest in a good fence. A secure fence is the most critical element of a safe place for your dog to potty, play, train, and just hang out. Sometimes a dog owner will tell me, “We don’t need a fenced yard; we have a large property for the dog to run on.” I explain that while my husband and I live on about 300 acres, we have fenced a much smaller area next to our home so we have an absolutely safe place for them to be outdoors without supervision.
What type of fence? There are many to choose from, including chain link or other wire fencing, wood, composite, or plastic. It’s up to your budget, your aesthetic preferences, your location (homeowner’s associations may limit your options), and your dog.
Why do I include “your dog” on the list of factors that will affect your choice of fencing? The height of the fence is most obvious; if you have small dogs, you may not need a six-foot fence. But if you’ve got leggy dogs known for their interest in chasing game (ahem, hounds), a six-foot fence might not be secure without an inwardly angled section or “coyote rollers” at the top.
Height isn’t all there is to it, however. Some dogs enjoy their ability to see through a wire fence, and never get excited by passersby on bikes, skateboards, or on foot. Other dogs might lose their minds when faced with this much stimuli. Also, if there are dogs next door, their presence and/or behavior on the other side of the fence may be frustrating for your dog. In these instances, a solid privacy fence may be advisable.
If your dog is a digger, you may need to bury wire fencing along your fence line, or build the fence on a concrete pad or path. Digging out may not occur to some dogs ever, but others may detect any sign of light under the fence and get to work digging out immediately!
Think carefully about the type of gate that is used to access the area. It should be easy for you to open (especially when you have only one hand free, with a leash in the other) but not at all easy for your dog to open.
Just Say No to 'Fenceless Fences'
Note that when I say fence, I do mean a real, physical fence. Electric fences (a.k.a. “shock fences”) may keep your dog in but can’t keep other animals out– that is, critters who could harm your pet, aggressive stray dogs, or even a human who could steal or harass your dog).
Also, if your dog is motivated sufficiently to chase something, she could go through and then likely would not return, scared to try to cross the boundary now that she’s not overstimulated by chasing something.
Last but not least, a dog that gets zapped for coming close to the boundary to investigate a passing jogger, bicyclist,or other dog is likely to begin to associate those with punishment and may develop fear and/or aggression related to those previously neutral stimuli.
Need more convincing? See these past WDJ articles:
2. Consider the flora. Are there parts of your yard that you don’t want to be disturbed? In this case, a lower level of decorative fencing may make the most sense – and keep you from tensing up every time you see your dog approach your award-winning roses or dahlias.
Many of us dream of having a lush garden and a dog who respects the garden boundaries – but some of us end up with uprooted vegetable beds “planted” with buried dog toys and half-chewed bones. A separate fence for the garden might be needed.
A couple of our dogs used to enjoy raiding the vegetable garden just when the cucumbers or strawberries ripened! That made me smile so I made no effort to cordon off the area.
If you haven’t already planted a garden, consider your dog’s current pattern of uses before planting. Note where your dog spends the most time so you can design accordingly; don’t put plants where he’s created well-worn patrol paths, for example. Consider sacrificing those areas and putting down some river rock, permeable pavers, sand, or bark mulch.
When choosing plants for your yard, keep in mind that many of the options found in your local garden supply stores can be toxic for your dog. One that is distressingly common to see is the sago palm; just a few nibbles on the leaves or roots of this plant can cause liver damage and even death. For an exhaustive list of plants that are toxic and non-toxic to dogs, see the ASPCA’s website: aspca.org/pet-care/animal-poison-control/dogs-plant-list.
Don’t forget to research the mulch you are considering for use in your yard; mulch made from cocoa beans, in particular, is toxic for our canine friends!
3. Designate a potty spot and train your dog to use it. You’ll thank me later for this one. Even if you’ve had your dog or puppy for a while, it’s worthwhile to spend the time to teach him to potty in the same area. This saves time when you’re cleaning up (no hunting for the poop in the dark or rain) – and prevents squishy surprises!
Some people want their dog’s potty area to be located close to the house for quick access; others might want it to be hidden from view of the places in the yard where you spend time. Either way, make sure it’s in reach of a hose. An area that is layered with at least three inches of 3 absorbent sand, covered with pea gravel or small river rock, will be easy to keep clean and odor-free with an occasional hosing.
To teach your dog or puppy to use the potty, pretend you are starting house-training all over again. Accompany your pup on leash to this area several times a day and handsomely reward him or her upon elimination until this habit is deeply ingrained. Be sure to pick up the poop and hose down the area regularly.
4. Add enriching “playground” equipment. Our yards should be about more than just containing our dogs; ideally, they are also a super fun place to play with our dogs and to let them play.
Many dogs like to climb or to have a raised platform of some kind where they can survey their terrain (obviously, away from the fence). My Boxer-mix, Petey (seen above), loves to hang out on a homemade A-frame we built out of scrap lumber and covered with artificial grass carpet. Make sure to apply something to prevent slipping – whether you paint the surface with a paint to which sand has been added, or you apply rubber or sand-textured non-slip adhesive-backed strips.
A recent WDJ article (“The Play Way,” June 2020) promoted the power of play to help fearful dogs gain confidence. Our family’s new addition, a rough-coated Jack Russell Terrier, Archie, had very little socialization during his first year of life and is fairly fearful. We engage him in tug, chase, and fetch play sessions in the house, but Archie is also enjoying climbing and playing on the A-frame. We are seeing a new dog emerging!
I recently took Petey to a friend’s home where she has fenced about an acre for her dogs. Petey thoroughly enjoyed this space, not only for its size, but also because they had left many natural features like tree stumps and boulders for the dogs to explore and look for varmints. Consider leaving some natural features in your yard for your dog to sniff and hunt.
One of the most enriching things you can add to any dog’s yard is a digging box – a place where they can dig to their heart’s content, without getting in trouble! You can buy a child’s sandbox or build a basic frame, fill it with sand, and hide some doggy toys and bones for your pooch to seek out. In hot weather, keep the sand wet, and in no time at all, you’ll find your dog hunkered down in a freshly dug, cool, damp hole.
Most dogs will also appreciate a variety of lounging surfaces – lush grass, cool (or warm, depending on the season) concrete, and perhaps a raised cot-style bed – and move from one surface to the other throughout the day.
Home Field Advantage
I’m a huge fan of allowing compatible dogs to play together – but not at all a fan of dog parks. Not every dog at a public park is playful, and not every owner is super attentive, able to read their dog’s body language, and ready to intervene to keep the peace. A better alternative, if you have a playful, social dog and a secure yard, is to create your own mini dog park. Help your dog cultivate friendships with dogs who have a similar play style and set up play dates with their owners!
A safely fenced yard is also a fantastic place to train your dog! Inside your home is the best place to start training new behaviors to keep the distraction level low, but as your dog gains competence, take the practice out into your fenced yard. The distraction level outdoors will be just a bit higher, but not as high as the wider outside world. Practice there until his responses to your cues are solid; only then should you practice his new behaviors in the face of even more distractions.
A fun and safe dog yard is a beautiful thing – and for some of my elderly or handicapped dog-training clients, given their strength and mobility issues, a required tool for giving their dogs a chance to potty, exercise, and relax outdoors. Design yours so it meets your and your dog’s needs and have a blast!
5. Install yard lights so you can visually scan for critters, or go out with your dog and check the yard before every night-time potty excursion. How many of you have a dog who got skunked when you put him out for a late-night potty? I’d guess a pretty high percentage of us have experienced this, whether we live in the country or a suburb.
Skunks aren’t the only type of animal to look out for before allowing your dog to enter the yard at night, however. Depending on where you live, your yard just may be visited at night by a fox, raccoon, coyote, bobcat, badger, mountain lion, or bear. Turning on a light before sending your dog outside will send most of these animals back over the fence and keep your dog safe.
The tendency of dogs to chase anything perceived as prey – deer, bunnies, stray cats, etc. – is another reason to check the yard each time before you allow your dog out there. Turning on the lights and clapping your hands can warn any critters that they have just a few seconds to vamoose!
Author Helene Goldberger, Esq., PMCT, CPDT-KA, is an attorney in Albany, NY, who has been a professional dog trainer for six years (Heartdog Training). She is also a certified canine massage practitioner. See page 24 for contact information.
English bulldog checking out a pumpkin. Photo: GoDogPhoto/Getty Images
Indulging in everything from pumpkin beers to lattes has become a rite of fall for us humans, but your dog can also get in on the seasonal fun. Pumpkin is likely already in the food your pet eats, according to FDA reports and a reading of these top-notch freeze-dried food labels, and boasts some health benefits as well. Read on to make sure you get the right kind of pumpkin.
It Can Help Digestive Issues
Stomach aches happen to the best of us (and not just after overdoing it on Thanksgiving), and dogs aren’t immune. Pumpkin can help with digestive issues.
Whole Dog Journal Founding Editor Nancy Kerns keeps plain canned pumpkin on hand at all times. She’s sworn by it since her dog, Woody, ingested too much sand on a beach trip. After a few days of eating pumpkin, he was on the mend. Whole Dog Journal contributor Mary Straus also uses pumpkin for upset stomachs and offers these tips and recipes.
Pumpkin also acts as a binder and firms up loose stools in dogs — and it’s palatable to boot. Whole Dog Journal contributor Shari Mann suggests using plain canned pumpkin to make liver-pumpkin cookies (since liver is known to cause loose stools, adding pumpkin is essential).
Dog Siberian Husky eating a pumpkin. Photo: Sergeeva/Getty Images
Hold the Spice
Sugar and spice aren’t too nice for pups. Though pumpkin pie may be your favorite Thanksgiving dessert, avoid canned pumpkin that has added sugar or spices. Plain canned pumpkin is the stuff you want. You can sometimes find it sold in pet supply stores and labeled for dogs (and about twice the price), but it’s absolutely the same stuff you can buy in supermarkets. Canned pumpkin is highly palatable; most dogs will eat it mixed into their kibble or other food, or lick it right off a spoon. But if you want to make the treat a little more festive, try these mini-pumpkin pies made with plain pumpkin.
September is when we editors are expected to write “back to school” pieces. Dog magazine editors tweak the usual parenting advice about helping kids adjust to school hours, offering tips on how to help our dogs adjust to the autumn absence of kids (at least during the day). This year, of course, all forms of “usual” are useless. This helps explain why the first article in this issue discusses how to increase our dog’s (and our own) enjoyment of our own back, side, and/or front yards; it doesn’t look like many of us are taking our dogs many places for a while.
Speaking of changing with the times, our next article, written by our Training Editor Pat Miller, discusses a few of the significant ways that we have changed our minds about dog training and dog gear over the past 23 years that WDJ has been in existence. Change is a good thing! If you think all your methods and gear are perfect, you’ve stopped learning – and that’s a shame. We think we’ve found a few ways to improve on older technology.
Another article in this issue is also custom-tailored for the times. North Carolina veterinarian and frequent contributor Dr. Catherine Ashe has written a brief but informative piece about canine viruses. Truthfully, reading about the viruses that can affect dogs helped me understand some bits of information I’ve been curious about regarding the virus that’s so much in the news. (I think you know the one.)
There’s a quite long piece at the back of this issue. A new contributor to WDJ, Joanne Osburn, has written about stem cell therapy for dogs. Not only that, she took photos of almost every step in the process of harvesting a dog’s fat (that’s where the stem cells come from), extracting and enriching the stem cells, and preparing them for reintroducing them to the same dog in a powerful new form. How did she manage to take all those photos? She’s a lab technician in a veterinary clinic that uses this technology to help dogs heal after surgeries, regain mobility after years of pain and inactivity due to arthritis, and other medical marvels. As the owner of a rapidly stiffening senior dog who is nearly 13 years old, I am highly interested in this new therapy. It’s pricey, but I’d pay nearly any price to see Otto romp and play for as many years as he can, especially if it means we can delay the introduction of daily medications, which always seem to have some side effect when administered over the long term.
I was really hoping to not write this post this year. But here we go again: There are wildfires in my neighborhood, and in the neighborhoods of several friends up and down California, so once again I’m here to stay: Folks, everyone has to have a plan for emergencies, and have a “go bag” for themselves and their pets ready.
If you have spent your whole life on the East Coast or the central states, you just can’t understand how dry summers in California are. We generally get zero rain from April or May to October or November – that’s normal for us. And summer thunder and lightning is not normal here. So it was highly unusual for us to experience a summer thunderstorm on late Sunday night and in the wee hours of Monday morning, and upsetting to hear reports of lightning strikes all over the northern half of the state. Though this strange storm brought a tiny bit of rain, we couldn’t appreciate that because of the more than 20 fires that were started by the lightning – one of which was in Lake Oroville State Park, about six miles from my home.
Lightning Is a Serious Fire Threat In California
I was alerted to the thunder and lightning by my senior dog, Otto, who woke me up at about 1 am by pacing in my bedroom and panting loudly. I hadn’t heard any thunder yet; I thought maybe he had an upset tummy and had to go outside, so I sleepily walked with him to the back door, only to have him balk at the threshold and look at me wild-eyed, panting. “Are you crazy?” he seemed to ask. “I’m not going out there!” As we stood there, looking at each other, a lightning bolt lit up the sky and I finally understood. I gave him a Trazodone tablet, left over from his Independence Day medication, and slept on the couch in the living room so I could comfort him and so that his pacing and panting (until the Trazodone took hold) wouldn’t wake my husband.
Because lightning in the summer almost always means fires in this part of the country, first thing in the morning, I checked the news and, sure enough, there were reports of quite a few fires.
One was close to my sister-in-law and niece, an hour away. Another was even closer to both my sister’s house and mine! As the day wore on, the wind picked up, the fires grew, and some evacuations were ordered. My phone buzzed with calls and texts from a friend who is hosting evacuees and needed to borrow bedding; a friend whose elderly relatives (and one dog) live in the evacuation zone closest to me and was wondering what to tell them; my sister and brother-in-law (and three dogs), who live in a neighborhood that is in the path of the next zone to be evacuated, and my sister-in-law, asking if she (and my niece and their little dog) could evacuate to my house from HER local fire.
I also received alerts from my local animal rescue group, asking for volunteers to staff the emergency shelter that the group operates for holding animals for families who need to evacuate and can’t keep their pets with them.
Fortunately, two years after the tragic Camp Fire, there are plenty of other trained volunteers who will step up to help take care of animals from families who had to evacuate the fire zone and couldn’t bring their animals with them.
In the middle of all this, I have to leave in a few hours to drive my grandson to the airport; he’s headed back to the East Coast after a fun summer here with my husband and me. He’s disappointed that he’s leaving in the middle of all this drama and excitement, and argued that I should go volunteer with the animal rescue group anyway – so he could come along to see what that’s like. He was bummed when I said that getting him to the airport to go home was more important than volunteering at this moment (he cheered up immensely when my evacuated niece arrived here, so he had someone to play with on his last night in California).
Have an emergency plan ready before you need it
But I will be leaving my husband behind with our “go bags” packed – complete with important paperwork (passports and birth certificates, etc. for us, medical records for the dogs), medication (for Otto), food (Clif bars for emergency energy, dog food for the dogs), extra cell phone chargers and batteries, and a few jugs of water (always helpful). We have a plan already in place for anything that might happen, including where to meet (if the fires exploded and I couldn’t even come home after the trip to the airport).
Before all the lightning struck, emergency preparation had been on my mind; I had been reading about the devastating wind storm in Iowa and the fires in southern California. No matter where you live, you have to be ready for any sort of natural disaster that might possibly befall you and your family, human and nonhuman.
Take a few minutes today and look through your “go bag” or action plan. Do you have nonperishable food for at least a few days? Up-to-date contact information on your dogs (including up-to-date information on file with the microchip registries for your pets’ microchips)? The more you discuss the plan with your family, neighbors, and friends, the better prepared you will be to take in strays or be evacuated yourself. Here are two of the best resources available about emergency preparedness. Don’t just read them; take action!
When dogs' physical appearance and conformation is paramount in a breeding program, over generations, their health may begin to decline.
To anyone who has been involved in shelter or rescue work, the idea of intentionally breeding mixed-breed dogs, or even unregistered purebred dogs, seems a bit bananas. There are too many homeless dogs! What the heck?
But there is a group of well-respected people with a variety of dog-related professions who are promoting just that: the purposeful breeding of dogs without breed registration, and with a purpose that is not producing dogs with a specified morphology, that is, dogs who look a certain way or meet all the physical characteristics of a breed standard.
Why, you might ask?
The Functional Dog Collaborative
The group’s name, the Functional Dog Collaborative, offers the first clue. This group is trying to promote the breeding of dogs who are, above all, functional in terms of health, both physically and behaviorally. The group states on its website that when those health goals are in conflict with a breed standard or closed studbooks, the functional goals are considered more important. That puts the group at cross purposes with those who maintain that breed “purity” is paramount, as well as those who are breeding animals with an appearance that is fashionable, but unhealthy (think flat-faced dogs who can’t breathe, droopy-skinned dogs whose eyes require surgery to avoid painful interference with their lashes, breeds with long backs who often develop painful spinal conditions, etc., etc.).
The group is in the process of developing information resources that will help interested breeders, including breeders of both purebred and crossbred dogs, learn how to produce dogs who are physically healthier (more able to breathe freely, move without pain, reproduce and give birth without veterinary interventions, and with less inherited disease and longer lifespans), as well as behaviorally healthier (dogs with minimal fear of novel humans and other dogs and animals, maximal ability to cope with change of environment and conditions, minimal behavioral pathologies such as separation anxiety or compulsive disorders, and minimal unchanneled aggression).
Ultimately, the group hopes to provide a place to deposit and search health records, so that breeders can access them for help with making wise breeding decisions. In addition to providing a podcast with interviews with experts on canine breeding and genetics (the Functional Breeding Podcast), the group is working to build educational resources that will help breeders produce dogs meeting the descriptions of health above. They hope soon to provide a curriculum for breeder education. Finally, it’s their hope to provide a “supportive and open community” for breeders with these shared goals, “through both social media and face to face opportunities, for mentorship, friendship, and social support.” (The project has an active Facebook group, “Functional Breeding,” that currently does just that.)
We can do better…
The project was originally the brainchild of Jessica Hekman, DVM, PhD, who is a researcher at the Karlsson Lab at the Eli and Edythe L. Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, studying the genetics of canine behavior. Dr. Hekman also teaches online webinars and courses about canine genetics. (She has also written articles for WDJ, most recently, “Behavioral Probiotics” in the August issue.) I asked Dr. Hekman about her original impetus for starting the organization. She responded, “I think a lot of us have known for a while that we could do a better job of breeding dogs to be healthy pets and working partners. The reasons we don’t aren’t scientific, they’re social. Why do we maintain breeds with a heavy burden of genetically mediated disease? Why do we insist that people get pets from breeders who are breeding for the conformation ring, and the pets are the second best dogs? Why do we castigate pet owners who want doodles? Because that is part of the traditional way of looking at breeding dogs. But it doesn’t have to be that way. If it were a different way, what would it look like? Can we just do it? I think we can just do it.”
I think the group is onto something. I’d only add that when we urge people to buy puppies or dogs only from a “responsible breeder,” that these goals of health are the most important part of how “responsible” is defined.
Every registry for purebred dogs maintains a description of the ideal representative of that breed, a “breed standard.” In many of these standards, only the dog’s physical conformation (how it’s built) and its movement is described. In some others, the dog’s demeanor or personality traits are also described, to some extent. Breeds whose origins are performance-based (hunting dogs, herding dogs, etc.) rarely mention the ability to do that work in their breed standards. And if health is mentioned in ANY breed standard, I’d like to know about it!
When looks come first, health starts to suffer
One thing is for certain: When dogs are bred to look a specific way – to be a predictable size or color, or with a certain kind of coat – often, traits that are more important (to me and many other dog lovers) fall by the wayside. The lovely, friendly Golden Retriever starts to become dog-aggressive and tends to die young of cancer. The brave, biddable Doberman becomes neurotic and dies of dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) at 5 to 7 years of age. The amiable Bulldog can’t be taken for walks, lest he keel over from heatstroke on an 80-degree day. In my view, I don’t care how many Championships a puppy’s parents and previous ancestors earned, I’d look for breeders who select their breeding stock for health and longevity, perhaps bucking the breed standards or current trends that are awarded ribbons in the show ring.
Many of us have owned a unique dog we wish we could clone: Sound of mind and body, friendly to all, easy to communicate with, a terrific learning partner, confident and game. Some of these dogs may have been purebred; some may have been the result of a purposeful mix; some may have been a shelter mutt or a roadside dog that found its way into our families and hearts. Often, these dogs resulted by chance – they were happy accidents resulting from an intentional breeding focused on their morphology, or from a strictly profit-oriented breeder, or a chance breeding far from human supervision. What if dogs with these traits were intentionally produced? I don’t care what the results looked like; I just know there would be far fewer dogs in shelters as a result.
The group is built on volunteer effort and is very much community-driven. Want to help? There are lots of ways to get involved. Check out the group’s website for more information: https://functionalbreeding.org/
pit bull dog in a life jacket in a red canoe on a calm lake in Colorado in fall scenery, recreation with your pet concept (pit bull dog in a life jacket in a red canoe on a calm lake in Colorado in fall scenery, recreation with your pet concept, ASC
Summer is in full swing, and with the hot weather comes swimming and boating – activities often mutually enjoyed by dogs and humans. Despite the swimming prowess of many canines, dogs can drown; it is estimated that thousands of dogs die in the water every year.
Dogs drown for many reasons. Some breeds, especially brachycephalics like Bulldogs and Boston Terriers, are physically maladapted to swimming. Many of them, even if they try to swim, simply sink like rocks to the bottom of a pool. Even competent canine swimmers tire quickly, and if they fall into a swimming pool unsupervised, may be unable to find the steps that allow them to climb out. In open waters dogs also tire quickly. A boating accident, or lack of human attentiveness, can put a dog at high risk for drowning.
Keep your dog safe in the water
Take the time to find out if your dog can swim. Maybe give him swimming lessons! Teach him how to locate and use a pool ramp to reduce his risk of drowning. To prevent accidental fall-in drowning tragedies, provide close adult supervision and/or a solid fence around the pool with no dog-access unless accompanied by a responsible human. Always have your dog wear a flotation device if he’s hanging out around the pool, actually playing in the wet stuff, or joining you on boat rides.
Canine life vests come in a variety of styles, ranging in price from $15 to as much as $80. Quality is important, so Google “dog, life jacket” and read all the information for the various brands before buying, rather than just opting for “cheap.” You don’t want buckles to fail when you are counting on the vest to save your dog’s life. Look for one with a sturdy handle on the back, so you can lift him out of the water when you need to save him!
You’ve done your research, purchased the life jacket – now it’s time to toss it over your dog’s head and go for a test swim, right? Wait a minute… slow down!!
You want your dog to love his vest. Even if he’s a resilient soul who tolerates just about anything, take time to make sure he isn’t spooked by the bulky thing going over his head, with all the straps and buckles that have to be adjusted and snapped closed. Here’s how to ensure your dog loves his swimming gear:
1. Fit the vest carefully before even approaching your dog. There will still be some adjustments needed, but minimize them.
2. Show him the vest. While he’s looking at it, feed him a high-value treat. (Boiled or baked chicken is good!)
3. Hide the vest, pause, then present it again, and feed chicken.
4. Repeat several times until the appearance of the vest causes your dog to get happy and look for the chicken.
5. Now (super-important!) hold up the vest by the handle with the straps unbuckled and invite him (with a treat) to walk under it. He’s choosing to put it on himself, rather than you putting it on him. If this part worries him, go slow – one step at a time – until he’s happy to have the vest resting on his back. (Or – leave the chest strap buckled and invite your dog to step forward and put his head through the opening. Do not just plop it over his head – be sure he volunteers to move through the opening.)
6. Now take some time to pair the sound of the buckles with chicken, so he also thinks that “snap!” equals chicken!
7. When he’s comfortable putting himself into the vest and hearing the “snap!” sound, you can buckle him in. Have someone feed high-value treats while you snap the buckles closed, or use Lickimats to keep him happily occupied with peanut butter, squeeze cheese or yogurt mashed into the grooves. (See Play With Your Food, April 2019). Alternatively, you can smear gooey foods on your refrigerator door or vinyl floor while you buckle.
8. At first, keep the vest on for short periods – 10 to 15 seconds. Gradually increase the length of time he wears the vest, until it’s clear he isn’t bothered by it.
9. Now you’re ready for the water! Again, take it slow. Even if your dog is an accomplished swimmer, it may feel strange to him to be more buoyant. Introduce him slowly to the water and convince him that swimming with a life jacket is fun.
This might seem like a lot of effort just to get your dog to wear a life vest. It will all be well worth it someday when it saves his life.
We often read discussions of whether dogs experience guilt; we’ve published a few, too. But here is a twist I don’t think I’ve ever seen discussed: A dog owner’s guilt over something related to their dog ownership.
Many of us who are old enough to have owned dogs before the advent of positive-reinforcement-based dog training – yes, this was before cell phones and when candy bars cost just a quarter – probably feel some amount of guilt and/or shame about how they trained dogs in their youth. There is a term that describes us – “crossover trainers” – those of us who started training dogs with choke chains and collar “pops.” This was the norm for anyone who wanted a well-trained dog who would walk on a loose leash, once upon a time. (It’s hard to fathom how different and wonderful it must be for trainers and owners who are, say, 30 years old or younger, who came of age in the dog world when positive reinforcement was the norm.)
Things I feel guilty about
Me and Tavi in 1977
I think back to the dog I was allowed to keep for my very own, starting when I was about 13 years old, and who lived with me into my mid-twenties. He was a half-Kelpie, part-hound-mix, dog-aggressive and, it seemed to me then, hard-headed. Frustrated by his many attacks on other dogs and not knowing anyone who knew any better than me, I physically punished him for his many transgressions. I know now that all of that punishment only hardened his negative feelings about other dogs – and far from correcting the issue, it made his hatred of other dogs worse. This was a lifelong conflict between us, and I never found a better way to deal with the behavior. Forgive me, Tavi, I honestly didn’t know any better.
My heaviest burden of guilt has to do with the death of little Tito, a Chihuahua-mix who was sort of dumped on my husband and me by his niece some years back. I didn’t really want another dog at the time, and Tito didn’t really want new owners, either. It took us all a long time to get to know each other; he was a prickly little tough guy. He didn’t like to be picked up, he was a ferocious resource-guarder, and he generally just kept his own council. Over time, though, we got used to and accepted his tough-guy independence and we all actually grew quite fond of each other.
A couple years after we had finally accepted that Tito was a member of our family, he was mortally wounded by a dog I was fostering. It took me nearly a year to process and understand what happened and to write about it; as penance for the ignorance that led to Tito’s death, I still tell the story to anyone I know who is considering fostering an aggressive dog. It’s not that dogs who display aggression can’t be rehabilitated – they certainly can. But people need to know what they are getting into, and need to protect their own families (human and canine) from getting hurt in the process. I didn’t protect Tito, and he paid for my ignorance with his life. The dog who attacked him was euthanized following the event – and this death, too, is on my hands. I am not sure when or if I can, or should, forgive myself for these deaths.
Accidents can happen to the best of us
I know two different people who accidentally backed their cars over (and killed) their own dogs, each of whom was sleeping in the driveway. Two! Both of those people were understandably wracked with guilt about these horrible accidents.
I have another friend who will never forgive herself for letting her dog off-leash to chase some birds, who were covering a huge grassy playing field at a college. But the dog chased and chased and wouldn’t come back, and eventually chased them across a busy street and was hit by a car. Despite almost immediate emergency veterinary care, he died at a veterinarian’s office less than an hour later. My friend is almost pathologically careful about letting her current dog off-leash, which is good, but I’m sorry that she still suffers about her former mistake.
Dog ownership is a huge responsibility; their lives and health are fully in our hands. Guilt over the things we’ve done wrong, I guess, helps keep us alert to the possibility that we might make other mistakes, that we have to be more careful with these precious lives. And, as the saying goes, when we know better, we can do better. Sometimes I just wish learning some of these lessons wasn’t so hard.
What do you feel guilty about? Maybe others can learn from your mistakes.
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