As a dog trainer, enthusiast and dog-mom, I try to keep up on the latest developments in canine behavior and health. In fact, I’m a bit of a geek when it comes to researching the latest findings. So imagine my surprise when I learned that what I and so many others had believed about older dogs needing less protein in their diets is untrue.

The woman on the other end of the telephone line was nearly in tears as she explained the terrible time she was having with her dog.  He was “attacking” her, she said, and wouldn’t let her put him outside.  She couldn’t get him out of the back seat of the car if she took him for a ride, her clothes were ripped and she had bite marks and bruises on her hands and arms.  He was also “attacking” her three –year- old daughter, and she was worried for her child’s safety.   Imagine my surprise when she then told me we were di

What Do YOU Want From Your Dog?

I have five dogs in my home. Not one of them knows what “heel” means. Not one of them does agility, fly-ball or competition obedience. They all sit on the couch, occasionally chase one of my four cats and dig huge holes in the yard.

So, are my dogs trained? Well, yes. They are trained to live with me in my house under my rules and to pay attention to me when in public.

I’m headed back to L.A. on a cross-country flight after presenting a seminar in New Jersey. It was great fun, and featured two other speakers as well, one of whom was Dog Star Daily’s own “International Roving Reporter,” Roger Abrantes. The audience was mostly made up of trainers, but also included shelter and rescue workers, petsitters, a few owners, and a veterinarian. We all had one thing in common—a love of dogs and a desire to help them.