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That Extra-Special Holiday Guest

Cindy Bruckart  |  Tue, 11/25/2008 - 10:36

Most of the people reading this are avid dog lovers. So, let me ask you, as a dog lover, how would you feel if this happened? Let’s say you and your dog came to my home for Thanksgiving. Let’s also say that your dog was afraid of…hmmm…afraid of the centerpiece on the table.

How would you feel if I told you that your dog was being silly because the centerpiece is not dangerous? What if I forced your dog to spend time with the centerpiece and laughed at him when he got anxious? I’m guessing you wouldn’t be hanging around for dinner.

Sadly, this is exactly what some people go through who are afraid of dogs. In fact, there are hosts who will be joking about the dog-anxious guest before she even arrives. When she does arrive, already amped up because she knows there will be dogs at your house and that she will be chided about her fears, she is repeatedly informed that her fears are irrational and encouraged to just "don't be afraid".

 

No Table Manners?

Lisa Whelan  |  Tue, 11/25/2008 - 07:56

As dog trainers one of the many questions we are asked is “How do I stop my dog from begging at the table?” or worse, “How to I stop my dog from jumping up on the table?”!!!  This is both annoying for the humans, embarrassing if you have guests and not good for the dog if he’s being given food that is unsuitable for him.
The most important rule is never to feed their dog from the table at any time.  This only serves to encourage the begging and makes it almost impossible to modify the behaviour.
 

 

The Phoenix And The Turkey

Dr. Ian Dunbar  |  Tue, 11/25/2008 - 05:20

I was grateful to Phoenix because she returned the turkey. Of course, this event wasn’t quite as embarrassing as the time she stole a barbequed chicken from the top of the barbeque of a huge family picnic in Codornices Park on her Fourth of July birthday. But this story is about turkey.

Many years ago I had prepared a traditional Thanksgiving dinner for a bunch of friends. I cooked and set the table and it looked just so wonderful. A quick step into the kitchen to get the carving knife and fork and when I returned to the dining room, the turkey was GONE! My grandmother’s beautiful antique meat platter was still in the center of the table. But empty! So, the dinner party began searching for the missing turkey. After several minutes, there was a shout from the bottom of the garden. The turkey had been found!

 

A Tale OF Two Turkeys

Dr. Nicholas H....  |  Mon, 11/24/2008 - 08:54

The holidays can either bring out the best or worst in people. A woman client of mine told me how proud she was of her dog one Thanksgiving for keeping her engaged daughter from a bad marriage.

Apparently, all were gathered in the family room before the Thanksgiving meal when suddenly there was a shout from the kitchen. One of the assembled throng had gone into the kitchen to get a drink and found that the dog had hauled the cooling turkey off the table and was chowing down mightily.

Everyone came running and all thought it was hilarious, except for the daughter's fiancé. He went black in the face and started yelling at the dog and threatening it. Everyone looked at each other, now seeing the other side of this otherwise presentable man.

 
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People And Their Dogs At Their Best

Kelly Gorman Dunbar  |  Sun, 11/23/2008 - 01:33

Dr. Dunbar and I have just completed our short lecture tour of South Africa. Our gracious hosts from Animal Behaviour Consultants of SA truly pulled out all the stops and showed us a very good time by providing us with multiple experiences and memories that will stay with us for the rest of our lives.

At the beginning of our trip we met the insightful and delightful people of Cape Town, where the welcome was warm, the conversation simulating, and our stay was all too brief.

 

Misbehavior and The Second Puppyhood of Old Age

Jeff Silverman  |  Fri, 11/21/2008 - 13:53

We often refer to old age in people as a second childhood, and my 13-year-old dog Cheyenne’s old age is turning out to be a bit of a second puppyhood, complete with some basic retraining. Time has not been kind to Cheyenne. She has arthritis in her hips and back, cataracts, and hearing loss. None of those ever seemed to slow her down much, but she was recently diagnosed with degenerative myelopathy (DM): an autoimmune disease that has her slowly losing control of her hind end. Most people would expect obedience to be very near the bottom of one’s list of concerns with a dog in this condition. Most people have never lived with Cheyenne.

 
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Tales of Two Species

Patricia McConnell  |  Mon, 11/17/2008 - 12:36

It may seem like shameless promotion, but I have to say, it’s a wonderful thing to hold a book you wrote in your hand, long after the writing and the editing and the discussions with the publishers are over… My new book, Tales of Two Species: Loving and Living with Dogs just came from the printers, and I have to admit it feels good to see it. It’s a collection of essays written over the years for Bark magazine, published by Dogwise (who I call the Amazon of dog books). Working with the editors of Bark has been a joy, and collaborating with the folks at Dogwise has been equally delightful (I presume you are not shocked to learn that this is not always the case between author and publisher?

 

Observation From Africa

Kelly Gorman Dunbar  |  Sun, 11/16/2008 - 22:28

I'm in South Africa right now, where the landscape is stunning and the animals are captivating. I don't know about you, but when I think of Africa I think of exotic beasts, lions, zebra, buffalo, crocodile, antelope and the like. I don't really think of dogs, but of course they are here. Domestic dogs and their people are what brought use to South Africa after all – Ian & I just completed a lecture series in Cape Town and Johannesburg.

 

Holiday Hazards: What Every Dog Owner Should Know

Nicole Wilde  |  Fri, 11/14/2008 - 08:11

Yep, it’s that time again. The stores are filled with holiday decorations, we all wonder how the season could have snuck up on us so quickly…and dog trainers like me feel the need to warn everyone about the things that can harm dogs at the holidays.

Between planning family gatherings, decorating, gift-buying, and preparing way too much food, it's easy to get overwhelmed and forget about the needs of our dogs. But the holidays are also the busiest time of the year for veterinary emergency clinics. Take a moment to read over these simple tips for keeping your dogs happy and safe during the holidays:

 

Owie!

Sarah Whitehead  |  Fri, 11/14/2008 - 02:51

They say dogs are good for you. Having just limped into the office with a nasty case of ‘nylabone foot’, I’m beginning to wonder!

If you’ve ever stood on one of these in the dark, in bare feet, I won’t have to explain the pain, the jumping about, or the expletives! And all this after laughing my head off having read about a top footballer who had to take six months off after dropping a jar of peanut butter on his foot. Clearly, karma at work.

Dogs reduce blood pressure in people that are stroking them. Dog owners suffer from fewer minor ailments, such as colds and flu, and many studies have shown that dogs are excellent for human health and well being, both short and long term. However, what nobody ever talks about are the many and various trivial ‘owies’ that dog owners quietly suffer: random toy injuries being just one.

 

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