The Dog Blog

A puppy nips incessantly. An adolescent dog jumps up and practically knocks guests over. A pushy adult grabs food out of a child’s hand. Are these dogs aggressive? No. Obnoxious? Yes. In need of manners training? Absolutely! But they are not aggressive in the true sense of the word.

True aggression carries an intention to cause harm. Unfortunately, although many dog owners notice signs of escalating threatening behavior, nothing is done until there is an actual bite. Sometimes, if the dog is only biting family members, the behavior is tolerated until the dog bites someone outside the family, as that carries the threat of legal action.

The British are known as being a rather reserved bunch. We like tea and roast beef. We enjoy reading the newspapers on Sunday and moaning about the weather. We applaud stiff upper lips and not making a fuss. We love our dogs, and we regard them as important family members. Mostly though, we like them to cause us minimum embarrassment in social circles. In practice, this means saying hello politely to other dogs in the park, playing nicely when we have time (but not if we don’t) and being calm and sensible when visitors arrive at the house. Without wishing to make it sound as if we are all suffering from some form of insidious national neurosis, being British means enjoying a semblance of gentle control.

Lately, I’ve been seeing a lot of tired, crazed dog owners in the clinic, and they are all suffering from Slurpophrenia. Correctly diagnosing and treating the cause of this disease will lead to happy dogs and happier owners.  Dogs that cause Slurpophrenia usually fall into 3 categories—the bored, the anxious, or the allergic.

    Some dogs will repeatedly lick their feet to alleviate boredom. These dogs typically start the slurping when you settle down at night to watch television.  Since your dog doesn’t want to watch TV, he needs something to do.  While compulsively licking, his body releases chemicals that relax him.  These endorphins are the dog’s natural narcotic, and some dogs seem to get hooked on them!  

It has been quite a month. My new book, The Well-Adjusted Dog, came out on July 9th 2008 and was launched with auspicious fanfare as I appeared on Good Morning America that day. A trip to Washington DC followed as I was interviewed on NPR’s Diane Rehm show. Next came a radio satellite tour from my office in Massachusetts. I spoke with about 25 radio shows around the country in 2 days about what the book was about and what it meant for dogs and their guardians.