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4 Ways to Help Your Dog’s Thunderstorm Phobia

July 15, 2015

dog, thunderstorm, fireworks, sound phobia, phobia, dog phobia, dog training, Frederick, clicker It’s summertime and it feels like we’re barreling down Thunderstorm Alley. If your dog is afraid of thunderstorms, summer can feel nightmarish: checking radar every day, worrying that a storm will beat you home from work, hoping your dog doesn’t destroy the house, or panic to the point of self-injury.

Thunderstorm phobia is real.

Schooner reacts poorly to thunder, lightning, wind, and rain despite my best attempts to make rain and thunderstorms a fun time for him. As a young dog, he didn’t mind storms: wind, rain, lightning, or thunder didn’t bother him. Great Dane, rain, thunderstorm, phobia, fireworks, dog fear, dog phobia Now however, at the first rumble of thunder he starts to tremble, pant, and pace. If he’s got access to the bathroom in the basement, that’s where he prefers to ride out the storm. I consulted with the service dog agency and they reported that he didn’t have any trouble with storms while he was there. We can’t put our finger on what changed in the month or so that he’s been with us, but we’ve implemented an approach that we hope helps ease our big guy’s mind about things that go boom in the night.

What’s helping.

I got a Adaptil collar for him.

Adaptil is a synthetic copy of the natural comforting pheromone released by a mother dog to reassure her puppies. Research has shown that Adaptil not only helps puppies but also dogs of all ages who are stressed and anxious about thunderstorms and fireworks, veterinary visits, car travel, new additions to the family, and more. Adaptil comes in a few forms: a room diffuser and a collar. They used to offer a spray (which we loved — use it as needed, just spray it in the car, crate, or wherever it might be needed), but couldn’t find that option on the U.S. version of the website at the writing of this article. We chose the collar option so Schooner would have the benefit of the pheromone all the time. If we used the room diffuser on the main floor where he spends 95% of his time, then he wouldn’t have it available to him when he runs to the downstairs bathroom when it storms.

“Music hath charms to soothe the savage beast.” — William Congreve.

It’s true! We got Through a Dog’s Ear to help soothe Schoon’s nerves and we’re finding that helpful not only for storms, but also while we’re away from the house. The over-arching psychoacoustic theory behind Through a Dog’s Ear is summed up in just two words — simple sound. This is basically the process of minimizing intricate auditory information found in most music. In other words, it’s not good enough to just leave the radio on — even if you’re playing classical music. That kind of music is too complex to help dogs relax. Through A Dog’s Ear music has been specially composed and recorded to be used to calm dogs. If you want the scientific research, it’s all here.

It’s better to treat fear or anxiety earlier, rather than later when it’s had a chance to grow or be generalized to other situations.

When we are in a fearful state, learning can’t take place. If Schooner is downstairs trembling and panting, I can’t help him feel better about storms. Nothing I do will actually make it’s way into his brain and stay there. To that end, we’re trying some medication to help with events such as thunderstorms or fireworks. The idea is to at least stop the event (thunderstorm) from continuing to strengthen Schooner’s fear. Medication is a way to open that window of opportunity so we can get a foothold into easing the fear. Veterinarians are on the front lines and are qualified to advise dog owners on whether their dog is a candidate for medication and to determine which medication would be most appropriate. As a trainer, I stand ready to implement the training and conditioning necessary to help teach dogs that thunder and lightning isn’t all bad, but I can only make progress if the dog is in a less fearful or anxious state. We’ve used the medication three times (two for thunderstorms, once for the 4th of July festivities) and we’re happy with the results. Schooner hasn’t made a run for the basement or given more than a passing glance at the storms or fireworks when he’s been medicated. He’s not “out of it,” either, for which I’m thankful. If another dog barks and runs outside, he’s up on his feet and hot on their heels.

Do you have a scaredy dog? What has worked for you?

4 Things Dog Trainers Do (That You Might Not)

July 9, 2015

Last month’s article (4 Things Dog Trainers DON’T Do), was sparked by a conversation I had with colleagues over lunch. After talking about all the things most professional dog trainers don’t do (that most dog trainers do do), it’s time to turn the tables and explore the four things professional dog trainers do (that dog owners may not).

The point of these articles is to shine a light on some things you may want to use with your own dog. These aren’t secrets really, but things you may not be aware of and that might lead to positive changes in your household and with your dog.

Crate

Most dog trainers crate train their dogs. Even if it’s just for the duration of house training and puppy teething, we’re fairly adamant about (1) teaching our pups to love the crate and (2) using the crate to both protect the dog and our belongings! While some people still feel that crating a dog is cruel, we’ve raised 15 pups in 15 years (service dog puppy raisers) and all of those dogs have been great in their crates.

Why crate? It saves our sanity and it protects our dogs from injury (and it saves our shoes!). Crates, when properly used, keep a dog out of trouble – they can’t chew up the sofa, dig up the carpet, raid the counters, or pee on the floor when they’re crated. They can’t raid the garbage, rip the curtains, or chase the kitty when they’re crated. It gives us peace of mind – we know that while we’re away the dog is safely contained away from windows, electrical cords, and other potentially dangerous items. We have a higher degree of confidence that there won’t be pee or poop to clean up when we return and it’s comforting to know that both the dog and our house is safe.

Feed from Toys

Most of the service pups I’ve raised haven’t eaten out of a bowl until they’re at least six months old, usually it’s closer to a year old. Food stuffed toys come in lots of shapes and sizes. As more research on the ways of the canine mind is gathered, there are more options for dog owners to entertain and feed their dogs. I’ve written articles on food stuffed toys (with videos, too), so I won’t go into detail here.

Why feed from toys? Feeding from toys provides a couple benefits to your dog (and to you!). First, it slows down those dogs that seem to inhale their food. You know them: you put the food bowl down and within 30 seconds that bowl is emptied and the dog is pushing the bowl around the floor looking for more. A food stuffed toy helps your dog beat boredom. Food stuffed toys are like puzzles for dogs. Those toys require your dog to use his brain power (and sometimes his jaw power) to figure out how to the food out of that toy. Solving puzzles like food stuffed toys can really work your dog’s brain, which in turn actually tires them out without you doing a lot of cardio work along side them. Not that cardio’s a bad idea, mind you

Use Management Frequently

If you’ve ever put your dog behind a gate while you answer the door, you’ve used management. I think dog trainers utilize management a little more frequently than dog owners, although I’m not quite sure why that’s the case. Very often, part of my training solution for a client who has called me to help with their dog’s problems involves management.

Why management? Often, management can take the place of training. For example, when we have a new puppy in the house, all our bathroom trash cans are placed on top of the toilet tank. Those trash cans will stay there until the dog is about six months old. That’s management! Puppies love to explore. They love the contents of a trash can! If, during their exploratory phase, they repeatedly find the rewards (what we call trash) in the bathroom waste basket, they’re actually learning to check waste baskets for goodies. If that waste basket is out of their reach, they’re less likely to learn to waste basket surf, as it’s just not an option for them. Other examples of management: gates to prevent access to certain rooms, fences to prevent roaming, crates to prevent house training or chewing disasters, keeping shoes in the closet to prevent chewing, and keeping counters free of food and crumbs to discourage counter surfing.

Brain Games and Training

Dogs are capable of some fairly impressive mental feats. Did you know your dog’s olfactory skills are capable of detecting one tablespoon of sugar in the amount of water it takes to fill two Olympic-size pools! Your dog can learn left from right? You can teach your dog the names of all his toys? Research on canine cognition has exploded and we’re learning that dogs are capable of a lot more training concepts than we ever imagined.

Why brain games? Often, destructive behavior results from boredom. Dog trainers keep their dog’s minds busy to ease boredom. A thinking dog is usually a more satisfied, healthy, and better-behaved dog. Professional trainers tend to use training to not only teach our dogs new things, but to bust the boredom rut. It’s easy for you to teach your dog new things, too! Invent a game of your own, sign up for a tricks class, enroll in a nose work or scent game class – the possibilities are endless!

Hopefully, you’re doing some (maybe all!) of these things with your dog already. Good for you! If not, consider adding one of these into your daily life with your dog. Then, when you’re ready, add another! You’ll find, I hope, that you – and your dog – are happier. And isn’t that what it’s all about?

4 Things Dog Trainers DON’T Do

June 4, 2015

My father, who owns a plumbing company, despises garbage disposals because he says they are nothing but trouble waiting to happen (stopped up drain). A professional firefighter friend doesn’t have any power strips in her house (fire hazard). Professional dog trainers, too, do a lot of things very differently than pet owners.

Why do professionals do things differently than non-professionals?

I think it’s because professionals see so much more in their field than the non-professional. The plumber knows just how many house calls are due to garbage disposals. The firefighter has arrived on-scene to a fully engulfed house where the cause of the fire can be traced back to a power strip. And dog trainers, well, we see so many easily preventable problems – problems that can wind up causing big headaches or costing lots of money (or in the worst cases, loss of the dog’s life).

This month, we’re talking about the professional dog trainer’s “Don’t Do This” list.

Flexi Leashes

Flexible, retractable, extendable leashes are one of the inventions that dog owners love and dog trainers hate. We hate them for lots of reasons:

They teach bad habits. Flexible leashes teach your dog to pull on the leash to go anywhere. They encourage pulling. If you’re trying to teach your dog to walk nicely on a leash, the best way to wreck that is by putting your dog on an extendable leash. The leash is always tight. If the dog wants to move anywhere, there is tension on the collar and the dog has to pull into the collar to move. It’s a recipe for disaster if polite leash manners is your goal.
They are dangerous. The thin cord can amputate (yes, chop off) your finger! Or your dog’s tail or toe. If you’re not squeamish, Google “flexi leash injuries” and click on “Images” to see all the damage that a Flexi leash can do to flesh.
They’re way too long. Some of the leashes extend to 26’! If your dog is more than 6’ away from you, there is greater likelihood that your dog could get into trouble: he could run into the street (still on the leash), could rush up to another dog who isn’t friendly, or get himself into something dangerous (mouse poison, antifreeze, wild animal, etc.).

The reasons are plentiful, those three are the most common and most dangerous of the reasons to not use a Flexi. Just say NO to Flexis.

Dog Parks

The only dog parks most dog trainers will use are empty ones. We know that dog parks are havens for inappropriate behavior (canine and human) and disease. Ew, need I go on – those two things right there are enough to convince this human that my dogs do not need to visit a dog park. But here’s more detail, in case you’re on the fence about dog parks.

Dog fights. Not every dog that goes to a dog park should be there. Some owners take their dog to the dog park so they’ll “get used to” other dogs. Or to “socialize” their dog. No way! If you take your dog to the dog park, you could unknowingly be setting your dog up to be one of the dogs that the unsocialized dog learns from! I’m pretty sure you don’t want your dog to be the guinea pig that a grumpy or inexperienced dog learns on! .
Dismissal of real dog problems. Owners will frequently say “Let the dogs work it out,” if there’s a skirmish or scuffle. Sadly, that’s the wrong advice. We are guardians of our dogs. We take responsibility for their welfare. Letting dogs “work it out” can lead to veterinary emergency room visits or sadly, death. Google “dog park deaths” and you’ll find that there’s a real risk in taking your dog to a dog park.
Health hazards. Parvo, bordatella, internal parasites, fleas, ticks, these are just some of the health risks your dog is exposed to at the dog park. Some of that risk is minimized if your dog is healthy and current on vaccinations, as well as if the dog park participants pick up the poop regularly and thoroughly. The American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) has a thorough list of communicable canine diseases here.
Bad habits. Your dog can pick up the bad habits of other dogs in the dog park. Just like on the kids’ playground, bullying can also exist in the dog park. If your dog joins in on the melee, he could be learning inappropriate behavior that he’ll repeat outside the dog park. On the flipside, if your dog has a bad experience from the dog park bully, he may learn that going on the defensive early (growling, snarling, lunging, biting) is a good idea, even if a friendly dog approaches.

In the end, most dog trainers realize that the risks of a dog park often far outweigh the benefits and we generally steer clear of dog parks.

Littermates

If one puppy is good, two puppies are great, right? Oh, so wrong. While it seems intuitive that getting two puppies at once might be a great timesaving idea, in reality that can be one of the worst things dog owners do. Raising littermates is harder than raising one puppy because everything you do with one puppy has to be done separately with the other puppy if you’re going to have two well-adjusted adult dogs. Instead of doing these with the two pups together, you have to do each of these things with each puppy, separately. Why separately? Because doing these things together leads the puppies to become dependent on one another. The more the pups depend on one another, the less they depend on and pay attention to you. They can develop an unhealthy dependence on one another that can make living with them unpleasant.

House training. If you’re raising two puppies, you’ll need to teach them housetraining separately. Yep, that means taking each puppy out independently. Without the other pup. That’s two trips outside each time, in the rain, in the cold, in the snow, in the blazing heat…you get the picture. It’s double the work.
Sleeping quarters. The pups need to learn to sleep apart (in another room) from one another. That means two crates, two beds, etc.
Training classes. You’ll need to take each pup to his own class, without the other puppy. Creating independence is a critical task and it can’t be done if the pups are together all the time.
Veterinary visits. When it’s time for their booster shots or wellness checks, make two separate appointments. Each puppy needs to develop his independence and confidence, especially with the veterinarian. Unless you want to bring both dogs to the veterinarian anytime one of them has an issue for the rest of their life, scheduling separate veterinary visits is a necessity.
Training time. In addition to individual, independent puppy classes, you’ll need to spend time with each puppy separately to work with him on good manners. While it may seem more efficient to train them both at the same time, it’s actually setting the puppies back (the pups distract each other and also aren’t learning to focus and listen to your cues).

Leaving Food Down

Not only do most dog trainers not leave food down all day for our dogs (also called “free feeding”), but also we rarely feed our dogs from a bowl. We schedule regular feeding times for our dogs for a few reasons:

It helps with house training. What goes in must come out. We use the scheduled feedings so we have scheduled and predictable bathroom breaks.
We can immediately tell if one of our dogs is “off his food.” A dog refusing to eat at mealtime can be an early indicator that the dog might not be feeling well. If food is always available, it may be days before you notice your dog’s decreased appetite.
Helps with training. Because our dogs work for food, we can use feeding time as a predictor of when our dogs will likely be interested in food. I can use all or part of my dog’s meal as training rewards. Every dog has to eat – you might as well use that food to accomplish some training. If your dog has continual access to food, it’s hard to gauge when he might be interested in training.

There you have it – four things dog trainers almost never do (and why). You may have never thought about these things before, but now hopefully you’ve got some things to think about and perhaps consider implementing with your own dog. Next month, we’ll take a look at some of the things almost all dog trainers do (that you might not).

Camping with Your Dog

May 28, 2015

tent, camping, dog, Lab, labrador, dog training, clicker, Frederick, Smart Dog University — Our 10-Man Tent

We went camping with the dogs last weekend.

In our backyard. Why would we sleep on the ground in our yard when our comfy beds were just steps away? Here’s why: we wanted to see how the dogs would do with the whole camping scene before we were actually camping. It’s better to find out how the dogs are going to do while we’re still close enough to, well, go inside and sleep in our own beds if the whole thing falls apart.

We have a 10-man tent.

Not because we’re going to be camping with eight other people, but because we have four dogs. Many years ago, when we had only two dogs, we found out that a 4-man tent was tight for two people and two dogs. So when looking for a replacement tent, we went big — really big.

camping with your dog, tent, camping, dog, — Dog beds and people beds. It was a mess after one night!

As you can see, even with a 10-man tent, when you have people beds and dog beds, space gets eaten up pretty quickly. We’d need every inch of that tent if we were really camping and needed to store our supplies in the tent with us.

Things to think about when camping with your dogs.

Barking. Can your dogs be quiet at night? Or will they bark at any rustle, laugh, or truck backfire from somewhere else at the campsite? Turns out Schooner was a bit barky the first night, but settled down quickly for night two.
Sleeping. Where are your dogs used to sleeping? Ours sometimes sleep with us in the bed. Which means they’re likely to sleep on your sleeping bag in the tent. It was ok with us, but it was a bit difficult to have four dogs sleeping on the sleeping bags and still have enough room to move. Sleeping bags are a bit smaller than a regular bed and we were feeling a little cramped until we convinced the dogs to lie in their beds.
Friendliness. If you’re camping in a campground, it’s essential that your dogs are dog- and people-friendly. Quarters can be close, people can be chatty and want to be friends with your dogs. If your dog isn’t friendly, save him the stress of camping and find a friend to keep him for you while you camp.
Outdoorsy. The Labradors loved camping. Schooner, the Great Dane, looked a bit bewildered. If given the opportunity, I think Schoons would have happily slept both nights inside while we did our camping experiment in the backyard.
Weather. I know, you don’t have any control over the weather. But you will have a general idea of forecasted highs and lows, and the chance of precipitation. If it’s going to be hot, and your dog hates the heat, leave him home with a friend. We knew it was going to get chilly at night, so we brought the dog beds out, along with covers for the dogs. They all needed covers the first night when it got down to 40°F. Even we were cold and we were dressed for cold weather.
Activities. If you know you’re going to be doing strenuous hiking and you have an elderly, arthritic, or sedentary dog, you may want to leave your dog at home with a friend. Tango, my yellow Labrador, has a bum elbow and he’s not happy walking or hiking more than about 1.5 miles at a time.
Supplies. Bring plenty of food, probably a little more than your dog usually eats, if you’re going to be more active during the day than what your dog is used to. Clean, fresh water is essential — you don’t want your dog to drink out of puddles, ponds, or streams due to parasites and all kinds of nasties. Carry water with you — with a bowl — to hydrate both you and your dog on your hikes and walks around your camping site.

dog, camping, tent, camping with your dog, — Dog beds and dog blankets.

Play nice with other campers.

Rules to follow:

Keep your dog on leash all the time. Period. End of story. Loose dogs aren’t fun anywhere, least of all in a campsite where they could run into tents, steal food, and wreak havoc throughout the campsite. If they chase wildlife, your dog could be lost in an unknown environment — gone forever.
Barking is a no-no. If your dog is a barker, be considerate and leave your dog at home. No one needs to hear a doggie serenade at 3a.
Pick up the poop! Yes, even in the woods! Yes, even though no one picks up after the deer, raccoons, squirrels, etc. You are a guest in the forest. Be a good one and pick up the poop!

Take a test run.

If you’re not sure how your dog will do, do what we did and camp in your backyard. It was fun for us, got the dogs used to the tent, and if things went haywire, we could walk a few steps and fall into our own comfortable bed!

Speak! Do you camp with your dogs? What tips can you share?

Peace. Love. Paws.

May 22, 2015

Dog lover?

Looking for high-quality and cool dog-related people stuff?

I gotcha covered with a company called Peace. Love. Paws.

Alissa Gander introduced herself and her company and invited me to take a look around and check out what she offered. There are a lot of companies out there who offer dog-related clothing and gear and it’s pretty much buyer beware out there. I’m fairly skeptical when it comes to “Ooh, we’re different.” I’m pretty much like “Prove it.”

So Alissa sent me some stuff. And she’s right — her stuff is different.

She really gets what it feels like to love and be loved by a dog. She has a soft spot for dogs without homes and donates a portion of sales to a different rescue or dog-related charity each month. But even that’s not enough to stick out in this crowded world of new pop up shops with dog-related merch. What makes Peace. Love. Paws. different is that they’ve got high-quality stuff you can wear to the dog park or out to dinner. It’s nice stuff. The art is cool, not sticky sweet or over the top.

Here’s one of their cool messenger bags. (They’ve also got really cute tote bags that I adore.)

They have the coolest blank greeting cards.

And some pretty amazing magnets that I’ve got on my fridge and filing cabinets. I’ve pretty much put them on every magnetic surface in my office.

“Peace. Love. Paws. lives by three very simple rules:
-Be kind to one another.
-Do the best you can.
-Hug your pet daily.”

-Alissa Gander

Peace. Love. Paws. sent me some merchandise free of charge so I could experience the product first-hand. I wasn’t asked to endorse the products or the website. I chose to endorse — without any payment — because I love the stuff and figured you would, too.

Doggie Birthdays

May 18, 2015

Today my sweetest of sweets, Tango, is twelve years old.

dog4
He comes over to the bed every morning and sniffs my face as I wake up. This morning, I spent a little extra snuggle time with him and whispered “Happy Birthday, Fig!” in his ear. He gave me a few extra wags, which I hope means “Thanks!”

I was busy baking doggie cupcakes (with doggie frosting, of course!) this afternoon for the handsome yellow Labrador. I don’t think he knows it’s his birthday, or why birthdays are even a thing. But does that really matter? I’m gonna celebrate this dog’s birthday and I’m sure he’ll enjoy the side benefits like doggie cake and doggie cookies.

I probably could have made Tango’s cake from scratch, but I know me (and best intentions don’t actually bake a cake) so I went ahead and bought a box cake mix formulated specially for dogs. It was super easy to throw together: an egg, water, and a little bit of oil. I went for the cupcake option seeing as how we have four dogs in the house, it seemed easier to make eight cupcakes so I’d be sure everyone would get about the same amount.

It tasted fairly good (the batter) — just didn’t have the sugar we’re so used to tasting in our foods. The icing looked delectable, but that, too, was sugarless and rather bland to my sweet-preferential taste buds. Not bad, mind you, just not what we’re used to. I’m sure the dogs will swallow theirs whole and come back for more…

This boy has been such a fabulous friend to me over the years, I wanted to share some of our adventures on his birthday.