The good and the bad an update

So many things, so little blogging. I know I have been lax about blogging. It is what it is I suppose. I am better at keeping my FB page updated if you want real time info for the record. This cutie is Dora. She just finished her stint on the K-9 Corrections program and headed to her new home today. They are a very lucky family. She is very smart and was a lot of fun to work with. Cute no?

The tug was a donation from the Loyal Biscuit Tug ME Toy Co. Tug is one of my Jacks favorite games and one that can really help build a relationship with a dog. Check out this great article on playing tug with your dog: http://www.whole-dog-journal.com/issues/11_9/features/Fun-Games-To-Play-With-Your-Dog_16059-1.html?s=FB12412

I am taking a bit of a hiatus from K-9 Corrections until spring. I need some time to recharge my batteries and figured this was a good time of year to do it. I have never been a fan of driving in the snow. Plus they are going through some changes at the facility so this will give them time to settle in to their own new routine.

On a sad note the french mastiff I told you about before that got adopted passed away unexpectedly. He had been having some behavior episodes that wasnt like him so we think perhaps he had something neurological happen. He was found curled up in his bed like he was asleep in the morning so we believe it wasnt painful. I am just grateful he had the opportunity to have a great home for awhile first. R.I.P sweet Brutus.

Zola is still doing ok. She has had a few mornings of not eating her breakfast. I think it might be because eating takes a long time for her now. Some days I have to puree her food. Her mouth only opens about 3/4 to 1/2 an inch. She is still very happy and is as spastic as always. Even the days she hasnt eaten well she still loves her stuffed Kong and chewing on her antler. She gets medications 4 times a day (for her liver shunt) and is still good about taking them all too. (luckily for me)

Nom, Nom, Nom.

It is an odd thing to live with a dog you know has a short time left. In some ways it is good that you know it is coming. In theory it gives you time to prepare and you live in the moment. In other ways it sucks. I try to focus on the fact she didnt have much time left when we took her in and yet she surpassed that time. We have had her over a year when we expected to have her for only a few weeks or months. Her second birthday is in February. My fingers are crossed. We are getting a new digital x-ray machine at work soon so I am hoping to take her in to get a better look at what is going on. Maybe we can also try stretching her jaw while she is under for the x-rays. We shall see. I dont want to do anything that will bother her or put her at risk either.

Regardless what happens I am happy I took her in. She is the personification of joy. She has no idea what the future holds and she is happy and having fun. That is all that really matters. Ignorance is bliss.We should all be so lucky if you think about it. Live in the moment and have fun while you can.

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How To Eliminate Bad Behavior In Your Dog

Dogs are like any other animal – including the human being – in that they will sometimes step over the line of bad behavior in the pursuit of enjoyment or comfort. If you are honest with yourself you must admit that there have been times when you did something wrong because the results of such action had benefits for you. Whether those benefits were active – you took something that was not yours and enjoyed using it – or passive, in that you did not do something because the alternative was preferable to you, you still transgressed.
Dogs are just the same. If a dog has gone to the toilet in the house, for example, it will have done so because it was easier than going outside. There may be many reasons why this was the case, but all the dog knows is that its action was what seemed like the right thing for it. This is not a mode of behavior you would wish to encourage, so you need to consider how to eliminate it in future. The best way of doing this may be to scold the dog sternly, or deprive it of its favorite toy – the important thing is to establish a link between action and outcome.
If a dog goes to the toilet in the house, there is little point in going to find the dog and handing out punishment there and then. The dog will not connect the punishment with the action. You need to establish this firm link by taking the dog to the scene of the action, and making clear your displeasure. Only then will the dog link cause and effect,

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