10 Weird and Fun Dog Facts

Here are some interesting facts about dogs that you may not know:

1. Dogs sweat through panting and sweating through their paws and bellies.

2. Dogs see in shades of mostly blues, greens, and yellows.

3. The last warning signal of a dog about to bite only lasts about a second.

4. Dogs also yawn when they are under stress.

5. There are no breeds bred for being a couch potato, despite how they look.

6. Most dog paws smell like corn chips.

7. Humans and dogs basically learn the same way; repetition and patience.

8. Dogs have saved many humans not only by warning of dangers and waking people up but even by administering the Heimlich.

9. 21% of dogs snore.

10. A dog's nose print is as unique as a human's fingerprint.

Now go smell those dog toes! :)

My Rantings of The Dog Death Penalty

We've all heard of the news stories about a dog who has killed a baby and almost immediately euthanized. I have to admit that I very strongly believe that these dogs (in many cases) do NOT deserve the death penalty. They say that once a dog has 'tasted blood' that it is forever changed. Here are my thoughts on this...

A dog has always had the desire to kill. A majority of breeds are bred for that purpose specifically. When we give a dog a toy with a squeaker in it, we find humor and amusement in the dog's ability to destroy the toy and rip out the noise maker not realizing it's part of their prey drive by providing a small object with a cry like sound. Is there a taste for blood? Not that we note. Do we get upset about the destroyed toy? Not really.

A step higher... a dog stalks and hunts a chirping cricket, finally grabbing the critter in it's chompers and effectively offing the poor bug.  Again, we find humor and amusement in the dog's ability to destroy the cricket and clearing our surroundings of the pest. Is there a taste for blood? Not that we note. Do we get upset about the destroyed bug? Nope.

Another step higher... a dog engages in a game of tag with a taunting squirrel. We laugh as the dog gets outsmarted time and again until one day he successfully manages to snag it. Sadly, the critter is no more as we bury the remains of the furry nut eater. Is there a taste for blood? Not that we note. Do we get upset about the destroyed squirrel? Maybe a little at first... but nothing everlasting.

So at this point the dog has destroyed a squeaky/crying toy, taunted and killed a cricket, and victoriously murdered the neighborhood squirrel and yet at no point do we think that this dog has a permanent taste for blood even though it is a hunter.

The final straw... a newborn baby has been brought home. Mom mistakenly leaves the baby on the bed while tending to another task. Fido inspects this new moving thing that is only about twice the size of that squirrel. His cold nose touches the babies skin and the baby lets out a noise sounding very much like that squeaky toy. And every time the dog nudges the baby, it whines and cries a bit more. Not only that, but it squirms and moves! Why in the world does anyone think that a dog can tell the difference between this tiny, crying, moving baby and a large hairless squirrel that doesn't run? Don't hate me for saying this... but THEY CAN'T! Aside from having the same number of appendages, a baby has no similarity to us adults that a dog is used to!

So when I hear of these dogs being put down because of poor supervision on the guardian's side, I admit it... I get angry. The dog has no additional 'taste for blood' than it did with the cricket and the rodent. It is no different to them. The only thing that contributes to the change in the dog is the dog's OWNERS! They lost all trust and love for the animal in a split second and THAT is what the dog responds too. The immediate and seemingly unexplainable banishment and abandonment. NOT blood.

When I brought my daughter home to my 4 year old husky, I saw those dilated pupils in her eyes. Those were not just curiosities. My husky was not allowed to touch my daughter until she was 3 months old. Then she was allowed to sniff her while I held her in my arms. She got a bit pushy and out she went and we tried a month later. The process continued with much supervision and much correction until she finally lost those dilated pupils. She was a great canine companion to my daughter and even helped her walk on a few occasions. I have pictures of my daughter sleeping on her and even more with my husky's poor ears tied up in hair ties. But I have no doubt that had I been one of the neglectful/forgetful parents, I may have faced a similar scenario.

Our biggest mistake as dog owners is forgetting that our dogs are NOT people. They never will be. I 'joke' with my clients that they need to think of their dogs as tigers and bears. One does not attempt to place "spite" and "hate" on such strong creatures and too we should not attempt forcing our human emotions onto our dogs. In the end, a dog is a dog and this is not a bad thing! We should strive to be forever loving and loyal like them while maintaining a respect for what they are.

Leash Talk

This is a topic that so many trainers disagree on. There is an old joke of the trade:

"What do two dog trainers agree on?

That the third one is wrong."

Sad but true! We all have our preferences and experiences that have led us to make certain decisions about what we dress our dogs and our students' dogs in. So this is an article that is solely my opinion and my preference.

I'd like to talk about leashes. I only allow one kind of leash for training, but first dishing the "do", I'd like to express my opionions on the forbidden "don'ts".

Do not us a chain leash. They are ridiculous. They are bulky, noisy, provide no shock absorption, and add unnecessary weight to both the dog and yourself. In most cases they are also too short.

Then there are retractable leashes. I have very strict rules on this leash. Never use this for daily walking! Use this leash in one of two ways:

1. Make it a rainy day leash so you can stay under the roof of your porch while your dog goes for a potty.

2. Use it as a reward leash bringing it with you to provide some roaming room when you reach a destination.

Using this as a daily leash is problematic in several ways. The dog is self rewarded for pulling. It pulls and gets more freedom and learns to pull more. Another problem is that it trains the dog that tension on the collar and line is the normal and often when you switch from one to a normal fixed leash, the dog goes straight to the end of the leash to get that tension. It starts everything out wrong.

Finally the "do". A six foot nylon or leather leash in an appropriate width for the size of the dog. 6 feet allows enough distance to practice commands like 'stay' while still maintaining control. Any shorter and you don't gain the distance needed to feel a sense of separation. You can go longer but for beginning obedience, 6 feet is perfect!

Why A Trainer Talks Nutrition

One of the questions I have gotten over the years is "Why do you care about dog nutrition when you're a trainer?" There are two things that a trainer can not contend with when it comes to behavior; breed characteristics (you can't teach a beagle not to sniff) and health problems. Both of these things complicate behaviors and if we can eliminate one, we'll have more success.

I had a very detailed conversation with a veterinarian a few years ago and found an interesting fact. Veterinarians do not have a nutrition aspect of their training. The veterinary programs are focused on symptoms, injuries, and surgery on multiple animals from the dogs to rodents, reptiles, and livestock. To have them also study pet food labels and the individual ingredients in them is simply too much. Can you imagine how big that textbook would be?

Now I'm not saying that your vet knows nothing about what your dog should eat. Of course that's not true and many vets who zero in on caring for just a couple types of animals do in fact take it upon themselves to learn more about what should be going in these animals. But otherwise, there is very few places you can go to get some good information about canine nutrition. If you live in or near a large city, you maybe lucky enough to find a nutritionist but otherwise you're googling that stuff!

The reason I made the nutrition talk part of my curriculum was because I found many students with similar behavior problems had a common denominator... bargain basement food. If you're buying your food at the local grocery store or your local WalMart, I can almost guarantee that you are feeding a low quality food. There's a reason we are strongly encouraged not to eat McDonalds for every meal. These grocery store foods are an equivalent.

If you feed a poor quality food, your dog is lacking nutritional requirements. Poor quality food, as mentioned in the previous article, can cause intestinal discomfort, bowl variations, and other health concerns. An uncomfortable dog is not a well behaved dog and all the training in the world won't rectify it. If a dog is not feeling good or is in pain, like us, it'll be irritable, short tempered, and may even show signs of aggression. So as trainers, if we can talk our students into starting a healthier food right on day one, we'll all be better for it and our success rates will be that much higher.

Here are a few recommendations:

                                             

I personally use Natural Balance Synergy. If you don't have a pet store nearby, try your local farm store like Tractor Supply. They are starting to carry some of these higher quality foods! And while you'll pay a higher price per pound, you'll find yourself feeding less and you may help avoid any costly visits to the vet!

Let's Dissect Dog Food! (Part 2 of 2)

So now that we understand some of the red flags in our dog food ingredient list, let's talk about some green flags starting with protein. Ideally, your first ingredient would be a protein. But it should be the right kind of protein. So what kinds of protein are there?

There are obviously many animals we can put into dog food. The type of animal is not as important as the process it goes through. There are basically 3 versions of protein; protein as a whole, deboned, and protein meal. There are also those byproducts but we've already discussed them so I won't go into any more of that.

Now the version you want to see on the label is dependant on the type of food you are feeding be it canned or kibble. I'll explain using chicken.

If your label simply reads "chicken" as an ingredient, this is basically how you would purchase a roaster at the store. It's all inclusive of bone, skin, and maybe a few quality innards. Some of the higher priced foods will read "Deboned Chicken" which is the same item with the bones removed. Finally, you'll see "Chicken Meal".

Meal is not what they feed the animal as a few students have suggested and joked. Meal is the process of which they take the chicken and basically put it through a juicer. They extract as much of the fluids as possible turning the meat into more of a thick paste like a pate.

So which do you want? If you are feeding a canned food, you want to see one of the first two. You want the proteins intact since the need for extracting the moisture is not needed. If you are feeding a kibble, you want the first ingredient to be a meal. The reason for that is because you are feeding a dry food. If the label simply lists the item as "chicken" then it has not been processed yet.

Ingredients are listed by volume so the first 5 ingredients are the basis of your dog's diet. Some companies like to get that protein source at the top so by listing it in it's whole state they can do that. However, by the time they finish the process that item will no longer be in the top 5 and be somewhere around the 7-8th item. So look for that Meal as a first ingredient since they have already processed it for the kibble.

Some other good things are fruits, vegetables, rice, and barley. My general rule is when you are reading those ingredients, put each of those first five items on a mental plate. If you wouldn't eat it, don't feed it!

Let's Dissect Dog Food! (Part 1 of 2)

Over the years, I've learned quite a bit about canine nutrition and dog food labels. There is much to be confused about when it comes to dog food. Commercialism has played a huge roll in falsely convincing owners that their food is of great quality. In most cases, that's the farthest from the truth. And they always show a dog gobbling it up. Of course they are. It's the fast food of the dog world!

The first, and one of the easiest things, to look for on your labels is the age old preservatives listed as BHA and BHT. These are two chemical preservatives used to preserve meat. They can be found in many of our packaged summer sausages, pepperoni, and other like meats not requiring refrigeration while sealed. Some dog food manufacturers still use these while most have evolved. So why the concern? While we consume these chemicals very seldom, providing it as a daily meal can lead to some health problems as these chemicals are repeatedly introduced into their systems and begin to build. BHA and BHT have been linked to many organ failures, cancers, and even death in dogs. It's a sure fire sign that your dog food should be changed!

The next thing you want to stay away from is byproducts. Most people think byproducts are quality innards like the liver and heart. Let me clear that up for you. It's not. Any part that can be sold to humans is more profitable than being sold to a pet food company. Now think about what is available in your supermarket. You can find beef and chicken liver, hearts, stomachs, and even pigs feet. Now lets look at what's left that is not available, you just might want to skip this part: eyeballs, brain matter, noses, lungs, beaks, feet, smaller organs, miscellaneous parts of the intestinal tract including the throat bits and colon (maybe even an anus or two) and, I'm sorry to say, genitalia. Pretty much everything else left after the butchering process is complete is sold to the pet food companies. If it does not specify the animal, then it is not just one kind of animal. While there aren't any health concerns to discuss with regards to byproducts, it is important to understand where your protein sources are coming from. And I must ask... Sound appetizing?

This next item is also a flag in dog food but it won't stimulate your gag reflex. Corn. Corn is the cheapest filler a company can purchase that allows them to add volume to their food while maintaining a lower price per pound. However there is very little nutritional value to corn and dogs process it about as well as we do! So all this does is add volume both going in and coming out while lowering the overall nutritional value per kibble forcing you to feed more so your dog can get the nutritional requirements needed! Getting the big picture there? Are there related health complications? Generally speaking, no. However, if you feed once a day and feed the quantity recommended, it can cause bowl variations and digestive upset including gas. Larger, deep chested breeds can also have increased risk of bloat.

So I challenge you to review your dog food label and look for these dreaded items. In Part 2, I'll discuss what you DO want to see on the label!

A Tale in Training Gone Wrong

When I decided dog training was the career path I wanted to venture down, I decided to train my husky to do a 'fancy' trick to try my hand at something a bit more complicated. The goal was to receive her right paw, then her left, then have her place both on my arm and give me a kiss. So we began with "paw" which she picked up in no time. Then we worked in sequence and I asked for the "other". Wow she's smart! OK, now "both".

That was a little more complicated. Asking her to give up her sitting position and have her stand on her hind legs while I carry her front two wasn't something she understood quickly. But she was very treat motivated and after a couple days, she got it! Now the finale... a "kiss". Piece of cake!

So I had effectively trained her to give Paw, Other, Both, Kiss just as I had hoped. Now, let me remind you that this was an adventure in training BEFORE I had been trained myself. The key to training is and will always be a certain degree of unpredictability.

In the days to follow, we practiced this fancy foot work quite a bit until I felt it was a dependable trick. But instead of dependable, it became something else. As the day to leave for trainer school approached, this once dependable trick began to fall apart. She would skip steps or do them too quick or in the wrong order all to expedite the delivery of a treat to her mouth. A dog that knows a sequence will aim for the finish line. So while I was aiming for Paw, Other, Both, Kiss, what I managed to do was to train my husky to muzzle punch me in the face... on command. Yes, my friends, I trained my dog to head butt me, busting my lip on more than one occassion. After a few those, I put things on hold.

Needless to say, I did not put this one on the brag list as I entered into the canine academy. Instead I tucked this one away until I received enough knowledge to find out what I did wrong. Thankfully, all hope and effort was not lost and I was able to correct the variation and recreate what I had hoped for.

So what can you learn from my early mistake? Predictably is a sure road to sloppy performance. Keep things interesting. Repetition but not sequential. Keep them on their toes and test in different orders to keep those behaviors dependable!