We all recently had a great time with our dogs at the recent Groomers show in Kansas City, and it was a lot of fun speaking to all of the groomers there about our growing dog training business. The response was really fantastic from all of them, and I think that they spend a lot of time having to constantly take in unruly dogs and having to groom them, that we both understood each other very well. Of course it was great to get to see Tom and Carrie Mancuso again, along with J.B. from our Kansas City Dog training location, and to see their dogs. We look forward to the event again next year!!

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AlthoughJack theCat doesn’t yet have a proven track record with loving dogs I’m sure Corona would love him instantly.

Very patient with dressing up but not so cool with uninvited dog visitors Jack is seven months old and has a twin that’s about 6 years his senior.

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Search and Rescue Dog handlers are often some of the most dedicated people in the world. The often train, search and work with their dogs constantly on a volunteer basis with absolutely no credit or thanks. Unfortunately, however there is a small percentage of handlers and teams that do search and rescue dog work only for the notoriety or simply to boost their personal egos.

The handlers and groups typically do not train as often as they should or their training is poorly regimented. They often do not possess valid certifications and they constantly make excuses for their dog’s poor working abilities. I have had the experience with working with both types of handlers and dog teams during my travels and teaching seminars.

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We currently have adorable bulldogs in our shelter looking to be adopted into a forever loving homes. Our mission is to provide temporary care and shelter for stray, abandoned and relinquished animals, and to place as many as possible into responsible and caring homes.The Animal Refuge Center also works to create awareness and support for the humane treatment of all animals and to end animal overpopulation through education and the promotion of spaying and neutering.

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What are table scraps anyway? Sure, these are the left-overs of one’s meal. But your meal probably differs from my meal, so there is no clear definition.

A colleague, who regularly feeds his dogs table scraps in addition to premium dog food, told me the following story yesterday. He had fed this three dogs Indonesian table scraps. Two of them, the Australian Shepherds, could handle this without any problems. However, the Portuguese Water Dog got severe diarrhoea. When my colleague woke up in the morning and went downstairs, he discovered the huge smelly mess on the floor. For two days the unfortunate Portuguese walked around with bubbly sounds coming from his stomach and didn’t care so much for food. So what seems ok for one dog, may hurt the other.

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Marking is an all too common behavior that we see from our furry friends. Some dogs live for their outside time to mark their spots! Some behavior includes dogs scratching their feet on the ground after they complete number two. This action is one way of spreading their scent to send a message to other dogs; there are scent glands located in the pads of your four-legged friend’s feet, so they scratch to spread that scent around.

The marking we see that can sometimes be embarrassing is the dog hiking its’ leg on objects, things, and even people. Don’t be fooled by thinking this is only a male thing, your very dominant females may also hike their leg as well. Scent marking is a way for dogs to lay out their territory; the more dominant the dog the more territory they feel they should mark. Marking can also decipher pack order in a group of dogs. Usually your pack leader will mark over any of the other dogs in the group to prove their position. Dog’s cocking their leg is an attempt to distribute their scent to the highest point physically possible, allowing the air currents to disperse it throughout the area or territory.

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On August 3rd I received a very specific question about dog food. For privacy reasons I won’t copy the complete mail in this blog post but I’ll explain the question to you.

This dog lover previously ran a Labrador retriever kennel and is now faced with a French Bulldog (received as a gift) that has food problems. Symptoms are: runny stools, bloody endings to stools, spit up food and skin sensitivity issues. The owners have tried all kinds of premium dry kibble and finally went to prepare home made meals for their dog.
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For people that love dogs, yet have allergic reactions to them, there is a simple alternative. If you can’t do without a four legged “friend,” choosing a hypoallergenic dog is the best alternative. For those who are scratching their heads, a hypoallergenic dog is not a special breed of dogs. They are dogs that generate less (hypo) allergens (allergenic) in the air, which has a lot to do with the dog’s physical size and length of its fur. For allergy sufferers, finding an allergy-friendly dog is the most reasonable choice. This doesn’t mean that the dog will be completely allergy proof, but it does mean that this type of dog tends to generate less amounts of allergy causing elements. It is impossible to find a dog that causes no degree of allergens.

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 Yesterday I went to the hospital to do my pet therapy rounds so that meant I had to have a bath beforehand. Jessy had one too. She was very good in the shower and stood still to get washed. She got the zooms after she got out, just like I do. We got the house very wet! It was warm outside so we didn’t need to get blow dired and were dry in no time.

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Cordelia Classics has really cute dog (and cat) collars that can be personalized. You can even add your phone number to the collar. They come in a variety of styles and colors. You can choose which font you want, and the color of the writing as well. We picked a pink collar with green writing, and here is our furry model in her fun new collar.

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