News Reel - Marketplace and 20/20

CBC Marketplace put together a great documentary regarding pet store puppies. I watched it when it was on TV and I have to say, it was pretty good. I would strongly encourage people to watch it. For those who are interested, follow this link here to see more about it.

The Marketplace Report explains some of the details about puppy mills and pet stores by telling the story of a dog named Dinglehopper and his owner Michelle who fell for a pet store puppy. There were so many problems with Dinglehopper, some behavioural, many hereditary physical problems. Please take some time to read about him and the many different issues he and Michelle have had to cope with together. From what I can tell, March 25th, 2009 was the latest update on Dingle's health.

I was so pleased to see the CBC's documentary out after I got so frustrated and angry seeing the 20/20 documentary called Cruelty To Owners.

Here I am, wandering through YouTube and I happen across the 20/20 episodes (there are 2 parts to it). I don't want to publish the links because I don't really want to encourage it to be the most watched video on YouTube. I don't want their stats to go up. Watch at your own discretion. All you have to do is type in the following (or copy and paste) into Google and you'll find the links: "20/20 cruelty to owners youtube"

For those of you who choose not to watch the videos, I will give you a sum-up. I have to admit I did not watch the whole thing - I couldn't sit through it.

The documentary is about how animal rights organizations go in on suspected or reported cruelty cases (for example, a puppy mill or BYBer). The organization removes the animals for one reason or another and APS Officers Serve Orders. Then when the owners have complied with whatever orders they were given and the organization should give the animal back, it is found that the animal in question has been relocated. At that point in time, the animal rights organization is shown to be the bad guys because they are said to be profiting from the dogs.

I would love to tell those organizations to smarten up! Asshats. You may think you're doing the right thing but you MUST comply with the laws governing your state and you must not allow cases like this to come up. It looks bad on the rest of us that actually DO follow the rules.

Makes me want to ask the 20/20 guys what in the world they were thinking when they put that storyline together?! What a load of bad publicity (PR) for the SPCA and other animal rights organizations across the continent.

If the dogs are in need of medical attention or grooming ... If the dog hasn't been altered and they are neutered while in the care of said organization ... do you really think they are even coming close to breaking even? I can tell you that for the organization I volunteer, we lose money on every dog once you factor in all the costs.

As someone who works with the dogs removed from such situations ... give yourself a shake and smell the coffee!! Many dogs removed from BYBers and Puppy Mills have behavioural, psychological and physical ailments or problems.

The worst part? There really are some questionable animal rights organizations out there and these stories probably have some truth to them.

The Asshats are on both sides of the fence on this one.

Training Rant - The Aggressive Dog

A fellow blogger, Fred, asked "Will you be doing any posts on how you're dealing with the aggression? Very interested." as a response to my post about the latest foster dog we have. For those who didn't read the post, you can read it here.

First off, I'd like to encourage everyone reading this blog to go check out Fred's blog, One Bark at a Time. It's a great blog about everything from his adventures in volunteering to experiences with his own dogs to general dog related topics.

Now, back to the point. How do I deal with the aggression? What a great question ... but bloody hard to answer! Each dog is different so it's hard to pinpoint a specific answer, but I will try to do the best I can.

I always look for a hands-off approach when working with these dogs. Why? Because I don't want to get bitten and I don't want to make the problem worse! I am a small person and not that strong. Most of the dogs I work with are stronger than me; a few are heavier. The thing that too many people don't understand is you don't rehab dogs by being the strongest or "dominant".

Generally, the dogs I get are the ones that are on euth-row. Most can't be handled by people, many have shown signs of aggression, some have bitten, almost all of them are simply shy and scared and have found that showing aggression is the best way to deal with their problems.

The first thing I do is determine why the dog is showing aggression. What is fueling it? Boredom? Fear? Anger? Frustration? Once you know why, you can start addressing the problem. Also, I usually isolate the dog I'm working with and start introducing stimuli one at a time so I can figure out what their issues are. When I find an issue, I work the dog through it.

Remember the post I put up about expectations? Always remember to set your expectations somewhere where the dog can reach. If you want to raise your expectations, than you should set them up for success so they can meet them.

For example, this is what I expected walking into my latest foster situation.

At the end of the first day I worked with her, I expected she would take a cookie from my hand.

By the first week, I expected she would take a cookie when I was standing and she wouldn't back away after taking a cookie from my hand when I was squatting down.

By the second week, I expected that she would allow me to touch her lightly and that she would take a cookie from me when I was taking a few steps.

By the third week, I expected that I could put a leash on her with some resistance.

When she showed aggression towards me (snapping at my hand), I knew she was trying to scare me (from what I could tell, she wasn't really a biter) so I called her bluff - that gamble paid off. We had a few power struggles, but she won none of them. Once I set myself up to be the one who calls the shots, I knew I could control any situation we walked into together.

When she showed aggression towards my dogs, I corrected with a leash tug and No. When she launched herself into the air to grab them, I stepped between them and used my big-angry voice (which was new for her) while simultaneously controlling the situation with the attached leash. With this particular dog, I knew that would be enough which is why I allowed the situation to exist in the first place. My dogs were told to Stay (if they left, she would have learned that this behaviour causes the dogs to leave which is what she wants). Once we were all calmed down (which took almost 10 minutes) and there were no more residual growls and all the dogs were looking at me, each got a cookie. We have been working with this and she is now to the point where she will physically show her stress (head shift, ear moves, muscles tense, face moves, etc), but she will not bite, nor verbalize - almost there, but not quite.

This only works because I have put enough foundation training into my own dogs that I can trust them explicitly. I know exactly what they are going to do because I have trained them how to react with these situations. They are experienced enough now that they will follow my direction without the need for a leash or a second handler to correct (provided they are within 15 ft). They also trust me to control the situation.

When I know the problem is more (example, the rottweiler/ridgeback x last summer/fall) than I start with people being the first stimuli. When the dog is ok with people, I get my husband to walk one of our dogs and we begin working the foster's thresholds (I'm still teaching my dogs how to stop and sit on command at specific points far away from me - so far they will do it 15 ft or less away but it needs to be further). In that case, because I knew the aggression was borne out of more than simple fear, we dealt with it differently and didn't allow the foster into a situation where she will fail. Always know your expectations and encourage the next step (but only the next step - don't leap!)

Every little reaction, every act is a learned behaviour. People forget that.

So, here are the things you need to know when working a dog with issues:

Why is the dog showing aggression?

Will the dog bite you/others or is it simply a show?

What are the dogs thresholds?

Once you have determined the answers to those questions, you can begin working with the dog and setting him or her up for success.

Featured Rescue - Cody the Akita

Why the Akita today? I don't know. Just in the mood, I guess. Today there are 821 Akitas available on Petfinder.

The Akita is a large breed dog that originated in Japan. According to Wikipedia: "Recent DNA analysis found that the Akita was among the most ancient dog breeds" Akitas in America are different than those in Japan as breeders have been encouraging different traits. Check out the link to ancient dog breeds - it's a pretty interesting little read.

This is Cody. He is 4 years old, 120 lbs, and reportedly a "victim of the economy". I would assume that means that the previous owners lost their jobs so can't afford to feed him anymore.

http://www.petfinder.com/petnote/displaypet.cgi?petid=12858061

Asshat Rant - Asshats Rehoming Dogs

I found this post on the Boston CL. Check it out. You too could own a senior (8 years old) beagle who is "fat and lazy"! Doesn't this ad just make you want to go out and get this dog?

"He shouldn't go to a home with kids under 5" ... I wonder why? Has he bitten someone? Or simply growled? Maybe he doesn't like kids that treat him as a play thing or a toy ...

Ok, so I'm one of the suckers who would take him if I were looking for a beagle ... but that's me. I like beagles (we have a 14 year old one now). I know that the poor dog is probably over fed and under exercised and with a lack of interesting stimulation, probably seems lazy. He's also getting older so probably is taking more naps throughout the day than he did when he was younger. Also, he may need a senior blood panel run on him to ensure he doesn't have any thyroid (or other) issues.

"We don't have time for him that he deserves" why not? What a crappy excuse. I'm thinking that from now on, anyone who uses that as an excuse to get rid of their dog is an asshat. People seem to really like to use that excuse. No, correction ... Asshats seem to really like that excuse.

I bet the only reason is because he's getting older and you don't want him anymore. Asshat.


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The next asshat is also from Boston. (Come on, Boston! What's going on out there?). This post had me shaking my head. I don't even have words for it other than ... asshat and worse.


"He does not like children though at all! He also bites when he is scared. Jeremy does not like/ is scared of loud noises, strangers, animals, children, red, and vacums." Seriously ... this does not make me want to take your dog. Asshat.

"Aside from that he is the best dog and will be a good addition to your home as long as you do not have children or anything mentioned above." Ok, so I could adopt your dog, live in isolation with no people or animals around; don't ever clean the house and try not to wear red. That's going to happen. Asshat.

Couldn't you have gone out with your camera and taken a better picture than that? Asshat.

Personal Rant - Asshats All Around Me

I was going to publish the aggressive dog post I've been working on (and re-writing multiple times), but unfortunately I am a bit too pissed off to post it. Sorry. It is coming, just not ready yet.

I got home last night from work to find that our Quad was stolen. Ok, I should have noticed it was gone yesterday morning when I got up, walked the foster dog and then went to work ... but come on! It's morning time! I'm lucky not to put my shirt on inside out most mornings, let alone notice that things are missing from the yard!!

You could see the tracks where they put it into neutral and pushed it out onto the road and then up onto a truck. We called the OPP. Get this ... they took a statement over the phone and wouldn't even come out to see for themselves! Typical.

The OPP guy said he thinks he knows who is doing this and there has been a rash of ATV's stolen in the last month. I think that's a line, that he has no idea and doesn't want to sound like an asshat, but that's my opinion.

No, they don't care to see the ownership papers. No, they don't need a description other than the license plate number and model. No, they don't need to look at the tracks in the mud that clearly show the Quad being pushed onto another vehicle. No, they don't want to know that it requires repairs. The list goes on.

I won't tell you how impressed I am with that. A friend of ours is a retired cop, so we called him to find out what the policy and procedure should be from the OPP. He said we may as well go buy a new one; the only thing the OPP needs to do is submit paperwork. Once that is done, they have done their job. Great. Thanks.

Yes, it should have been put away into the barn, but it wasn't and now it's gone. To say the least, I'm a little cranked. The best part? It keeps overheating and actually requires a specific part that can only be purchased from a dealership (we've been trying to find the part elsewhere since last summer since the dealership is way over priced - can't find it anywhere).

The insurance company won't cover it because it has too high HP. We needed to insure it separately, just like a car (fee starting at $500 per year). Yeah, right. That's going to happen. May as well buy a new one every few years at that rate.

Yes, I'll admit it, we're asshats for not putting it away. Was I the last person who used it? No, but that doesn't mean that I couldn't have put it away when I saw that the last person left it out. Remember, it only takes one instance of laziness to get kicked in the butt. If you complain about being kicked, you have only yourself to blame.

Anyways. I'm pissed off. Mostly with myself because I should have put it away (you want a job done right, do it yourself). Maybe now is not the best time to go parusing through CL ... I don't know if I can be tactful today ... but I just can't resist.

Featured Rescue - Corrine the Chow

I was looking through Petfinder and was amazed at how many dogs are listed as a Chow Chow or a Chow mix ... There are 2,927 dogs listed ... and most don't even look like a Chow! Anyway, it took me a while to find one that fits the following descriptions:

1. doesn't have something wrong physically

2. doesn't dislike other dogs

3. doesn't dislike cats or kids

4. does look like a chow

This is Corrine. She's a thin 3 year old who is looking for her forever home. True to her breed, she's typically aloof when meeting new people, though she does get along well with other dogs. (There's no mention of cats) Corrine is currently located in Buffalo, NY.

http://www.petfinder.com/petnote/displaypet.cgi?petid=13286910