Monday Mischief: Toilet Paper Rolls are Tasty

Toilet Paper Roll Demolition

Phase 1

Two

Phase 3

Phase 4

Demolition Complete

What's your Monday Mischief??

P.S.  I am doing much better.  They are monitoring me for Addison's disease.  I am also on a new allergy free food. Bark with you soon.  My thanks goes out to all of my furiends that gave me suggestions.  I did have a blood panel run and they did run a urine test.  There is a new parasite here in Kansas they are going to test for.  Anyway...my food is staying down.  That's a step. 

Kootenai

Tuesday Talk: It will have to wait till next Tuesday

 

Hi Furiends.  I know I haven't blogged in an entire week.  I feel terrible about it.  I am trying to get myself up and going.  Remember when I wasn't feeling very good about a month ago?  Well...something is still wrong and they don't know what it is.  I have gained twenty pounds in a month.  I know it isn't because I'm not exercising enough.  I'm also drinking a ton of water and waking my mom and dad up at two a.m. to go potty.  I am feeling very lethargic.  I just don't have that energy that I used to have.  I'm not limping anymore, but I'm not really moving very fast.  I still have my normal appetite, but I'm acting a little weird with normal things like my leash and the vacuum cleaner.  I would say they are making me more anxious than normal.  I am going back to the vet tomorrow afternoon.  I think they are going to have to run a blood panel.  I had a bacterial infection a month ago...   MAN....they see me a lot.  Once again I am asking if any of you have any suggestions to ask the vet about.  Remember that I had the skin stuff going on too...so I am thinking Cushings.  It seems like I am too young, but I don't know what else this could be.  I'm pretty nervous, but not nearly as upset as my mom and dad are.  You pet owners know how it goes.  I would appreciate some prayers.  I am starting on an irritable bowel food tomorrow.  There is so much going on in my little world.  I hope to be blogging again soon. 

Kootenai

Tuesday Talk: Diggity Dog Dig

   Today's topic involves a NAUGHTY (that's what Mom thinks) trait of mine.  I quite enjoy digging deep, dirty holes.   Especially when they are placed right smack in the middle of a beautifully landscaped yard.  I've done it since I was a puppy and I like it love it.  
    So Mom looked up the top ten things that most dog owners claim are the worst habits their dog does...and digging is number FOUR!  What can I say, Mom, I'm not that original.  Anyhow-then she found this funny article about some suggestions on how to get your dog to stop digging.  I HAD to blog about these because some of them are absolutely and positively RIDICULOUS.  I mean, if my mom did these things to me, I think I would run away and never come back.  Well...maybe I would come back after a few hours, but seriously, these ideas are plain mean. 

Ideas to try if your dog is digging in an unwanted place (the not so good ideas from that article.):

1.  Declaw your dog.   Some owners and vets argue that it is better that your dog lose its claws, than lose its life by digging out of the yard and being hit by a car.   ?

2.   Blow up some balloons and bury them in the spots where your dog digs in the yard.  When your dog digs....BOOM!  They won't do it again.  ?

3.  Turn on the sprinklers when your dog starts to dig in the yard, or stand out in the yard with a hose and spray your dog when your dog digs.  ?

4.  Bury your dog's poop in the spot in the yard where your pup digs.  When he/she finds it...she will quickly lose interest in digging.  ?


See?  Wouldn't you run away too?  I don't think I would take well to Mom spraying me with a hose.  Here are the logical suggestions from the article on how you can ACTUALLY stop your dog from digging in the yard:

1.  Have an actual sand area in your yard where it is fun for your dog to dig.  You can bury certain dog toys or dentabones in the area.  Make sure the area is big enough to keep your dog's attention.

2.  Exercise your dog before putting your dog into your beautifully landscaped yard. 

3.  Only leave your dog out in the yard when you are out there with them.  This allows you to correct incorrect behavior when it is occurring so your dog learns right from wrong. 

4.  Leave a treat Kong in your yard so your dog's attention is occupied on something else, rather than digging. 


What are your thoughts on this Tuesday Talk? Looking forward to hearing from you, furiends. 

A bone-worthy weekend!

Happy Saturday!

As you can see, I'm busy.  Have a great weekend! -Kootenai

   

Tuesday Talk: Positive Reinforcent Training Vs. Alpha (Dominance) Dog Training

 Hey furiends! The topic of today's Tuesday is Positive Reinforcent Training vs. Alpha (Dominance) Dog training.  Aka:  Victoria Stillwell from "It's Me or the Dog" vs. Cesar Millan from "Dog Whisperer." 

Alpha Training, also known as dominance training, is based on a study of wolves.  The idea of Alpha training is to establish a "pack order" within your household, with yourself (the human) as the pack leader.  Alpha trainers believe the most important part of leading the pack is attitude.  The attitude is usually referred to as 'calm and confident.'  The dog will then be worked into a submissive state, where the mind is capable of doing what the human is asking the dog to do. 

Positive Reinforcement Training is shown in detail on Victoria's show "It's Me or the Dog," featured on Animal Planet.  Positive Reinforcement Training is about rewarding your dog for correct action, rather than punishing your dog for incorrect action.  With this kind of training, you need to find something that motivates your dog.  Whether it's treats, affection, or his/her favorite toy. 

They both sound good, you say?  Many dog enthusiasts would say otherwise. 

Many dog enthusiasts in the United States are upset at the fact that "Dog Whisperer," a television series shown on the Nat. Geo Wild channel, is gaining viewers in exponential magnitude. WHY? Many trainers feel that Cesar Millan's approach to training is detrimental to the progress humans have made in training their canine companions.   The overall technique used by trainers today is positive reinforcement training.  Many animal enthusiasts feel that Cesar's method of Alpha training can lead the dog to be punished and act aggressively toward their human.  Most critics argue that Cesar's show makes the viewer feel the dog can be fixed in a matter of minutes, when in real life, it takes multiple days of work to fix a dog's bad behavior.  Some say that dogs are not wolves.  They say that the domestic dog is an entire animal apart from the wolf, and wolves do things domestic dogs don't, and domestic dogs do things that wolves don't.  Therefore, the study on wolves has been thrown out as a way to manage and train the domestic dog. 

This is an interesting and controversial topic in the dog world today.  Mom liked to watch both shows and idolizes both trainers.  She uses the positive reinforcement method herself, but has met many trainers that are very successful with the Alpha training.  Mom even had to use alpha training on my once because she tried and tried with the positive reinforcement idea with my food aggression, but it just didn't work.  She tried so many different approaches, but none of them resulted in less growling or snarling.  The first time I was flipped on my back was quite startling.  She had to do it a couple of times, but I did stop growling at her.  Now she uses the positive reinforcement to keep me from growling, but I did have to get shook up a little bit to understand that mom meant business. 

What about you furiends?  What are your likes and dislikes about these two training methods?  Do we have any furiends that view both shows, like I do?  Can't wait to hear your thoughts today!

A Saturday Smile

This morning I woke up and went to Land Of Paws.  Land of Paws is a delicious doggie barkery here in Kansas City.  They also sell lots of doggie things.  Ya know, like collars and foo-foo spray.  I ordered a chocolate covered strawberry dog biscuit and a doggie burrito.  Then mom stopped by the shelter here in Kansas City and signed a form to be a volunteer trainer for all those pups looking for forever homes.  We'll see if they call her and accept her for the volunteer position.  I think this would be a cool job for many reasons. 

1.  Mom would get to take me with her in the afternoons.

2.   All those doggies would have a greater chance of staying with their new owners if they had some manners.

3.  It will help Mom reach her dream of opening her own dog training facility someday.

You go Mom! 

(All those puppies are in for some boot-camp work and they don't even know it yet.  BOL!)

Happy Saturday furiends!

Wordless Wednesday: Rock Climbing with Dad