I ostensibly bought Reba to play with Newt, my little Shih Tzu. Poor Newt. She put up with Reba but it was clear almost immediately who was going to be running the show at our house. One of my favorite memories of Reba as a puppy was when I playing with the dogs inside one evening. Before Reba came along, every evening, I would play fetch with Newt in the hallway. I would toss her a tennis ball and she would run down the hallway, grab it and bring it back to me. Well, this game fascinated little Reba. Reba probably weighed 2 lbs and her mouth was tiny but she started chasing Newt as she ran after the ball and that kind of freaked Newt out. Newt started to run away from Reba who was hot on her heels. I was no help as I was laughing so hard I could barely breathe. At this point, Newt jumped up on the couch with the ball knowing that Reba could not (yet) jump up on the couch. Little Reba jumped and jumped up at that couch barking and barking. I will never forget that moment of her "treeing" Newt on the living room couch. Go figure.
Well, it wasn't long before Reba figured out how to get that tennis ball in her mouth. Back in the early 90s there weren't tiny tennis balls (or I didn't know about them if there were), so she had to carry the regular size ball which was about the size of her head. She used to chew the fuzz to make a "handle" and then she carried the ball by its fuzz. Soon, she could out run Newt and get the tennis ball every time. Poor Newt soon gave up on her fun fetch game and would dejectedly sit in the next room. So, we bought Newt a small frisbee and taught her to fetch the frisbee and she was soon a happy girl again and for the next 10 years Newt happily fetched her frisbee while Reba compulsively chased tennis balls over and over again.
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Thursday, August 13, 2009
Letting go
Tonight, I had to say good-bye to Reba, my dear old Lhasa poo who finally had enough of this old earth life. Reba came into my life 17 years ago and if I had had my way, I wouldn't have ever met her. It makes me laugh to think back on it now. Although I am laughing through my tears. It is a sad night.
About 18 years ago, I was sitting in my vet's waiting room with my Shih Tzu, Newt, when the cutest dog I had ever seen came in. She was a curly haired black dog with a little white spot on the top of her head and her owner said her name was "Precious." Oh my. When I asked what breed she was the owner said she was a Lhasa Poo. Hmm. I decided then and there that would be our next dog. Newt needed a friend I reasoned. (Newt later informed me that she did not need, nor did not want, a friend, oops.)
What I didn't think through is that poodles come in three sizes. Precious looked to be medium sized at about 25 or 30 pounds. She was probably a standard poodle mix. I started looking through the paper and eventually saw a litter at Green Valley Kennels in Chapel Hill and off I went. The mother was a blond Lhasa small for her size and the father was a black minature poodle. I still hadn't really put it all together in my head regarding size. I was picturing Precious in my head but not computing parental size into the equation.
So, I trotted over to the kennel to see the litter. The pups were tiny. Three or four weeks old, I think. I picked out a dark squatty one that looked more like a Lhasa Apsa than a poodle. After all, my sister had two Lhasas and I had a Shih Tzu, I didn't really want a poodle! Then, the next day, I took my new husband and my young niece over to see the litter to confirm my choice, much to my disappointment, they didn't like my pick, but instead chose a little fiesty poodly thing that stood at the bottom of the cardboard box and barked at us. Hmmm. But, they insisted and this was my new adorable husband after all, so I agreed and we chose the poodle one and waited a few weeks until she could come home.
Reba came home at 6 weeks which was far too young for a puppy that tiny. She weighed 1.25 lbs and almost died the first week I had her because the kennel told me she was weaned and she wasn't and I was so ignorant of dog things back then that I didn't realize she couldnt' eat the food I was giving her. Poor little thing was starving! But, I was smart enough to go to the vet and the vet patiently explained things to me and she obviously survived (thank goodness).
There were a few close calls in the early days, but the tiny little puppy grew. But, not much. I really didn't do the math well at all. My "Precious" puppy ended up a grand total of 7.5 lbs! Not even close to the size of Precious. Oh well, I loved her all the same.
Looking back at all of this, I have to laugh at myself and how much I didn't know about dogs and that reminds me to have kindness in my heart for all of my current and future clients. There is so much to know about animals and it takes years to learn. And some of us are slower to learn than others!
I have so many stories and anecdotes to share. They will come later. I'll stop and rest for now. Sending my blessings to my sweet Reba and all the other sweet dogs that have preceeded her.
About 18 years ago, I was sitting in my vet's waiting room with my Shih Tzu, Newt, when the cutest dog I had ever seen came in. She was a curly haired black dog with a little white spot on the top of her head and her owner said her name was "Precious." Oh my. When I asked what breed she was the owner said she was a Lhasa Poo. Hmm. I decided then and there that would be our next dog. Newt needed a friend I reasoned. (Newt later informed me that she did not need, nor did not want, a friend, oops.)
What I didn't think through is that poodles come in three sizes. Precious looked to be medium sized at about 25 or 30 pounds. She was probably a standard poodle mix. I started looking through the paper and eventually saw a litter at Green Valley Kennels in Chapel Hill and off I went. The mother was a blond Lhasa small for her size and the father was a black minature poodle. I still hadn't really put it all together in my head regarding size. I was picturing Precious in my head but not computing parental size into the equation.
So, I trotted over to the kennel to see the litter. The pups were tiny. Three or four weeks old, I think. I picked out a dark squatty one that looked more like a Lhasa Apsa than a poodle. After all, my sister had two Lhasas and I had a Shih Tzu, I didn't really want a poodle! Then, the next day, I took my new husband and my young niece over to see the litter to confirm my choice, much to my disappointment, they didn't like my pick, but instead chose a little fiesty poodly thing that stood at the bottom of the cardboard box and barked at us. Hmmm. But, they insisted and this was my new adorable husband after all, so I agreed and we chose the poodle one and waited a few weeks until she could come home.
Reba came home at 6 weeks which was far too young for a puppy that tiny. She weighed 1.25 lbs and almost died the first week I had her because the kennel told me she was weaned and she wasn't and I was so ignorant of dog things back then that I didn't realize she couldnt' eat the food I was giving her. Poor little thing was starving! But, I was smart enough to go to the vet and the vet patiently explained things to me and she obviously survived (thank goodness).
There were a few close calls in the early days, but the tiny little puppy grew. But, not much. I really didn't do the math well at all. My "Precious" puppy ended up a grand total of 7.5 lbs! Not even close to the size of Precious. Oh well, I loved her all the same.
Looking back at all of this, I have to laugh at myself and how much I didn't know about dogs and that reminds me to have kindness in my heart for all of my current and future clients. There is so much to know about animals and it takes years to learn. And some of us are slower to learn than others!
I have so many stories and anecdotes to share. They will come later. I'll stop and rest for now. Sending my blessings to my sweet Reba and all the other sweet dogs that have preceeded her.
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Training Oz
Dogs make me laugh. Almost every day they make me laugh. Today, I was working with my 6-year-old Papillon, Oz. I’m supposed to being doing daily exercises with him to strengthen his body so the subluxation in his back doesn’t cause him too many problems. I’m not very good at anything “daily.” Anyway, I was busy teaching him how to do a 10 second bow which should stretch his back out nicely. Being an acting dog, teaching him this trick was relatively simple. The next trick was much more difficult.
I wanted Oz to lift one rear leg. Theoretically, it sounds simple enough. Just lift one rear leg and not move anything else. I tried a light tap on that rear foot to indicate a lift. This was how he learned to give me his “foot” -- one front paw. He knows how to wave his front paws and he was waving them to beat the band. He was whacking me with those front paws: one, two, one, two, but I could not convince him to lift that back leg. He got so frustrated with my confusion (you see, he is quite convinced in these moments that I am the slow one, not he) that he began to offer me his new behavior that I had only gotten by luring until now -- the bow. He offered me many, many bows in all kinds of directions. A bow to the left, a bow to the right, and a bow with the head down position. Pretty fancy stuff and I must admit that I rewarded him well for his efforts. But I also continued to bother him for that rear leg.
Frustrated that these gestures did not appear to satisfy me, he offered me a side position, he rolled over, begged, and by now, I could not breath I was laughing so hard. He was offering these behaviors so fast and furious I couldn’t get my little finger back to his rear foot if I tried. Each time I tried to tap my finger against that rear foot, I set off an explosion of new behaviors but not one of them resulted in a lifted rear paw. Oh, how I laughed at his adorable face and the look of total consternation! He finally resorted to his mean dog face where he attacks my hand growling and biting and we called it a day.
I love that a dog can give me so much of his heart -- he gave me 150% effort today. Who can ask for more than that?!
I wanted Oz to lift one rear leg. Theoretically, it sounds simple enough. Just lift one rear leg and not move anything else. I tried a light tap on that rear foot to indicate a lift. This was how he learned to give me his “foot” -- one front paw. He knows how to wave his front paws and he was waving them to beat the band. He was whacking me with those front paws: one, two, one, two, but I could not convince him to lift that back leg. He got so frustrated with my confusion (you see, he is quite convinced in these moments that I am the slow one, not he) that he began to offer me his new behavior that I had only gotten by luring until now -- the bow. He offered me many, many bows in all kinds of directions. A bow to the left, a bow to the right, and a bow with the head down position. Pretty fancy stuff and I must admit that I rewarded him well for his efforts. But I also continued to bother him for that rear leg.
Frustrated that these gestures did not appear to satisfy me, he offered me a side position, he rolled over, begged, and by now, I could not breath I was laughing so hard. He was offering these behaviors so fast and furious I couldn’t get my little finger back to his rear foot if I tried. Each time I tried to tap my finger against that rear foot, I set off an explosion of new behaviors but not one of them resulted in a lifted rear paw. Oh, how I laughed at his adorable face and the look of total consternation! He finally resorted to his mean dog face where he attacks my hand growling and biting and we called it a day.
I love that a dog can give me so much of his heart -- he gave me 150% effort today. Who can ask for more than that?!
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
Time spent with a white german shepherd puppy
Today, I spent time with a 15-week-old white german shepherd puppy and she told me a few things. For example, she pointed out that all work and no play is just plain silly. And she rolled on her back and stuck out her tongue to make that point. But first, she had to put her little paw around my neck and tell me to relax and enjoy my day (it is my birthday after all)… and so I did.
I love working with puppies because, like young children, they are so in the moment and unsullied from months of bad habits or misguided training attempts by their owners. And this little girl is no different. She is right with us in every moment figuring out the best way to earn what she wants. At the moment, what she wants are treats and she sees that her human partner has placed the cup of treats on the stairs above her. “Chloe” realizes she can earn her treats one or two at a time by doing the down stays we have been requesting of her as we work on front door greeting behaviors or she can just snarf down the entire cup of treats, if she can just get to that cup. Clever girl that she is, she is now focusing on how to get up the stairs to retrieve those treats and has forgotten the task that we have requested of her. I laugh at her cleverness and bemoan the fate of her owner for while people always brag about having a “smart” dog, I always tell them they should feel sad, not happy about that state of affairs. I find that the truly smart dogs are among the most difficult to train as they are always thinking (and despite humans best efforts…most humans are kind of lazy when it comes to thinking about dog points of view and, hence, often befuddled by their dog’s behavior).
Today, Chloe reminds me that there really isn’t anything better than a nice belly rub to punctuate an important learning point. She says it will help her remember what she did correctly. I love the softness of the skin and fur on her belly. She is very warm and soft and snuggly. For a moment, I drift off in that sweetness. Dogs are wonderful that way. They allow me momentary escape into heightened sensory awareness. Momentary. Because just as quickly, she is up and moving again. Off to the next adventure. This time a power cord…and we are ready to set up her next lesson. So much to learn and teach. And a lifetime to explore together.
I enjoyed my short training session with the young white GSD. She made me smile, laugh, and feel good about life. Today was a good day.
I love working with puppies because, like young children, they are so in the moment and unsullied from months of bad habits or misguided training attempts by their owners. And this little girl is no different. She is right with us in every moment figuring out the best way to earn what she wants. At the moment, what she wants are treats and she sees that her human partner has placed the cup of treats on the stairs above her. “Chloe” realizes she can earn her treats one or two at a time by doing the down stays we have been requesting of her as we work on front door greeting behaviors or she can just snarf down the entire cup of treats, if she can just get to that cup. Clever girl that she is, she is now focusing on how to get up the stairs to retrieve those treats and has forgotten the task that we have requested of her. I laugh at her cleverness and bemoan the fate of her owner for while people always brag about having a “smart” dog, I always tell them they should feel sad, not happy about that state of affairs. I find that the truly smart dogs are among the most difficult to train as they are always thinking (and despite humans best efforts…most humans are kind of lazy when it comes to thinking about dog points of view and, hence, often befuddled by their dog’s behavior).
Today, Chloe reminds me that there really isn’t anything better than a nice belly rub to punctuate an important learning point. She says it will help her remember what she did correctly. I love the softness of the skin and fur on her belly. She is very warm and soft and snuggly. For a moment, I drift off in that sweetness. Dogs are wonderful that way. They allow me momentary escape into heightened sensory awareness. Momentary. Because just as quickly, she is up and moving again. Off to the next adventure. This time a power cord…and we are ready to set up her next lesson. So much to learn and teach. And a lifetime to explore together.
I enjoyed my short training session with the young white GSD. She made me smile, laugh, and feel good about life. Today was a good day.
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