Here's a great article that I thought I would pass on...hope you find it interesting! –Kim
Victoria Stilwell is a British Dog Trainer who has a show on Animal Planet.
Dr. Andrew Jones, DVM has been a practicing Veterinarian for almost 20 years. He is a strong advocate of Natural Pet Health Care, and knows that the most important way to heal our pets and prevent disease is through proper nutrition. He developed Ultimate Canine to give our dogs that extra advantage – something that will provide them with everything they need to develop stronger immune systems to fight disease, heal sore or stiff joints, and help them live longer, happier lives. Dr. Andrew Jones' main focus is on alternative, non-traditional remedies for pets. His interest in alternative pet medicine culminated in the writing of his book, Veterinary Secrets Revealed.
Here's a great article that I thought I would pass on. Merry Christmas! –Kim
Don't Buy – ADOPT a Shelter Dog
by Julia Szabo
If you haven't already experienced the joy of dog adoption, there's no time like the present to save a K9 life, and upgrade your own in the process.
I should know: I've been adopting dogs from shelters since 1994, when I brought home my very first pit bull, a white vision of beauty named Daisy. Since then, I've adopted dozens of dogs in every imaginable color, shape, and size. Some of them I rehomed; many wound up staying with me.
Shelter dogs have taught me more lessons about life and love than I can count or recount here. This much I can tell you: There's no nicer, more unpretentious teacher than a shelter dog! Daisy was also a brilliant literary coach, motivating me to achieve every young writer's dream: placing an article in The New Yorker.
Shelter dogs also impart excellent design advice. Thanks to my adopted dogs, I was able to summon the courage to write my first book, Animal House Style: Designing a Home to Share With Your Pets. They also inspired all my other books about pets and design.
Shelter dogs are natural-born decorators; they vote with their feet, and they don't charge a fee. Plus, they are wonderful to sleep with, especially when the weather turns cold. Shelter dogs are great in bed. At my place, every night is a four-dog night!
A visit to your local animal shelter or Dogster's adoption center (powered by Petfinder.com) will get you started on the road to K9 redemption. Need incentive? Here are 10 compelling reasons to adopt a shelter dog. What are you waiting for?
10 Compelling Reasons to Add a Shelter Dog to Your Life
With so many charismatic celebrities walking around with adopted dogs by their side — Lenny Kravitz among them — it's clear that adoption isn't just the right thing to do, it's the cool thing to do. To your adopted dog, you're the resident rock star!About the Author: The author of six books, Julia Szabo writes Dogster's Living with Dogs column and is a pet expert for Howcast.com.
Source: http://dogblog.dogster.com/2011/10/03/10-compelling-reasons-to-add-a-shelter-dog-to-your-life/?v=1
Here's a helpful article that I thought I would pass on. –Kim
What to Know Before You Sign a Lease
Pet owners searching for an apartment know it can sometimes be difficult finding a landlord willing to rent to you and your dog or cat. But once you find the perfect place, there are certain precautions you should take before signing your name to a lease and moving in.
Landlords are not necessarily skeptical of people with dogs or cats. Responsible pet owners are usually responsible tenants, and landlords who permit pets know they have a larger pool of prospective tenants from which to draw – especially ones who are likely to stay longer if they feel their pets are welcomed.
But renters have their own burden. If a landlord is reluctant to rent for any reason, you may have to prove that you and your pet can live within set guidelines and be good tenants.
You should also read and understand the fine print regarding pets – size and weight restrictions, policies about barking, the number of dogs or cats you're permitted to own – plus security and cleaning deposits you'll have to pay. In recent years, some landlords have even begun charging pet rent; it's possible you may be charged $30 a month for your pet, in addition to deposits.
Your ability to prove that you care for your dog may be what gets you through the front door – and it could be what keeps you there.
First, read the lease thoroughly, especially the parts that relate to your pet. Make sure your dog or cat (or parakeet or snake, for that matter) fits within the limits established in the lease. If the apartment only allows small dogs and you own a Golden Retriever or a larger mixed breed, ask for an allowance – and then make sure it's written into the lease and initialed by you and the landlord.
But negotiating might not always work. For instance, if a landlord does not allow a specific breed of dog because it can be known to be dangerous, don't expect him to stretch the rules.
"If you set a policy, as a rental owner you have to apply that policy to everybody," says Eric Wiegers, deputy director of the California Apartment Association, a trade group that represents owners. "If you treat one applicant one way, you have to treat every applicant the same way."
Be sure that you understand any required deposits (Wiegers said it's unlawful to charge more than twice the monthly rent for an unfurnished apartment; check your state's regulations). Before moving in, do a walk-through with the landlord to identify existing marks on carpeting or walls. Take photos and attach those to the lease. When you leave, they may help you get back your deposit if you have kept your apartment clean.
The best way to convince your prospective landlord that you and your dog will make good tenants is to bring your dog for a visit when you find the right apartment. Bring along vet records showing that your pet has been spayed or neutered, is in good health, and is up to date on all vaccinations. Show proof that you apply flea medication on a monthly basis. Be willing to put in writing that you'll keep your dog on a leash when he's on property and that you'll pick up and dispose of his droppings; also, that you'll prevent him from relieving himself in flower beds.
Some of these suggestions come from a group that has had an open door program in place for several years promoting policies and agreements between landlords and tenants. Prospective renters are shown how to write a pet resume and show their dog in the best light. Apartment owners are provided sample pet policies and checklists for screening and recognizing responsible pet people.
"It benefits people who have pets because it means they don't have to give them up, which benefits shelters (and the pets, themselves), too," says a spokeswoman for the group.
Check with your local shelter to see if they have a similar program, including a list of pet-friendly apartments.
Source: http://dogtime.com/finding-pet-friendly-apartments.html
©2009 DogTime Inc.
Here's a great article that I thought I would pass on...hope you find it helpful! –Kim
What Walking Means to Your Dog
Quite often, when I'm out walking the dogs, I see numerous other dog/handler teams out and about for a stroll in the neighborhood.
I see all kinds of things that I don't particularly like – dogs getting yanked around on leashes, yelled at, and constantly scolded. I can't recall a single time I've seen a dog in my neighborhood actually get a treat for doing the right thing when out on a walk.
But of all the things I see on walks, one of the most frustrating for me is seeing dogs being punished, incessantly, for being dogs.
Sometimes it seems as though owners take their dogs on a walk and forget what a walk is all about for their dog. For dogs, a walk is about sights, sounds, experiences. It's about checking "p-mail," sniffing hydrants and trees to find out where the neighbor's dog or cat last peed. It's about shoving their faces down the hole of a groundhog and sniffing until they finally pull their faces out, dirty, blissful, nostrils full of the smell of wild animals. It's about munching a particularly tender blade of grass, saying "hello" to a friendly stranger they'd like to greet, lifting a leg on every fire hydrant, sign, or tree you pass, splashing in a puddle or creek, or chewing a stick for a brief moment.
This is what walks mean to dogs. It's a chance to investigate and interact with their environment. It's mental and physical stimulation.
Many owners approach a walk with the mentality that, "We're going to walk x route in y amount of minutes whatever that takes. It will be your exercise for the day and you'd better well like it." It's a "let's just get this over with" mentality, a "you're an imposition to me and I'm doing this because I have to, not because I like to," mentality. For these people and their dogs, walking is a chore. For me, Cuba, and Mokie, more often than not, it's a game.
Let's face facts. For many, many dogs, a half hour leash walk every day barely scratches the surface of their true exercise needs. Mokie, my Chow mix, is a very active dog and for her, a walk is certainly more about mental stimulation than it is about physical stimulation. A 30-minute walk is a drop in the bucket for her. If I want to really tire her out, we need to go hiking, backpacking, swimming, or have a long and adventurous romp with some of her favorite doggy pals.
When we go on a walk, I'm walking for my dogs. It's their chance to just get out there and be dogs, to sniff and explore. If I want to go on a brisk, no-nonsense, let's-not-stop-for-anything-power walk (which happens rarely, I just can't see the point in walking without at least one dog and would feel utterly naked), I would go without the dogs.
Despite the fact that I'm a trainer, I also don't insist on perfect obedience from my dogs when we walk. A colleague once said, "well, my dogs would NEVER pull on the leash, because I'm a dog trainer." Well, la-dee-dah. Dogs are dogs. They move faster than we do and think poop is more interesting than we do. I'm not saying I let my dogs pull me around, but sometimes the leash does go tight. So what? I just stop, wait for the tension to come off the leash, and we start walking again. Easy-peasy. No mess, no fuss.
I do use equipment as a cue for the type of walk we're having. If I'm going on a training walk, where we're going to work on heeling or obedience, my dogs can wear their collars and six foot leashes. If we're going on fun, "for the dogs" walk, they get to wear front-clip harnesses and a long-line or flexi leash. (For dogs — and owners of dogs – that are not already trained to walk politely on a regular leash, a flexi leash can actually be both a safety risk and inhibit the learning of appropriate leash manners.) When they have those "clothes" on, they know they're off the 
hook. It's dog time – do whatever you want. Sure, I'll still call them back and reinforce them for coming, ask for a few steps in heel and reward with a chance to shove their face in a hole dug by a woodchuck, or ask for a few hand targets and reward with a stick tossed into the creek for retrieving.
But my dogs aren't always "on." They're not always performing, I'm not always rigid. I don't spend every second we're together thinking of criteria, reinforcement schedules, etc. I think of behaviors I like, and try to find ways to make it fun for them to offer those behaviors by giving them the things they want and need. Yes, dogs do NEED to sniff things and interact with their environment.
Sometimes, I'm not even a dog trainer, I'm just She Who Likes to Have Fun with Dogs.
I don't want robots, I want canines. Yes, I find their good behavior rewarding and fulfilling. It makes me proud to know how wonderful my dogs are. But at the same time, I want them to have plenty of opportunities to just do the things that they like to do, even if means that they're sniffing for 30 minutes our of a 45 minute walk and we only make it around four or five blocks instead of walking a few miles. Sometimes, I let the dogs pick the route we take on our walk. Something smells good on Fairview Avenue? Let's go that way instead of taking Riverside today!
Next time you leash your dog up for a walk, ask yourself, "whose walk is it anyway?"
Source: http://blogs.dogster.com/dog-training/whos-walk-is-it-anyway/2010/08/
Copyright 2010 Dogster, Inc.
Here's a great article that I thought I would pass on...hope you find it helpful! –Kim
7 Ways to Improve Walking Your Dog on Leash
by Eric Goebelbecker
April 27, 2010
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