Humans for dogs

How to distract a food motivated dog at the vet

Fri, 01 Feb 2019 19:14:46 GMT

Our chocolate lab can not hold still at the vet. He doesn’t mind the shots but he really wants to explore the smells and play with everyone that comes in the room.

During our most recent visit, they showed us a great trick for distracting him and holding him still. They smeared peanut butter on the “wall”, a folded down table. He happily licked up all the peanut butter, ignoring both the shots and the other animal smells.

How do I stop by dog from barking when people leave?

Sun, 23 Dec 2018 16:25:14 GMT

Photo by J. Sibiga Photography

It would help to know what kind of barking your dog is doing. In that moment, is he excited? Is he aggressive? Is he worried?

I’m going to assume he doesn’t want them to leave or, more likely, he wants to go outside with them.

Right before people leave, grab a big handful of treats. Have your dog sit near you and as people go to the door, start saying “good dog” and giving him treats. As they are leaving, as long as he doesn’t bark, continue to reward him. If he barks, tell him “no bark” and then ignore him. If he stops even for a second, say good dog and give him a treat. Gradually, over many iterations, make the pause longer before you reward it. Make sure he continues to sit next to you. You may have to practice this dozens of times.

The key is to catch him *before* he starts barking. You want to reward good behavior (not barking when people leave) and if you wait until he’s barking it’s too late. Do not give him a treat for barking!

In addition, I would give him a specific place to sit as people are leaving. (I do this with my dog for when people are arriving, as that’s his challenge.) Then when people leave you can say “go to your bed” or whatever you want to call it.

What happens to guide dogs when they retire?

Sun, 23 Dec 2018 15:17:30 GMT

Photo by Jill Encarnacion

There’s a waiting list to adopt retired guide dogs!

Most organizations give first priority to the person who has had the dog. However, that person is often looking for a new guide dog and can’t keep a pet in addition to their working dog. In that case the retired guide dog is adopted out and there is usually a very long list of people who would like to adopt a guide dog who either didn’t make it through the training or who is being retired. Most guide dog training organizations say that their waiting list is any where from 1–6 years to adopt a guide dog!

Here are the adoption pages for just a few of the guide dog training organizations:

Adopt a Former Guide Dog

Guide Dogs for the Blind

The Seeing Eye – Adopt a Dog

Is my dog sorry he chewed up my furniture?

Sun, 25 Feb 2018 22:40:04 GMT

My dog chewed up the furniture or peed on the carpet or ate my shoes while I was gone. When I got home, he looked sorry. Is he sorry?

No, your dog is not sorry he was bad while you were gone. He most likely looks sorry because he knows you are mad, even though he doesn’t know why. Either:

You always yell at him when you get home, so he’s anticipating that you are going to yell. He looks sorry because he’s trying to appease you and get through this part as quickly as possible.
You immediately noticed the problem and already look mad. So he knows you are angry, but probably has no idea why, but he wants to appease you.

Even if you show your dog the damage they’ve done or rub their nose in it, they will not associate their past behavior with your anger. You must catch them in the act in order to correct it. The best option for a dog that misbehaves while you are gone is to not give them any options to get in trouble. Either remove the problem objects or crate your dog.

For more insight into how your dog thinks, check out Culture Clash by Jean Donaldson, a great book on how dogs think and how that should effect how we train them. You can also listen to it for free with an Audible trial.

My dog just wants to play keep away, what should I do?

Thu, 15 Feb 2018 21:39:20 GMT

Every time I throw the ball for my dog, she runs away with it. What should I do?

Your dog wants to play keep away. Dogs love playing keep away. Your dog wants you to chase her, try to grab the ball and run away. She’ll probably turn around and show you the toy and then dash off. If you are having trouble getting the ball, she might even drop it on the ground to try to fool you into grabbing for it. If you don’t chase her, she’ll probably bring it even closer and drop it on the ground again.

So, what should you do? Should you chase her?

If you are trying to teach your dog to fetch, then no. Do not chase her! If you are working on teaching your dog to fetch, you should save learning to play keep away until later. If you throw the item you want her to fetch and she runs off with it, call her back. You can use treats if you need to. Take the toy away and try again later. Always make sure you keep the toy – do not let her play with it when you are not practicing fetching.

If you are having any type of behavioral problems with your dog, then no. Do not chase her! Keep away is a fun game, but it’s difficult to enforce rules while chasing your dog around. And they’ll get used to running away from you while you are making a lot of noise. If you have a well behaved dog that can distinguish between when you are playing keep away and when you are not, this is not a problem. If you have a dog that’s still learning the way you want it to behave, playing keep away can really confuse them and is likely to get them into trouble later. For example, they might pick up your shoe and when you try to take it away, they’ll decide to play a game of keep away. And they’ll be really confused about why you suddenly no longer like their favorite game.

If you have a generally well behaved dog and you just want to play with her, then by all means play keep away with her! You might want to assign a special toy for the game and only play keep away with that toy. With some work, you can probably teach her to play fetch with a ball and keep away with another toy like a tug toy. If you notice any troubles, like she starts taking your shoes or she stops coming when called, stop playing keep away immediately.

Don’t stress out your support dog!

Mon, 29 Jan 2018 23:13:21 GMT

A well trained service dog would not be shaking with its tail between its legs. A well trained handler would realize her dog was in distress and help out.

In addition, this support dog was wearing a pinch collar. A pinch collar is a great training tool but a working service – or support – dog should not need one.

In all fairness, these two dogs were very well behaved. But one was obviously nervous and scared.

When your nose doesn’t belong …

Mon, 06 Nov 2017 17:42:59 GMT

What happens when you put your nose where it doesn’t fit …

Nutrasporin for dogs.

What should I do if my dog won’t eat?

Wed, 19 Apr 2017 15:56:21 GMT

If your dog won’t eat, he is definitely not feeling well. If he doesn’t eat for more than 24 hours, take him to the vet immediately.

Some things that you can try are:

Switch up their food. Sometimes dogs, like people, get tired of eating the same thing every day. Some food brands come in different flavors or with different types of ingredients. We recently switched our dog from to Taste of the Wild Venison and Bison to Roasted Lamb because he didn’t seem to care about his food anymore. (He didn’t stop eating. He just would sometimes let it sit for a day or so.)
Add a bit of wet food. Dogs that are used to eating dry food think wet food is a special treat. We fed two of our dogs wet food one night and the lab inhaled a can full and our other dog looked over and growled a warning that she was enjoying her can!
Add some gravy. Add something wet or moist to their existing food. This could be just some warm water over their food or maybe some chicken broth.
Try a bland diet. Check with your vet, but if your dog has had an upset stomach, you can try feeding them something very bland like just a bowl of rice until it settles.

If your dog won’t eat for 24 hours, call your vet immediately!

New Orleans, the dog friendly city!

Wed, 15 Feb 2017 00:16:02 GMT

New Orleans is a fun place for humans and dogs alike!

Not only do many people living in New Orleans have dogs, but they treat them like royalty. You will see dogs every where including in stores, restaurants and bars. Some of them will be dressed up, some will be pushed in decorated strollers.

The owner of these two dogs told he decorates the stroller according to the season. This was the Mardi Gras decor. I met him and his dogs in a nice restaurant in Marigny and nobody but me seemed to notice anything unusual!

If you do take your dog to New Orleans, be sure it’s not too hot – the summer months can be very warm – and be sure to teach your dog not to eat random stuff off the sidewalk before you go!

If you can’t take your dog along with you to New Orleans, don’t worry, there will be plenty of dogs to pet and cuddle with! As I was told at the dog bakery in the French Quarter, “Your dog will never forgive you if you don’t bring a treat home for him!”

Practice your talk with your dog

Tue, 13 Sep 2016 17:27:57 GMT

Photo by Ken Yeung

The next time you have to give a presentation, let your dog be your practice audience.

According to the New York Times, it will alleviate your anxiety.

I’ve been doing this for years. I’ve found that with some dogs it helps if you throw in the word “treat!” or their name every few slides!