You Saw A What, Where?

May 13th, 2009

Last night as I was working at the emergency pet clinic in Flower Mound, a man called and said that he had seen a rather large snake in the shopping mall parking lot and was wondering if perhaps it belonged to us, and went missing. I assured him that NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO it did not, but I was interested in finding out more about it.

He said it was about 6 feet long and as big around as a coke bottle. Wow! In our busy little strip center? That’s just crazy. He had actually taken a picture of it with his phone, and e-mailed it to us. It was indeed – a very LARGE snake.
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None of us knew if this would be a dangerous guy or not so we ended up calling the police to check it out. They looked around the tree we thought it was in, but to no avail. Finally the one that was pretty knowledgeable about snakes looked at the photo and determined that it was just a rat snake. Not of any danger to anyone, so that was good news. Still, I wouldn’t want to run across him in a dark alley.

The picture is hard to see, but look toward the bottom of the tree to see a good portion of the snake lying on the ground. Gives you a fair idea of his actual length.

I guess I’m always a little surprised when I see things that belong in the “wild” right in our back yard. But I shouldn’t be. We are constantly encroaching on their natural habitat more every year. More building, and more neighborhoods where there once was just woodlands. A couple of years ago I happened to glance out of my back door just in time to see a turkey – a full grown turkey, strolling along the top of our privacy fence. He went down a couple of houses and then just jumped down into the yard. It was almost as shocking as suddenly seeing a cow in my backyard! Then a few weeks ago I saw two very large (scary large) coyotes right in the middle of a residential neighborhood (less than a mile from my house). I was stunned. It made me glad that I have a 6’ privacy fence to protect my little guys. But after all, they’re just trying to survive.

So when we see these “intruders” lets cut them a break, and try to remember that they were here first, and that WE are actually intruding on them.

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Posted in Creepy Stuff | 3 Comments »

Another Year Gone

May 7th, 2009

I can scarcely believe that another year has gone by since my Tessa had her last birthday. She is 11 years young today – and doesn’t look a day over 8.

I will have to admit that she is starting to show some signs of aging – mainly mental signs. She whines for no apparent reason, and barks at us if we walk outside to get the mail, and then come back into the house. I’m not sure if she doesn’t see well, or is just confused. At any rate, she seems to be doing well enough physically, and seems happy for the most part.

We decided to make this years birthday pics a little more dignified than the ones from last year, (with the crown and the boa). So we just took a few shots with some local flowers.

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Happy Birthday, big girl! You’ll get your usual fake meat sloppy joes and real cupcakes. You’re the BOMB!!!

Posted in Uncategorized | 4 Comments »

Bo - The First Dog

May 5th, 2009

Woo-hoo! I am SO happy to see that the new “first dog” is being trained by a positive dog trainer. Sylvia Stasiewicz founded Merit Puppy Training in the 90’s and teaches Positive Reinforcement Training Classes for Dogs of All Ages. It’s so wonderful to see someone on the positive team, being so high profile.
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I don’t mean to make it sound like there aren’t others out there – there are. There are tons of them in fact, but let me tell you - when you’re actually looking for a class in your area, they may be a little tough to find. I have to credit my good friend Paula for filling me in on the scoop. I’ve been a little news negligent lately. Sometimes it’s just better that way.

Victoria Stilwell is another (even more) high profile trainer out there trying to pass along the benefits of positive training. She has a television show called It’s Me or the Dog that airs on Saturday night. Despite my irritation with her on The Greatest American Dog, I’m usually right on board with her methods.
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And I think her show provides some balance for the Dog Whisperer broadcast. Don’t get me wrong. Cesar provides some entertaining TV, and is quite a charming guy. I once went to Oklahoma to see him speak. He was mesmerizing, and very humorous. He’s a great speaker, that one. He’s an entertainer. In fact. . . no . . . I’ll stop there. Let’s just say that Victoria’s show balances him out. There’s no smoke and mirrors with her. Pretty much just straightforward problem fixing – done in a positive way. A little silly, and a little too “girlie” at times - but all in all a great trainer.

I think that as time goes on, we will hear more and more about positive training. After all, places like Sea World have been using it for many, many years. You really can’t train a killer whale using a “correction” or intimidation. And most progressive zoos are using it as well, for simple medical procedures.

So chalk one up for our team - the positive folks. And Bo - make us proud! Everybody’s watching!

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Posted in Feel Good, Training Tips & Blurbs | No Comments »

My How They’ve Grown

April 24th, 2009

OK – I promise not to turn this into a total Dane puppy blog. But I just had to post another page on the pups my friend recently had.

I visited them when they were 3 weeks old, and then again 9 days later. I couldn’t believe the difference!!! They were HUGE, and much more active – playing and battling with each other. Running across the floor – skidding into their siblings – chomping down on legs, and ears and noses.

Here’s a few more pics:

What a gorgeous little face

What a gorgeous little face



play time

play time



look at that pretty show stack

look at that pretty show stack



chow time

chow time



twins?

twins?



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the dane-fest


I had a blast with the puppies. I could just watch them for days. (Sorry if I’ve said that before). Not sure if I’ll go back to see them one more time before they go off to their new homes - I might be tempted to snatch one up and make a break for it!

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Posted in Feel Good, Fun Stuff | 4 Comments »

Great News!

April 19th, 2009

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The American Kennel Club (AKC) has always been a promoter of purebred dogs. That’s what they’re all about. All of the events that they hold (and there are MANY) are for purebred dogs only. They hold more agility, and obedience trials than any other dog organization that I’m aware of.

For those of us with mixed breed dogs, there are not that many options for performance sports. I’m pretty sure that USDAA (United States Dog Agility Association) would be the largest organization offering agility to ALL dogs, regardless of breed status, but I think AKC far outnumbers them in trials. As far as obedience goes, UKC (United Kennel Club) does allow mixed breeds, but they have very few trials (at least in my area).

I participated in a survey a couple of years ago, asking what exhibitors thought about letting mixed breed dogs compete in performance sports (obedience, agility and rally). I thought it was a dead issue by now, but then I was informed by a friend that they have indeed decided to allow them to compete in AKC events. Wow – that is HUGE! I’m pretty sure they’re doing it for the extra money they will make from the mixed breed exhibitors (and not out of any good will), but hey – I’ll take it.

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They made the decision in April and the mixed breed competition will commence on October 1, 2010. They will compete in a “separate but equal” class, but again, I’ll take it. It DOES make me curious though, why they can’t just compete with the rest of the dogs. Are they worried that the “mixes” might show up the “pures”? I’m not prejudiced – most of my dogs ARE purebreds. I just find it odd that they will compete separately and their titles will be slightly different. But again, really, who cares?

So the quest to seriously start working Micah in obedience has begun. I’m really looking forward to being able to be in a trial setting with him (on leash) so that he can get used to that. If he can get used to working in that atmosphere ON leash, we might eventually have a chance of making it OFF leash to do agility.

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Chalk up one big “atta-boy” for the good old boys of AKC. You Rock!


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Posted in Agility, Feel Good, Fun Stuff, Holidays, Micah's Journey, Rescue, health | 4 Comments »

Dane Fun

April 10th, 2009

Today was a good day. I went to visit a friend who just had a litter of Great Dane puppies. They are sooooooo cute! The litter is 3 weeks old and they already range between 5 and 7 pounds. Since I’ve had 2 Dane puppies myself, I know that they are one breed that you can actually SEE growing EVERY DAY! ;-)

Anyway – there is just nothing better in the world than puppies. Admittedly, I’m a definite sap for them. I could sit and watch them and their little puppy interactions for hours. They are hilarious. They are just learning to get their feet under them at this point and their clumsiness only adds to their cuteness. You can probably almost smell the “puppy breath” just by looking at the pictures. The little groaning noises they make while nuzzling your neck – priceless.

Just wanted to share a few pics of the kids. Enjoy!


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Posted in Feel Good, Fun Stuff | 2 Comments »

Yea Me!

April 8th, 2009

Now I’m sure you’re thinking, what the hell? A little self-absorbed? A little arrogant? Conceited? Not really – because you know why? Sometimes we need to cheer ourselves on, as well as other people. Sometimes we need to have as much patience with ourselves, as we do for others. So when we do something good, why not give ourselves a YEA ME!! (Can I get an Amen?) Let me explain.

The other day I had a birthday. I used to dread them, and pretend that they didn’t exist. Then I got old enough to realize just how lucky I was to be having them. I mean, consider the alternative. Now I embrace each year, and look forward to whatever new adventures it will bring me. However, this year I was feeling a bit disgusted at having done pitifully little in working toward my goal of getting healthier, as well as “lighter”. I wondered if I would be having the same conversation with myself NEXT year on my Birthday. So I decided to try to find something FUN that I could do for exercise, that I would actually DO. (I have a treadmill in the office, but it’s actually just holding up a table filled with crap). It dawned on me that big R and I played a little racquetball a few years ago, and I thought it was a blast!!! I’m not any good, but that doesn’t matter to me. It’s great exercise, and I’m sure it burns a fair amount of calories.

So I made it my quest for the day to find a decent racquetball place. Apparently racquetball isn’t as popular as it was a few years ago. Many of the health and fitness places don’t even offer it. I started to think it wasn’t going to happen, but then at the end of the afternoon I finally found the perfect place! I promptly joined up, went home to find my racquet, and came back to bang the ball around for an hour. I had to laugh out loud several times at how bad I was. Oh well – nowhere to go from here, but up!

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I reminded myself that my knees are a little “loose” so no scrambling for hero plays. I’m just burning a few calories here, and getting off my butt!!! I was so exhilarated when my hour was up that I made an appointment for the next day to play again. But due to muscle soreness that set in later that night, I sadly had to cancel. But I DID go back and play again today. When my time was up, I didn’t want to leave. I am LOVING THIS!! I am really hoping that this will finally be the push towards getting healthy that I needed, and that it works.

So again, I will say – Yea Me!! See if you can find a “yea me” for yourself. We all deserve one!

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Posted in Fun Stuff, health | 4 Comments »

Work With Your Dog!

April 2nd, 2009

I frequently try to explain to clients, how critical it is to “build the relationship” with their dogs. I often get the impression that they don’t really understand what I mean. They will say “oh, I have a great relationship with my dog”, but while they are saying that, the dog is off sniffing an ant instead of paying attention to them.

If done correctly, work = play and play = work. Dogs LOVE to learn and do things with you, and it helps them thrive mentally. Yesterday was a perfect example of how that works, and how to help that bond blossom.

Micah and I had pretty much fallen off the wagon with our 2×2 weave pole training (update on that at the end of this post). I had really wanted to videotape the entire process, but my camcorder was acting up, so we had pretty much stopped the training. I finally realized how stupid that was, so we resumed training a couple of days ago, sans camera. I took my own best training advice and made our sessions REALLY SHORT! So consequently, we did several short sessions throughout the day. Last night I could barely pry the little guy off me. If he had one of those cartoon bubbles over his head showing what he was thinking it would have said, “Are we going to do some more mom? Huh? Huh? Are we mom? Are we? PLEEEEEEEEEEASE Mom!!!”

This is the kind of stuff that great relationships are made of. If you want a dog that is responsive, pays attention, and wants to work with you, try devoting just a few minutes a day to working / playing with him. Teach him a new trick, or play 101 Things To Do With a Box. You will be AMAZED at how your relationship will flourish, and how attentive he will be. And isn’t that what we all really want?


Update on Micah’s 2×2 Training
I will probably have some video of our progress within a couple of days, but for now here are just a few pics of our recent progress. Just a few days ago we were still on our 1st set of 2 poles. We finally made the plunge and added the 2nd set.
Note: In case you’re not familiar with weave poles, they are a set of poles that are used in dog agility. The poles are in a line straight in front of the dog and they must enter from right to left and weave through the poles as quickly as possible, without missing any.

Susan Garrett, who is an absolutely brilliant dog trainer, has come up with a method of training weave poles called the 2×2 method. You use sets of 2 poles to train, and initially you concentrate on entry (to the poles) and then progress on, adding additional sets of 2, as the dog is ready. You start with the poles set up in front of you at the 9 o’clock and 6 o’clock position. The dog simply goes straight through them. Gradually you move the poles to the 8 o’clock and 2 o’clock position. It’s a whole process of gradually moving the poles to the 6 o’clock and 12 o’clock positions while adding more sets of 2.

Looking back, I think we spent WAY to much time on the 1st set of poles. But oh well. We added set #2 and I’m actually pretty happy with his progress. Many times he actually adjusts himself to hit his entry correctly. But not always. You’ll get a better idea when I get the video together.

This 1st pic is of Micah hitting the correct entry on the poles. Notice how far apart the bases of the 2 sets of poles are at this point.

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You can almost see the concentration on Micah’s face as he goes through this set. Notice that the bases of the 2 sets are getting closer together, and the line of poles is starting to get straighter.

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This is how the poles were set when we quit for the day. As you can see, he’s making some good progress. The line of poles is getting straighter and straighter. We’ll keep on practicing, and hope to have those poles mastered sometime in the near future. ;-)

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By the way, I think I deserve HUGE kudos for not glutting up the blog with “useless video crap only interesting to the momma”. Ha!

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Posted in Agility, Fun Stuff, Micah's Journey | 2 Comments »

Six Great Minds

March 26th, 2009

The Art and Science of Animal Training: Where Are We Now? Where Are We Going?

Last Friday I had the pleasure of attending a one day seminar at the University of North Texas in Denton, featuring a panel of dynamic forces in the world of behavior and training.

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Bob Bailey (who is an absolute ICON in the world of animal training and behavior) was to give the keynote address, but was recovering from quadruple bypass surgery only a week earlier, so he was unable to attend. I was SO looking forward to seeing him again, but am grateful that he is doing well. He is truly a remarkable man, and sent a very nice message to all of us at the conference.

So the lineup of speakers and topics were:


Alexandra Kurland - Going Micro:
The Evolution of Equine Clicker Training
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She has been teaching and training horses since the 80’s and using clicker training with them since the early 90’s. She is a pioneer in the development of humane training methods. For more information on her, visit The Clicker Center .


Kay Laurence - Reinforcement Patterns, Reinforcement Styles
and How They Affect the Outcomes

images Kay has been a professional trainer for nearly 30 years, and is one of the world’s top clicker trainers. She has authored several books, and videos, and is frequently a speaker at Karen Pryor’s Clicker Expo. I hadn’t ever heard her speak, and she was as entertaining as she was informative. She’s the kind of gal you’d like to take out for drinks and just listen to her stories for hours. You can check out her website at Wag More Bark Less


Ken Ramirez – Evolution of a Zoo Trainer: A Personal Perspective
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Ken never disappoints as a lecturer. He’s knowledgeable and clever and always has plenty of video to amuse and enlighten us. This year he brought a really cool film of two dolphins and “handlers” in an underwater ballet. It was breathtaking.

He has worked with many species during his 30 years as a professional trainer, and is currently VP of Animal Collections and Training at the Shedd Aquarium in Chicago.


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Steve Martin (not THAT Steve Martin) – The Art of Training
Steve has been a Master Falconer for over 40 years, and has lived with parrots since he was a child. Although he has worked with many different species, birds seem to be his specialty. He set up the first free-flight bird show at the San Diego Wild Animal Park in 1976. He spends over two-thirds of his year on the road consulting with zoos and aquariums on animal behavior issues or teaching people the art and science of animal behavior. You can read more about Steve at Natural Encounters

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Steve White – Skinner and World Collide! Film at 11:00
Steve is a 30-year veteran of the Seattle Police Force – Canine Unit and is accredited as a Master Trainer by the Washington State Canine Association. He brings a unique perspective to dog training, specializing in behavior modification, tracking and scent work through the use of positive reinforcement based operant conditioning. He also has his own training business and you can get more info about him at i2i K9


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The day was sponsored by ORCA - Organization for Reinforcement Contingencies with Animals, a group within UNT and was moderated by Jesus Rosales-Ruiz. Jesus is an Associate professor in the Dept. of Behavior Analysis and works very closely with many of the grad students there.

At the end of the day they took questions from the audience, and had a round table discussion with the whole panel of speakers. My one regret was that I forgot my camera at home, so the only pictures I could take were with my iphone. It’s a GREAT phone, but a really CRAPPY camera!!!

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It’s been awhile since I’ve been to a seminar and it was really rewarding (no pun intended) to have my philosophy of dog training reinforced by some of the best behavior minds in the country. I always feel recharged and exhilarated when I come away from these events. It was a fabulous day topped off with Mexican and margaritas with friends. I can’t wait to see who they will have on the panel next time!

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Posted in Fun Stuff, Training Tips & Blurbs | 1 Comment »

Another One Bites the Dust

March 17th, 2009

I guess it was inevitable. The economy is wounded and recovery is distant, at best. I’ve been pretty lucky over the years, and haven’t ever lost a job. Now due to the failing economy, that has changed, and I’ve become just another statistic.

Due to cutbacks in our clinic’s hours, our staff is being cut back as well, and the part-timers are the first to go. That’s me. Makes perfect sense, but it doesn’t make it any easier.

As I look back over my near 14 years at the clinic, I think about how many changes we’ve endured. Some good, some not so good. But I guess that’s the nature of change. Technologically, the improvements have been IMMENSE. But the clinic has grown and grown, and now, we are apparently over-grown. And so it goes. I’m doing my best to keep it in perspective. After all, Big R still has his job (fingers crossed) and no one is dying. People have survived much worse than this.

So with one shift left, it is a little bittersweet. I will look at this change as an opportunity for something new to come into my life. You know the saying – close a door – open a window. And I believe that’s true. Our lives are like seasons, ever changing. That’s how we grow and evolve as people. So I will focus on the future, and all that hope brings.

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Posted in Icky Stuff | 2 Comments »

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