Continue reading... "how this freaky site works..."

If you happen to have a hyper, aggressive or generally intense dog, change their diet to a low-protein dog food without artificial preservatives (look for about 20% protein). Any protein that they're not using for serious growth spurts is essentially extra energy ripping through your dog's system. Like ROCKET FUEL. UNNECESSARY ROCKET FUEL. Think about it...

Whenever you change a dog's food, do it gradually, 25% of the new food at a time. A quick change in protein levels most of the time results in stank, rancid loose stool. I don't think this is what you want. (is it?)
So, do it 25% new/ 75% old for a week or so, and if the dog's system can handle that, then go to 50%- %50, and so on...

About the preservatives: dog food contains lots of fats in it, which tend to spoil easily, thus the need for a preservative of some sort. Some smart idiot took a chemical that was originally used as a rubber stabilizer/ insecticide/ pesticide (ETHOXYQUIN) and decided to use it to preserve the fats in dog food. (hey, guys, i have this great idea!...) So now almost all of the dog foods on the market use this pesticide/ rubber stabilizer, which means our dogs are eating it. Me personally, i don't think it's a good idea to give it to them. So, i feed Wellness brand, which is probably not THE best food, but pretty darn good considering what else is out there. And Wellness (owned by Old Mother Hubbard) uses ethoxyquin-free meat sources, and there are no chemical preservatives in there. Check your dog food bags at home if you want, chances are you'll see that "e"- word in there somewhere.

Oh, and Nutro Natural doesn't use ethoxyquin, either.

An update on the infamous Sophiedog...

Hey there. I just thought you might like an update on your former student. She has really grown into her own. She roams the house freely without incident. (Well, maybe the occasional chewing incident, but it is rare). She is getting to be a pro at heeling on a leash. She still gets excited when she sees new people, but she is getting better. Still wanting to jump sometimes as well, but we are working on it. We took her on a week long trip to RI, VT and Maine, and she was perfect. Did fine in the car, hotels, on the ferry, with other dogs, etc.

And, to make sure that her dad and I were not entirely worry free, she sat on a pile of fire ants and had to have her butt shaved and treated. Typical.

Amy & Sophie

I am, of course, working to get her to not charge off after stuff (she went after kids on sleds in VT), but I got nervous. Do you think a regular choke collar is the way to go? I don't want her to strangle herself, but she is very powerful.....I think I remember that when you pulled her records, the people that brought her in said she had some pit bull - I believe it, given her strength.

Otherwise, she is doing much better. She found a greenie under the couch and got very protective when I approached her, but she gave it up without a fight, so I think we are making progress. She's back to nipping to get your attention, so I am using the spray collar with her for that.

Not sure she likes her "special song" very much.........must be my singing ability.

Over and Out,

Amy and Sophie

My response:

Continue reading... "Sophie #13 email update"

He really is. It's rare I get to see an all-around good dog, since people call me mostly for problems that are making them tear their hair out. In this case, Sam is not one of those dogs. My first impression of him was this; he's just a happy puppy who gets a little too happy when people come over to visit. This is expressed through lots of bouncing around the visitor, and grabbing them on the way back down. His owner likes it that he's so ecstatic, but wants to stop the jumping altogether. Sam uses wee wee pads but sometimes misses when he aims to pee on them. I don't count these as accidents, but they're not to be ignored completely. He's at the age (adolescent pup) to start using only the yard as his bathroom. He has learned to ring bells hanging from the doorknob when he wants to go outside to play, which could turn into a signal for when he has to relieve himself. Right now, the backyard is his playpen where he becomes the greatest entertainer of himself. He loves to stuff his face deep into the snow and dig wherever he finds a suitable spot. When he is not tossing pine cones into the air, he is barking back and forth with the dog on the other side of the fence all day long.
He has a habit of running out the front door when the opportunity arises, to explore nothing in particular, and then to play "catch me if you can". He will steal if given the chance (a stray dish towel, stuffed animal, etc.) and he needs to learn how to walk on a leash without dragging his owner around the neighborhood.

New client with a bunch of stuff going on. To start; he's a one-year-old shepherd mix living in an apartment with a single mom and a six-year-old boy. Here's the list of concerns: endless energy, destroying the house (warzone), rough playing (jumping, playbiting, begging at the table, runs out the door any chance he gets, a scavenger on the street while walking, sneaky thief, and on two incidents he growled at people when they were trying to move him...

Continue reading... "zack- evaluation #1"