Cause I gave you weeds when you asked for flowers

and our cats chase their shadows ‘cross your easy chair,

and our dogs dig craters in your just-seeded lawn.

Did I tell you Cassidy  killed our phonebooks?

Well she did. None were spared.

Cause nose work, behavior mod, and obedience are things you, “just can’t see,”

but still, you go with me.

Cause well vet visits cost 45 dollars,

and sick visits costs much, much more.

And you know that TV console you built by hand?

I guess Cassidy thought it was a chew toy.

Cause a laptop heats my thighs most evenings,

as the dinner table waits, and so do you.

Cause it may seem that blogging about dogs

and writing universes comes before everything.

They don’t. They’re just things I do.

Cause a cute pet photo op can present at

any moment, so I’m always setting up the shots,

and when I talk to you about sub-plots, and my

new petblog community, you kind’a  listen,

and you tolerated my obsession with google analytics.

(About that, I’m still a little shocked.)

So, I thank you my love, for not calling

my passions frivolous, and for emptying

the litter box without complaint,

and for never asking, “But what about me?”

Because this journey is ours – together.

You’re the one who made me believe.

This is a Blog Hop!

1. Cocker Climbs the Vine

2. Tales And Tails

3. Chew the Bottle

4. BlogPaws Wordless Wednesday

5. SUGAR: Bounzer Workout

6. SNOOPYS DOG BLOG

7. CREATE WITH JOY w LINKY

8. Simba Goes to Work

9. Chicky

10. PS: KONG Treats Giveaway

11. The Elka Almanac

12. Us On Cloud 9

13. Snowieners

14. Two Helpful Dogs

15. Piranha Banana

16. My Life in Blog Years

17. WW #36 – Smiling Remy

18. Cascadian Nomads in Ontario

19. Cute kittens

20. Dog Bearding: Thats a Thing?!

21. DJ pOOd@ 13 AKA Cool Carma

22. Wordless Wednesday

23. bichonpawz

24. Misty Shores

25. Dog the Dina

26. BZ Dogs

27. Clowies Corner

28. Pawsitively Pets

29. bailey unleashed

30. Lexie falls

31. Greyhounds CAN Sit

32. Sparkle

33. Lexie triple falls

34. Greyhounds in NZ

35. Badger Boos Adventures

36. Here We Go!

37. Bailey Boat Cat

38. Talking Dogs

39. Human Rescues Dog

40. Following Roy

41. Misaki

42. Brians Home

43. 2 brown dawgs

44. Feeling Beachie – Lucy

45. A Tail of Two Cardis

46. SlimDoggy brother

47. Tails of Teach

48. Raising a Super Dog

49. SMILE

50. My GBGV Life

51. Have a great day

52. thek9harperlee

53. Annabelle Blue at 6 months

54. Lexie falls

55. Can you find the puppy? SWTWC

56. Beth F @ Beth Fish Reads

57. HutchAGoodLife

58. Caite@ a lovely shore breeze

59. The Musings Of A Crazy CatLady

60. Pebbles and my husband Mike

61. Cinnamon

62. From rescue to royalty

63. Doggies & Stuff: Meet Cleo

64. Sand Spring

65. The Mysterious Mr. Sheldon

66. PawsandPedals – Epic Roll

Ever wish for a do-over? It’s been nearly three years since Mike and I adopted Ripple. We’ve been through three dog training classes, three private trainers, and many hours of follow through both in and out of the home. While I would not give up on Ripple for the world, somehow I still find myself reflecting on situations, wondering how time and again that dog so quickly overwhelms me.

Here’s what happened recently.

Our neighbor and his two little girls stopped by. It was wonderful to see them. It had been a while. During their visit, I was too busy fending off Ripple’s attempts to mouth, and jump on the little ones to enjoy my guests. Ripple loves kids. But if the girls hadn’t been dog-savvy, someone could have gotten hurt.

Our Boxer/lab mix, Ripple
Photograph courtesy of Lee Ingrahm

A few months before this happened, I had taken Ripple to dog trainer, Casey Lomonaco, who educated me about reactive dogs. “A parent of a reactive dog always has to think ahead, and be prepared,” she said.  She also gave me some great strategies for handling these types of situations. But as usual, in the moment I was too frazzled to apply what I had learned.

Reactive Dogs

A reactive dog is one that displays lunging, vocalizing, and excitability in certain situations. In other words, a reactive dog is like Ripple. For her it happens when she greets familiar people, anytime she’s off leash, and when she encounters other dogs if she’s on leash. Each instance has it’s own, very different outcomes.

When Ripple is off leash she goes into a hard run, doesn’t respond to commands, and if anything catches her eye – joggers, cars – she takes off after it. When Ripple encounters another dog she displays what’s called fear aggression. The hair comes up along her back and she growls, snarls and lunges. The intent is to drive the other dogs away. It works well for driving away dog owners too.

Easy Dogs, Difficult Dogs

I’ve had the pleasure of raising some very easy dogs in my life. Our dogs Lexi, Jami, and Chloe were great with people. We could walk them off leash, invite people into our home, and encounter other dogs without stress. Even our dog Zach, who came to us with baggage, was able to turn his behavior around more quickly than Ripple.  But while Zach became more tolerant of people in a short time, he was still a dog that liked his personal space. When Ripple came to live with us, she was often on the receiving end of Zach’s toothy reproach.

Mike and I tried to block and intervene, but Zach’s wrath occurred as much without warning as with. Ripple was just three months old when we adopted her. I often wonder if that early experience had caused her fear aggression with other dogs.

But from what I’ve read about reactivity in dogs, Ripple’s condition may have started before she even walked through our door.

There are Critical Stages in Canine Development

Like children, puppies develop physically, psychologically, and emotionally in stages that begin at birth and carry on into adulthood. The earliest stages – up until about 8 weeks of age – are when new borns get their bearings in their new world and bond with their litter mates. The stage that comes next is called the human socialization period. This is when puppies are usually adopted and brought into human families. It’s when they learn how to behave around people, kids, and other animals. It’s also a confidence-building time, as puppies begin to explore  the world around them.

According to the rescue group, Ripple was surrendered because her former owner didn’t have time for her.  As a pup, she spent her days home alone, crated for as many as ten hours. Doing the math – assuming that she was first adopted when she was eight weeks old and knowing that she was surrendered to rescue at the age of 3 months – Ripple likely spent her human socialization period in isolation.

What happens when a dog is deprived of experiences during key developmental stages?

The human socialization period is a critical time in canine development that occurs between 7 wks and 12 wks of age. Lack of exposure to people, especially kids and other dogs during this period is thought to be one of the main reasons for behavior problems in dogs later on. A dog that is isolated during this stage may show lack of confidence and inappropriate reactions to non-threatening situations for the rest of its life – which is exactly what Ripple does.

What can be done to help

One of the things that Casey recommended was to use classical conditioning. This is how Pavolov got his dogs to salivate at the sound of a bell. He kept pairing the bell with food, eventually triggering the physiological reflex (salivation,) which had previously been reflex triggered by food, with the presentation of a secondary stimuli (the bell).

So, the theory is that, if every time Ripple sees another dog, we feed her something she really likes and lots of it, then someday instead of the fear reflex triggered by the sight of another dog, she’ll salivate, or feel hungry and hopefully turn to Mike or myself to satisfy that feeling. Casey called this strategy, “open bar, closed bar.” It’s something with which we’ve been having good results.

Another thing Casey suggested was to put Ripple “in park,” whenever someone comes to call or we encounter friends on walks. When those things happen, we’re supposed to stand on Ripple’s leash, and ask our friends to ignore her. When Ripple is calm I can give her treats, and perhaps even ask my friends to do so, but if she’s vocalizing, or doing her crazy-Ripple act, she gets no attention. This is a strategy that also works well, when we have our acts together enough to apply it.

A tip for prospective dog owners

For the most part, the reactive dog is a preventable outcome that results from lack of stimulation and socialization during key stages in a dogs puppyhood. If prospective dog owners understand canine development, and take steps to socialize their puppies, the pups will likely develop into a happy, well adjusted dogs. My advice, make an effort to bring your pup into the community, expose it to a variety of situations with all different kinds of people as well as other dogs. (It’s not enough that there are other dogs already in the home, puppies need to learn how to behave during novel experiences.) In this way, your dog will have a happier, less stressful life, and so will you.

BUT if you feel that your dog may be reactive, don’t panic. Involve a trainer. There are things that can be done to help, and you can still have wonderful pet

The other day when I came home from work Ripple and Cassidy were excited. Nothing new there. The dogs converge at the backdoor with enthusiasm whenever anybody walks through it. But this time it was different. They rushed in through the doggie door, as if to greet me, then back outside as if they had urgent business. Later, when I looked out the window, they were both barking at the old maple tree just beyond the electric fence.

I walked outside. Looked around. Then, I heard it. The strange and unceasing chirps of something near that tree. When I got closer, I realized that underneath the tree was the smallest raccoon I had ever seen. And it was crying. It kept trying to climb the tree, waddling on legs too small to carry it, with eyes not even open.

I decided to bring all my animals inside and close the doggie door, hoping that the mother raccoon would come around to collect her young. I opened all the windows and the front door, so I could keep an eye on the helpless critter. It seemed to need rescuing. But I’ve learned from past experiences to give nature a chance before intervening.

I posted the predicament on facebook. What I do? Do I bring it inside?

My friend Patti, a farmer who’s lived in the area for many years, said to leave it. “Mamma will be along,” she wrote.

I spoke to Mike on the phone, because he was working late that day. He said that, with the doggie door opened all day, every day, he didn’t want to have a raccoon growing up and feeling at home around our house.

Still, that baby’s cries were hard to listen to. I waited. Wishing that Mike would get home, so he could save me from what I was about to do.

It would soon be dark. The predators come out at night.

I needed a box. There was an old clementine orange crate in which BamBam had once played behind the wood burning stove. I don’t know why we kept it around, but it seemed perfect. I microwaved a heating pad, covered it with a few towels, and set it inside the crate. Then I put on a pair of work gloves and went about rescuing the little raccoon. I kept the box on the porch. The little guy quieted down as soon as I put him in it. I guess the warmth helped. Then I looked on-line so I could learn what to feed it. (It’s amazing what you can find on the internet.)

The article I read said kitten formula – like the formula we used when Pebbles and BamBam were infants, was ideal, but if you didn’t have any  - which we didn’t – an egg and milk mixture would do. I used a bottle from the nursing kit we had gotten for our cats, and was just about to walk out onto the porch with it when Mike came home.

“What have you done?” he asked.

“I um…” I knew I was wrong. We were lucky with the fawn we had found the previous Spring. When the mother eventually came out of the woods she took it back.

“It’s not that I don’t feel bad for it,” Mike said. “But raccoons are nocturnal. When it gets dark that mother might come to get her baby.”

I carefully put the raccoon in the front of the house. Then Mike and I sat on the porch in dark, listening to its cries, watching for predators, as the small thing tried to make its way back to us. As soon as darkness deepened, the sounds of another chirping critter came from the area around the maple tree.

“There’s a nest,” Mike said.

Then we heard something big moving through the woods. I flicked on the outside light, hoping it wasn’t a coyote. It wasn’t.

Mamma raccoon had returned.

The lesson here. Nature doesn’t need my help.

I feel like I keep yelling the same three things:

• Get out of the sink,
• Get off the kitchen counter or,
• Stop drinking my coffee.

The problem is our cats go from the litter box or prowling through the woods outside, to prancing around on our counter tops where we prepare our food and stuff.

That’s nothing short of gross.

The thing is, Mike and I have never had cats before. So we’re learning as we go. One thing we now know is that cats like to perch- which means they like to be up high. So, we’ve made some concessions as far as letting them hang out on the furniture and such. (Our dogs aren’t allowed on the furniture. Now, I’m not  saying they recognize a double standard when they see one, but at times Ripple looks at me like she knows.)

Another thing we’ve learned about cats is that yelling at them doesn’t work. They just bat their big, green eyes at us from up on their perch – which is usually my kitchen counter. Then one of us goes over and plucks them off, as we tickle their bellies, and say things like, “You know you’re not allowed up there,” without the slightest hint of sternness.

But in our defense, we’ve had these cats since they were tea-cup size, and even though they’re now two-years old, it’s hard for us not to see them as babies.

A Tale of Two Kitties

Once upon a time I saw a mouse in our pantry.

“Eeek,” I said.

Mike set traps.

Around that same time the parent of one of my students found three orphaned kittens in her crawl space.  The woman’s sister adopted one. Mike and I decided to take the other two. We’d heard that if you have cats, you won’t have mice. It seemed like a good trade off.

And this was how our journey into kitten-love began. And it was a bold new day for us. Because Mike and I had always been dog people. Not cat people. There’s a distinction. You know?

But we soon learned that having kittens around can be more fun than watching television or playing Wii, and that cats were wonderful, affectionate creatures. So these days, we heart cats.

But not enough to let them have the run of my kitchen counters.

 The Spray Bottle

We started using a spray bottle, because we were told that spraying water at cats teaches them what not to do. Our cats are very respectful of the bottle when we’re around to use it on them. But whenever we’re gone, they must spend the whole time dancing around on surfaces where they’re not allowed. I suspect this, because whenever I’d get home I’d find paw prints all over the kitchen counter.

The Beeping Mat

Next, we bought these long, thin mats that beep when someone puts weight on them. They work really well for keeping the dogs off the furniture. The cats, however, tip toe around, or climb under them. Sometimes, when Mike or I would come downstairs we’d find the mat on the floor and both cats on the coach.

No more Mr. and Mrs. Nice Guy.

Finally, I went a step above the beeping mat – a measure about which Mike felt squeamish at first. Upon the advice of our family’s vet, I bought a shock mat. But before we put it out as a deterrent for our cats, we tested it on ourselves. The shock it gave off was similar to a static shock, the kind you get when you walk across some carpets. But to be honest, if Pebbles and Bam Bam have been shocked more than once, I’d be surprised.

Mat and mat extension

According to the reviews I read on line, if the mats are laid out on a surface where the cats typically jump, the cats quickly learn not to go up on them. This was true in our case. The mere sight of the mats reminded Pebbles and BamBam to keep off. I know this, because I no longer find their paw prints in and around the kitchen sink

Now, I just have to teach Mike how to avoid accidentally touching the mat every time he walks by it.

I’m sick. You know the kind of stuffy head and chest thing that could be allergies or might be a cold. So, I’m feeling sluggish. Between that and an increase in my caseload at work, I haven’t been keeping up with all the vacuuming and swiffering needed to manage our furr-kid home. Honestly, it’s a never ending effort. If I miss a day, Mike and I wind up ankle deep in silky furr, and  cat and dog hair float through the house like dust.

No wonder why I can’t breath.

The Culprits

Pebbles

Cassidy

Cassidy is largely responsible for this. Spring shedding, I’m told. At least I hope the shedding will be limited to Spring. Mike and I are constantly plucking clumps of black hair off of everything. Not fun.

When Ripple was younger, she used to shed a lot, too. Thankfully, she seems to have grown out of this. It was unbelievable how much hair would come out during a brushing when she was a pup. And on the frequent occasions when Ripple shook off, prickly brown hair would fly all around her.

The first time I brought Ripple to the groomer, I said, “I’ve never had a dog shed this much.” (This was true, until Cassidy.) The groomer had suggested a deshedding comb, which I purchased and use pretty much every week.

Cassidy  does not do well on car rides. From our very first outing, which was a trip to Tractor Supply the day after she arrived in our home, to a recent drive to Syracuse, her reaction is the same. She avoids getting into the car, points her nose up while on the drive, pants heavily, and drools buckets. And I’m not exaggerating about the amount of drool.

An article I read on the subject (click the link at the bottom of this page to read it) said that drooling and panting are signs of stress in dogs. Motion sickness can cause stress, but so can negative experiences. Coming off of her rather stressful ride up from Alabama this past December, Cassidy seemed okay on the drive home. But by report from Heather Sharit, the woman from the rescue group who had transported Cassidy, there were puppies in the truck that didn’t handle the ride well. This made all the other dogs nervous. In short, car rides for Cassidy may have at best led to uncertainty and sometimes led worsening conditions – going from wherever she lived before to the kill shelter, and then going from the kill shelter to the rescue.

No wonder why she is reluctant to go into the car.

So, I thought that perhaps she would do better if Ripple went along. Ripple loves car rides, and gets excited at the mere mention of going for one. Cassidy did fine the first time we tried it. She even jumped into the car on her own right after Ripple did. But the next time we went things did not go as well.

I had errands to run and decided to take both dogs along. Ripple bounced up the stairs, into the garage and jumped right in the car. Cassidy retreated.  I clipped a leash onto her collar and put her in the car (I know that this can be counter-productive when it comes to fearfulness. But I really thought she would do fine.) After a while Ripple started whimpering, and when glanced back at the two, I noticed that Cassidy was salivating like crazy.

I decided to give her some air. I opened the windows, which every dog I’ve ever had has loved, but which made Cassidy tremble with fear. I closed the windows and turned on the a/c, which seemed to help. But I’m pretty sure that my misadventure has set us back.

Last Monday Cassidy and I attended the first of several dog training classes in Syracuse – over an hour away from our home. While Cassidy did well in the class, going there was hard for her. I put her in the crate that we had used to transport her to our home on the day we first adopted her. She had shown no signs of car sickness back then, so I thought maybe she would do better in it for the trip out to Syracuse. This was not the case. When I opened the hatch upon our arrival at the dog training club Cassidy was drenched. She had drooled so heavily that the floor of the crate sloshy. I tried to clean her up as best I could, and she did well enough during the class. Funny though, when we returned to the car after the class,  I said, “Let’s go home,” and she jumped right in. The car ride home was much easier for her, as was our next trip out to Syracuse.

The trainer in the class recommended ginger snap cookies – the kind made with real ginger. So, I bought a box and will give them to her as treats the day of the ride. It has also been suggested both by the trainer and in the article below, that we take short trips with Cassidy. My hope is that, once Cassidy has enough good experiences at the end of the car ride she’ll come to enjoy them.

To read an article on why dog’s drool on car rides click the link below.

http://www.ehow.com/about_6577057_do-dogs-drool-car_.html