What not to do to your best friend - video

A great video by one of my favorite trainers on the internet. I think everyone should watch it!

Angie - The West Highland White Terrier

On Wednesday, my mother found a beautiful Westie girl lost near our house. Even though my mother dislikes dogs, this girl was sweet enough to win her over, and she allowed her to stay. My mother called me, and   I brought her some dog food and doggy shampoo from my father's place. Indeed, I soon found out that she was the most well-adjusted, good-natured, manageable dog I have ever met. As I parked the car and got off it, the small, white ball of fluff hurried towards me, her tail wagging and her eyes shining with a bright smile. 

She allowed me to check her mouth, ears and eyes, I had no problems picking her up and bathing her  - and she had only known me for 20 minutes! It was quite evident this dog came from a family were she was loved and cared deeply, so on Thursday we printed some signs, bought her a collar (Khali's old collars were nowhere to be found) and started searching for her family. I went to the nearby vets and dog grooming places by car, and then I took her on a walk. I was delighted to notice this little girl didn't pull on the leash, and she happily waited by my side as I pasted signs all over the place.

Today we rang the bells of over 20 houses, asking if the knew this dog, and sadly nobody knew her. Heck, we even rang my school's headmaster's house!

The vet told us she has no chip, and she is over 5 years old. She seems quite healthy, and is very energetic. She is docile and soft-mouthed, and is great with children and cats. 

My mom said that if we don't find her owner in two weeks, we'll have to find her a new home, but I really hope that we can keep her. And even my mother seems pretty attached to her, she even put a red ribbon on her, and she freaks out every time Angie (that's the name my mom chose) gets near our fence, "because she might escape". She's just perfect for us! She still hasn't met Khali, but Angie isn't dog agressive at all, so I think it might work... (Khali is with me, at my father's house, and Angie is at my mom's) 

The Importance of Treat Bags

Since yesterday, I can't seem to find my treat bag (a small, cilinder-shaped red Outward Hound bag), and to be honest, I had never realized how much I loved it till I was unable to find it, and got so angry with myself I almost felt like crying. Yesterday I had to walk Khali without treats, and I really missed having something to reinforce her with, so today I used a small plastic bag to hold her treats, but it was hard to get the hot dogs out quickly enough, and I had to keep it in my jacket's pocket. It was rather uncomfortable.

If you don't have a treat bag or treat pouch, go buy one right now! Another option is using one of those aprons that have front pockets. I assure you, it will make your life easier; there's nothing worse than having to manage your dog's leash, clicker, the toys, your keys, your cellphone AND the treats. Most of pouches/bags available are big enough to hold your treats and a tennis ball, and you can wear them on your waist or hanging from your pants, so that means you can actually use your hands. Mine had a string I could attach my old clicker to, so that was a plus (my new clicker has a spiral cord, so I can wear it on my wirst)

You might want to spend some money on a good, washable and durable pouch; if you seriously want your training to be successful, you have to be constant: Take your treats everywhere you go, you never know when your dog will offer great behaviors!

Other than this treat pouch issue, my walk with Khali was quite nice! I was away all day, so she was dying for a good walk, her energy was so pent up she went crazy when she saw me get home. After playing fetch for a while, she was more manageable and I was able to take her out without much problems. I've noticed that if the first step of a walk is a GOOD step, the rest of the walk usually follows the trend, so when she bolted outside and started sniffing around ignoring me, I turned around and went inside. Once she saw the walk was not going to happen on those terms, she started paying attention to me. I reinforced her attention and we went outside again, reinforcing her every time she looked at me, and every few steps of loose leash walking.

An older picture - it was already dark when we went out today.

At the park we played fetch with her favorite, smelliest tennis ball, and I was incredibly careful to reinforce every bit of attention, and to give her lots of treats when she came back to me (I want her to WANT to be near me, even at distracting environments). We did some heel work and I tried to capture her "sniff" behavior, I want to add a cue to it so I can actually reinforce her with sniffing...it's going along slowly but smoothly! I also tried some counter-conditioning every time we saw another dog, and I was surprised to see that she got the hang of it quickly. She still wanted to lounge at them and probably rip them to pieces, but after a while she preferred to stay calmly by my side (the power of treats!) instead of indulging her murderous desire.

The Most Important Dog Training Tip

There is a wide variety of advice in everything regarding dogs, specially thanks to the Internet. Positive reinforcement? Clicker training? Don't play tug with your dog? Play tug with your dog? Use a gentle leader, a collar, or a harness? Are choke chains good or bad? Sometimes it becomes hard to keep one's head clear, and it's extremely important to remember that there is no magic trick when it comes to training, despite what advertisements might make you believe.

Yet, the title of this entry seems to offer a magic trick...or does it?

The Most Important Dog Training Tip: Take one step at a time. Sure, it seems like very basic advice, but trust me, if you keep this in mind, you might find your training will become more successful and enjoyable. Don't push your dog, and let him learn at his own pace.
Do short sessions, no more than 15 minutes. If you have a pup, start with really, really short sessions, and build duration from there. Working dogs can definitely spend more than 15 minutes training, if they are enjoying themselves, but terriers get bored easily and might need even shorter sessions
Set your dog up for succes, and always end you sessions BEFORE the dogs starts to doze off, get bored or get frustrated.
You wouldn't expect someone to climb up the Everest on their first climbing lesson, and you can't expect your dog to perform complex commands in distracting environments without a lot of training.

Remember: Your dog's stronger behaviors will be those that have been heavily reinforced, constantly, and in different stages. Solid grounding will help you build high!

(and exercise your dog!)

Today is The Day!

Many years ago, I rescued Tristan. If I had left it for later, he would be dead.

I bet all of us know someone how has said "I'll start working out on Monday", or "I'll start my diet tomorrow!", or even "Next week I'll start training my dog". It's seems they truly believe things will be somewhat better if they start their activity some day that is not today.

That's just wrong.

I bet you know someone who has said that, and maybe a week later (sometimes less!), he or she failed his diet or project. Procastination lives inside all of us, and maybe the most effective way to battle against it, is to start our projects now.

Now is the time to start that new diet, that new workout plan, that new painting, whatever might be your project! Today is the day to do it, and it is the best day to start. Seize the day! Even if it's late at night, you can do SOMETHING to jump-start your project.

Do you want to train your dog? Go, grab some yummy treats, and your clicker (if you use one), and reinforce your dogs name. It'll take you at most, 5 minutes, and you will be building the grounding of your training. There's nothing quite as important as having a dog that now his or her name. Trust me.

Ten Commandments of Dog Ownership

Tracy, a loyal, protective mutt.

I have seen the "10 Commandments of Dogs" around the web for quite a while, but I've always thought that it's incredibly important to remember our duties with our dogs, beyond feeding them and keeping them healthy.

1. You will treasure your dog - for he is a unique being, just like you. The moment you met was a beautiful casualty, and you should consider yourself lucky for finding a such a loyal, loving partner. Remember his time on this Earth will be, at most, 15 years, and it's your duty to make them count, for your dog lives for you. 
2. You will communicate with your dog - Dogs are not born speaking human languages, Spike doesn't know that "Come!" means "stop smelling the bushes and run back to me", but he does know what your body tells him when you are happy, sad or angry. Every moment you spend with him, you are communicating. See how he reacts to your slight mood swings, try to see the world from his eyes, and you'll be amazed with what you'll notice!
3. You will teach your dog - Life with humans is very different from life with a dog pack, and the rules your dog is programmed to obey might not be the rules you need him to obey to live in your apartment. Teach your dog what you want him to do and ignore his bad behaviors, if he knows and understands your set of rules, he will be able to have a calm, happy life. The only way for a dog to be safe in our world, is for him to be trained. 
4. You will remember that your dog never lies - lying is something very complex, and it seems only humans and some apes are capable of deceiving one another. Though the truth might be harsh, your dog won't even offer you a white lie. Use this to your advantage, your dog knows who you are, and is willing to tell you the truth. Ask him: Am I doing this right?
5. You will not blame your dog for your mistakes - Remember that most of the time, when your dog misbehaves it is probably because you didn't teach him well enough, he either didn't know what he was supposed to do, or he doesn't like to obey you, which is also your fault. Don't get angry, and try to mend things. It is better to teach the correct way, rather than punish the wrong one.
6. You will be patient - remember your dog lives in a setting he can't quite understand, humans speak a foreign language and have weird habits, which might confuse your dog. Be gentle and patient, give your dog time to process new things and experiences, and if your dog does not understand what you want, ask yourself: am I communicating effectively? If you arrived home angry and sulky, spare your dog and take a deep breath; he's been waiting for you all day. 
7. You will listen to your dog - your dog has feelings as well as needs, keep an eye on his expression, the softness of his eyes, the posture he holds, the wag of his tail. Answer to his feelings, and remember he is communicating with complete honesty. Give him your time, attention and affection.
8. You will never hurt him - your dog has quite a set of teeth on his mouth, capable of ripping your arm if he so desired (or at least, inflicting some serious wounds on you!), yet he doesn't hurt you. Give him love; punishments and corrections won't build anything good.
9. You will show him the world - your dog was never meant to be kept in your apartment or house, bounded and unable to explore. Your dog deserves to know the world, take him on walks and car drives, go to new places and let him meet other people and dogs. Both of you will grow with these experiences. And remember: a tired dog is a calm dog!
10. You will love him and forgive him - he always loves you, and he always forgives you. You should do the same.

The Start of a New Path (Introductions!)

This is the first time I write a blog entry, and to be honest, I'm not expecting a lot of people to be reading this. Yet, I wanted to keep track of my progress, remember what I've done and how I've felt, and most of all, I want to become a better dog owner. That being the case, making myself a blog seemed like a good idea, so without further ado, it's time for introductions!

Mela of Icy Mountain, a brown and white Border Collie otherwise known as Khali, was born on April 14th, 2006. Somehow, she ended up at a pet store, bound in a cage and unable to get to enjoy her puppyhood in a family setting. She was 4 months old when I saw her, and I was just a 14 year old girl barely recovering from Linda, my poodle toy, that had passed away almost exactly one year before. I have always had a soft spot for dogs, and for the longest time I had been asking my parents for a new puppy, without getting the "yes" I wished for. This big puppy was not the Belgian Shepherd of my dreams, and she had that messy, scrawny look dogs have when they just finish they "adorable puppy phase" to enter their "crazy destruction-machine adolescent dog-thing phase"...All in all, she was the kind of dog you don't impulse buy. But by that afternoon, I had a new dog in my arms. From that moment onwards, it's been a hard road, but she has given me more joy than what I could ever imagine. She might not come when called, she might pull on the leash every now and then, and she might bark at people like it's the end of the world, but I love her and I will do everything in my power to make her a happy dog.

Dani (me!) is the luckiest owner on Earth. I like to think it was fate or destiny, or maybe even chance, but somehow I ended up owning just the dog that would make me grow more than what I thought was possible. I still have a long way to go, though. Other than Khali, I've only owned one other dog, Linda, and raised a pup since he was 1 month old till he was half a year old, so you could say I am 1,5 dogs old. After finishing high school, I studied medicine, a 7 yr old career here, for just one year. Sure, being a physician has its charm, but I kept feeling something was missing. Eventually, the light bulb on my head lit up, and it all seemed clear to me: I needed to work with and for animals, my love for science meant veterinary medicine was the job for me. So, I sent my applications, and I'm currently waiting for the results to be delivered on the 15th. I'm just a 20 yr old student, trying to balance her priorities in life, while striving to give her dog the best possible life.

That's all I've got to say about introductions, and let's hope this blog blooms into something great that will make Khali and me become better. Also, I expect to share all kinds of doggy advice and discuss matters such as choke chains, positive reinforcement, etc.

See ya!