Dear Dog

[marni]

its called sharing.

[Trek-chick]

Dear Willow,

You amaze me. I have never owned a dog that actually like to watch TV. I have never seen one watch an entire show before.

I love how you rest your front legs over the arm rest and just sit there for "TV time". LOL Poor thing...you even get scared when we rent and watch horror movies. There really is no need to bark at-- and protect us from the zombies, monsters and killers etc on the TV screen but Thank You.

[Pax]

Dear Willow,

You amaze me. I have never owned a dog that actually like to watch TV. I have never seen one watch an entire show before.

I love how you rest your front legs over the arm rest and just sit there for "TV time". LOL Poor thing...you even get scared when we rent and watch horror movies. There really is no need to bark at-- and protect us from the zombies, monsters and killers etc on the TV screen but Thank You.

Your post made me smile, big time.

[Owlie]

Dear sister's dog:

Please, have your seizure be a one-off thing. Don't worry your Dearest Human that way.

Also, there is no need to bark every time someone locks a car door.

[skhill]

Dear Stella,

You did a public service by finding that stolen and ransacked purse on our walk. But was it necessary to growl at the police officer when he finally showed up? You made him nervous!

[smilingcat]

Dear Holly Spirit Bear,

Thank you for dragging me to your puppy intermediate class tonight. I needed the break from the same old same old. And you did pretty well. Being the kind of breed you are (great pyrenees), instructor and I know that you are not the most sociable dog. You breed tend to be very aloof and solitary, so it was pretty amazing that you only snarled at one dog, an Akita. Well he snarled at you too. not sure who started it (simultaneous). I know you get overwhelmed with 9 other puppies and you do just fine when its one on one. So neither the instructor nor I are too concerned with your bad behavior. You are quite okay with all the people. You just don't like that Akita. Yes that Akita is bit smaller than you. We just need to work on it.

Overall, you did great with leave it, doggie push-up something you hate. Sit-lay down-stand, sit-lay down-stand... Your big long leg makes this a real work out. but you did great with three repetition. And for a Pyrenees you did pretty well with Come... And you did really well with ignoring distractions.

Will keep practicing this week till the next class. And the practice will keep me out of trouble too.

love mom,

[Dogmama]

Dear Holly Spirit Bear,

You breed tend to be very aloof and solitary, so it was pretty amazing that you only snarled at one dog, an Akita. Well he snarled at you too. not sure who started it (simultaneous).
love mom,

Puppy class is the BEST!!! Get them out EARLY and expose them to new things. I'm a HUGE advocate (can you tell?)

Snarley dogs - here's my experience and thoughts. Dogs can sense other dogs' emotional states in a way that humans can't. Akitas are typically not sociable dogs and if your dog sensed some anxiety, he (she?) might have simply been reacting. Remember too that your puppy doesn't have a lot of experience with other dogs yet so reactions can be all over the map. Two main things to remember:

1. Don't over react to anything your puppy does. If your puppy snarls at another dog and you react with alarm, your dog might think, "Hey - I snarled at that dog and my human got excited too. There IS something wrong with that dog! Next time I'm really going to snarl at him - maybe even snap too!" You should calmly redirect your puppy's attention without rewarding the behavior.

2. Do NOT punish your puppy for any unsociable behavior. Dogs are not innately aggressive but they can be fearful. That fear is shown as aggression. You cannot fight fear with punishment. I do counter-conditioning and desensitization - or as I call it, "I see a dog I get a cookie." The book Control Unleashed outlines this beautifully.

I always tell clients to get their puppies in all kinds of safe environments (I do not consider dog parks to be safe, BTW.) More dogs are euthanized because of bad behavior than communicable diseases. Early socialization is key.