Paws and Effect
Paws Paws Paws. That's pretty much been the focus of life here for the last week. I mentioned in last week's post that Maggie and Skip might have had "frostbitten" paws; little did I know how deep into the weeds of frostbite and dog paws I would go. I've a learned a lot, (understatement of the year), and thought it might be helpful if I passed some of it on, not to mention giving others, with more experience, a forum to share what they know. First, let's talk about "frostbite." What is it, and how do you diagnosis it on a dog's paws? (By the way, if you live where it's warm, this might not be of interest. But then again, you never know.) Wikipedia has a great article on frostbite, Read More
What to Ask When Considering Adopting a Dog?
A thorough answer to this question is too complicated for any one article, but it's a common and important one. Actually, the question I am usually asked is this: "What breed of dog should we get?" The quick answer is simple: "It's not about the breed." Well, but, of course it is in some ways. A working-line Border Collie in a small apartment with three children under the age of 7? Perhaps not. (Of course, one needs to say in this case "Let's talk about why you want a dog in the first place, at least right now.") Perhaps a Labrador/Mastiff cross for your 90-year old grandfather? Maybe not. So yes, breed, in terms of size and activity level, among a few other things, is relevant. But as Read More
The Evolution of Play–A Case Study with Skip and Maggie
I was going to title this "Skip likes it rough," but, well, you know . . . the internet. But the fact is that Skip came to us loving to play rough and Maggie didn't, and we've gone through a year of managing and conditioning and innovating and despairing and come out the other side with two dogs who absolutely adore each other, and play happily and hard every day. Whew. Before talking about the two of them, let me preface this by saying that first, play is powerful stuff. As Karen London and I say in Play Together, Stay Together, "Play is fun, but don't be fooled into thinking it's just goofy or frivolous." Play is important for mental health (why not dogs too?), physical fitness, and Read More