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Moments with Moonie: Rules to live by

Moments with Moonie: Rules to live by

What if you woke up in a new place and you didn’t understand the rules or the language. What if you needed to go to the bathroom and didn’t know how or who to ask? When a dog goes home for the first time, or to the vet for the first time, or out to the park or store, they may not understand the rules. This can cause our dogs to feel fear and anxiety. And sometimes it causes their dog guardians embarrassment. “Life lived without guidelines is confusing and troubling.” There a

Through a Dog's Eyes: Holiday Stress

Through a Dog's Eyes: Holiday Stress

The leaves are falling, the weather is cooler, the days are shorter and the dogs are feeling frisky. Right now life’s pretty good. Over the next few weeks, life may not be so good. Schedules will change, weather will get colder, and people (perhaps strange people) may be invading your home. What to do??? If you’re a human, you may love the magic of the holidays. Your dog may see things differently. She may panic, bolt out the door, or nip a stranger. He may bark, hide, or gro

Preparing for Puppy

Preparing for Puppy

Getting a new puppy is exciting. There’s so much to do and see and learn…together. Now is a great time to think about what looks right for you and your puppy. While your furry companion needs to learn skills for navigating a human world, as his human you need to think about what looks right – what are those skills, behaviors and activities that you want for your puppy. Your puppy is a dog. That will never change. An obvious statement, but worth keeping that in mind when imagi

Think your dog's ignoring you? Maybe not!

Think your dog's ignoring you? Maybe not!

Recently we had a less than spectacular human-dog greeting at my house. I was embarrassed. But I was also puzzled. Generally well-mannered dog ignores known cues – it happens. But why does it happen? Over the next few days I observed my dogs in a variety of situations. My AHA! moment happened when we stumbled upon a park we’d never investigated. New smells, different trails…the sun was shining – it was a great time to explore and practice skills. We picked a direction and hea

Recall for chicken's sake

Recall for chicken's sake

Life – it’s full of unexpected opportunities. Today life presented chickens. Three chickens were hanging out near my garden while I sat on the deck enjoying my morning coffee. I didn’t notice the visitors. Melody did. Nose up and twitching, ears perked up, and in a flash Melody was off the deck and in the garden. I turned, expecting to see a squirrel. Then I heard the sound of chickens. Chickens? Yes, chickens. The neighbor’s chickens had flown their coop and were busy snacki

It's more than just a walk

It's more than just a walk

Walking is such a normal, mundane activity. It can quickly become just another item on the to-do list – walk the dog…check. Ho hum, no fun for anyone! What makes the walk important? Well, many things (I’ll get into that later), but a different and more pressing question might be what can make the walk fun? Certainly walking a leash-pulling-kangaroo-hopping-lunging-barking canine is not fun. Attempting to leash up a leaping canine at the front door is not fun. And both scenari

Taking the Stress Out of the Vet Visit

Taking the Stress Out of the Vet Visit

Going to the vet can be a frightening experience for your canine companion. There are lots of strange smells – some very off putting to a dog’s super sensitive nose. Then there are all those strangers – other dogs, cats, small animals and people. Even well socialized dogs may feel anxious at the vet office. Your precious pup may also pick up on your own stress while at the vet clinic. Perhaps you’ve had a negative experience in the past and now any vet visit puts you on edge.

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