The truth is your life will never really be settled. Has it ever been? For anyone? You may get the full-time job and finally stop moving–then a baby comes along. You have a social life, vacation plans, medical emergencies, accidents, unforeseen life changes. Things happen all the time. There’s no such thing as a stable life. Whether or not your life is stable doesn’t matter a pin.

Here’s what does matter: Do you want a dog? Are you willing to do everything and anything in your power to train, love, feed and provide for the dog? Can you afford vet bills and obedience classes? Are you willing to turn your life upside down if that’s what the dog needs? Are you willing to change jobs, buy a different car, and find suitable housing for you AND the dog? If you cannot commit 100% for the next 12+ years and be willing to change your life when necessary then no, don’t get a dog. They are not disposable. If things don’t work out with the dog, you will need to change the things that aren’t working, not get rid of the dog.

Many people who lost their homes during Hurricane Katrina kept their pets. Many people who lost their jobs find ways to cut costs elsewhere and keep their pets. People who receive bad health diagnoses keep their pets. Being relatively “stable” and getting a pet doesn’t mean that your life will always be stable for you and your pet. Waiting until you have stability most often means you will never get that dog you want so badly.

If you do decide to wait, there are many things you can do until you get a dog of your own. Volunteer at a local shelter. Foster. Pet sit for friends. Visit local dog parks and make some friends. Volunteer with an organization such as Fences for Fido or The Pongo Fund. Donate money to organizations that help save dogs. Take pet ownership classes. Attend dog sport competitions and dog shows. Read everything you can about pet ownership and dog training. Find out which breeds/breed mixes best fit your lifestyle. Use the time to think long and hard about the traits you desire in a dog companion. Then when you do decide to adopt a dog, you’ll be ready.

Tug-of-war is a great game, so long as you stick to certain rules. Contrary to what we’ve been told, tug-of-war does not encourage aggression in dogs. It’s a great game that requires little space and minimal energy on your part. You can even play on those days when you’re ill–just lay back in bed and let your dog tug from the floor! Again, make sure you play by the rules. There are some dogs who should not play, though. Use good judgment.

Do some obedience training. Maybe just run your dog through her paces, reviewing her commands. Or train something fun, like navigating obstacles made from furniture and household items: cardboard box tunnels, pillow hurdles, and so on. Teach your dog to help with the housecleaning by training them to pick things off the floor and drop them into a box. Mental exercise can tire a dog just as must as physical exercise. Just remember to keep it fun!

Give your dog puzzles to solve. For example, I sometimes get a big colander and flip it upside down on the floor. I show Pipit and Thisby some dog treats and then put them under the colander. They try to get to the treats by pushing the colander around. Occasionally a treat gets free and they get rewarded. Fun! You could also play this game with a small box with holes cut out, or hide the treats and have your dog search for them.

Do you have indoor activities you do with your dog? Share them in the comments!

Well, now you too can get a great photo of your dog and support Family Dog at the Third Annual Best Friends Photo Day. Canis Studio on SE Morrison will be taking photos of your pup for a donation of $25, 100% of which will go directly to Family Dog. The photo days are December 5th and 6th, but you will need to schedule an appointment as soon as possible. They plan to book most, if not all, the available time slots so make your appointment now! I’ll be taking Pipit. See you there!

Shortly after getting Pipit, I was doing some “stay” training with her. For “stay” the gesture was the palm of my hand held out facing her like you would do if you were telling traffic to stop. She was afraid of the hand! Or so it seemed. Every time I’d hold my hand out she’d tuck her tail under and hide. We did a little light desensitizing work to get her used to palms facing her and hands gesturing assertively and then ended with some play. As a former stray, I thought perhaps she’d had some negative associations with hands.

After a time, she did not improve much, so I tried using a different visual cue. When at a loss for a new visual cue, I use this ASL website. I try to find a cue that matches the command. Otherwise, I’m unlikely to use it in an easy and natural way. It can sometimes take some searching and thinking up synonyms to find a sign that works. I finally settled on a closed hand with my index finger up, as if I’m telling someone “One moment, please.”

Pipit responded to this cue very well. She is full of wigglies, so “stay” is an ongoing project! However, she’s finally showing improvement now that I’ve found a cue that doesn’t frighten her. I also suspect that the gesture was too similar to the visual cue for “high five” and was confusing her.

The key to successful visual/verbal cue pairing is to find a visual cue that matches the verbal cue in a way that is natural to you. If you use a gesture that doesn’t feel like “stay” then you are less likely to remember it or to use it effectively. Also, consider whether the cue is similar to another you already use. Try to minimize confusion by using very different cues. A fearful dog adds another challenge in finding a cue that is non-threatening. Try using cues that don’t require an open palm or threatening motions. Most importantly, don’t forget that training is fun and is always more effective when treated like a game. Have fun!

Some people discredit positive reinforcement-based training as being a wishy-washy, New Age-y, sissy way to train. I’m not sure why intimidating your dog and making her fear you is a better way to do things, so I’m fine being called names so long as my dog is happy. The fact is that positive reinforcement methods get results faster, ingrain behaviors more deeply, and build trust between owner and dog more effectively than methods that utilize punishment. Just like children, dogs learn most readily through play. That’s what play is: a training ground for learning rules and behaviors. A puppy nips another puppy too hard during a wrestling match–suddenly the game ends and the bitten puppy moves away. The biter learns that biting means no more play and soon learns to curb that behavior. So why not make training into a game?

The benefits of positive reinforcement is a topic that can, and does, fill multiple volumes, so I’ll just add one more thing: The best reason I can think of to use this method of training is that if you mess up the training, your dog is still happy and trustful of you. Mess up a training method that uses punishment or force, and you end up with an unhappy, mistrustful dog.

Clicker training is not the only way to use positive reinforcement methods. You can read about clicker training and positive reinforcement more in these books:

• Reaching the Animal Mind: Clicker Training and What It Teaches Us About All Animals by Karen Pryor (The Queen of Clicker Training)
  
• Positive Reinforcement: Training Dogs in the Real World by Brenda Aloff
• Getting Started: Clicker Training for Dogs by Karen Pryor
• Clicking With Your Dog: Step-By-Step in Pictures by Peggy Tillman
• Don’t Shoot the Dog!: The New Art of Teaching and Training by Karen Pryor
• Also, anything by Patricia McConnell is well worth reading.

The sad truth of the matter is that the photographs taken of the shelter dogs make a tremendous difference in attracting adopters. Shelter employees and volunteers are already stretched for time and resources, so it’s no wonder that so many of their dog photos are blurry, taken from odd angles, and suffer from bad lighting. The goal is to get a photo on the website as quickly as possible and dogs don’t often sit pretty and cooperate for the camera. When searching the Oregon Humane Society’s listings, I noticed they would often upload a quick, sometimes blurry picture of a dog and later take a nicer one when time permitted. Other shelters such as Family Dogs New Life are lucky enough to have a professional photographer who volunteers his time and skills to photograph each and every dog at their shelter.

This is something for potential adopters to be conscious of when searching for the dog of their dreams. With the overwhelming numbers of waiting dogs, it becomes easy to simply scan for cute, appealing faces without considering an individual dog’s personality. The pattern becomes 1) find a cute face, 2) see if the dog is compatible. Unfortunately, if the dog’s photo is of poor quality, it might not help that dog catch someone’s eye. Adopters should strive to examine individual traits before paying much attention to that photo. They should also know that many dogs, particularly black-colored dogs, don’t photograph easily. When possible, meet the dog in person before passing them up.

Shelters should strive to take the best photos possible and understand the importance the photo plays in determining the amount of interest in a dog. Here are some ideas for taking better photos:

• Take photos in a well-lit area. Natural light is better than indoor lighting, but avoid taking photos when the light levels are too strong such as at noon.
• Try to get the dog in a “sit/stay” or “down/stay.” If that is not possible, recruit a helper to keep the dog still and distracted while you are taking the picture.
• Use a digital camera and take lots of shots from several angles. This will allow you to select the best of the bunch.
• Try to shoot from the dog’s level. Photographing the dog while standing makes for an odd angle.
• Pair the photo with a quick video. Many shelters are taking short videos of their dogs and posting them. This is a fantastic idea for showing off a dog.
• Ask around: do any of the shelter employees or volunteers have photography skills? Perhaps they could be responsible for this task. Also, you could try asking around art schools. Would some up-and-coming photographer like some furry models to pad their portfolios?

They say a picture is worth a thousand words, but for some dogs it might be the difference between life and death.

PREVENTION

First and foremost, you can prevent your dog from getting lost or stolen.

• Put ID tags on your dog’s collar. Do not put your dog’s name on the tag. All a tag needs is your phone number and possibly the microchip number. In a scenario where your dog is stolen, having his name on the tag aides the thief in passing your dog off as their own since he responds to his name. Your dog should wear ID tags at all times, even when at home.
• Microchip your dog. Microchipping is affordable and harmless to your pet. Most if not all animal control agencies and shelters rely on microchip scanning to determine if a dog is a stray or not and to reunite owners with their pets. Keep the microchip information current.
• License your dog in your county and keep the tags on her collar at all times. This provides another method for getting your dog identified and returned. Also, it’s the law in most places.
• Teach your dog to “wait” or “stay” at the door, only allowing them to cross when you give the “okay” or “let’s go” command. This prevents door dashing. Teach this for the car, too.
• Always take your pet out on a leash, regardless of whether or not they are good about staying at your side. This is not about your dog; it’s about what could happen to your dog. A loud noise could cause them to unexpectedly bolt. A crowded sidewalk could result in getting separated. It’s just best not to risk it.
• Don’t leave your dog unattended. Not in a car, not tied up outside a store. If you know you will be going into a building that does not allow pets, please leave your dog at home.
• Secure your yard. Re-fence damaged areas. You may need to sink the fence into the ground if your dog can squeeze underneath or if your dog is a digger. Once the yard is dog-proof, determine if it is people-proof. Can strangers easily reach over the fence or walk through the gate? If you cannot guarantee that your dog cannot escape and  thieves cannot get in, do not allow your dog in the yard unsupervised.
• Be wary of unusual interest in your dog, especially if you have a high-demand breed (many toy breeds fall into this category). If you are uncomfortable with a stranger’s interest, talk about how your dog is spayed/neutered, has health and behavior problems, is very old, etc. Try to make your dog sound unsellable or a poor companion. (This may be tough to do, I know.)

SEARCHING

For whatever reason, your dog is now gone. He broke free from his leash or was stolen from your backyard. What should you do now?

• Call everyone: your county shelter/animal control, neighboring county shelters, local dog rescues, your vet, and other vets in the area. If you believe your pet was stolen, immediately contact your local police department and file a report. You may want to also contact neighboring police departments. Many radio stations have lost and found segments both on air and on their websites. You should prepare these numbers now, before you need them, and keep them handy. Remember not everyone is knowledgeable about breeds; some people think Bichons are Poodles, so be sure to describe your dog well. “My dog is a Bichon: small with fluffy, curly white fur and a long, silky tail.”
• Make posters–lots of them. Use a good quality photo that clearly shows your dog’s face and body. Be sure to include pertinent information: breed, markings, gender, and size, your phone number (NOT your address!), place last seen, and reward information. Do NOT include your dog’s name. Make color posters–if your Dalmatian is liver-spotted, black and white posters will do you no good. Make some in black and white, however, for faxing to local shelters and rescues. Put up the color posters in as many places as possible in the area you last saw your dog, then work outwards in a circular manner. Dogs can roam quite far in a short time. Get people to help you–the faster the posters go up the better. As the days go on, expand your search even further. It is not uncommon for dogs to turn up 50 or even 100 miles away. Ask local schools if they will let you put up posters–kids are really good at seeing and remembering dogs. Large ethnic population in your area? Make posters in other languages, such as Spanish or Chinese. It’s a good idea to make a master copy of the posters BEFORE your pet disappears so you can get them printed and posted quickly.

• Get online. Post your lost/stolen dog on craigslist.org and other local networking sites in your area. Recruit someone to watch the Craigslist pet section for you in case someone posts your dog as found or for sale, or keep an eye on it yourself. Do this several times a day every day until your dog is found.
• Call the microchip company and report your dog as lost/stolen. Inform them that anyone calling to change the information may have stolen the dog.
• Go to shelters and rescues yourself. You may have reported your dog as lost, but that doesn’t mean everyone there got the memo. They may also misidentify your dog. Go look at all the found dogs with your own eyes every few days.
• Place strongly-scented items on your porch or in your yard–the dog’s bed, one of your dirty shirts. If your dog wandered down the street, she may be able to find her way home by following her nose.

Be prepared to wait, search, and post for weeks–maybe even months.

RECOVERING YOUR PET

When the word is out that your pet is gone, people will start contacting you. Some will want to offer sympathy and assistance. Some will be pranksters trying to upset you and get a cheap laugh from your grief. Some will be con artists trying to get money out of you. Some may have actually seen or found your dog or one like it.

• Get as much information from the caller as possible. What is their name? Where did they see your dog and when? Do they still know where the dog is? Always ask open questions that the caller must answer–don’t reveal anything about your own dog! “Does she have spots? Where and what color?” is better than “Does she have brown spots on her nose?” You are screening to see if this person is legitimate, so don’t help them. If they have your dog or have seen your dog, they should know what she looks like! Don’t forget to get the caller’s phone number, address, and name.
• Do not pay any money before you recover your dog. If they insist on money before returning your pet, agree to everything then call the police. Your dog should be in your arms before any money is exchanged.
• DO NOT GO ALONE to retrieve your dog. I cannot stress this enough. No matter how nice or legitimate the person sounded on the phone, do not go alone. Take a friend or two and try to meet the caller at a public place. Do not give them your address!
• If your dog has been located by animal control or turned into a shelter, donate the reward money to them as a thank-you gesture.
• Take down posters and online ads.
• Contact the microchip company and inform them your dog has been found.

Hopefully you never have to endure this scenario, but you should be prepared in case it happens. Make a “Lost Dog Kit” file on your computer with phone numbers, websites addresses, a master copy of your color poster, a master copy of your black and white poster, alternative language posters, and even a map with pre-determined search routes. Remember to update this file regularly with new/updated phone numbers, your updated contact information, and your dog’s picture. Being prepared now will save a lot of time and, possibly, heartache.

Pipit’s story really opened my eyes to the way environment affects a dog’s personality and, therefore, adoptability. The county shelter sees thousands of dogs a year, but they had her personality and temperment completely wrong due to the stress she was under at the time she was evaluated. The county determined she was unfit for living with children and cats, and was aggressive to people. When we went to look at her, it was clear she was nervous with strangers–but not aggressive. She was terrified of the children, but her reactions to them were defensive, not aggressive. When we brought her home, she expressed interest in the cat, but is respectful of his space (though she does occasionally try to talk him into a game). If we had gone by the county’s evaluation, we wouldn’t have even met with Pipit.

I don’t blame the county shelter at all. They are doing the very best they can with the limited time and resources available to them. I am forever thankful to them for finding Pipit, saving her from starvation and injury on the streets, and giving her the food and medical care she required. The trauma of her life as a stray, the unfamiliar people and environment at the shelter, and her predisposition to anxiety in new situations made it impossible for the shelter to accurately gauge her personality.

Across the country, more and more shelters are doing their very best to improve the conditions of the animals they are saving. The Oregon Humane Society has four or five beautiful rooms with half a dozen cats in each living cage-free in exciting, comfortable, enriched environments. Not all shelters can provide dogs with comfortable, natural surroundings, but most are working hard to place animals in foster homes and to transfer animals to other shelters that can provide more suitable surroundings and a better chance at adoption.  Some dogs don’t seem to mind kennel life much–others require more personalized care. Shelters can be noisy, scary places for a dog. Is it any wonder that some dogs fail to thrive there? With so many strangers coming in and out, no routine, and no daily one-on-one interaction with humans, many dogs curl up and hide in the farthest corner or throw themselves barking at the gate. It becomes difficult to see a dog’s true nature.

I did not choose to adopt from Family Dogs because of their unique shelter environment. I chose them because they had Pipit, and I fell in love with her. There is a need for shelters of all kinds, and there is a need for support and funding for these shelters so that more dogs like Pipit can be saved. I would like to see more efforts to create safe, natural environments for dogs to improve their emotional states while staying at the shelter. Additionally, potential adopters should be educated on the effects of environment on a dog’s behavior so that they better understand what they are seeing in the kennels. Shelter workers and volunteers should also continue to do the best they can to put a dog at ease and accurately judge his temperment (I know they already working hard to do this.)

Pipit and I were able to find each other, despite the difficulties presented by her negative reaction to a kennel environment. I wish that all dogs could be so lucky.

The more I thought about it the worse I felt. I called the woman back and offered to buy the bitch. She was really surprised and told me that I couldn’t expect to breed her. It didn’t matter to me. We settled on a price. I didn’t really want to line the woman’s pockets, but I wanted to make sure that the little female got a good home that loved her for herself and not for the money she could make. It was a silly, emotional decision, I know, but there it is. If I had to make it today, I probably wouldn’t call the woman, because I am not comfortable supporting backyard breeders when there are so many dogs in shelters, but like I said, that was before I knew better.

Thisby came to me in early December of 2005, just over 2 years old. She had been shaved down to the skin, which I suspect was because she had been seriously matted due to lack of care. Her nails were overgrown, she knew no commands at all, didn’t know how to play with toys, was very scared, and didn’t even know the name the woman had given her. I named her Thisby, which had been a name that had been stuck in my head for some time. I had her spayed immediately.

Thisby is very special to me, because she’s the dog that started it all for me. Once she came to live with me, I began to learn a great deal about what it means to be a responsible dog owner, and what it means to choose a dog responsibly. I learned about positive reinforcement training. I read books written by animal behaviorists. I educated myself about puppy mills, backyard breeders, shelters, and rescues. Thisby is the dog that opened my eyes to the state of domestic animals in the world today.