tall tails

My dog has an extremely long tail which I guess is a positive with his breed.
I got to wondering why that is and have come up with a theory. He is a herding breed and the tail can serve to better balance him while running. The longer the stem to tip, the more balance he can have to take fast turns or look longer and block the sheeps escape.
I imagine the aussie, who is actually from the us, not the cattle dog or the kelpie but the shepherd with no tail, or I should say stem tail as all dogs have 3 vertibre on the tail stem, the shepherd must have a purpose to have no tail but, I can not fathom why. Why would one herding breed have points for long tail and another have stem tail? I must do more research.
The difference between breeds always astounds me. Then I wonder why there are size varieties to breeds, (ei beagle 13" and beagle 15 ") or why are there colors in the same breed (black and yellow lab) I know we breed for health, temperment and comform to purpose but, some things seem trivial at best. My dog just happened to have a long tail and of course he has a million great things about him, so I ask why bother putting this in the standard. Who knows why my breed is actually genetically the same as the black coated BSD but akc recognizes it separately while ukc sees them as one breed. If you send in a genetic testing kit you get variations on result too! In the us you may only breed the black coat with the black coat and the black and mahogany with the other Tervs yet in Canada you can mix them. It makes me think that Canada has a stronger gene pool to feed off of because you are more open to health, purpose, temperment breeding. I am sure I will learn later a logical reason for all this but, for now I just have to wonder why.

Training Opportunities Present

Often we try to structure training sessions. We plan to do a little bit while we are getting ready for work or maybe in the park while we are walking. Some of us prefer to do this later in the day, say after dinner, or during commercial breaks. If we plan these out that is great however, if we accept the idea to train a few moments when the opportunity presents itself, we will have a more focused, balanced, ready to roll with it type of dog.
This morning we were getting ready for breakfast when my dog began to bark at the ajoining park off our property. I grabbed the leash, a few treats and took him to see (after he sat quietly for a moment) We then worked slowly moving closer while he worked on lie down, walk up, and sit commands with a few touch commands thrown in because that is one he has ingrained to do everytime I ask. It is moments like these that brings your training together. You can never accurately predict distractions and those are the most difficult for most dogs to respond appropriately to. When I sit for breakfast or watch tv at night I keep a couple treats close by so we can work the quiet, leave it commands when a dog runs by out front. The most difficult for my dog is when the neighbor plays ball in the park with his dog off leash and my dog used to completely lose his mind. We started on leash ( I know about what time he will play) we would do sits and lie down then moving closer to door, we are now calm and capable while working on the back deck and soon will move closer by descending the set of stairs and work in the yard (at his level) later we will get closer to the fence and eventually be off leash and quiet. Of course that will probably be 2 weeks before we move but, progress is made and that is what matters.
I love the opportunity to work my training in everyday life as well as those structured sessions. It makes our connection strong and trusting. I never tell him he is bad for barking I just redirect the energies off the activity so he realizes the excessive barking is not needed. He is telling his pack of outside invaders which is always ok to do, just don't freak out about it now. Just let go and move on to other things.

bird bath to amuse our pets

A great amusement for our pets is watching the lives of other animals outdoors. A little like how we enjoy watching the pretend lives of others with our tv programs. It is important to train them how to react without obsessing and to watch from a distance without the need to chase or kill the prey. Some dogs will get so obsessed with their prey drive that they can't control themselves because it gets overwhelming . They will "freak out" even when someone mentions the word squirrel. I use the "leave it" command around the house and yard often and praise heavily when they do. I like to use this time to train my other commands too. It is a great use of distractions.
Though we always want to respect nature and its circle of life, we also can occasionally feed the birds and squirrels. I keep a bird bath so animals can quench their thirst when the water is scarce. I never feed animals who should not be in neighborhoods like coyotes and bears. It is dangerous for them to learn to come into the neighborhoods for goodies. When you place a bird feeder where your pets can see it they will watch the birds and squirrels all day long. With the proper training this is a kept to watching in passing only not obsessive in nature. or of nature I guess. You may set up a bed near the feeder for more relaxed viewing of nature.
I also prevent disease as much as possible by vaccinating my pets or using titers to test for resistance. As well as by washing down my patio with disinfectant on a regular basis.

Fear Agression

Recently I spoke with a woman who has a fear agressive dog which brought me back to the days when I realized I had a dog like that. It is a challenge and it is hard work mostly because you have to get out everyday and do social training and you never know who is going to run up to you to pet your dog. You have to learn to read not only people signals but, not be afraid to yell at a child to "stop" when you are out in the park or whatever and they run at you.
That said, I really love my dog and his problems made me a better person. It gave me courage to speak up, and not be afraid. I learned to be the leader who not only is incharge but, watches out for their charges.
I remember being scared and not knowing much about how to help him. I dug in, went to the library and got books, read as much as I could and took him to different classes to expose him to new places and challenges. It was a ton of work and I do still have to keep up with it. I try to bring him on errands as much as I can and try to get him out of the car so he can face things a little more head on. I walked around an elementary school yard every week for a school year to get him ok with kids. It is something that makes me proud to have him be pretty much ok with people,places and situations now. From time to time I still use his gentle leader for more confidence but, I don't like to rely on "tools" much at all.
I am also proud to say he has competed in his first couple conformation dog shows which I had feared a year ago that he would never be ready for. They are looked at and touched in ways which make most dogs uncomfortable but, because of our training he was great.
It makes me sad to think that some people will give up on their fearful "shy" dogs because they can't seem to work passed the big obstacles. It helps that I am stubborn and that there is nothing I love more than dogs. Sorry family but, you know this, I can't help who I was born as. I know my shyness started him out on the wrong path which is why I was so dedicated to making things work and now everytime I see my breed friends and my breeder herself, they all tell me how proud they are and how far we have come and what a wonderful job I have done. I am more proud of those compliments than of any others I have earned in my life because I know I worked this out with my dog and we have a great relationship because of the work we have done. Now that is something I wouldn't mind a blue ribbon for. Maybe when I become a trainer I can give those out to the achieving teams. Here we come CGC that is a title I will get one day. It will be another big milestone, especially the walking by a dog (he loves them too much if that is possible)

Tips: Greetings and "Good"-Byes

Some dogs can become overwhelmed by our behaviors when they don't really understand why we act the way us humans do. It is natural for us to be excited to see our dogs when we come home and fawn over them, showering them with praise for something they have no idea about or scold them for something they have not recollection of doing wrong.
The long and short of it is, our brains have a different set up. We process our long term memory and bank information like what we did and why. Dogs just let that go and move on. It is not important to them, they will bank the important facts like who we are and how they don't like men in hats because that angry man in a hat from when they were little etc. They do not bank the incident with the trash bin being emptied or the couch cushion being chewed or the potty they had to release on the floor.
So when the human they love comes home and sees the mess or lack of mess what should we do? The best thing for the dog is to come in like we have no dog. Do not acknowledge them for a few minutes until their brain switches from greeting "establishing pack reconnect" to home mode. You see when a pack reunites information is gathered about others where abouts and the leader is reestablished or reaffirmed. We may let our pack sniff us but, not reach out to them to offer them leadership status. This would confuse them later when we expect to be leader.
This goes for leaving as well. Remember, you never want to let your dog go pee and then call them inside or bring them inside and leave. Would you hurry up and pee if this happened to you? Would you come when called? Probably not. It is simple to have this as part of your exit routine and then simply wait a couple minutes before leaving. When you leave make no fuss, don't say" good bye, you be good today and no chewing up the couch pillows" (picture what you expect to happen) When it is time to go, just walk out the door. If possible have an uneven routine such as, go out different doors, carry stuff to table and sit down then leave(mix it up)
This takes some getting used to but, when you remember it is for the good of your dog, the good of your relationship and the good of your house it is a little easier to do. A dog you don't have to worry about makes your day enjoyable. Once you are home and in "home mode" you can snuggle and fawn over your dog as much as you want and always on your terms. Separation anxiety can cause destruction of your home and its contents including bodily injury of your dog and wreak havoc on your relationship because of lack of trust. This is perpetuated by scolding the dog when you return. They see you coming home with scolding and worry about your return when you leave which makes them more anxious and there by more destructive.
Also helping with anxiety, don't leave food out all the time because pack leader is controlling the food supply. You may give your dog a food treat (like a kong) before you leave because you are presenting it to them.
Break the cycle and build an easier leadership role by implementing these simple steps to a better balanced dog.

Aspen Peaceful Pets

My name is Amy-Marie Richardson and I am co-owner of Aspen Peaceful Pets. I grew up in Massachusetts in the country and always had several animals around. We had traditional pets to learn from such as dogs and cats and other creatures from fish and guinea pigs and geese.
Recently My business partner and I decided we should explore an avenue of business we are more excited about. Since we both love animal care and teaching what we have learned about pets, we thought it best to open a pet care business.
We will host hikes and walks for dogs who like to get out during the day. We will also provide services like dog wash and pamper care. We are considering overnight and daycare options for all pets. We will see what we can do to suit the special needs of our clients and their animals.
We hope to have everything in line to open our business by mid summer 2010. I hope you check back for more information or email us at AspenPeacefulPets@gmail.com.
I plan to provide tips for future clients in the coming weeks.