Puppy Owners, don't pass on the oppurtunity

Halloween is just around the corner. Time for parties, candy and a good scare... quality dog trainers know its also a special time too...

If you have a puppy less than 8 months of age, look at Halloween as a excellent opportunity to work on getting your puppy used to certain things that can cause an adult dog fear.

Costumes, scary noises, kids running about... all can be very scary stuff for an under socialized dog.

Look at this time as an opportunity to show your puppy that these things are good and trustworthy. Do you have a busy trick-o-treating neighborhood? Sit in a chair on your porch with a bowl of candy for the kids and a pocket full of tasty treats for pup. Reward your pup every time they see someone in costume or make a funny noise. They will make the association that the "scary" things are good. Not your scene? Head over to one of the many THRILLER-zombie performances this weekend. In one afternoon you can scratch loud music, costumes, scary noises and crowds off your puppies to-do socialization list.

Just remember to bring food treats that puppy will not say no to (think cheese or canned chicken)

Also, if pup is very young and not yet finished with their vaccine history, plan on carrying them rather than them walking on leash as they do not get have adequate immunity to protect them.

Look at all of this as an opportunity to expose pup. Remember, what puppy has a pleasurable experience with now- they will not fear later. Happy HOW-O-WEEN!

Puppy Pre School

Paws down... this is my favorite class.

Not only do I get to play with baby puppies for an hour, I get to impact the lives of many people in our community with our mission and goals that we all share at Tails.

We are here to make dogs' lives better. Plain and simple. One of the ways we do that is by teaching their guardians the importance of socialization and bite inhibition- the two core principals of Puppy Pre School.

Dogs are social creatures, they need to be with their own species and have dependable-predictable relationships with other dogs. They learn those social behaviors very early in life, and what better way than to meet other socials, well mannered pups in their same developmental stage.

We often shock people, usually other trainers, who cannot believe we offer Puppy Pre School at no charge. Yes, its true... any healthy, vaccinated pup ages 9 week to 14 week can attend our Puppy Pre School for free. Why? Socialization saves lives. And you can't make a dogs life better, if they are not here to help.

There certainly are puppies we see at Puppy Pre School, for 6 free session and never see again in our classes, and that's OK. I run into those pups all the time- at the dog park, at dog festivals etc. and everyone tells me how grateful they are for us giving them the opportunity to create a social dog. These dogs, even though we only saw them for a short time, learned proper social behavior, they learned bite inhibition and their guardians learned about body language and dog friendly training methods.

We did our job. We helped make their life better.

When are Children Ready for a Puppy?

Dear Tails,

Kids are bugging us to get a puppy… when is the best age of our children to get a dog?

Thanks,

Foster Family

Hi Foster Family,

In general, I think parents should hold off on getting a puppy until the youngest child is about 7 yrs old… I have several reasons.

· Kids younger than 7, tend to have shaky eye-hand coordination and poor reflexes. This can make it difficult for them to interact with the pup without stumbling, loosing balance and being constantly knocked down.

· Kids under 7 tend to have poor impulse control, when they get angry then tend to act it out and frequently their frustration is aimed at the weakest link in the family- the pet.

· Young kids often have nightmares involving animals which can make them timid or fearful around real animals.

· Kids under 7 rarely have the ability for abstract thought, and cannot overcome the natural tendency toward ego-centrism. Basically everything revolves around the child. This prevents them from understanding empathy in caring for a pet, as well as not knowing the difference between a stuffed toy and a real dog. Young kids tend to play too rough with puppies, wanting to pick them up, carry them around and twist their bodies.

A mis-treated pup quickly learns a fear of children and other similarly-moving, squeaky, smelly children (no offense)

Best to wait until the kids are a bit older or consider an adult rescue dog, one who has already been proven good with kids.

Dog Parks

Dog Parks
We are lucky enough to have 8 off leash areas here in Bellingham. They all have their good and bad points, here are just a few things worth mentioning.

Blodel Donavan: Nice group of dogs who go regularly. The group is maintained well by some regulars (two legged) that will keep dogs and people in line. Good for well behaved dogs, but expect to be “called out” if your dog is not a good pup! Note the off leash times: During daylight hours from October 1 to April 30 and until 10:00 am from May 1 to September 30.

Lake Padden: Only fully fenced area in Bellingham. Because of that you are going to get dogs that can’t be trusted in an open area without a fence. If they have poor boundary manners there is a good chance they have other issues as well. Dogs tend to be over ruley there and people tend to “check out” while chatting on their cell phones or socializing with people more than their dogs. Area does have a fenced small dog area, which is rare. This park has 4 entrances. If you are new use the entrance in the back near the horse trails. Never enter near the bathrooms if there is a big crowd of people and dogs.

Fairhaven: Two main areas, the large field and area near the water. This is inside the sewage treatment plant. Wonderful area, but a bit too close to the railroad track for me (if near the water) Due to its proximity to the college, it tends to get a lot of young people. Not a bad thing, but be aware of young college kids and out of control dogs.

Arroyo Park: All Trails are off leash, for dogs and horses… we aware of lots of horse poop and lots of hills. A favorite for mountain biking too.

Sunset Pond: All trails plus the water are designated for water exercise and training area. This too is a bit too close to the road for my liking, but great water area for doggie swimmers.
Sehome Hill Arboretum: All secondary trails are off leash, Dogs must be on leashes on all paved trails plus the Jersey Street and Arboretum Walkway which are the two trails at the bottom of the Arboretum abutting the University campus. Nice area, some trails can get pretty narrow so make sure your dog is good at passing other dogs off leash. Sometimes there is no room to move off to the side of the trail.

Little Squalicum Park: All Trails are off leash (Note - Little Squalicum Creek may contain hazardous chemical which may be harmful to animals- so I never recommend this area.
Whatcom Falls: A great area. The Waterline Trail (south of Whatcom Creek) west of the Water Treatment Plant to Bayview Cemetery and the trail from the Waterline Trail south to Lakeway- is all off leash. Nice secondary trail to the right after the Bayview Cemetery junction. Careful of the drop off to the right, near the Falls.

Although we are advocates for good dogs at dog parks, we never recommend a pup attend a dog park until after 7 months of age. Dogs are far too impressionable and its too risky who they may run into at the dog park, so it’s important to make sure your dog is behaviorally sound before attending. Think of it this way: if your puppy hangs out with other good puppies and dogs then they will be a good dog, but if they hang out with a bunch of juvenile delinquents ( just who you might run into at the dog park) they too will become little stinkers too.
Only you are your dogs advocate, its up to you to set them up to succeed.

Tug with your dog

Is it ok to tug with our dogs or not! Ah, the game of tug. In a nutshell, yes… playing tug with your dog is not only ok, but it can be a very rewarding game for the both of you. No, it won’t make for a dominant dog, no it won’t make a dog aggressive…but like any game there are rules, and both you and your dog should follow them.

Rule #1 Use only appropriate tug toys. Long, non-stuffed plushies, cotton rope toys or rubber tug toys are all good choices. Don’t get in the habit of using just anything, designate toys for tug and use them for those reasons. If your dog tends to “cinch up” on the end of the tug toward you, get a tug toy with a spacer between your hand and the dogs mouth, often the spacer is a ball or knot

Rule #2 Humans start the game and humans stop the game. This is to prevent demand behaviors. If you have a dog that drops toys in your lap to initiate play, this is a dog that has you wrapped around his paws! Remember to ignore demand behaviors, simply get up and walk away.

Rule #3 If the dog does not give up the item when asked, work on teaching give and take before you engage in tug and fetch games.

Rule #4 It’s ok to pull the tug side to side, but not up and down. Up and down is too stressful on the dogs’ neck.

Rule#5 Have fun!

Four on the Floor

Ahh, look at the cute baby puppy jumping up…ya its cute now, but its going to get old real fast. Especially when that puppy becomes a 65 lbs adult dog.
Jumping up can make an otherwise great dog an obnoxious nuisance- A dog that some visitors and family member begin to avoid.

First, look at the situation from your dog’s point of view. He is simply excited to see you. Dogs enjoy greeting face to face and its not his fault we are 6 feet tall! Dogs are opportunistic and they simply want your attention. He quickly has figured out that jumping up is a great way to get it. You tell him to stop and push him off, saying his name a few times with a big “No”. Your dog thinks: Ya for me! This works great! I jump up and you stop everything you are doing and put the focus on me! Dogs don’t care if the only attention they get is negative one, if that is all they are going to get, they’ll take it just fine.

Dogs only do what works (hmmm, sounds familiar doesn’t it) As long as he continues to get attention (yes, even bad attention) for the behavior he will continue to do it.

Dogs need to learn that a calm and relaxed dog gets far more attention than one who is jumping up (or barking or whining or generally being pushy)

Next time your dog jumps up on you, say nothing, fold your arms across your chest and turn your back to your dog. Don’t look at him, don’t talk to him, and don’t acknowledge him in any way. He may move and come to your front, simply turn again- your back to the dog. At first he may think he needs to jump MORE to get you attention (remember it has work VERY well for him up till now) Just be diligent, stay quiet and keep turning your back to him. As soon as he shows any sings of calm, such as keeping all four feet on the ground, quickly give him a treat and praise him. If your dog is trained to sit, have him do this before giving the treat and praising. You are simply teaching your dog what you NOW want him to do to get the reward HE wants.

Remember the Doggie Golden Rule: Dogs would rather be praised than punished but they would rather be punished than ignored!

Breaking bad habits takes time to overcome. Expect to repeat this exercise for some time… and expect it to possible get worse before it gets better. Be patient, be consistent and make sure everyone in the family is on the same page- doing the exact same thing.