Blog Trek

Being the Pet Boss

I found a new hero:  The Dog Whisperer on the Discovery Channel.  This man went from being a dog walker to being a dog psychologist.  He either works wonders in five minutes, or there's some really heavy editing going on. 

I haven't yet seen him address the issue of the anxiety-ridden dog, but I'm hoping.  He'd have his work cut out for him trying to get my Taffy to stay home when I'm gone, but I did see now to stop her biting the vacuum and barking her head off at it while I'm trying to clean.  Cesar has perfected the art of telling a dog who's the boss with small movements and a firm noise that sounds like he's scolding a small child with his or her hand in the cookie jar.  He said it was the same sound his mother made when disciplining.  I'm working on it myself.

I wonder if it works for cats, too?

Refusing to obey the rules

Why is it that owners of loose dogs in parks always think those "Dogs must be on Leashes" signs, including diagrams of dogs on leashes, are meant for everyone but them?

I frequently take my old, short legged dog on her leash to parks.  Frequently, we encounter dog owners whose usually far larger animals instantly come running over at breakneck speed and engulf mine, who doesn't like it one bit.  The owners then laugh and say their dogs are friendly.  No excuse.  They are not being restrained or controlled in any way.  I don't care how friendly the dogs are with their owners, or how many of their friends and aquaintances have dogs that just adore these rambunctious animals.  There's no excuse.  It's like having a 10 year old child who insists on running over to every 2 year old in the surrounding area and jumping on their backs, and then playfully taking the 2 year old's neck in his mouth and seeing how the kid likes THAT, preferably by making either large growling sounds or drooling all over the place.

Some people just don't have any sense.  And when I inform them that Taffy doesn't like this display of over-exuberance and invasive sniffing, the owners act quite surprised and come over to fetch their Fidos, looking a little miffed that I would dare to object in the first place.  To them, the park is for sending their dogs off to exercise while they mostly just stand around, or in the case of this evening, sit reading a book on top of a picnic table while two of the biggest German Shepherds I have ever seen are ranging around the entire picnic area.  Luckily for Taffy and I, the area is down the hill from the parking lot, so we were able to walk in the opposite direction, but we couldn't complete a round of the baseball field, as I had originally intended, because these heifers would have a birds-eye view and I would probably have had to resort to macing them.

No wonder pet owners get a bad rap.

Who wants to pay $140 for a doggy blood panel?

I made a reservation to board my dog at a kennels attached to one of the big retail pet stores (unnamed, but I'm sure a lot of people will figure it out.) I received a voice mail yesterday afternoon, telling me that they now have a new requirement: they want a senior blood panel done before they board. The good news was (by the cheery voiced receptionist) that even though it would cost $140 for the blood panel and an examination by their vet, this would last for a whole year.

I called my vet's office. The tech was more helpful. The blood panel there was only $40, but he agreed with me that it wasn't necessary, and offered to board Taffy there for the weekend instead. I promptly made the reservation, then called the other kennels/vet.

When I asked why this panel was needed to board my dog, the girl told me it was "to make sure all the animals boarding were healthy." I told her I was canceling my reservation.

Last night I spoke with my daughter, who thought, as I did, that this was a scam to get more money out of the clients boarding their animals. She thought perhaps too many senior dogs had died in the kennels, which may be the case. Maybe the kennels needs to look into their facilities, in that case. They already raised their boarding rates in the Spring by a sizeable amount.

My feeling is, if this blood panel lasts for a year, how are they going to guarantee that the animals boarding are still healthy even weeks after the panel is done, let alone months? Older animals are like older people: one minute they're fine, the next they aren't. It just goes with the aging process. Unless Taffy looks or acts ill, I have no reason to get a blood panel done on her. She had her annual immunizations and a physical exam by my vet in the Spring. It's only August. And besides, she's a pound rescue, so apart from a few grey hairs around her muzzle, who knows how old she really is? Maybe I should have given her a dose of Clairol and passed her off as a much younger dog. Unless they looked in her mouth at all the broken and chipped teeth, she might have got away with it.

Vikk's Line up: Meet the boys!

Not to change the subject, but I thought I'd introduce "the boys," Beau, Riley and Teddy, my house companions. None may not be quite the pretty boy-dog dear Emerson is on Mark's Clear Lake Reflections, but they're mine and loads of fun.

This is Beau, the found Labrador Retriever. He's about three and a half years old, has a killer tail, and loves to play ball. He's a gorgeous dog and so well-mannered. Someone spent a lot of time training him. My old boss found Beau wandering along an interstate and tried to find the owner but couldn't. His wife didn't want him; Beau was too big. When I picked him up, he was in a small washroom cooped up with a chihuahua, both behind a child's gate. Beau is everyone's favorite.

Here's Riley, a Cocker Spaniel, whose snow-white and rust-colored fur still retains a baby-fur mantle. He is so soft and such a sweetie. He came to me at six months old. His former owners had been abusive, so he shivered all the time. He was such a little scairdy cat, but he's much better now. He loves to pad up and get kisses. Doesn't give any, not even a lick, but he's most open to cuddling. He, too, loves to play ball. Riley's paws slap against the floor as he runs after any ball rolling by, then he pounces.

And this is Teddy, the Shih Tsu alpha dog who rules the roost. The first of the three to arrive, he hasn't let anyone forget it. He has a red tennis ball that he absolutely loves. Constantly nudging me whenever I'm working on the computer or reading, Teddy always wants me to play ball. He's such a subtle, little thing.