I recently taught a class for www.DabbleHQ.com about what to expect and how to plan for your first dog.  I thought it would be nice to share the PowerPoint and resources here on my blog for you to reference and share.  If you have questions or would like more detailed information about getting your first dog, I'd be happy to talk with you one-on-one via phone, email or in person.  Just visit the "Contact Us" page and send me a note.

If you didn't read my first blog about Lexie, the foster who has been living with me for the past three weeks, then this video will probably just look like another cute dog video. BUT...

If you read my giant rant about Lexie, then you are sure to be impressed by how much progress this amazing lady has made.

This beautiful and sweet Weimaraner is definitely ready to move into her forever home.  She's still full of energy since she's only one year old, but she's super intelligent and has so much love to give.

Be sure to check out the Great Lakes Weimaraner Resuce page to learn more about how you can welcome Lexie (or another deserving Weim) into your family!

In case you didn't already know, on Monday, July 11th at 6:30pm, I'll be teaching a class designed for the first-time dog parent, someone considering welcoming a new dog to the family, or anyone who needs a refresher on Dogs 101.

Spaces are filling up quickly, so be sure to spread the word if you know anyone who might benefit from the class.  You can find the full details and RSVP at http://www.dabblehq.com/events/my-first-dog/

About two weeks ago I welcomed Lexie to live with Gatsby, Dr Seuss and me until she finds her forever home.  She is a very energetic sweet lady who has sadly lacked any structure during the first year of her life.

Our focus for the first week was adding structure to Lexie's life through introducing her to a schedule, leash walks and crate training which went hand-in-hand with potty training.  Let me get on my soapbox for a moment and remind everyone that putting your dog out in the backyard for a couple hours unsupervised is NOT appropriate enrichment and exercise.  Dogs look for a pack leader to challenge them and initiate exercise and play - that's where we are supposed to come into the picture.  They WANT us to give them a "job".

Okay, moving on.  As you probably know by now, my approach with dogs is very direct and all about consistent exposure and reinforcement.  It is my belief that dogs, like humans, learn through repetition and positive experiences but also require someone to push them outside their comfort zone to grow and mature.  We need to give our dogs more credit and stop babying them as if they might "break" when confronted with a challenge.

For Lexie, the introduction of boundaries and structures has translated into actual physical boundaries through crate desensitization both while I am out of the house and even while I am home doing work.  Does this mean she should be in a crate 24/7 to figure out that it's okay?  Most definitely NOT.  It's all about balance.  Currently Lexie probably is spending about 16 to 20 hours out of each day inside her crate.  Yes, you read that correctly, she is spending close to 20 hours of each day in her crate, BUT for the 4 to 8 hours she is out of the crate, she is at the park on a 30-foot lead running with Gatsby, going on runs with Gatsby and me, practicing important skills like "stay" and "come" with me one-on-one, playing at the off-leash dog park, etc.  Thanks to this intense attention while she is out of the crate, she is very ready for a nice long nap in her crate in between "workouts".

Before you call PETA, please focus on the results.  One week ago, Lexie required 3 baths per day along with 3 full deep cleanings of her crate.  Why?  After being in her crate for only 20 minutes, she would pee and/or poop and proceed to pace through it out of nervous energy.  Her barking was also a very apparent sign of her obvious lack of familiarity to structure and independence.  This display occurred even when her bladder should have been completely empty.  Today, Lexie willingly walks into her crate where she is greeted by lots of enrichment (aka toys), and for the past week she and her crate have remained clean and dry.  Comparing the Lexie I knew two weeks ago to the Lexie I know today, I would have to say she is MUCH happier with her new boundary-filled life.

The other obvious sign of Lexie's lack of structure prior to moving in with me, is her diligent and even dangerous resource guarding habits.  Please keep in mind that a dog is much more relaxed and comfortable if they have an idea of what to expect on the daily agenda - aka a structured schedule.  For Lexie, the uncertainty of what time her next meal might come or whether she would get her toy back after having it taken away coupled with her inability to identify the pack leader (because none was ever introduced to her) resulted in a nervousness and aggression even when she was drinking water.  Lexie would physically shake while growling when she ate or drank, and she would lash out at anyone (or any dog) who tried to approach her during that time.

THE GREAT NEWS is that thanks to consistent work and positive reinforcement, Lexie has stopped the shaking, growling and snapping with toys, water and food.  The breakthrough for food guarding came from an awesome tip from the super talented Cis Frankel  (www.canineintelligenceagency.com).  Cis is not only an amazingly talented trainer based in Chicago but also a recognized Weimaraner breeder.  As fate would have it, Gatsby, Lexie and I bumped into Cis in the park, and she suggested putting only small amounts of Lexie's food into her bowl while she was eating.  This turned feeding from night to day!  After only one feeding where I would continually dispense a small handful into her bowl as she ate, Lexie allowed me to start grabbing her bowl and removing it while she is eating.  Coming from a dog who actually bit me only a few days ago during food desensitization, this is HUGE!  THANK YOU SO MUCH CIS!!!!

So I realize this has probably been my longest post to date, but Lexie has also been both my biggest challenge and success, so I thought it only fair to dedicate a longer initial post to this superstar in the making!  I can't emphasize enough how amazingly sweet she is

Don't forget to check out the Great Lakes Weimaraner Resuce page to learn more about how you can welcome Lexie (or another deserving Weim) into your family!

These videos were taken about one week after Seymour's May 20th video.  Notice how much better he maintains focus and how much less I need to repeat "stay".  Of course he still has the same big reaction to "ok, come".   Practice makes perfect and you can NEVER stop making it a FUN GAME!

As I've mentioned several times before, I believe stay and come are two commands that should be learned together.  Your puppy will most likely prefer to come to you, so by teaching him to stay and using come as the release you get to reinforce both commands.

Secondly, it is critical to make sure your puppy is solid with stay indoors before you practice it outdoors, and I always highly recommend using a long (30 feet +) leash when doing stay/come outdoors.  This insures that if your dog breaks stay to chase something, that you still have control.

Seymour is a 7-month-old mini GoldenDoodle who has been practicing stay indoors for the past several months.  Everytime we come back inside he must wait on the doormat until I release him from the other side of the room.  Tonight I decided it was time Seymour got to practice his amazing skills outdoors.

You will notice in the video that I repeat "stay" quite frequently like a broken record, and it even gets to sound very annoying :-)  As Seymour matures and is able to hold focus without being reminded, this frequency will greatly decrease.  There are also a few points in the video where Seymour got distracted and either began to move forward or look off into the distance.  By using either "Seymour" before saying stay or my "ah, ah" noise, I am able to re-focus him to remind him that he's working and must remain focused on the task of stay.

The most fun part for me is getting to see him bound toward me at full speed with such enthusiastic excitement when I release him with "ok, come."  Such a good puppy!

Thanks to my mom for sending me this video.  I know everyone will enjoy it :-)

Isn't it just so great that the weather is getting nice finally?  Yesterday Sandra, Ryan and I decided to take advantage of it by teaming up for some of our walks so that Amber, Dexter, Meshach and Tobias could have some fun together and some extra time at the park.  

Of course, whenever I'm around it has to turn into a photo shoot, but these models were amazing!

You might be wondering, "What is giardia?"  Or maybe you've had the misfortune of watching your dog suffer through vomit and diarrhea caused by this nasty parasite.  If you want to get the official scoop on what giardia is all about, I recommend visiting the Center for Disease Control's website at http://www.cdc.gov/parasites/giardia/ It's written in relation to giardia in humans, but it's still a great resource.

The general explanation on the CDC's website is:
Giardiasis is a diarrheal illness caused by a microscopic parasite called Giardia intestinalis (also known as Giardia lamblia or Giardia duodenalis). The parasite is found on surfaces or in soil, food, or water that has been contaminated with feces (poop) from infected humans or animals. People [or dogs] can become infected after accidentally swallowing the Giardia parasite.

Dogs ingest the parasite most commonly from contaminated water or by licking their paws after walking over contaminated surfaces.  The biggest symptoms of giardia are:
- Vomiting
- Fever
- Loss of interest in food
- Weight loss
- Diarrhea

If you suspect your dog could have been exposed to the parasite and he displays these symptoms, please contact your vet immediately.

How can you prevent your dog from contracting giardia?
1. Don't let her drink water from puddles outside.  In the winter giardia becomes much more common in cities where it snows.  Poop that is left on the ground gets covered by the snow, the snow melts creating a puddle filled with poop, and your dog drinks from it.  ICK!
2. Practice good hygiene for your dog.  When you return inside, wipe your puppy's paws and backside with wipes right away.  If you clean your dog before he has the chance to lick off the bacteria, you can help keep him from ingesting the parasite.
3. Keep in mind that humans can also be infected with giardia.  After wiping down your pup, be sure to wash your hands and/or use an antibacterial wipe or lotion.
4. Continue your dog's heartworm preventative year-round (i.e. Interceptor or Heartgard).  Although we think of this medicine to be solely intended for heartworms, it actually helps guard against many other parasites.  Just because the cold weather scares away the mosquitoes who transmit heartworms, there are still other parasites that survive winter.

Sandra, Sam and I are diligent about keeping the dogs we walk from having an opportunity to explore areas that could be breeding grounds for poop, and we do our best to keep our four-legged clients clean so that they remain healthy.  But don't forget to let your dog be a dog!  He can't live in a bubble, but you don't have to make it extra simple for him to eat poop and drink from poopy puddles :-)

Please forward this blog to every dog owner you know...giardia is serious and I've found that very few dog owners know about it. 

Christmas morning started off quite rough at the Get Pet "chateau" as Rolfe and I began the day with an argument about whether or not he needed to get off the bed.  This meant that a training session was mandatory before anything else could happen, but that completely connected with Rolfe and he made huge progress today!
 
1. He ate both of his meals in full - that's a first in the week he's been with me.
2. He stopped trying to eat Dr. Seuss and actually cuddled up with him on my bed for a nap.
3. He successfully stayed on his bed (with Gatsby at his side) for 30 minutes without trying to break and eventually fell asleep curled up next to Gatsby.
4. He finally let loose a little and played chase with Gatsby, Tugboat and Chainsaw at the dog park.

He still has a lot of work to do, but I'm super proud of this affectionate little man.  Enjoy the pictures and video from our crazy fun Christmas day!

And REMEMBER THAT ROLFE IS AVAILABLE FOR ADOPTION!  Visit http://www.great-lakes-weimaraner-rescue.com/application-requests.htm to get your application process started