Who let the Dawgs out?

Dear Daisy,

Do you have a lot of doggies in your neighborhood? Are they friendly or mean?

Sincerely,
Curious Carl

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Dear Carl,

Hrmmm... I think almost every house near us has at least one dog.

It's interesting the degree of redneck-ness we have in our area.

There are those rednecks that keep their doggie tied to their doghouse all day all night, every day every night.

Then there are those rednecks that let their doggies roam free to poop and pee in everyone's yard, and hopefully not get hit by a car as they're out all night.

The dog next door, Lucy, is very friendly! I love her to bits (although she does like to chew on my ear).

You never see anyone walk their dogs anymore... kinda sad! I always look forward to my walkies in the morning. And sometimes in the evenings when we go to the park.

Daisy

♥

Bark Bark Barkity Bark!

Dear Daisy,

Why does my Labrador brother aka: Fatboy bark so much? When mom comes home he sits in front of her and constantly barks! Neither myself or mom can figure out what the heck he wants...Do you know?

Thanks,
Roxy

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Dear Roxy,

Doggies bark to attract attention, to communicate a message, or simply out of excitement. I bet he's just really excited to see your mommy when she gets home (probably telling her all the dastardly deeds you two have committed - I know you're both proud members of the NPC!).

Does he get lots play time to keep him occupied mentally and physically throughout the day... enough to keep him tired so he doesn't have unbridled energy to bark so much? Does he bark himself hoarse? How long does the barking go on for?

If he barks TOO much, your momma could try giving him a treat - that usually keeps their mouth busy! Or toss his favorite toy for him to chase. Sounds like he just needs to get over the initial excitement of seeing your momma after a long long day without her.

But that's just my humble doggie opinion. ;o)

Daisy

Leader of the Pack

Dear Daisy,

Who's the leader of your pack?

Sincerely,
Silly Sam

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Dear Sam,

My daddy is definitely the leader of the pack. I will respect his authori-TAAAH!

My momma is commander-in-chief, but mostly my playmate. She is known as "she who plays fetch at all hours of the day".

Daisy

Pssssst!

Dear Daisy,

What is this about a new feature you'll be doing every Friday?? Doggie Secrets??

Sincerely,
Nosey Norm

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Dear Norm,

WooT! Yes, it is a new thang - I will be posting new installments every Friday.

Doggies have been sending me secrets via email. Secrets that no one else knows, secrets that they can't tell anyone else, secrets soooo juicy, they'd squirt you in the eye and make you cry!

But they need to tell some doggie. That doggie be me. I will post their secret anonymously so the won't be burdened with it anymore.

Feel free to email me your secrets. Reveal anything - as long as it is true and you have never shared it with anyone before. I will not reveal who you are... my doggie lips are sealed.

Daisy

Doggie Secrets #1

Anonymous Doggie reveals:

"I eat the dirty kleenex after my humans have done their thing."

Daisy says: Ew.

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Share your secret confessions with me. My doggie lips are sealed. New secrets revealed every Friday.

P00T!

Dear Daisy,

What causes farts to smell so bad? Especially in doggies? How come you never HEAR dogs fart, but you always SMELL it?

Sincerely,
Curious George

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Dear George,

According to SmellyPoop.com, most doggie's diet consists of a protein-rich diet, which produces relatively small amounts of intensely stinky gas because proteins contain lots of sulfur. A dog's farts are rarely audible, but the odor is overwhelming.

Why do dogs generally fart silently? Biologists' theories include: (1) the amount of gas produced is small, but potent, (2) the horizontal orientation of their gastrointestinal system puts less pressure on the anal opening, so the gas is expelled more slowly, (3) their anal sphincters don't close as tightly as humans' because it takes less force to hold in the contents of the colon -- again because of the horizontal orientation of the gastrointestinal system -- and a loose anus makes less sound, and, my favorite (4) dogs don't feel embarrassed about farting, so their sphincters are more relaxed, leading to less noisy flatulence.

Phew!

Daisy

Oops! I did it again.

Dear Daisy,

I'm having a hard time getting housetrained... how did you learn so fast?

Sincerely,
Pee Pee Dan

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Dear Dan,

When my peeps first got me, I wasn't housetrained at all... I had been living on a farm and poopin' and peein' anywhere and anytime I wanted to.

Be watchful. They made sure to keep a close eye on me at all times. I didn't have the run of the whole house at first. Wherever my peeps were, they would make sure I was there as well - so baby gates or some sort of barrier kept me from sneakin' off to claim new territory.

Be quick. Whenever they saw the obvious sign of ground sniffin' - they would scurry me off outside on a leash and give me the command of "go potty". Then I'd get lots of praise and play time! But, oh, the praise! The neighbors though my peeps were nuts when they would hear them praise me whilst jumping up and down saying: "YAY Daisy! Good Girl! Such a GOOD girl!" They should've had pom poms - that would've completed the effect.

If I didn't go when I was brought outside, I'd come back inside. A few minutes later, my peeps would take me outside again until I did my business.

Be consistent. My peeps also kept my food times on a schedule so I would doing my thang on schedule. What goes in, must come out. If it goes in at the same time every day, it most likely will come out the same time every day. It also helped that I had a potty routine - I was taken outside after every meal, after waking up from naps, every morning, every evening, and once more right before bed.

Now I pretty much go on command. :o) Go potty, you say? *squat*

Daisy

Zzzzzzz...

Dear Daisy,

Do you like to sleep sprawled out or curled up?

Sincerely,
Sleepy Sam

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Dear Sam,

If I am cold, I usually curl up into a ball with my tail covering my nose. Usually by the time I warm up though, I like the stretch out. My sticks take up more room than my body itself.

When I sleep on the bed with my peeps, my sticks are usually poking into someone's ribs. My peeps try and sammich me between them so that my sticks don't get a chance to emerge.

Daisy

♥