Postings by Gracie

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Gracie Rub my tummy or- else!     Barked: Thu Jul 17, '08 1:53pm PST  Maybe your Mom and Dad could put a pee pad (or whatever they're called) in the yard so you know that's where to go. Or maybe they could plant a little spot of grass just for you! my posts | my page | msg me | my family's posts | gift me | become pals [notify]

Gracie Rub my tummy or- else!     Barked: Sat Jun 7, '08 11:14am PST  There is a way to shorten the quick without really close trimming. Look closely at the nails. you'll see that the nail grows all around the quick at the paw end, but opens out a bit, further away, exposing the outside (dead part) of the quick. This is most easily seen on the hind feet. You need a very small "half-round" file. File away that bottom part (the inside of the curve) of the all-round nail until the flaky,dead part of the quick is exposed. This will help the quick recede faster. I've used this on many a rescue dog. I have had good luck with helping my dogs be better about their nails being clipped by lying them on their sides, and massaging them between nails. I also offer cookies a lot! And the earlier suggestion about peanut butter and a spoon is gret, if you have someone to hold the spoon for you. I use both a dremel and clippers, and they are both considered torture devices by my dogs... We call them the Evil Toe Grinder and the Evil Toe Amputaters. All we have to do to get Gracie to go hide is to look at her and ay "Toes!" my posts | my page | msg me | my family's posts | gift me | become pals [notify]

Behavior & Training > Am I nuts, or...

Gracie Rub my tummy or- else!     Barked: Sat Apr 26, '08 8:24pm PST  From your description, Sully's behavior sounds friendly and playful. I have this habit - I'm gonna say a few words in defense of the high-and-mighty lady. Since Sully was fence-running and barking, she might have been afraid of a fence-fight developing. It can go from friendly to fight in a snap. (So to speak!) Since Scully's a terrier, and a lot of terriers can be scrappy, she might be expecting aggression from him. Plus, you know Scully's body language 'cuz you live with him. Terrier body language can look a bit scrappy, too, because of their upright posture and "gay" tails. In general, a stiff dog with a tense, upright tail is acting aggressive. Terriers, though... I've only seen them looking relaxed when they're settled in a lap or asleep! (Yes, Gracie, I'm talking about you!) So there's a couple of things you can tell her to help her relax. Sheesh, if barking gets you banned at the dog park, I could never take Amos, he talks all the time when he plays. And it's LOUD! 1.WHAT DO YOU CONSIDER ACCEPTABLE/NORMAL BEHAVIOR IN DOG PARKS? Playing, sniffing, checking people out, running around like goonies, excited barking... you get the picture! 2. WHAT IS UNACCEPTABLE BEHAVIOR AND/OR GROUNDS FOR REMOVING A DOG FROM THE PARK? Any aggressive behavior that is not controlled by the owner. (We need to watch our dogs all the time!) Examples: face-barking, mounting (dogs or people), knocking other dogs off their feet, starting fights. (It's not always the dominant dog that starts a fight, either.) For people: not controlling their dogs when necessary and not cleaning up after their dogs. 3. WHAT ARE REALISTIC EXPECTATIONS FOR DOG PARK INTERACTIONS? There are foolish people everywhere. You should expect to run into them at the dog park. That's a realistic expectation! Having said that, my ideal is for the dogs to interact, play together, but not fight. Ruthie, Gracie's Mom my posts | my page | msg me | my family's posts | gift me | become pals [notify]

New to Dogster/Tips & Tricks > New black lab brindle on the block

Gracie Rub my tummy or- else!     Barked: Thu Feb 21, '08 1:49pm PST  Hi, Maggie! we are mostly brindledogs here except Amos, who is speckled. OurMom had a dog with a similar problem - he had been very ill for a long time as a puppy, so couldn't go outside at all until he was about 6 months old. By then he was totally paper-trained and wouldn't "go" outside. So one day when she didn't have to work, OurMom made sure he had drunk some water, then took him outside. She waited and waited until he just couldn't stand it any more, and ran behind a tree. Mom zipped back there too, and caught him mid-stream (so to speak), and praised him to the skies. It was less than two weeks from then that she could pick up all the papers. And a good thing too; Tamino was not a small dog! She says you probably already know _not_ to scold Maggie for going on the carpet. It could be "submissive urination," which means she is trying to tell you, "OK, sorry, you're the boss." (In our den, we call it "leaking.") If you yell at her, she'll just try harder to get that message across... my posts | my page | msg me | my family's posts | gift me | become pals [notify]

Home Prepared Food & Recipes > Any yogurt recipes!?

Gracie Rub my tummy or- else!     Barked: Fri Oct 5, '07 6:23pm PST  Another thing you can do with yogurt is filter it. Take a colander and line it with a coffee filter, or a "flour sack" towel, or a few layers of cheesecloth. Put the colander in a bigger bowl so that there's room for the liquid to drain out. Put it in the fridge overnight. Next day the yogurt will be about the same consistency as cream cheese. Then you can substitute it for cream cheese in any recipe. The drained off liquid makes good "gravy" for dogs! my posts | my page | msg me | my family's posts | gift me | become pals [notify]

Gracie Rub my tummy or- else!     Barked: Wed Oct 3, '07 4:30pm PST  "If your showing, do you realize that the dog may not be spayed/neutered? Will you have money to test the pups, which can lead to thousands of dollars?" If you're asking me (Gracie's Mom", then, yes. I bought Gracie from a breeder who does indeed test - and you got it right about the "thousands of dollars!" I tested Gracie once a year, too. Which leads us into: "I'm also an aspiring show handler (and breeder) also, however I want to make enough money first." You got that right! They say that the best way to get a small fortune in dog breeding is to start with a _large_ one! Gracie's Mom my posts | my page | msg me | my family's posts | gift me | become pals [notify]

Puppy Place > Buying A Dog - Need Suggestions

Gracie Rub my tummy or- else!     Barked: Sun Sep 30, '07 5:25pm PST  Portia's mom, I disagree with what you said. No disrespect is intended; you just haven't thought things out well. In my post, I said I have two show champions. I also have a purebred rescue, and another purebred rescue puppy coming. I have owned and deeply loved a few "mutts," too, and probably will in the future. One rescue of mine earned her U-UD, the highest level of obedience. Also, I was once the only rescuer of coonhounds in the USA. So I've been on all sides of this question. It's naive to think that ending dog shows will result in more dogs being adopted from shelters. There are three "markets" for dogs. (I've been in all three.) First: People who just want a dog, and don't care about the breed. They are supplied mainly by shelters, yay! But also by BYBs and mills breeding "labradoodles," "peke-a-poos," etc. Second: People who want a dog with certain characteristics. Purebred dogs have certain characteristics "built in." Not only size, shape, and color, but talents. For instance, a retriever puppy will bring you things. A scent hound will follow its nose. A herding breed - well, you should have seen my (late, rescued) Malinois herd my cats into the bathroom! They never suspected a thing; they'd just wind up in the bathroom, with the dog standing at the door. Folks looking for specific characteristics will be happy to adopt a purebred dog either from a shelter or a rescue group, but they do not want a mutt. The third group is those who want a dog to show in the conformation ring. They need a dog from a show breeder with proven bloodlines. My AKC show champion, Gracie, has all champions in her pedigree; her parents, grandparents, great- and great-great- grandparents - all show champions. This told me that there was a good chance that she could win in the show ring, and that she would probably produce good puppies, if I bred her to a good dog. If someone wants to show a dog in conformation, they *can't* get one from a shelter or rescue. To show in conformation, the dog has to be intact (not fixed) and have a verified pedigree. Even if I could adopt a purebred rescue without having it fixed, which I can't, thank God, I would have no way of knowing the quality of its ancestors. My point is that someone who wants a show dog won't be going to the pound. And someone who wants a Golden Retriever won't adopt a mutt. I won't BS you by saying the *only* reason for conformation shows is to show and select breeding stock. But that is the basic reason behind the sport. So the dog in the ring has to be proven to be a purebred, by the pedigree, and also be breedable - not fixed. There are people who show for fun, and they usually fix their dogs as soon as they finish their Championship. Most of the other dog sports, like obedience and agility, herding, tracking, etc etc do *not* require proof of blue blood, or that the dog be intact. There are even registries, like UKC, that encourage mixed breeds to compete in these sports. my posts | my page | msg me | my family's posts | gift me | become pals [notify]

Behavior & Training > What am I doing wrong here?

Gracie Rub my tummy or- else!     Barked: Sun Sep 30, '07 4:28pm PST  Hello, again. I did not mean to suggest that you leave her in a bare crate!! I use old towels for my incontinent oldster, exactly so that I will not have to bathe her. I toss them in the garage to dry, and when there's enough for a washer load I wash them with bleach. Your further posts tell me that, yes, she has learned that pee is just another smell. Until she understands that it is a bad smell, she will keep on peeing. Fixing this goes against the standard house-training that says you shouldn't clean it up where the dog can see. In this case, you want her right there, so you can sniff and make disgusted noises, then clean it, sniff again, and make delighted noises. Another suggestion: let her out every time any of your other Poms asks to go out. She may figure out how to ask from them. There are those who say dogs don't learn by imitation, but that's not true. Most of my dogs learned to ring a bell to go out, but I only taught one of them, about 30 years ago. They've passed it down since then! my posts | my page | msg me | my family's posts | gift me | become pals [notify]

Behavior & Training > What am I doing wrong here?

Gracie Rub my tummy or- else!     Barked: Thu Sep 20, '07 8:50pm PST  ... I just had a flash idea! She may have learned that peeing in her crate is the way to get to go out! Poms are very bright little dogs, and bright dogs frequently learn things we are not trying to teach them. (I've had two dogs that learned, from the standard house-breaking method, that the way to ask to go out was to come up to me and pee!) If that sounds right, make a doggie door bell. Hang one of those jingle-bell collars they sell around Christmas, from the door knob, long enough for her to reach it with her nose. Then practice a lot. taking her to the door, gently pushing her nose on the bells so they ring. Once she gets it, you will have to go about two months of letting her out every time the bell rings; she'll be testing to see if it *really* works. Important: do NOT let her out as soon as you realize she has messed in her crate; let her stay in it for a while, so she learns that pee-filled crate does not mean "I get to go out!" Now back to my original thought: Where did you get her? I ask because her previous environment could influence her. If she came from a pet store or a backyard breeder, she and her mom and siblings could have lived above their waste, and become accustomed to the smell. OTOH, she's probably used to the smell by now, anyway. Here's what works when they're used to the smell. It's labor intensive, unfortunately, but it works. When you see that she's messed in the crate, put your head right down there, sniff loudly, and go "Yuck! Ick!" or whatever noise you want that means you're disgusted. Do NOT aim this at her. You're telling her what she may not realize - pee smells bad. If she is also wet, sniff her body, go "yuck," and bathe her. While you're toweling her off afterward, make a point of sniffing her and saying, "Yum!" or some other delighted noise. Then take her with you to the crate, so the sniff-yuck, then clean the crate and do the sniff-yum. Hope this helps! Gracie's Mom my posts | my page | msg me | my family's posts | gift me | become pals [notify]

Gracie Rub my tummy or- else!     Barked: Sun Sep 16, '07 5:50pm PST  Dora, you need to teach your hoomins how to click! Every time you make them click, they have to give you a treat! It's fun! You just give them the signal! I know a bunch of them like Sit and High Five and Ssh (I have to make a teeny growl for that one) and wait and come and stuff. It is lots and lots of fun figuring out how to make them click. MyMom says it works really well for doggies who are natural problem solvers like Terrors and Hoonies. I am a minibull terror! The hardest signal I learned was Give, which means you have to let go of your bally! But she clicks and throws it again right away! Licks and paw-pokes, Gracie my posts | my page | msg me | my family's posts | gift me | become pals [notify]

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