Is Your Dog Always Barking?

A barking dog may be desperate for exercise, attention or playtime. Or, the dog may be stimulated by some sound or activity that you can't control, like a neighbor out doing yard work. Exercise, playtime and isolation from stimulation can help with excessive barking. But what if you've walked for an hour, played fetch until your dog is exhausted, isolated your dog in her crate and she still won't stop barking?

Barking can be self-reinforcing, meaning one bark can be exciting enough to your dog that she will bark again and again. It's enough to make even the most patient dog owners go crazy. Trust me, with two highly reactive dogs, I've been there. In these situations, teaching quiet on cue can really save your sanity.

Some trainers recommend teaching a dog to bark on cue in an attempt to control the barking. While barking on cue is a great technique, it can be intimidating to a new dog owner who is more worried about keeping the dog quiet.

Another technique that you can use to control barking is to teach quiet on cue. I will discuss how to teach barking on cue in a future post. For now, here are some easy steps to help your dog learn to stop barking and be quiet at your command.

1. Pick a hand signal that means quiet. This will be your cue to the dog to stop barking. I use two fingers up in a peace sign. While using a word as a cue is easier if your dog is across the room, I find that many dogs, especially toy breeds, learn faster with a hand signal. You can add a word after your dog learns the hand signal.

2. Get some really yummy treats that your dog doesn't normally get, such as bits of cheese, tiny dabs of peanut butter or cut up pieces of a hot dog.

3. Show your hand signal to your dog and give her a treat for being quiet. Praise your dog a lot as well.

4. Introduce this new behavior when your dog is already being quiet. For example, make your hand signal and treat for quiet 3-5 times per training session. Try to do 2-3 training sessions spread out over each day for about a week.

5. After practicing for a week, start offering your hand signal when your dog is actively barking. Again, treat and offer tons of praise each time your dog stops barking at your cue.

6. Like any new behavior, it may take your dog a bit of practice to catch on. Your dog may only be quiet on cue for a few seconds at first. Take this as a sign of progress!!

7. Keep using a really yummy reward like cheese or peanut butter. Slowly increase the amount of time you ask her to be quiet. For hardcore barkers, you may have to increase the time intervals by only 5 seconds at first. Your dog will probably make mistakes, but if the treat is yummy enough and you keep praising, she will figure it out.

8. Once your dog consistently offers the behavior on your hand signal, you can add a word, such as quiet, and eventually phase out the hand signal.

Why Do Dogs Sometimes Open Their Mouths While Sniffing?

Dogs have amazing noses. The dog's nose is more useful to the dog than its eyes when it comes to the information obtained via smelling. The scent receptors in the nose can detect and distinguish between tiny amounts of scents.

Sometimes dogs also open their mouths while sniffing. This is because they have evolved a special organ called the vomeronasal organ. The vomeronasal organ is like a cross between a nose and a tongue. Think of the nose as a specialized detector for scent molecules. The vomeronasal organ allows more access to the scent molecules to aid the nose in detecting and processing the scent.

Get Your Dog To Bring Back That Ball

My dogs love to fetch, but they didn't always return the toy. One of my dogs used to sneak off to destroy her ball by chewing.

If your dog won't return a ball or toy during fetch, try the following tip:

1. Put a towel or mat near you and treat your dog for dropping the ball on the towel.

2. As soon as he starts getting that right, treat every other time, then every third time, then randomly. If your dog stops getting it right, return to the previous stage until he's got it down.

3. When your dog starts to consistently drop the ball on the towel, remove the towel and treat randomly for returning the ball.

4. Eventually phase out the random treats, and you will be able to enjoy a nice game of fetch without having to chase down the ball yourself.

DIY Dog Dress/Shirt Tutorial

I recently cleaned out my closet, and, as usual, I had way too many old t-shirts. As I sorted the pile of clothing to donate, it occurred to me that an old t-shirt would make a great doggy dress for my chihuahua, Gracie. A few snips and stitches later, Gracie had a custom outfit, and I had one less t-shirt to donate. The process was so easy that I decided to make a tutorial. To just make a shirt, skip the last step.

Supplies:

• Old t-shirt
• Pattern: Print the pattern image at the bottom of this post. Resize if needed until the length is approximately the same length as your dog’s back. The easiest way to resize is to use the enlargement feature of a photocopier. Photo editing software will also work.
• Printer paper
• Pen or fabric pencil
• Iron
• Scissors
• Pins
• Thread
• Needle
• Lace trim for dress

 

Step 1: Pick a t-shirt or other clothing item to use as your fabric.

Step 2: Cut the t-shirt into a big rectangle so that when folded lengthwise, the pattern will fit on the fabric.

Step 3: Iron the fabric to smooth out any wrinkles and make cutting easier. Fold lengthwise with the right sides facing each other.

Step 4: Place the pattern on your folded fabric and align the top of the pattern with the folded edge of your fabric. Pin the pattern to the fabric if you need to. Trace the pattern on to the fabric with a pen or fabric pencil.

Step 5: Cut your fabric along the lines you just traced. Cut the arm holes a little bigger than the pattern (i.e. ¼ to 1/2 inch extra) to ensure a comfortable fit.

Step 6: On the wrong side of the fabric, pin the cut under each arm hole and sew. Any basic stitch such as a running stitch will do.

Step 7: With the wrong sides of the fabric on the outside, pin the center seam together and stitch closed. Remove pins and turn the fabric inside out. If you are making a dog shirt, congrats! You’re done! Read on if you would like to make a dress instead.

Step 8: Pin the trim along the bottom of the shirt. Stitch into place, then remove pins. Voila! An upcycled t-shirt becomes doggy couture!

The Shirt Version

 

Printable pattern

4 Supplements That Really Work

1. Fish oil - Fish oil reduces itchiness, helps dry skin, reduces inflammation, softens coat. This supplement provides natural fatty acids known as omega-3s. Improvements are visible as soon as 1-3 days. Add the capsule to your dog's food once per day. Fish oil is available at most pet stores, and you can also use fish oil capsules meant for humans.

2. Glucosamine - Glucosamine is extremely helpful for treating arthritis in older dogs. It can also be given to younger dogs for joint pain or as a preventative measure. Glucosamine reduces arthritis pain by helping keep joints healthy. While tablets are available, glucosamine is best absorbed in a liquid form. My favorite glucosamine supplement is called Arthrisoothe, and it is available at most pet stores.

3. Canned pumpkin - Not the kind for pies, but actual canned pumpkin adds fiber to diet. This supplement is most useful for small dogs who often need their anal glands expressed. Mix it into your dog's meal. Supermarket canned pumpkin is fine as long as it is not the the meant for pies. Whole Foods also carries a canned pumpkin product that is made specifically for dogs.

4. Vitamin E oil - Used topically, vitamin E oil helps heal sunburns and chapped or dry skin. The human-strength variety is okay to use on dogs. Apply the oil liberally to sunburned or peeling areas as soon as possible to speed the healing process and spare your dog discomfort. Vitamin E oil is sold at drugstores such as CVS, many grocery stores and health food shops

Natural Flea Control Tip

Fleas are an unfortunate fact of life when it comes to owning a dog or cat. While topical monthly flea control products, such as Frontline or Advantage, have definitely cut down on the hassle of dealing with fleas, these products only work if the flea bites the dog. Fleas can still irritate your dog before they bite. Fleas can also hop on your dog outside and hop off when your dog comes in the house.

There are commercial insecticide sprays formulated to kill fleas, but one of my dogs has sensitive skin, so I try to avoid unnecessary chemicals when possible. I researched natural flea repellents and found that white vinegar can be used to deter fleas from jumping on my dogs in the first place.

When the flea season is in full swing, I keep a spray bottle filled with two-thirds water and one-third white vinegar by the back door. Each of my dogs gets a spritz of the water-vinegar solution when they go in or out of the house. I usually target the top coat of fur near the areas where I tend to see fleas. So far, this has helped immensely in keeping my dogs flea-free in the summer months.

Dog Waste Bags

Most cities and suburbs these days require some sort of visible proof that a dog walker is carrying a bag or other means to dispose of the dog’s waste. The easiest way to avoid being stuck without a bag is to tie a few to your dog’s leash, or to purchase one of the many inexpensive bag dispensers that attach to the leash with a zip-tie or Velcro.

If you go through dog bags frequently, consider switching to the biodegradable dog waste bags. They are made of cornstarch and will break down in landfills. I never considered these until I came across the term “little plastic coffin” to describe conventional plastic bags used for dog messes. The idea of my dog’s waste preserved inside a non-biodegradable plastic coffin for centuries just grossed me out, so I switched to the biodegradable kind so it can get back into the earth faster. Beware the imposter biodegradable bags – they say “degradable” on the package and have tons of eco friendly looking words but unless it says BIOdegradable it is fake and just a marketing scam.