Val Heart takes dog bonding and dog communication to a higher level with her special animal communication abilities. Learn from Val by following this link.
Here is the podcast of Val’s interview on the “My Doggie Says…” radio talk show:
Kathy Sdao, animal trainer and faculty member for “Clicker Expo,” has a different and interesting perspective on dog bonding. Check out this paragraph from her paper titled, “Forget About Being Alpha in Your Pack.”
“One perfect example of a “sticky” story is the ever-popular notion that dogs are essentially domesticated wolves who view their human companions as members of their hierarchical pack. This story is simple (pack structure is presumably a clear-cut ranking of alpha, beta and omega animals), unexpected (imagine having the descendent of a wild wolf right in our living rooms!), and concrete (who hasn’t seen TV footage of a wolf pack chasing down a moose or elk?). So sticky is this canine urban myth, in fact, that it refuses to die, despite the series of inaccuracies at its core.
Unfortunately, both dogs and their owners suffer the consequences of this fable, for it is from this story that we get the popular but unfounded training decree that humans must be “alpha” in their mixed-species pack.
Allow me to set the record straight. Here are just a few of the inaccuracies embedded in the “dog as domesticated wolf” story.”
See the rest of Kathy’s article here.
Hear Kathy’s interesting perspectives, as expressed on the “My Doggie Says…” radio talk show. Click on the podcast button below.
Kathy’s interview was cut short by the President’s State of the Union address, and the republican response. She will reappear on the “My Doggie Says…” show on April 7, to tell “the rest of the story.”
Remember, these podcasts are also available on iTunes, so you can download them to your iPod.
Patty Khuly VMD, MBA is a small animal veterinarian in Miami, Florida where she practices medicine at Sunset Animal Clinic. She is a graduate of Wellesley College, the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine and The Wharton School of Business.
As a significant sideline, she writes…a lot. Apart from her daily blog at Dolittler.com, she authors a weekly pet health column for The Miami Herald, a monthly column for Veterinary Practice News and serves as regular contributor to Veterinary Economics, The Bark and other occasional publications, in addition to her role as reporter for the Veterinary News Network. She also writes a blog for PetMD.
Here’s her very entertaining interview on the “My Doggie Says…” radio talk show.
Saturday morning, a week ago, I was getting ready to go watch the Northern Trust golf tournament, which was being held at Riviera Country Club, near Los Angeles. I took Callie out for a short walk. My plan was to walk down the left “wing” of the driveway and walk to Callie’s favorite street corner.
But as soon as we left the house, Callie pulled me toward the right “wing” of the driveway. It was one of those “what is my dog telling me?” moments. I’ve learned that, when Callie does slightly unexpected things like that, there’s usually a reason — a “doggie method” to her “doggie madness.”
So I was happy to let Callie lead the way, and we went toward the right wing of the driveway. Then, I realized what Callie was doing. Barbara often takes Callie out that door in the morning, and the first thing they do is to pick up the morning paper. Sure enough, there was the morning paper, lying on the right side of the driveway. Callie knew exactly what she was doing. I just had to be smart enough to figure it out — as is often the case with doggie communication. Dogs use ail the tools at their disposal in order to communicate — including which direction they are looking, which direction they are walking, and — sometimes — which direction they are tugging on their leash.
Try figuring out what your dog is telling you. You will get better at understanding dog behavior, and your dog bond will get stronger.
Val Heart, animal psychic, was a guest on the “My Doggie Says…” radio talk show on February 3, 2010. Val has enormous sensitivity and intuition for animals — and an ability to communicate with them in wonderful ways. So I was thrilled when Val invited me to join her on her Podcast next Thursday, February 18.
Here’s a link to Val’s invitation to you.
I’ve been part of the “Snowmageddon” experience all week. I flew from California to Washington, D.C. on Monday, expecting to return on Tuesday afternoon. But here I am, hoping that my 10:15 p.m. flight tonight makes it out. It’s the only return I could get, so I’ve been stuck here in Washington all week.
Be sure to check out Val Heart’s podcast at the above link. I’m really looking forward to it.
Callie talked me into playing soccer with her when she was eight weeks old. In this photo, she’s a few weeks older, but not many. As you can see, she’s not much bigger than the soccer ball — which is only about 2/3 inflated. I would kick the ball, and Callie would race across the yard to trap it under her tummy.
As Callie has grown, her soccer skills have improved. She still invites (begs!) me to play soccer at least once a day — and sometimes more. She still races across the yard and traps the ball. Sometimes, she puts one of her front paws on the ball and poses, as if to say, “I am the conquering hero!” The other difference, now that she’s older, is that she does “nosers.” If she were a person, you’d call it a “header,” but Callie’s nose gets in the way of her forehead, so it’s a “noser.” Here are a few photos of Callie doing nosers.
It’s amazing to see the ball literally “pop” off her nose. It makes a loud sound, because the ball in under-inflated. I try not to overdo it, because I wouldn’t want Callie to hurt her nose. It was never a problem until about ten days ago. I kicked the ball high for Callie to do a noser, and she jumped up, but turned her head away from the ball. After she did a few of these, I decided her nose needed some rest. Fortunately, it rained so hard in Southern California that we couldn’t play soccer for a few days, anyway. After things dried out, we tried a few gentle nosers, and, sure enough, we’re back in business.
To fully appreciate a “noser,” you have to hear one; we’ll get some noser video up on this blog in a few days.
The thing I love most about my soccer games with Callie is that it’s her thing. I love playing with her, but it was her invitation originally, and she still invites me to play every day! What better form of dogbonding?
Maryna Ozuna, founder of Kinaesthetics and a guest on the “My Doggie Says…” radio talk show on January 6, 2010, wrote the following comments on the articles on this blog. She really “gets” the dogbonding concept.
I thought you brought up really important points about the dialogue that should be part of our relationship with our dogs == that I realized for me was invisible and automatic, but wasn’t for my clients. Since then, I have been playing with making that piece of the puzzle more explicit. What I have always said was that part of the dog’s reward for doing what we need them to do, when we need them to do it, was what I call “dog time” — which for e.g. would be your frisbee time with Jamie, or ball time with your young pup. It has been really interesting making that piece of the puzzle explicit. It is so much a part of the warp and woof of my daily life that I don’t even think about it.
Some examples from myself and clients just in the last few days. A yearling Papillon belonging to a client of mine. Naughty, naughty when he came in, but bright, and very funny, and very opinionated. When he went home, we needed to continue crate training, but he threw a hissy fit when the crate was put in the laundry room. Put his crate in the bedroom and draped with a cloth (cold here, and he’s a little bit of a thing) and he slept through the night again. I didn’t care where the crate was, (we had some strategies for where he needed to be when they were away at work for right now), as long as he was crating and relaxing. He made it clear where he wanted the crate — no impairment to the training protocol, — so why not put it where it made him happy.
A silly one with my horse. I added in some supplements into his winter food. I mixed them in. He likes those pellets a lot, so I was frustrated when he kept flipping his rubber grain pan upside down, scattering his feed everywhere and basically having a temper tantrum. I finally figured out that he wanted to get to the good stuff — so now I pile it on top in one pile. Again, doesn’t matter to me, as long as he eats everything, and doesn’t grind it into the dirt. He’s happy. I’m happy.
Then, an example, a little sadder in detail. I recently lost my two old terriers. I thought after the last one went, that I would move the crates around in the house to consolidate, and moved my 3 yo Shiba’s crate into the spot where one of the terriers had been. She would have nothing to do with it. She is a very dominant dog, were I not to intervene, the pack alpha bitch, co-leader with my old boy shepherd and my medic alert dog. So, she is very much allowed and encouraged to have an opinion. Well, she came unglued. Cranky, volatile, pouting, moody. We lasted ten days, as I had moved one of the client dogs in her spot, and then said, “ok, ok, already,” and moved everything back. Took her a few days to get over her pouting, but now she’s back to normal. Again, I don’t care where her crate is, and she CERTAINLY did!, so why not do what makes her happy.
You have made me realize that really, my whole day from am to nightfall is a constant dialogue of what we want to do next. Do they want to come with me, or stay home? Do we need to stop and go for a walk, or ok to run more errands? Indeed, the whole process of potty training really involves paying attention as opposed to imposing training. So, for e.g. today I was out and about with the dogs teaching a lesson, and Lily was a little fussy in the car — which she never is, and meant that she had not gone this morning on am walk — so I turned the car away from town and went down to a trail along the river. We walked, she pottied, the male played, and all was well in the universe. We went to town and I got bones as they have been looking at their dog food bowls the last few nights like it was the most boring thing they had ever been subjected to…..and on it goes, a constant dialogue.
I am finding myself pointing out more and more things that I just take for granted. And yes, you’re absolutely right — having a well behaved dog has nothing to do with their not having a vote…
Having problems with your dog? Even minor ones? Get help from a Pet Dog Trainer. This is the message of the Association of Pet Dog Trainers, who are celebrating the month of January, as National Train Your Dog Month. Listen to Michelle Douglas, President of the Association of Pet Dog Trainers, as she explains the benefits of training your dog — on the “My Doggie Says…” Radio Talk Show.
The “My Doggie Says…” show helps listeners gain a deeper appreciation for “Man’s Best Friend.” The show is broadcast live from 8:00 to 9:00 p.m. on Wednesday nights, on KFNX 1100, Phoenix. It is streamed live on www.1100kfnx.com. Host Fred Haney interviews dog whisperers, dog trainers, authors of dog books, and experts on all aspects of dogs and dog behavior and dog nature. The show is also available as a podcast on iTunes. Go to the iTunes store, click on “Podcast,” and search for “My Doggie Says…”
Also, remember to take our on-line poll: “How does your dog show affection for you?”
Maryna Ozuna has some great stories to tell about successes with “Canine Kinaesthetics” — as well as some very interesting basic concepts. Here’s the podcast of her interview on the “My Doggie Says…” on January 6, 2010. Some very useful concepts in understanding dog behavior and in dog training.
For more information about “Canine Kinaesthetics,” click on this link.
Maryna Ozuna will be the guest tonight on the “My Doggie Says…” Radio Talk show. Listen as she explains the basics of “canine kinaesthetics.” Click here to see Maryna’s web site.
The “My Doggie Says…” show helps listeners gain a deeper appreciation for “Man’s Best Friend.” The show is broadcast live from 8:00 to 9:00 p.m. on Wednesday nights, on KFNX 1100, Phoenix. It is streamed live on www.1100kfnx.com. Host Fred Haney interviews experts on all aspects of dogs and dog ownership. Listen to past interviews on this blog. The show is also available as a podcast on iTunes. Go to the iTunes store, click on “Podcast,” and search for “My Doggie Says…”
