Oh Behave!

Brrrr! We’ve been having a cold snap here in the San Francisco Bay Area and rain’s expected for the next several days. At times like this, exercising my dog Vinnie outdoors can be a pill. Vinnie is a wet weather wimp. He hates going out in the rain. He’d rather hold it for hours than venture out into a drizzle. We’ve tried putting him in a raincoat and enticing him with meatballs to no avail. I haven’t worked to resolve this as hard as I could have because I haven’t been very motivated. I can’t stand cold wet weather either.

Given our aversion to bad weather, trips to the dog park and hikes on rainy days aren’t an option. Vinnie very reluctantly steps out for a walk just long enough for him to relieve himself, than turns and drags me back home. In the moment I’m glad to head indoors. But unless I find ways to get him some indoor exercise – mental and physical – I know it won’t be long before I have a bundle of over-the-top doggy energy to deal with.

Vinnie can be extremely creative in finding ways to amuse himself. He’s been known to turn the living room into his own agility course, leaping over the couch, racing around the coffee table, and bounding from couch to chair and back again. He might suddenly find Ted our cat, irresistible and will try his darnedest to get Ted to run, sheep style, so Vinnie can give chase. Every passerby or noise outside might be cause for a bark fest, especially when I’m on the phone or deep in a piece of writing.

Making his own rainy day fun

Vin’s creativity on rainy days sparked my own. We now have a list of tried and true indoor activities to keep him busy when the weather isn’t cooperating. These are no substitute for outdoor walks or off-leash exercise but they do serve to burn some of his energy any day, rain or shine. That’s always a good thing!

Tug. No, tug won’t make your dog “aggressive,” and it won’t make him want to control you. There’s zero scientific evidence to support these myths. Tug is a great doggy energy burner, a wonderful opportunity to get in a little impulse control training, and best of all, tug is lots of fun. To build impulse control training into tug games, ask your dog to sit or do any other behavior for the reward of you offering the tug toy. (Watch for a longer post on safe smart tug play soon.)

Hide and seek. If your dog has learned to stay while you’re out of sight, and if he comes when you call him, combine the two behaviors into hide and seek games. Ask your dog to stay as you hide in another room or behind a large piece of furniture. Then call him to come. Reward him with lots of praise and a yummy treat when he finds you.

Even if your dog’s stays and recalls aren’t yet solid, you can play this game with your dog and other people. As one person distracts the dog, the other person hides and then calls the dog’s name in a happy upbeat voice. As the dog scurries to find the hider, the other person hides. As soon as the dog finds the first hidden person and claims his reward, the second person calls the dog’s name. In no time, your dog will be racing around the house to seek out hidden humans.

Train new tricks. Pick a trick, any trick, get a bag of treats and start training your dog! Just five minutes at time, several times a day, are a fun easy way to get that doggy brain churning. Teach your dog to retrieve an old credit card to the cue, “Let’s go shopping.” Teach him to take a bow or to weave through your legs. The sky’s the limit.

Rocket recalls. Get some treats your dog loves and at least one more person to play this game. Stand about 10-15 feet apart and take turns calling your dog to come. Reward him when he does. Gradually increase the distance between the people and work up to positioning the people in different rooms of your home. How fast can you get that canine rocket to run those recalls?

Food puzzle toys. There are all sorts of food puzzle toys on the market in which you can stuff food treats. Your dog has to use his brains and sometimes his brawn to get the food out. Kong and Premier Pet Products make great food puzzle toys. Vin’s new favorite is the Tricky Treat Ball. He goes positively bananas when he sees that thing, so much so we have to keep it hidden when not in use.

For added fun, try tying a food stuffed Kong in an old sock, or hiding the toy in a room so your dog can have the pleasure of hunting it down.

Early Recycling Fun

Recycling helper. I need to think of a better name for this one. My husband came up with it shortly after we adopted puppy Vinnie, who made it known on Day 1 that he had a thing for shredding cardboard and paper. Use old egg cartons, cereal boxes or any cardboard box. Make sure no wires or staples are attached to the box. Put a few treats or a food stuffed Kong into the cardboard container. Use masking tape to tape the box shut, then let your dog have at it. He’ll have some dissection fun, burn some energy, and your recycling items will be broken down quite conveniently.

Do you have some favorite indoor canine games? Please share them with us in a comment.

This week I saw something that set off my alarm bells — a 4 month-old puppy at a local dog park. As soon as the human guardian took the puppy off leash several big adult dogs bounded up to the pup and surrounded it. The puppy retreated behind the person’s legs. The person pushed it towards the dogs gently and told it to go play. Whenever the puppy ventured onto the field, a big dog charged after it barking, other dogs joined in, and one of them inevitably tackled the pup. Each time, she yelped and scurried back to her person with her tail between her legs only to be told again to go play.

She certainly wasn’t the first person I’ve seen bring a pup to a dog park. I’m sure she meant well and thought she was doing the right thing. She probably thought it was a good way to exercise and socialize the puppy to dogs. Well-placed though those intentions may be, bringing a puppy to a dog park isn’t a good idea.

Vinnie Shows Off Puppy Teeth

Puppies are babies. Before the the age of approximately 16-20 weeks, pups are at the most critical and impressionable time in their lives. Bad scary things that happen to a young puppy have a good chance of traumatizing her for life.

My dog I are frequent fliers at San Francisco’s off-leash parks and beaches. I’m grateful that there are areas in our busy urban environment where my dog can run free and play with other dogs. However, I’m also well aware of the unpleasant things that can happen in dog parks, particularly where young pups are concerned.

Dogs at dogs parks are unknown quantities. Dogs who don’t get along well with other dogs are often brought to dog parks. Many adult dogs are impatient of and intolerant with puppies. Some dogs have a rough play style. Others like to bully and harass dogs. Dogs who visit dog parks may not like it when another canine approaches their toys or humans. A fleeing yelping puppy may trigger a dog’s prey drive; a dog chasing the pup may start to treat her like prey. Dogs who are playing together sometimes tip into fighting. Some dogs tip from playing into fighting easily and often. And some dogs at dog parks don’t come reliably when called.

Add to these factors the fact that all too often, humans don’t watch their dogs as closely as they should in dog parks and don’t intervene in doggy interactions when they should. The result? A puppy could very easily get hurt by an adult dog in any of these scenarios. Aside from the risk of serious physical injuries to a pup, a bad scary incident with an adult dog could leave the dog with a deep long-lasting nasty association with other dogs. Depending on the sensitivity of the pup, she could become fearful or wary of dogs for life.

Puppies don’t have all their defense mechanisms yet. Pups still have puppy teeth, not adult dog teeth. They have puppy jaw and muscle strength, not that of adult dogs. Puppies don’t have the stamina and power of adult dogs. Puppies are still figuring out how to “speak” dog and many puppies do so clumsily.

So what’s a well-meaning puppy guardian to do? Drop-in puppy playgroups and socials monitored by positive trainers give puppies opportunities to frolic with other puppies the same age. Interactions are supervised and controlled in a positive way. There’s a significantly lower chance of puppies getting hurt – physically or otherwise — in this kind of environment. And for an added bonus, playgroups mean plenty of time to practice doggy language and social skills with other pups.

Puppy Play

Besides playgroups, a positive reinforcement puppy class is another chance for supervised puppy play and a head start on manners. Puppy class is a also a great place to to meet other puppy guardians and set up puppy play dates in someone’s yard.

When pups reach the age of six months, providing they’ve been well-socialized during young puppyhood, they’re better equipped for interactions with other dogs. At that age, there’s more of a level playing field and supervised visits to dog parks are safer. Notice I say “safer” as opposed to “safe;” as I mentioned earlier dog parks aren’t risk-free. All dogs at dog parks should be monitored closely by humans to avoid scuffles and injuries.

No matter your dog’s age, doing a little homework ahead of time will go along way to making any visit to an leash-free area a more positive experience for you both. A rock solid recall and a really reliable “leave it” mean dog park outings are safer for your dog and more fun for everyone.