This post doesn’t have to do with people romance but rather the loss of our beloved animal companions. Since I own a lot of dogs I also have to deal with this loss more frequently than many pet owners do. Each time I have had a particularly hard loss it seems that a needy dog has appeared, perhaps sent by the other one from across the Rainbow Bridge.

Buster is one of those who I believe was sent for a reason. Buster is a pug that I meant to foster for the pug rescue and find him the right forever home. I was still grieving for my Lily (my first ever pug) even though it had been months since her death. Buster was rapidly dumped off at our home by his previous (and 3rd) owner and it was apparent the frequent switching of homes had left him with some baggage. Despite the baggage (upset/screaming if crated, separation anxiety, hanging on your legs when you tried to go through a door, etc.) he had redeeming qualities, too. He loved to play with my big dogs once he adjusted to them but wasn’t too interested in my other pugs. He was immediately retrieving balls and playing “tug” with toys. A dog like this needs a job, not to sit on someone’s lap and I think my husband expressed the thought first that we really should just keep him. The very first night we had Buster he was so distressed I decided to take him to bed with us and he snuggled up against me in the same spot Lily always did. I realized he had been sent by her to comfort me but I didn’t want to let myself love him. I took him to a couple of obedience classes and then I took him to an agility class. He took to it immediately although we had to work through the distractions of other dogs working and him wanting to just run off and do his own thing. We switched to a smaller class which helped a lot with his focus. At this point he is improving on being crated, we have gone to matches, done some agility demos and even been in a couple of trials now. He has his first agility title but we are still working on being a team.

Today we went to another agility match. He has trialed at this same place and often tries to run out of the ring so I was prepared to deal with that and give him positive reinforcement for coming back to me. Much to my surprise and delight not only did he run both courses fast and accurately but he never once tried to leave the ring. When we left the building after his second run I felt like I now had an agility teammate. I realized that loving Buster does not take away from the love I have for my Lily but it does help her loss not hurt so badly now.

As we got to the car I heard a sandhill crane in the distance. This is in town and I’ve not heard sandhills at that place before. Soon it was closer and it was then I felt my Lily’s presence. Ironically this week was the 4 year anniversary since she left me. I think she was telling me “I’m still watching over you, good job.”. I’m glad no one saw me crying out by the car.

If you are interested, these are two other blog posts about the messengers who my dogs have sent to me in the past.

Messengers From Beyond

Turbo Now Has Wings

Two days in a row now I’ve been able to slip a halter on Spice.
I tie it loosely then just let it slip back off. I have not put a rope on the halter yet and I put no pressure on it. I just give her a couple of treats then let it slip off again. I also was able to comb my fingers through her mane yesterday, also a first. Sugar remains very wary although I did touch her face briefly with the halter a couple of times.

A couple of Pat Parelli quotes help me remember that patience is a virtue with these girls and to stick with my slow approach. Pat says “Take the time it takes so it takes less time.” and “prior and proper preparation prevents poor performance particularly if polite and passive persistence is practiced in the proper position.”

Sugar and Spice are progressing well and are looking for the right home(s) that would continue to provide a patient, nurturing atmosphere. In return they have much to offer. I picture them being trained to pull a cart in time. If you are interested in adopting one or both please contact Spirit Horse Equine Rescue. There would be much support available to help you continue working with them.

I was at our Lab Specialty agility trial all day today running two dogs as well as working at it. Jazz had some really fast runs (as in fastest in her class) but still can’t keep all of the bars up. People keep saying “wait til she grows up, she’ll calm down” — she is SIX! It is very frustrating to have such a talented dog and still be stuck in Novice Jumpers and no legs in Open Standard. Cori had the opposite problem — she doesn’t like it when it gets hot and in the sun it was hot so she just trotted along or barely ran until the last few jumps. She either didn’t make time (and had the slowest time in her class) or had a knocked bar due to laziness. I think I just need to give up running her outside in summer weather. So I ran two directly opposite types of dogs and no “q’s” today. Just venting…….

ADDENDUM: Saturday Jazz qualified in both rally obedience classes with 4th places in each (95 and 97 out of 100) so partially redeemed herself.

Tonight I hosted a clinic for kids in our county’s 4H dog project to introduce them to agility. We had 15 dogs participate with their owners and I think a fun time was had by all. I especially wanted to show the kids how positive training techniques make it easy for the dogs to learn as I don’t think they get a lot of exposure to those techniques. I was fortunate to have my friends Jeff and Michelle helping out so all the kids got plenty of assistance. All the dogs ended up doing great and there isn’t one of them that couldn’t do agility in the future. If you are a dog training instructor please consider offering 4H clinics or classes at discounted rates so kids can get exposure to all the fun they can have with their dogs. Kids are the future of our sport and I love teaching them. I hope to arrange a 4H dog agility class session for later this summer.

Yesterday I had a great opportunity to educate the general public about the fun of dog agility. I was asked to do a demo at a 10th anniversary celebration for Country View Vet Clinic. They had booths, educational talks, vendors and many demos such as dressage, polo, natural horsemanship, sheep herding, canine freestyle and my agility demo. We were given a large round pen to use so it was fenced which pleased my students but a naughty little pug was able to easily slip under it. I ran Buster, my rescued pug, at the very end of the demo when I had finished announcing and said people were welcome to watch me practice with my dogs so they understood he was new to it.

He did the first jump, went off to sniff, did second jump, dog walk and a jump, sniffed, then did the tunnel, then ran under the ring fence to pee, then did a jump, then back to the edge to pee, etc. However this was an improvement since in the past he would have run off to go after other dogs, run after horses, etc. which he didn’t and each time he returned to work he got a bunch of treats. Very humbling but it was a good example to the spectators of how to be positive when your dog does ANYTHING right. My husband, who came to help haul equipment and has never been to a trial, got a lot of laughs out of his behavior……

Of course Jazz was crazy since it was cool out and she had to wait in the car for the very end! The crowd loved her though.

It was a fun thing to do, we had a great crowd and I appreciate all my wonderful students taking time out of their day to run in the demo. And a big thanks to Tracy Jane Photography for sending me these great photos from the demo.

If you have dogs long enough you will probably see many different illnesses and conditions.  Pyometra was one we fortunately had not encountered until this weekend.

Pyometra is a uterine infection so can only happen to intact female dogs.  Thus if your female  dog is a pet, not being shown or used for breeding, spaying them will prevent this from happening.    Here are a couple of links if you want to learn more:

http://www.squidoo.com/pyometra

http://petcare.suite101.com/article.cfm/pyometra

One of our pugs, Sprite, had been in season earlier in the month.  A couple of days ago I noted that she seemed a little droopy and was not eating as quickly as usual.  Next she started drinking huge amounts of water, to the point she was obsessed with the water bowl and would drink until I either removed her or the bowl from the area.  I knew this was not normal behavior and could be the first sign of pyometra so I started taking her temperature.  Her temperature remained normal but yesterday she didn’t eat her breakfast at all, again, very unlike her.   I checked on her a couple of hours later and her bowl still had breakfast in it so I picked her up and really looked her over.  It was then that I saw drainage from her vulva that looked like pus.  It was a Sunday (of course, any vet emergency I have usually involves a weekend or holiday….sigh…..) so my regular vet was closed.  There are several emergency animal clinics and a vet school within 20 min.

The vet school recently opened a 24/7 emergency clinic so since they’d seen Sprite there before (for eye surgery) I opted to take her there.  Bloodwork was run and an abdominal x-ray done which confirmed a suspicion of pyometra.  There are two types of pyometra — open (where the cervix is open and drainage can flow out of the uterus) and closed (the cervix is closed so infection is contained in the uterus which is much more dangerous and can lead to toxicty and death rapidly).   Sprite’s type was fortunately “open pyometra”.   The option was to have them call in a surgical team and immediately spay her (only cure) at a huge cost or have her stay overnight and they would give her an IV and IV antibiotics then I could move her to my vet’s in the a.m. as they could spay her for less.  I decided, based on the fact her labwork showed infection but no toxicity, to bring her home on antibiotics, monitor her all night myself then drive her to my vet in the a.m. for surgery.

I got her to my vet shortly after they opened.  The vet school had already faxed all the lab work and info.  My vet immediately took her to surgery after starting an IV and giving her IV antibiotics (this is important to do).  A little over an hour later he called me to tell me surgery was over and she was doing fine, even sitting up already.   Her uterus was 6 to 7 times its normal size due to the infection so it was a good thing I got her right in.

She is home tonight and doing well.  I am thankful I realized what was going on right away and had the knowledge to know what to do for her.

Unpredictability of Mixed Breed Concerns Longtime Breed Experts

NEW YORK, Jan. 19 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — In light of the recent announcement by the Obama family that the “labradoodle” is under consideration as the next “first dog,” the Labrador Retriever Club, Inc. (LRC) and the Poodle Club of America (PCA) are voicing their concerns about this trend – one that they feel is detrimental to canine welfare and potential pet owners.

“These crossbreds are a deliberate attempt to mislead the public with the idea that there is an advantage to these designer dogs,” said LRC, Inc. Board Member Frances S. Smith DVM, Ph.D. and Diplomate American College of Theriogenology. “The crossbred dogs are prone to all of the genetic disease of both breeds and offer none of the advantages that owning a purebred dog has to offer.” To read the LRC’s full statement go to: http://www.thelabradorclub.com/subpages/labradoodle.php

“Some breeders breed to improve a breed while others do it for profit,” says Fred Kampo, vice president of the LRC. “‘Doodle’ breeders hype them as the ideal dog, but every dog in a litter of mixed breed pups is different — there is no predictability in size, temperament, energy level, coat type so selling them for thousands of dollars to an unsuspecting public as so-called ‘designer dogs,’ often at prices higher than what a reputable breeder of purebred dogs would charge makes no sense. Our clubs can’t sit back and watch people being misled any longer.”

According to the PCA’s “Report to the Media on Poodle Rescue,” “Labradoodles were first produced in Australia in 1989 through an experimental breeding program sponsored by the Royal Guide Dog Association. The goal of this experiment was to produce a dog more suitable for disabled individuals with allergies than the typical Labrador Retriever. The Association believed that by crossing the steady temperament of the Lab with the Standard Poodle, with its low shedding coat, a solution for this small population of people would be found. Upon analysis of the breeding program however, it was found that fewer than 35% of the labradoodles produced were acceptable as guide dogs and an even lower percentage were found to be ‘hypoallergenic.’ The last labradoodle bred to attempt to become a guide dog was born in 1996 and the Association has no plans to continue the experiment.” Read the complete report at:

http://tinyurl.com/85n4u2

“We aren’t necessarily advocating for the Obamas to get a poodle as we are always concerned about our breed’s profile being raised,” said Jack MacGillivray president of the PCA. “We do not want to encourage disreputable breeding or see more dogs come into our rescue program. However if the choice is between a ‘doodle’ mix and a purebred, we felt we needed to speak out and educate the Obamas and dog lovers everywhere about the difference between a purebred and a mixed breed.”

Should the Obamas decide on the Portuguese Water Dog (PWD) as their choice for first pet, both clubs agree that the Portuguese Water Dog Club of America (www.pwdca.org) is their best resource. As with the LRC and PCA, club members are responsible PWD breeders dedicated to the principles of preserving and protecting the integrity of their beloved breed.

About the organizations:

Poodle Club of America -The Poodle Club of America (PCA) is a non-profit organization dedicated to the welfare of the Poodle. For more information visit: www.poodleclubofamerica.org

Labrador Retriever Club, Inc. – The Labrador Retriever Club, Incorporated (LRC) is dedicated to the health and welfare of the Labrador Retriever breed while conserving the original breed function – that of a “working retriever.” For more information visit: www.thelabradorclub.com/

Over the last few years, those of us in the U.S. who enjoy owning dogs as well as competing with them and occasionally having a well thought out litter of purebred puppies have come under attack by the animal rights people.  The HSUS and PETA are both trying to get mandatory spay/neuter laws passed in every community where they can get a foothold and making it a requirement to have an expensive “breeder’s license” if you choose not to spay/neuter your dog.  Because I do show some of my dogs in American Kennel Club conformation shows those dogs cannot be spayed/neutered in order to compete.  The rest of my dogs are spayed/neutered.  We do not have unwanted litters here, only carefully planned ones about every two to three years when we are hoping to keep something from the litter for ourselves in order to keep our blood line going.

Today I received two different posts that I think are more eloquent than what I could write about the attacks on breeders, dog shows, those of us who show/compete in perfomance events, etc. so I am quoting the one with permission and sending a link to the other for you to read for yourself.

Here is the link to the one and below the quote from the other:

http://endangeredowner.blogspot.com/2009/01/hsus-turn-in-breeder-program.html

Veterinarian speaks out on PETA & Westminister

By Libbye Miller DVM (Permission to crosspost)
“Adorable mixed breeds” get cancer, epilepsy, allergies, heart disease, and orthopedic problems just like purebreds. I see it every day in my veterinary practice but mixed breed dogs aren’t tracked like
the purebreds so they have a reputation as “healthier” that is actually undeserved in many cases.”

It is so sad that a lot of folks, including young veterinarians these days, buy into the “hybrid vigor” baloney. The vet schools have been infiltrated by the Animal Rights Extremists, who are teaching them this junk science in order to push their agenda.

All animals have a certain amount of genetic load, which is to say there is absolutely no animal without some genetic problem of some sort of another. Know anyone who wears glasses? Has allergies? Thyroid
problems? Weak knees? Flat feet? A skin condition? Arthritis? A gap between their front teeth? These are all genetic imperfections.

No human is genetically “clean.” Neither is any individual of any species on earth. So this idea that dogs should not be bred because they might have a genetic problem, and that breeders are somehow “evil”
for breeding them, is ridiculous. Every single individual of every single species has at least a few genetic conditions.

To use PeTA’s logic, all breeding of all kinds (including having human babies) should halt immediately. And to be honest, Ingrid Newkirk (the woman who founded PeTA) does believe exactly that. She thinks that humans should become extinct, along with dogs, cats, etc. This ridiculous scenario is precisely what she would like to see happen.

So folks, if that is what you want…if you agree with Ingrid Newkirk’s whacky views, send your hard earned money to PeTA. They will help to ensure you are not able to own a dog or cat or hamster or any
other pet in the future. They will see to it that you can’t eat meat or fish or eggs or any type of animal-based nutrition. They will work to shut down places like Sea World, the zoos, etc. so you cannot observe
the many wonderful animals on the Earth. Eventually, once they accomplish these things, they may turn their efforts to making it illegal for humans to procreate.

If you don’t agree with their extremist views, wise up and start supporting those who truly do love, care for and enjoy interaction with other species here on our little blue planet.

The fanciers of the breeds, those you see exhibiting their dogs at Westminster and other dog shows, work very hard to eliminate serious genetic conditions. They screen their breeding stock with every
available test. They research pedigrees before breeding into other lines, to check for similar clearances in those animals. They contribute money to research organizations to further the work being
done to track down genetic problems. They contribute blood, cell samples, etc. from their own animals to help with DNA and genome studies. They have made great progress so far, and they continue to
work hard at it.

Are there unethical breeders? Certainly, there are. Just as in any group of humans, you will find the good and the bad. United States VP Elect Joe Biden, for example, managed to find a not so good one when he
got his new German Shepherd puppy. I don’t know who did his research for him, but they obviously didn’t do their homework if they were looking for a responsible breeder. Joe has the right to get his dog
from whomever he wishes, but if he was trying to set an example of purchasing from a responsible hobby breeder he went off the track this time. That’s too bad, but it was his choice.

Unfortunately, breeders like that may be a lot easier to find because of their high volume and high profile. If you are looking for a nice family pet from a breeder who will be there for you forever, you need
to do due diligence. You won’t get that from a pet store. You won’t get that from the guy selling dogs out of his pickup truck in the WalMart parking lot. You won’t get that support from a high-volume breeder,
either. Yes, it takes a little more time and effort to find someone who really cares and does all the work to breed the healthiest, happiest puppies possible and then stands behind those puppies.

This is a living being that will be part of your family, hopefully, for many years. Isn’t it worth a bit of effort to find a breeder who will be there for you and that puppy forever? And guess what? Shows like Westminster are a very valuable resource for finding breeders who do care and who use the best possible
practices, as well as for learning more about the various breeds.
Bravo to USA Network for broadcasting the Westminster Kennel Club show all these years. May they enjoy continued success through the ongoing inclusion of such programs. I will be eagerly watching this year’s
show!”

THANK YOU LIBBYE MILLER, DVM for sharing this post!

I just had 4 days of agility trials in Milwaukee.  That means I was up just as early or earlier than if I was at work.  The trials, nicknamed “Hounds”, are held at an indoor soccer arena and are huge with 450 to 500 dogs entered each day.  It is not uncommon to go home ribbonless from an event like this so we were fortunate that yesterday Cori qualified in a very tough Excellent Jumpers class and came home with a 4th place.  There were 340 dogs in her class with 31 running at her jump height level and only 4 of the 31 qualifyng so we were quite pleased.   The people running the trials kept track of the number of “nq’s” (non qualifying runs) for each day and less than 1/3 of dogs running qualified.  Yesterday out of 940 runs there were 655 non-qualifying ones.

 The trials are well organized and for 4 days it is like living in a different world with many top canine athletes and their handlers/trainers there competing.  The shopping is good there, too.  I will say that I think the novice level courses now are getting very tough, especially for first time competitors and are more on the equivalent of what the open classes used to be like.  I saw very tight spaces and many “traps” on the courses, something that you usually wouldn’t see in novice until the past year or so. The beginning of the novice course yesterday was the exact same beginning as the excellent one the day before (same judge) except a broad jump was in place instead of a triple.   I am concerned that many of the first timers are not prepared to run that complexity of course and may become discouraged.   Since we need newcomers to the sport to keep the sport going perhaps AKC needs to revisit the complexity of the novice courses.  Okay, off my soap box…..tomorrow is a work day.  And as a t-shirt at the trial said: “A bad day at an agility trial is better than a good day at work”.