Fear is a normal emotion that engages dogs to respond to what they perceive as a threat.  Some of these things can be certain people, other dogs, unusual looking items, as well as many other normal things in their lives. So why are dogs afraid of certain people and things?  Below are just a few reasons…

Re-enforcement of fearful behavior: As mentioned in another post, What Exactly is a Reward All About, affection and attention in the canine world are forms of reward just as food is. When we visit dogs who have fear issues and watch very closely what is going on, the fearful response is often being rewarded by praise.  Of course the owners of these dogs are not trying to intentionally make their dogs more fearful, by we have to remember to that dogs need Training Through the Dog’s Mentality, not ours.  Knowing what to do when your dog is showing signs of fear is crucial so that you do not reward the behavior.

Lack of Exposure: In most cases, you only get one chance to expose and socialize your puppy.  We say this all the time, “You can teach your dog to come and stay at any time, but you can’t go back in time and socialize your puppy.” This is where the socialization process comes in and should be started well before the age of about 17 weeks. The more places, people, and other well socialized dogs you can expose your dog to the better.  Many dog to dog aggression issues are based in fear due to improper socialization or a bad experience and in turn they become defensive or learn an inappropriate behavior.

Underlying Medical Conditions: If you have a middle aged dog who is just showing signs of increase fearful or aggressive behaviors, underlying medical conditions may be happening.  Hyperthyroidism, neck and back discomfort, joint issues, are just a few potential causes of fearful behavior in dogs.  Make sure you consult with your vet if nothing else, just to rule some of these things out.

Whatever the cause of your dog’s fears, make sure that you are doing something to help better the situation.  If you are not sure what you are looking at or how to rehab your dog, contact a professional dog trainer for help.

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Woofstock at Waterloo is a dog-friendly event that celebrates Central Texans and their pets. There are over 3,500 dog lovers expected to attend Woofstock at Waterloo, which will offer live music, costume contests, local vendors, pet health education and demonstrations.

Austin’s dog-friendly festival, which runs from 10 am to 5 pm on Saturday, May 2, 2009, will be held at Waterloo Park and is a completely free event for the public.  The dog festival benefits the Texas Veterinary Medical Foundation, which is a non-profit organization that is committed to the health and well-being of animals.  For more information, including Pet Waivers and directions, please visit the Woofstock at Waterloo website.

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We often run into dog owners with un-neutered/spayed dogs and the subject often leads to breeding.  I can not tell you how many times we have heard, “Yeah, I’m gonna let her have one litter”, or “He has papers”.  Simply put, these are not very good reasons to breed your dog.

Breeding is a huge responsibility and should not be taken lightly.  There are so many factors, all of which are above my head, that go into selecting the parents; just having “papers” on your dog or being a purebred is not enough.  I have no right to tell anyone what they can or can not do, but here are some things to consider if you are thinking of breeding your dog.

• Does your dog have something to contribute to the breed, some outstanding attribute that is lacking in the breed overall?
• Do you understand the standard enough to know what ARE faults and attributes?
• Do you have enough knowledge of genetics to understand modes of inheritance?
• Have you spent the time studying pedigrees and understanding which dogs are producing what?
• Are you aware of the health problems in the breed, and how to test for them, how to at least try to avoid them, how they are inherited? If not, do you have a mentor in the breed, someone who DOES have the knowledge required?
• Do you have the emotional, physical, and financial ability to care for every puppy for it’s lifetime in the event that you can not sell all of the dogs or they come back?
• Are you prepared emotionally and physically in the event that you have to drop an entire line and start all over again?
• If you breed him/her to “get your investment back” you are breeding for the wrong reasons.

I realize that all breeders had to start with their “first” litter at one point, and new groups of breeders are needed to carry on lines and standards.  However, please make sure you are starting a breeding program with the right knowledge base and for the right reasons.

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Fences are great, they are designed to give our yards privacy, keep out nosy neighbors, and protect our property.  But, when it comes to our dogs and fences, here are a few things to remember.

By nature, dogs are very athletic and determined, a fence alone can not contain all dogs; I personally have two dogs that can very easily jump a six foot fence.  Even small dogs who may not be able to jump over your fence can still dig under it, or pull boards out and squeeze through an opening.

In addition to escaping over, under, or through a fence, we have to also account for fence fighting.  If your dog spends hours a day fence fighting with the neighbor dog over and over again, what do you think his or her reaction would be to meeting a dog without a fence in between them?  Fence fighting severely limits social progress and builds frustration that will reappear in the presence of other dogs outside of the backyard.

So what is a dog owner to do?  Well if you ask me – Don’t Hold a Fence Accountable to Training and Managing Your Dogs!  Bottom line, dogs require supervision, care, attention, effort, and time; something a fence cannot provide.

• Do not leave your dogs outside unattended for extended periods of time.  When everyone is at school and work, leave your dog inside.  If they cannot be trusted alone in the house, crate train them.
• Do not chain your dog in the backyard.  Besides being illegal in many areas, it can cause behavior issues.
• Be able to call your dog off of your fence if you witness him or her fence fighting or intently charging your fence, don’t allow him to practice this behavior.  You cannot control what your neighbors do with their dogs, but you can manage and control your own dog.
• Make sure that your fence is in good condition and free of any holes and missing or loose boards to ensure the time spent with your dog outside is enjoyable.

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The Obama’s new dog finally made his first appearance on the White House lawn the other day.  Bo, a Portuguese Water Dog, is six months old and was returned to the Texas breeder (for unknown reasons) where he was purchased by his previous owner.

Already there has been some criticism of the Obamas and Sen. Ted Kennedy (who gave Bo to the Obamas as a gift) for not adopting a rescue dog from a shelter.  I know there are plenty of fantastic dogs sitting in shelters waiting to be adopted, but I personally find nothing wrong with getting a dog from a breeder.  Disagree with me if you want, but they ALL need homes.

Stay tuned for the almost certain increase in popularity of Portuguese Water Dogs, just like when any breed receives main stream exposure (101 Dalmatians, Lassie, and the Taco Bell Chihuahua).  Let’s just hope Portuguese Water Dogs don’t start appearing in shelters in mass numbers.

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Since everyone has last seen Hank, he has been working very hard and learning a lot of new skills.  He continues to make a lot of progress each day, and we are very pleased with how Hank is progressing in our dog training program.  Here is Hank’s latest video.

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Here is a short video review we put together highlighting the Jawz frisbees, and the Jawz disc dog training video, which is currently on sale in our Proshop. Enjoy the video.

Click here to check out the small Jawz discs and regular sized Jawz disc.  Also, dont forget that the disc dog training dvd combo sets are on sale for the next few weeks.  Check out the regular sized training combo, as well as the pup disc combo pack. Just remember to enter “disccombo” during check out to save 10% on the training dvds.

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Alright, take your guess… shepherd, lab, hound, or what??  There is now a way to find out more information about our dogs through DNA testing.  In addition to be able to confirm the identity of a sire, confirm imported breed stock, and identify which pups belong to a particular sire in cases of multi-sire breeding, DNA testing can also confirm breed heritage.

There are two main ways to learn more information about your dog’s lineage.  One option is to visit a vet that will draw blood and send the sample out to be analyzed, which usually comes back within 2-3 weeks.  Another option to to send away for a swab kit from one of several companies online.  Once the test kit arrives, you are to swab the dog’s cheek and return the swab to the lab.  Results for this type of test typically take 4-6 weeks.

Regardless of which method you choose, make sure you know how many registered breeds are in the database that will be used to return the results.  Because this service is still in it’s infancy stages, not all tests are created equal; some databases are composed of only 40 breeds, while others contain over 150.  The more data contained in the database, the more accurate your results are going to be. Depending on which collection method and which databases are being used, you can expect to pay somewhere in the neighborhood of between $60 – $150 for the dog DNA tests.

If you are interested in getting a DNA test for your dog, you can do an internet search or speak with your vet more information.

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Here is Hank’s latest training video, enjoy!

As you can see, Hank is doing such a great job.  He also seems to have a small cult following of clients and subscribers from all over the county.  Every body loves Hank!

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