Bartholomew District Park Master Plan

For all of the local readers – The Austin Parks and Recreation Department is conducting a public survey to see how to make the best use of Bartholomew District Park.  There are a few different suggested master plans on the PARD website. For those who are fans of public dog parks, there is good news!  All of the suggested layouts for Bartholomew Park include off leash areas for the dogs, Austin rocks!

Please take a look at the different options and fill out the brief survey listed in order to make sure your voice is heard.  The Bartholomew District Park survey will remain open until Monday, September 13th, 2010 so make sure you head over to their website and vote!

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Choosing a Second Dog

Going from a single dog household to living with multiple dogs can be a burden and a decision that some people regret, but it doesn’t have to be that way!  Last year we made a post about things to consider when thinking about getting a second dog, and I wanted to follow up that article with some more information, specifically what to look for in choosing a second dog.

Age – Depending on the current age of your dog, consider looking for a dog that is at least one year older or younger than your current dog.  Spacing out the ages of your dogs can sometimes help reduce competition and other problems that arise with dogs of similar age, similar to when you get two puppies from the same litter.

Male/female - The sex of a second dog really depends on some personality traits of your first dog.  Sometimes going opposite sex can be a good thing when getting that second dog, but in some cases it really doesn’t matter.  Knowing the right things about your first dog will help you make a decision about selecting the sex of your second dog.

Lifestyle – If you have an active lifestyle with your dog, make sure your second dog has the physical traits that can still support your lifestyle.  Here are some examples of my point:

• If you’re a runner and typically run 8 miles a day with your Belgian Malinois, don’t get a Basset Hound as your second dog and expect that dog to join you on your runs
• If you are very social with your dog and are around people, children, and other animals often, maybe a bully breed or typically protective and aggressive breeds should be crossed off of your list*

Personality – The personality of a second dog is very important, especially if you have a shy and nervous dog already.  A confident and outgoing “goofball” who is socially stable can greatly help a shy and nervous dog to gain confidence and be brave.  If you are getting a second dog to help your first dog, consider adopting a dog that is 2+ years old, this way you have a better gauge of their personality compared to a very young puppy.  Remember to always ask a ton of questions when rescuing a dog from a shelter.

These are just a few things to consider when choosing a second dog.  These tips are great, but the most important information and decisions should be based on your first dog in order to help make the transition go as smoothly as possible.

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* I have met plenty of great, stable, well-socialized dogs that belong to the “bully” category.  Training makes our dogs act and behave in certain ways, but breed traits should always be considered as well.  My point is to make stack the deck in your favor.

Does the Location of Your Dog’s Crate Matter?

The short answer to that question is “yes!” Now exactly where to put your dog’s crate is open for a bit of debate, and you may get varying answers depending on who you ask.  The type of crate and a suggested location for a crate may differ based on the needs of a particular dog, but here are some general guidelines that may help you and your family decide where to crate your dog.

• Make sure the crate is in a climate controlled area of your home and avoid areas that get direct sunlight throughout the day
• I personally don’t like my dogs to be crated in my bedroom, they need to learn to exist away from us and have a sense of independence
• If you are still working on potty training, have your crate near the door to help prevent accidents
• If you have a young puppy, consider putting your crate in a well populated area of your home
• Avoid locations where the dog can see outside of the home and practice unwanted behaviors like window barking

How about you, do you have any tips that you think should be added to this list?  If so, leave your suggestion in the comments section of this article.

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2010 San Marcos Pet Fest

The 2010 San Marcos Pet Fest is coming up in September. The Pet Fest, which is sponsored by PALS, is an event organized to generate public awareness for the needs of animals, promote responsible pet guardianship and celebrate the human-animal bond.

The Pet Fest is going to be held at the San Marcos Plaza Park on Saturday, September 25th, and will have lots of great attractions and vendors.  In addition to pets available for adoption, The San Marcos K-9 unit will have a demonstration, D&D Dancing Dogs and Miniature horse will entertaining the crowd, and there will be live music all day!

If you are in the San Marcos area, check out this event!  For more information you can visit the PALS website.

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Does Your Dog Window Bark?

We have been working with quite a few dogs that have some pretty serious window barking tendencies.  To some extent window barking is your dog’s natural role as a watchdog, but it’s not something that you want to encourage or allow to happen.  Many behavior issues result from this type of activity and it’s very difficult to fix when it has been practiced for an extended period of time.  Here are some common undesirable traits that can stem from window barking:

• Creates frustration which can easily be redirected onto other dogs and people
• Can create unwanted associations in social situations in and away from the home
• Can lead to territorial issues and other behavior problems

Just as with a lot of our dog’s behaviors, these dogs need to be interrupted and redirected in order to reduce the amounts of window barking incidents or prevent it from happening all together.  Here are some simple things that you can do to make sure window barking is not a problem for your dog:

• Don’t allow your dog to window bark when you are home, simply use a reliable recall to interrupt and redirect your dog
• Use reliable obedience to help change the dog’s state of mind
• Don’t allow your dog to window bark when you are not at home, kenneling your dog is always an option

Remember, it’s up to us to help shape our dogs and puppies, this is just another example of us molding our dogs into social and well adjusted animals.

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Would You Pay to Use a Dog Park?

More and more dog parks are popping up in communities across the country, many are publicly funded while others are privately owned.  My questions is, Would you pay for some type of membership in order to have access to the dog park?

The whole topic of paid memberships for dog parks was originally brought up by a general posting from the Kong Company on their facebook page, and I thought it sparked an interesting debate.  Out of the feedback from the post, many people had a hard time justifying paying money for something that they think should be free, while others state that they are currently paying a fee to use these parks.

If you were to pay a membership fee to use a dog park, what types of benefits would you need to experience in order to justify your payment?  Would you want increased maintenance or lights?  Would you need to see additional features like running water or agility equipment?  Would you expect a membership cap to avoid overcrowding or some type of screening process to ensure that the parks are filled with the well balanced and socialized dogs?  What are your thoughts?

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Google is Dog Friendly

I was reading an article recently and it mentioned that Google is a dog friendly company and allows it’s employees to bring their dogs to work!   Everyone from the Senior VP of Operations to less senior staff have the option to bring their dogs to work with them!  How cool is that?!

Now of course there are some limitations to the allowance, but they are totally legitimate limitations.  Evidence of fleas, excessive barking, biting, chasing, and other similar actions are considered unacceptable and the dog will have to be taken home upon the first complaint.  Limitations are also imposed if other employees who are allergic to dogs are being affected.

In addition to these guidelines, it’s clearly stated in Google’s code of conduct that Google isn’t cat friendly company: “Google’s affection for our canine friends is an integral facet of our corporate culture. We like cats, but we’re a dog company, so as a general rule we feel cats visiting our offices would be fairly stressed out.”

Not only can Google employees bring their dogs to work with them, but Google’s dog friendly nature carries over into another facet of their operations.  Instead of noisy lawn movers, Google rents goats to help cut down the amount of weeds and brush at Google HQ.  The operation of 200 goats (plus herder and a border collie) is kind to the environment, and as Google puts it: “A lot cuter to watch than lawn mowers.”

How about any of you out there, is your company dog friendly like Google?  Do you bring your dog to work, would you if you had more control of your dog?

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iPhone Apps for Dog Owners

There are currently over 225,000 apps available in the Apple iTunes Store.  Included in those huge numbers are some great iPhone apps for dog lovers, take a look at a few of our favorites.

The Fido Factor app is a great resource to locate dog friendly locations in your area. The app automatically detects your location and helps you find the nearest dog parks, dog friendly restaurants, bars, pet stores, and hotels. Once you determine where you want to go, you can instantly download directions and head over for some dog friendly fun!!

The Dog First Aid app contains a ton of important knowledge about your pet’s health. While this app should not be used as a replacement for routine or emergency vet care for your pet, it does contain great information. Out of similar apps out there, this one is the most respected by veterinarians.

The iKnow Dogs app is a fun way to increase your knowledge of different dog breeds. Pictures and general information are available for a lot of different breeds, and you can also search the data base using different characteristics like temperament, coat type, size, country of origin, etc. This is a must have app for anyone considering getting a new dog!

What about you?  Do you have another app that should be on this list?

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Location Based Dog Training

Have you ever tried to have your dog lay down while at a friend’s house, or told your dog to come at a new park, or introduced your dog to a stranger in a place where your dog has never been before?    Whether it be a delay in response time, a display of fear or uncertainty, or the overwhelming urge to explore the new environment, many of us get a much different response from our dogs in new places.

We all know that our dogs can be very easily effected by environmental factors that you and I take for granted.  Simple things like new smells and sounds can have a big impact on our dog’s behavior, not to mention the other more obvious factors that are present in new locations. In order to advance our dogs’ training and overcome location specific training, it’s important to expose them to new locations and bring them out of their comfort zones.  Here are some tips to help your dog become used to working in new environments.

• Start by finding the right locations to work with your dog, instead of taking your dog for a walk along the same route everyday, explore new parts of your neighborhood.  If you are an Unleashed Unlimited client who usually comes to our Leander dog training location, try coming to one of our Austin dog training classes for a change of pace, and vice versa.  Meet up at a friends home or a park that they visit frequently and do a little training in their favorite locations.

• If your dog is having a hard time in a new environment, don’t get frustrated or mark the wrong behaviors, remember to stick to the core concepts of your training program, don’t panic!  Instead, take a step back and practice something a bit easier and let them be successful, then return to more challenging tasks.

• Remember to keep moving!  Movement is a great way to dissipate stress in dogs and it can help them regain their focus back on you.

By working our dogs in new environments we can constantly expand their comfort zone and increase the dog’s confidence and skill level.  The world is such a better place when we have confident, obedient, and well socialized dogs!

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