Mans best Friend

Dogs do rule

I recently went on a business appointment, dressed in a suit and tie, and the fellow I was visiting had his Belgian Shepherd in the office with him. I am so fond of dogs that I immediately dropped to a squat and the pup came over to greet me. I had not stopped to think how I must have looked to him - quite un-professional, but like most dog lovers, my critical mind shut down and my dog brain took over. After a few minutes I brushed the hair off my pant leg and sleeves and we got back to business. We ended up talking about our favorite dogs over the years and how they had been real members of our families, instead of just pets.

As a kid on the peninsula, I pestered my parents incessantly to allow me to get a dog. After many lectures on who would feed, clean up after, walk and play with this potential new dog, I convinced them that I would do anything, even mow the lawns for free to get a dog. My folks, being pet lovers themselves, found a Golden Lab puppy, brought me along to retrieve him from the breeder. I spent most of my waking hours with that dog. He followed me to friends’ homes, was my constant companion, and I even used to crawl into his doghouse with him for hours on end. Yes, I have a Dog problem, I admit it, but it is hard to shake.

For the first 12 years of our marriage, we were Bloodhound people. We trained two of the three hounds to man trail and these dogs were incredible. We had neighborhood kids who wanted to see if these legendary bloodhounds could track them, and would take off on the most exaggerated course through fields and streams to avoid detection. The Bloodhounds always found them, and even amazed me.

My current dog is a Giant Schnauzer, and she sees me as a litter mate I think. I take her to the ranch where she can do all the activities that City Dogs are discouraged from doing, namely swimming in the creeks and ponds, running free off the leash, and digging up the ground squirrel holes hoping to get a quick snack.

My wife directs me to the to watch the show called “The Dog Whisperer”, in hopes I will see our dog as a wild, unruly beast, that needs much stricter limits. I naturally see the dog in the Mary Poppins mode, i.e. “practically perfect in every way”. I do admit though that I may have a huge blind spot, so have agreed to watch the show. If you have ever trained dogs, much of what Cesar Millan, aka, the Dog Whisperer, says is really useful.

His basic premise is that dogs are hard wired to be part of a pack. Wild dogs survive in strong, stable, and organized packs, where every member knows its place and follows the rules established by the pack leader. His claim is that the pack instinct is the most overlooked aspect of raising dogs today. He also asserts that a human family can be as suitable substitute for a dog’s pack, but the human must be the pack leader. His approach to discipline is with a constant calm assertive nature. The dog’s don’t get threatened, but they understand their place in the pack. He maintains that dog’s need a fair amount of exercise, and discipline, defined boundaries, and then affection.

He warns against trying to treat dog’s as humans, as he explains that the result is usually anti-social behavior of the dog, to people or other dogs.

The show is a hit because he takes some really unruly dogs that exhibit very bad behavior that the owners cannot seem to correct, and in the space of a few hours time he has effectively established himself as the pack leader and corrected the bad habits. He also sometimes has to take the dogs away from their homes and insert them in his own dog pack, which is a group of about 10 dogs where his dogs re-establish with the errant dog what the pack mentality is all about. Good show, worth watching and great for us dog people.

If you have a desire to add a new pet to your life, make sure you check out the Calaveras Animal Shelter in San Andreas. They have a great adoption program and some of the healthiest, friendliest pets are found in Animal Shelters.