Agility: Part 3

Here's a few tips, if you ever have laryngitis and have to work on training your dog...

Don't think you can't do it just cuz you can't speak. Being able to speak certainly does make it easier. But as a Speech-Language Pathologist, I can confidently say that 65% of communication is non-verbal so it should still be do-able, right?

All I have to say is, don't underestimate the power of hand signals. I am sooooo lucky that I have always paired hand signals with my commands. Today in class, I was able to get Riley to heel, sit, down, and down stay on a loose leash, all by hand signals. (okay, I used a little tongue clicking and lip smacking too). I will continue to work on hand signals. Who know when my voice will come back?

Also, do not....I repeat...never, feed your dog before a training session. Duh?! I knew that, but forgot. I had purchased a case of turkey necks a few weeks ago and didn't have time to repackage the entire case into daily portions, so it has been sitting in the freezer for a few weeks. This particular morning, I had some extra time so I thawed it over the previous night and was able to repackage these huge Tom turkey necks (male turkeys are called Toms and they are big!) into smaller Ziploc freezer bags. Of course I had to throw Riley one while I was working. It probably weighed close to a pound, if not more. Well, an hour later at Agility, Riley is moving like molasses and I'm wondering why I am trying to fork-lift him up to the table. I pointed to the table and he, no kidding, gingerly puts his right front paw on the table. Nice. So I have to muster up my squeeky voice to say, "up up." He hoists his upper body up onto the paw that is already on the table and holds his left paw up in the air. Are we a circus dog now? Now I've got the treats out and I'm tugging on his leash. Very slowly and gingerly, like an elephant, Riley shifts his weight forward and brings up each hind paw, one at a time. Urgh! We finally made it. How much did that turkey neck weigh again?!!

Oh, and another reason not to feed your dog, he won't care as much for the treats. Not only do the treats not work as well, but he's less likely to run all over obstacles to find those tastly morsels. Riley would stand at the entrance of the tunnel and if I tossed a treat in there, no matter how far into the tunnel, Riley would at least find the energy to take a leisurely stroll down tunnel lane to find the treat. He would eventually appear at the other side, but the excitment of "tunneling" was definitely lost by then. Then I tried to trick him, acting as if I had tossed a treat so far into the tunnel that he couldn't see it and still get him to tunnel. No way. He'd duck his head it, look for half a second, then poke back out and look at me like, "I didn't see anything go in there!" And then I'd try to do it again. He'd look in, then look back, "Nope, mom, still nothing."

And finally, gotta love the clicker. At least I could still tell my boy that he was doing a great job and that we were having fun. Without a voice, all I could do was open my mouth wide, trying to make my face as animated and large as possible, wave my arms in the air like a lunatic,and then use a lot of clicking. Crazy mom, you're doing all that clicking, now stop waving those hands in the air and use those hands to hand me a treat. Clicker=treats. Yum.

Lots of fun at the Fun Day

Today was the Spring Fun Day at the Westford 4-H fairgrounds. Hosted by our very own Bernese Mountain Dog Club of Nashoba Valley. We arrived quite early and had a very busy morning. Riley helped me greet everyone at the registration table for the first part of the morning. And then at 10am we were off to the Berner Olympics! We took third at the first event, the water relays. Riley and I had to jump over 10 hurdles as fast as we could and not spill any water. I take the responsibility for spilling the water. Riley had nothing to do with that. The next event was the obstacle course.Run across the field, weave through 10 weave poles, jump over a hurdle, through the narrows, and figure eight around the barrels. Third place again. Then there was musical hoops. Six of us pairs danced around 5 hoola hoops while the music played. When the music stopped, we all scrambled to get our dogs to sit in the hoops. Riley did a superb job and we made it to the final round. But Riley, being the gentleman that he is, would not push the young Berner gal out of the hoop when the music stopped (as much as I tried to convince him). Thus, he gave up the prize to the pretty gal and happily sat outside the hoop as she received her first place prize.
The best event by far was bobbing for hot dogs. In the first heat, Riley took out two contestants, tying for first place in his heat. We sat around watching the next two heats and the dogs were hilarious. Some of them were happy just to lap up the hot-dog flavored water, completely oblivious to the floating hot dogs. In the final elimination round, Riley was tired and full by now and wasn't all that interested in slobbery water with a few chunks of hot dog left in it. He put in an effort but came in 3rd place. But hey! We still got to eat hot dogs!
After the fun activities, I spent some time catching up with friends, ate some yummy lunch prepared by the Keck crew, watched the rescue parade, and soon after, we headed out, both tired but happy. Having fun is exhausting!

Check out other bloggers' accounts of the Fun Day!

SongBird's Beloved and Blessed

Link

Brian's blog

Link

Link

Over the Rainbow Bridge

CH Tennescott Machias Oscar Fils, September 15, 1999 - May 17, 2006, “Mac”


This past week, the world lost two angels. It is with great saddness that I post these photos of two great spirits. Three years ago when we first looked into bringing a Berner into our lives, we purchased a copy of Dog Fancy magazine. On the cover was the most handsome and majestic Bernese Mountain Dog face, grinning from ear to ear. Little did I know that I would meet this young boy, Mac, one day. And now, we say goodbye. Though his life was short, he touched so many lives and accomplished so much. Here is Mac, aka Rudoph, leading the way. You've gotta love the red nose!

We still have that copy of Dog Fancy on our coffee table. And I plan to keep it there. Mac's smile will forever greet the guests of our home when they sit at our coffee table.

"Mac"
CD, NDD, DD, NBDD, BMDCA Versatility, CGC, HIT, TDIAOV
WP934787/03
AKC Canine Good Citizenship – May 6, 2001
TDI Certification – May 6, 2001
AKC Novice Obedience Companion Dog – November 18, 2001
NJVF Animal Hall of Fame Award – March 3, 2002
AKC Championship – September 15, 2002
BMDCA Novice Draft Dog – October 6, 2002
Herding Instinct Test – May 7, 2003
Dog Fancy Cover Boy – July 2003
BMDCA Draft Dog – October 4, 2003
BMDCA Novice Brace Draft Dog – May 9, 2004
AKC Award for Canine Excellence Certificate of Honor – June 27, 2005
TDIAOV – August 26, 2005

Barbie Beck-Wilczek and Bill WilczekWILCZEK WOODWORKS 1786 Broomstick Hill Road Littleton, NH 03561603-444-0824

Check Out Our New Website:http://www.wilczekwoodworks.com/

In memory of Isabel, "Izzy" 8 1/2 years

All this rain...AIYA!

Anyone else sick of the rain? I can see why some people find this depressing. Although I have to say it has not been quite as bad as I expected. I've kinda enjoyed staying in and making a permanent imprint in my couch the past few days. Peabody cancelled school for today and for tomorrow! Who knew all this water could cause so many problems? After finding out I didn't have to go to work today, I decided I would treat myself to a midweek Yoga session at my favorite Bikram Yoga place. After my second detour due to flooding, I knew I would never make it to the studio in time. Pretty sad when you only live 10 minutes away!

So lucky Bernerbuddy got to spend some more time with me. I wish I could've taken a picture of his face when he saw that I had come home after leaving for work. It was the look of pure joy, but disbelief. We enjoyed a nice cozy day at home. I took out one of my old Yoga DVDs and Riley got on the mat with me for the downward dog pose. He left shortly after the third sun salutation when we accidentally bonked heads. Ow.

With the extra time, I gave Riley a good brushing, cleaned out his ears, worked on some tricks, and made my lemon-rosemary-geranium oil bug repellant. It smells wonderful! Let's just hope it works. We also took a nice wet hike at Stonehurst so Riley could stretch his legs a bit. He's been getting a little cabin fever being cooped up all week.

So tomorrow....what shall we do?

Agility: Class 2

We've made progress! I bought Riley a new short leash for agility. It is less than a foot long so that I can release it and allow him to go through obstacles without a long leash dragging behind him, tripping him or worse, knocking the equipment over. We were introduced to the Teeter Totter this past class. I was able to convince Riley to walk up one side (yes, all 4 paws on a narrow plank!) right up to the middle, before the weight changes and causes the board to drop and make that loud, scary noise. Here's a picture:

We will work on walking over to the scary side next time. And, no, that is not Riley. No way in hell I could ever maneuver a camera while I work with Riley on agility equipment.

I am most impressed that Riley is running through the tunnel

and the chute,

jumping over bar jumps and solid jumps,

jumping through the tire,

jumping up on the table and sitting (we'll get to down stay eventually!),

and will even weave through all the poles!

With the help of turkey hotdog and Yummy Chummies of course.

I have been able to get him through two consecutive obstacles without food reinforcement. Next week, I will try to fade out the food and use just the clicker and praise to see how he does when he is not constantly looking for a tasty morsel. Riley was "dog tired" after 40 minutes of class. All that thinking and eating puts a toll on my Berner boy! He enjoyed the 30 minute ride home for sure; windows down, eyes squinting through the downpour of rain, smiling, and smiling. Good boy, Smiley Riley.

Bug off

On one of my Yahoogroups, they are talking about the oncoming "buggy" season and natural ways to repell those suckers. I have to admit, I have not been very diligent about giving Riley his garlic regularly. With this recent topic thread I have decided on a new plan of action for this season.
I am going to try 100 mg of vitamin B1, plus garlic, and do the lemon spray recipe. I think it will be nice for all of us, humans and dog to have natural bug repellant. Even though Consumer reports still says Deet is 100% safe. HA!
Here's the recipe:

Use two LARGE, fat lemons (the more rind the better)
Slice thinly
Add fresh sprigs of rosemary
Pour Hot, almost boiling water over lemons and rosemary
Let steep over night
Strain well, squeezing all possible juice from lemons
Use in a spray bottle, shake well before using.
Can add a few drops of geranium essential oil

Sounds like it will smell much nicer than Deep Woods Off! I hope it will keep those nasty deer flies and super-mutant mosquitos away!

What's the Law?

In the state of Massachussets, dogs need to be vaccinated for rabies at 6 months or older by vet. And ONLY if the vet certifies that he/she is vaccinating a healthy animal. No other vaccinations are required by law.

Why?

Well, it could be that the Department of Public Health is quite concerned about rabies because it poses a threat to people. Understandable. And yet detremental to our animals. Luckily, in Massachussets, the law also says after the first annual "booster" of rabies, your dog only has to get it every three years. Funny thing about that label on the vaccine. It's just a label. Cuz in fact, the contents of the 1 year rabies shot is the same as the 3 year rabies shot! Other states say, every year, some say every two years. And they all have the same bottle! Other countries say never again. Again, same bottle. Vaccine companies love Americans.

Why the descrepancy?

These seemingly artibrary spans of time at driven again, by fear. Once you own a pet, you start receiving these friendly reminder post cards in the mail. "Time for your annual check up and vaccinations!" The more we vaccinate the safer we are from rabies right? Actually, no.

Vaccines do not save us from disease. Strong immunity and a little common sense saves us. Many vets will agree with you that once your pet develops immunity, whether by exposure or by vaccination, immunity lasts several years. In fact, Dr. Jean Dodds is currently running a rabies challenge study to prove that dogs continue to demonstrate immunity for up to seven years. Dogs develop immunity just like we develop immunity to measles, mumps, chicken pox, etc. We develop antibodies and the memory cells in our body store the information for each disease. And when the front lines of defense sense the disease, the memory cells put our troops in line, ready to protect. Our own bodies are what protects us from disease. Those of us with stronger immune systems never catch anything. And yet we often hear that people get chicken pox even after they've already gotten it. Every person, every animal, every dog, starts with a different level of natural immunity. Some people just get sick often, at everything that walks within 10 feet of them. And there are those of use that never get sick until someone actually sneezes right into their face. Dogs too. Some dogs seem to handle disease and even vaccinations better than others.

So not only do vaccine boosters seem unnecessary, but they are causing harm to our animals. Animals are developing tumors at injection sites, developing a slew of skin allergies, and like my Riley, behavioral changes occur. Riley's immune system reacted very strongly to all his vaccinations. They put his immune system into hyperactivity mode and every little thing he was exposed to created a huge response. A little bug bite resulted in a swollen face. A little flea bite results in whole body itching and chewing of his legs. Even a sutble sound in the air would cause him to cower and run for cover. A change in his food would cause severe diarrhea. We have been battling these problems since he was 4 months old. Luckily, we were able to find ways to reverse some of this damage. Most people meet Riley now and think he just a little shy. I know the long road we have traveled just to get him to this point. But he is now the healthiest he has been since we've had him.

How about the common sense part?

Where do your pets go? Do your cats stay indoors? What is the likely hood that a rabid bat is going to fly into your home and stop long enough to chase down a cat and bite it?

Do you leave your dogs out in your yard unsupervised? Do you go to other states that require proof of vaccinations?

Do you know when was the last time a rabid animal was reported in your area? Do you know what a rabid animal looks like?

If you are traveling, it is always a good idea to know the laws of the other state. Knowledge is power and it will protect you. If your dog ever bites someone or gets bitten, you need to know what to do to protect your dog.

Know the law, know your rights, protect your family!

Little by little, but we'll get there

It is springtime and people are getting puppies. A couple of people I know recently have gotten puppies and somehow I have been referred to them as someone who knows a lot of doggy info. I am surprised, yet delighted at the same time. This is my hobby. Some people enjoy gardening, others golfing, others knitting. In my free time, I research animal nutrition and health. This is something I have spent a lot of time reading up on, and continue to educate myself on because the health for my furkids is important to me. This is what I love to talk about. I don't think I really know that much and who knows exactly if what I know is correct, but I love to learn about it and share it with others. Besides my own enjoyment in this topic, there is an ultimate goal. I may have a lot of advice to give but how do I do it in a way that is condusive to people finding healthier ways to raise their pet?

Well, first of all, I'm pretty sure nobody wants to listen to me rant. Good thing I have this blog. Oftentimes, I catch myself talking too much and I see the looks on people's faces. They look at me like I'm some animal radical and that's when I stop. Until the next question, that is. But people do keep asking questions. It seems, people what to know and yet they don't want to know. People want to know because it is human nature to ask friends for recommendations and advice. People want to know what everyone else does and feel confident that if all these people are doing it, it must be okay. But there are a lot of things people don't want to know. In my mind, a few basic guidelines go a long way.

Not all veterinarians are created equal. We certainly know that rings true for our own health professionals, we go to get second opinions all the time. We ask questions, we question new drugs, we read about side effects, and we have to trust our doctors. When it comes to our animals, we tend to forget that vets work for us, not the other way around. But you're either a pill-popper hyperchondriac that goes to the doctor for everything or you try acupuncture and Chinese herbs and refuse to see a doctor until you're coughing up a lung. I'm somewhere inbetween there. You've gotta appreciate both Western (or conventional) and non-Western (or alternative) medicine. We need them both, in my own humble opinion (IMOHO)

We are all victims of a highly commercialized society. There are highly appealing commercials on tv selling dog food with fruits and vegetables. There are adorable puppies writing letters home to ask for more tick prevention. There are cute little dogs playing happily flea-free. All these commercials play into our fear of being "bad" pet owners. If we don't buy these wonderful things to protect them then something bad will happen to our pets, right? Wrong. We should know by now that there is no quick fix or miracle cure for anything.

Have we forgotten the most basic fundamentals of good health? Have we forgotten how to be educated consumers? Or are family pets just animals, not important enough to put that much energy and effort into? My know my own learning curve is very different from others. But if I can help other pet owners, a little at a time, to make more educated decisions about their pets' health, then I feel like I am doing the right thing. So bring it on and let's learn a little bit from each other. I love a good discussion about animals!

Lyme Disease: Fact from Fiction

Reprinted from Allen M. Schoen, D.V.M., M.S.
http://www.drschoen.com/articles_L2_10_.html

Lyme disease is one of the most common tick-transmitted diseases in the world. There is much that is known about it, but also a tremendous amount that still is unknown. There are many varied opinions regarding symptoms, diagnosis, vaccination controversies and treatment options. Where I live, there are horse barns I visit where almost every person, horse and dog have contracted Lyme disease. It is epidemic. Being in the middle of such a hotbed, I have seen many diagnostic and therapeutic approaches that have and have not worked. Today I will share my opnion on this debilitating disease. Lyme disease is caused by an organism known as a spirochaete and named Borrelia burgdorferi. It is transmitted by tick bites. It has been found worldwide and in ancient chinese medical literature they actually describe a syndrome very similar to Lyme disease, thousands of years before Lyme, Connecticut was named! In the United States, more than 90% of the cases occur in the Northeast, with California and Missippi second. It is fairly common in dogs, but rarely seen in cats, although I have seen some cats with it.

The main clinical signs include a sudden yet recurring lameness that may shift from leg to leg. Sometimes this lameness is associated with a fever and depression. Occassionally you will see swollen lymph nodes. Sometimes the joints may be swollen, warm and painful and they usually walk stiffly with a hunched back. Animals with Lyme disease really look painful and stiff and commonly are very sensitive to touch and may cry out with even the slightest touch. I have seen dogs that were diagnosed with slipped discs in their neck and crying in pain and it was actually lyme disease causing muscle spasms in the neck and they only improved when they were administered the appropriate antibiotic. Sometimes you will see the classic red round target lesion around a tick bite on your pet and within a few days they may show the signs of lameness, fever and sensitivity to touch. I saw this on my own golden retriever and within a few days he woke like a stiff 90 year old man that could hardly make it to his food bowl. I immediately treated him and he improved within twenty four hours.

If your pet is not diagnosed and treated immediately, the disease can spread to the heart, kidneys and the nervous system including the spinal cord and the brain, showing signs associated with these organs. The organism has been found in connective tissue, in joints, muscles and lymph nodes. It is one nasty bug! Besides these classic symptoms, how can your veterinarian diagnose it? If suspicious, it is very important to run a special blood test called a Lyme titer. Now, there are two types known as the Elisa test and the western blot test. My particular preference is to run the western blot test. It may take a bit longer to run, but I find it much more accurate. It is not uncommon that the Elisa test is negative and your dog still has Lyme disease. If your dog or cat or horse has many of the symptoms of Lyme disease and the test is negative, do not be fooled. I still recommend treating the animal aggressively with antibiotics. Often, I will not even wait for the test to comeback to treat my patient if enough of the symptoms are present to suggest Lyme disease. Believe me, I like to be as natural as possible and use antibiotics only when absolutely necessary, but this is one time when they are neededfast! Often times the response to appropriate antibiotics is quite rapid. In horses, I have developed an acupuncture diagnostic exam that I have found to be as diagnostic if not better than the standard laboratory tests and I will be publishing on that shortly.

Lyme disease has often been nicknamed the great imitator. This is because many of the symptoms can mimic symptoms of many other diseases because it can effect so many different organ systems. I remember one gordon setter puppy I saw and the first symptom of Lyme disease that showed up was lack of appetite and an arrythmia in the heart that I picked up on my exam. It only got stiff and lame three days later. Fortunately I knew the heart problem wasn't there a few weeks prior on a normal exam and was suspicious of Lyme and we treated it successfully and the heart problem resolved. When considering Lyme disease as a possibility, one must also think about other tick-transmitted diseases such as Rocky Mountain spotted fever or canine erlichiosis. Arthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, other joint diseases as well as kidney failure or heart problems from other causes need to be considered as well.

What is the best treatment? As I mentioned previously, this is one place where I feel strongly that immediate antibiotic therapy is imperative. It appears that doxycycline and amoxicillin seem to be the best antibiotics against Lyme disease. I suggest staying on antibiotics for a minimum of a month, sometimes even longer. I have seen dogs that were only on antibiotics for two weeks and then it comes back with a vengeance and does not respond as well afterwards. A holistic approach would also include using probiotics such as acidophilus to keep the healthy bacteria alive in your pets gastrointestinal tract. In addition, it has been found that the organism can actually further suppress the immune system. So I usually recommend nutritional and herbal support to boost the immune system as well. This would include echinacea and garlic as I have mentioned in previous columns of the Healing Arts. Sometimes I see chronic Lyme disease in a dog or cat and I will also use acupuncture to boost the immune system and relieve the pain and inflammation. Homeopathic remedies have also appeared to be helpful. The most successful of these incltloong@interport.net ude homeopathic Ledum and a Lyme nosode. Lyme nosode is a homeopathic remedy that is made from the killed organism, diluted, successed and potentized to the point that nothing of the original organism remains. For appropriate dosages of these remedies, you should contact a homeopathic veterinarian.

As far as prevention goes, this is a sticky wicket. There is a great deal of controversy concerning the dog Lyme vaccine. There is a great debate about how well they actually work as well as potential side effects. There are publications concerning its safety, but the researchers only look 24 hours after the vaccine reaction. Research at Cornell University veterinary school brings up some suspicion that there may be potential long term side effects of the vaccine, though nothing is certain. These side effects may vary from rheumatoid arthritis and all the major symptoms of lyme disease to acute kidney failure. Though nothing is definitively documented, I personally am very cautious and do not recommend vaccinating for Lyme disease even though it is so epidemic here. Many veterinary schools and major veterinary centers do not recommend the vaccine for the same concern regarding potential side effects. I have seen all the symptoms of Lyme disease in dogs four to eight weeks after the vaccine and when I sent the western blot test to Cornell, it shows no evidence of the disease, only evidence of the dog having been vaccinated, yet the dog shows all the classic symptoms of the disease. There is a new dog vaccine out that claims that it does not have any of the side effects, however, I still remain cautious and will wait for a year or two to see. I personally would rather treat my dog for Lyme disease rather than risking the potential side effects of the vaccine. In addition, there is a question of actually how well it works. Until more safety and decreased risk of side effects and efficacy are demonstrated, I recommend holding off.

The best prevention still is checking your dog carefully and removing any ticks at least once a day. Collars do not seem to work that well, although some of the topical insecticides do seem to work well, but then one has to weigh the potential toxic effects of these insecticide from the beneficial effects of preventing ticks. Again, I tend to compromise and only use the topicals during the greatest incidence of tick usually in the spring and fall. It is all a balance! Keep your pets away from tick infested areas, check them daily and stay healthy and happy and tick free!!

Agility Aerobics

I have finally signed up Riley for a beginner's Agility-Obedience class. We went to our first class yesterday. I felt like I went through agility aerobics, for ME, not him!

We only have four people with four dogs in our class. This makes for a great ratio when we are working through obstacles, but heck, it is also not a lot of down time. Riley had fun. I, however, felt like a circus clown. I had to learn the names of all the obstacles to cue him: jump, tunnel, chute, doughnut, table, weave! And all the while I am waving little pieces of hotdog and cheese in his face, pointing through these obstacles, clicking my clicker with my right hand, and trying to hold his leash all at the same time.

We were to follow a few simple rules:

1. Introduce the obstacles slowly and carefully to the dog. They have no experiences with this equipment, thus it makes it quite easy to shape a positive association with everything. Once a dog is spooked by falling equipment or excessive noise, it takes much longer to unlearn the fear association.
Well, Riley being the confident fun boy that he is, had a great time. Hey, all he had to do was eat hotdog placed on all sorts of strange equipment.

2. You never go back through an obstacle that you just went through. Uh, this one's tricky when your dog's already gone through the tunnel but wants a return trip to double check for hot dog remains.

3. Don't use a recall command to call a dog through an obstacle. Why? Well, I quickly learned that my boy knows his commands quite well and I was totally confusing him. Let me explain quickly that the chute starts off as an open tunnel but then becomes a soft, flaccid tunnel in which the dogs have to push through with blind faith that there is light at the end. So Riley begins at one end of the chute peering in to see where the hotdog pieces are. I am at the exit side, holding it open to show him where the end is. I signal to him, "Riley, Chute!" And he begins to take a step into the opening. I am so excited I start babbling a million commands, "Good boy! Riley. Good chute! Good chute! Riley......COME." My good boy has been listening to me babble nonsence and finally hears a command he undertands, "come." He dutifully backs up, exits the entrance of the chute and comes running around to meet me at the other side. And when he gets to my side, of course he peers in as if to say, "So what are you looking at from over here? Where's the hotdog?" Urgh, I'm so lame.

Our friends, Jill and Jaxx just had their first agility class last week. I wonder if they had as much fun as we did. We will have to share notes and let the dogs talk it over.