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Samson Suffers from Separation Anxiety

The Good Dog Blog — Thu, 08 Jul 2010 19:46:00 GMT

Many dogs experience stress and anxiety when their people leave them unattended at home. This is commonly referred to as separation anxiety. How do we know if Samson is suffering from such anxiety? He may react to the stress in one or more ways. He may simply become depressed as you get ready to leave. He will become lethargic and just lay down, showing you his big sad brown eyes. He may cling to you more than usual as you move through the house getting ready to leave. He may begin to whine, cry or even bark. He may even try to start a game with you in the hopes you’ll stick around and play. Or he may not do any of these things before you leave. Samson may mess in the house shortly after you leave. Or he may be destructive – digging at and/or tearing up toys, paper, furniture; chewing on furniture or wood molding throughout the house. If he’s left in the back yard, he may be destructive out there – digging frantically, destroying patio furniture, jumping the fence or trying to dig out under the fence. If he’s crated, Samson may actually injure his mouth or paws as he frantically tries to chew or scratch his way out of the crate. Your neighbors may tell you that Samson was crying, barking or even howling for minutes or possibly the entire time you were gone.

We need to be careful that we do not confuse boredom for separation anxiety. Most separation anxiety behaviors will manifest within the first 10-15 minutes after you have left. If you are able to determine that Samson is fine for the first hour (or four) that you are gone, and then he begins to tear up the furniture or destroy your pile of bills, then we are looking at a dog who has become bored and is trying to entertain himself. This is not separation anxiety; rather it is an announcement that he needs to have more interesting toys and entertainment options available to him when you will be gone for long periods of time.

The most common separation anxiety issues I deal with are indoor potty while unattended and destructive behavior. I will address each in turn.

POTTYING AS A STRESS REACTION TO SEPARATION ANXIETY

First, pick up Samson’s water about an hour before you need to leave, and make sure he has a supervised potty break prior to you leaving. This can be on-leash if necessary to keep it from turning into to play time. Be patient. Be encouraging. Be quiet. Take him to the correct spot, tell him your command to indicate that it's potty time ("go potty", "do your business", etc). Wait quietly and patiently. Give him a chance to sniff around and find the right spot. The process sniffing actually helps dogs to go. Once he starts to potty, whisper a praise, "Good potty, Samson." When he's done, make a fuss over him. Tell him what a good boy he is and how smart he is for pottying where you want him to. You can offer Samson a treat while you’re still standing right there at the potty spot, or you can remove his leash and let him run around for a minute. You can even toss a ball and play fetch for a minute or two. Then take him back inside.

If you are going to be gone for more than an hour, instead of leaving water down, put a bowl with a half dozen ice cubes in it. He can lick the ice directly, eat the ice, or lick up whatever melts. Any of these are fine. The idea is simply slowing down how much water he ingests at one time. Just like humans, if he takes it in slowly, the body has more time to absorb and use the water, rather than simply flushing it straight through his system. Think about this: if you slurp down a 32 oz soda in 20 minutes, you will very likely need to pee about an hour later. If, on the other hand, you nurse that 32 oz soda over the course of 6 or 8 hours, you might not need to potty at all during that entire time. The more slowly you ingest it, the more easily your body can absorb the liquid.

NOTE: Dogs retain a small amount of urine even after they "empty their bladder" for the purpose of marking, so it is still possible that Samson would be able to mark even immediately after you witness him potty outside. So, if his indoor urinating is more about marking territory and less about separation anxiety, then there will still be work to be done.

In the meantime, anywhere that Samson has already pottied should be cleaned with a product such as PetZyme or Simple Solution. You are looking for a product that contains nonpathogenic (friendly) bacteria. I find this works much better than enzyme based cleaners as the living bacteria literally eats and digests the enzymes in the urine that make it smell like urine. Follow the instructions for application, and you may need to apply more than once for complete cleaning. If you are not certain of all the places where Samson has pottied, invest in a portable black light. You can conduct your own little CSI experiment. After sundown, turn off all the lights and run the black light about 6 inches above the surfaces. Urine will glow fluorescent yellow. After the cleaning product has worked, the area in question will glow either smaller, or not glow at all because it has been properly cleaned up. If you still see a glow, reapply the product for a second round of cleaning.

IF YOU FIND A PUDDLE AFTER HE HAS FINISHED, ALL YOU CAN DO IS QUIETLY CLEAN IT UP. YOU CANNOT SCOLD SAMSON FOR IT AFTER THE FACT OR YOU WILL TEACH HIM ONLY TO FEAR YOUR ARRIVAL. IN FACT, IF YOU ARE DEALING WITH A TRUE SEPARATION ANXIETY, THEN THE LESS OF A BIG DEAL YOU MAKE OF IT, THE BETTER BECAUSE ANTICIPATED ANGER OF YOUR ARRIVAL MAY INCREASE SAMSON’S ANXIETY WHEN ALONE, AND MAKE ALL HIS DESTRUCTIVE BEHAVIORS WORSE, INCLUDING POTTYING. FURTHER, IF SAMSON MAKES THE ASSOCIATION THAT YOU ARRIVE HOME ANGRY WHEN THERE IS POTTY IN THE ROOM WITH HIM, HE MAY ATTEMPT TO HIDE THE EVIDENCE OF THIS STRESS REACTION BY INGESTING (EATING) THE POTTY (PEE OR POOP). SO YOUR ANGER AT SEEING A POTTY MESS CAN INADVERTENTLY ENCOURAGE OTHER NOT-SO-APPETIZING BEHAVIORS IN SAMSON…

OTHER DESTRUCTIVE BEHAVIOR CAUSED BY SEPARATION ANXIETY

First, I should point out that it's not necessary to allow Samson the run of the whole house. Putting him in a single room where he has not been destructive before may be sufficient to curb this unwanted behavior. Many dogs feel it is their job to protect and guard the house while you are gone. If we remember that a dog’s natural home (den) would be only large enough for him to comfortably lay down, then your 1200- 1500- 2500-square foot house can feel like an overwhelming amount of territory to guard all by himself. One bedroom, a single bathroom or even a decent sized laundry room may be as much space as he is comfortable with while alone in the house. Put in a nice bed for him, a couple of toys at a time (that get rotated every couple days with others to keep them interesting), a long lasting chew such as real marrow bone or a Kong stuffed with peanut butter (and frozen to make it last even longer), maybe even have a radio on your local NPR station for some quiet conversation. All of these comforts and distractions, along with a much smaller space, may help him feel calmer and more secure, and therefore less destructive.

PRACTICE YOUR LEAVING ROUTINES

You can work with Samson on departure routines to help desensitize him to the process. I suggest this because dogs read our signals very well. In the beginning it may only be when you actually leave that he becomes stressed. But he will quickly learn that when you pick up your keys, that means your leaving, and when you put on your shoes that means you're about to get your keys, etc. This signal reading can cause Samson to connect the dots and get anxious earlier and earlier in the process of your leaving preparations. So we can work with him to learn that just because you're doing some of these things does not mean that you are definitely leaving. It can help Samson learn to remain calm even when faced with signals that were previously making him upset.

So, every day, at least 3 times when you're not leaving, put on your shoes and walk to the door. Do not speak to him or make physical or eye contact. Simply put your shoes on, walk to the door, stand there for half a second, return to the main space, remove your shoes and go back to what you had been doing. Once your shoes are off, and if Samson has remained calm throughout the process, give him a treat and some good love and praise. Wait 10-60 minutes and repeat that exercise. Vary how long you wait as you do these exercises over the next few weeks so that he is not anticipating your next move.

After you have done that at least 3 times per day over about 6 days, then start adding things to your routine one bit at a time. Put your shoes on and grab your keys, go to the door, return, put keys down, take off shoes and go about your business. Always refrain from interaction during the exercise, but treat and praise after the exercise is complete if Samson remained calm, to reinforce his calm behavior.

After 5 or 6 days of successfully doing that 2-part step (shoes and keys), add the next bit: shoes, keys and the coffee-to-go mug if you usually take one (or whatever else you usually grab). Repeat as above. Then start adding in the actual opening of the door.

Initially you will literally just open the door and promptly close it again. Depending on Samson’s reaction, you may even need to baby-step it further: hand on knob but don't actually do anything; hand on knob and turn but don't open door; turn knob and just barely crack door then promptly close; turn knob crack door a little further and then close; open door but don't step through and promptly close; open door count to 3 close door; open door step through and promptly return; open door and step through start to close door (but only halfway) then promptly return; open door and step through then almost close door and promptly return; open door and step through then close door and immediately open again and return; etc. Build up to the point where you can close the door all the way and be outside for 10 minutes before returning, while Samson remains quiet inside.

Building up time is done slowly. At first you will close the door and promptly open it, then you will close the door and count to 3 and open it. Then 5 seconds, then 7, then 10, 15 seconds, 20 seconds, 25 seconds, 30 seconds, 45, 1 minute, 1 minute and 10 seconds, 1 minute and 20 seconds, etc. In this way you are building on baby-step successes. This is important. If Samson can allow you to leave and remain calm and quiet for 1 minute, but when you attempt 1 minute and 10 seconds, he starts to freak out, back up to something you know he can do successfully. In this case, I would go back to 45 seconds. Do at least 6 repetitions of the exercise at 45 seconds to reinforce his success and then build up more slowly: 45 seconds, 50, 55, 1 minute, 1 minute and 2 seconds, 1 minute and 4 seconds, 1 minute and 6 seconds, 1 minute and 8 seconds, 1 minute and 10 seconds... We want to build on success, and so we will take as small an increment of change as necessary to ensure that success. Do multiple repetitions at each time increment to ensure he truly is successful at that stage before you add more time.

This back-up process is true for any stage in this training. If Samson is fine with you doing all the inside stuff, but when you open the door and step through, he starts to freak out, back up to where you just turn the knob and start there and work up more slowly to better ensure those successes of calm, quiet behavior.

During all of these exercises you want to refrain from looking at him, touching him or speaking to him as you "get ready to go". When you have completed the exercise for that round, if Samson has remained calm throughout, then make a quiet fuss over him - love, pet, praise and treat to reinforce that calm and quiet behavior gets rewarded. If he freaks out during any of these exercises, don't freak out with him or that will reinforce his behavior. Simply tell him, "Not it" or "No sir" or whatever command works for you - but not just an angry "No." I’m suggesting a phrase that brings about a tone of "That's not the correct answer, sorry. Try again." Not an out-and-out scolding.

As Samson becomes comfortable with your routine (shoes, keys, whatever else your normal routine includes like brushing teeth, pouring coffee, etc) you can start to add in giving him a yummy interactive toy. Vary when you happen to offer the toy so it's not always in the same place in the routine. Great toys are real marrow bones, Kongs stuffed with low fat peanut butter or low fat cream cheese - these can be frozen to make that treat last longer, PetStages Jack which can also be loaded both with kibble and soft treats like the Kong, flavored Nylabones, etc. Try to avoid raw hide as they are not great for the digestive system. Try to avoid pigs ears and other things that can be devoured in seconds. The idea is to offer something that can occupy his attention for 10 or more minutes.

With these interactive toys, be sure to introduce them when you are around as well. Offer them to him when you're home with him. Let him have the toy for long enough to really enjoy it, but not so long that he gets bored with it. This may be anywhere from 2 minutes to 30 minutes, depending on Samson. Take it away from him before he gets bored with it. Put it in a drawer or on top of the fridge so that when it's not available to him, it's not even on his radar. When you take the interactive toy away, promptly turn Samson’s attention to another toy or game or a meal time, so that he is not being "punished" but rather simply redirected to another activity. By making it part of Samson’s regular activity with you, then it will not scream out that you are about to leave when you offer it during your departure routine. In fact, many dogs come to like our departure because it means they get to spend more time with that toy they love.

So, to recap: For the stressed potty, pick up water an hour before you leave and make sure there is a properly supervised potty break prior to your departure. Leave ice cubes in a bowl for him if you’ll be gone more than an hour.

For the destructive behavior, confine Samson to a single, small space rather than having the run of the whole house. Make sure he has a bed, a couple of regularly rotated interactive toys including long-lasting chew toys, and perhaps leave a radio quietly on a talk radio station so that he has voices to keep him company.

In general, you should keep 10 or 12 toys in a place inaccessible to him and rotate just 2 or 3 toys every couple days to keep them new and interesting for Samson. When you're home, do the exercises described above to help desensitize him to the steps of your departure routine. You can fit the training in to the rest of your schedule by multitasking. During commercial breaks is a great time - instead of fast forwarding the TiVo, simply let the 2 or 3 minutes of commercials run while you do a round of departure routine. While food is in the microwave or you're waiting for the water to boil, do a round of training, etc.

Be patient. Separation anxiety will take some time to work through. If you remain calm, and patient, continue to work with him on the departure routines, and set him up for success with the methods described above, Samson will almost certainly learn that being alone for a little while is not the end of the world and that you will return.

Puppies Bite - What Can We Do About That?

The Good Dog Blog — Fri, 21 May 2010 19:12:00 GMT

Puppies bite. It’s a fact. It’s normal and natural behavior. But is it something that we have to just accept? Do we just put up with it – taking all the nips, scrapes, actual blood – and just hope that Puppy grows out of it? Absolutely NOT. Some dogs are more exuberant than others when playing and so may bite more and/or harder than other puppies. But all puppies bite both during play as well as at other times. It's part of what puppies do. They are exploring the world around them with the only tool they have - their mouth. They do not have a clear understanding of their own strength and do not have an innate understanding of how to be gentle. It is up to those around Puppy to teach her how to be gentle.

Further, puppy teeth are like little needles. They are razor sharp and it does not take much pressure for a puppy to break the skin. This is nature's only way for Puppy to defend herself. As a puppy, her jaw muscles are not yet strong and developed so she needs that edge, the advantage that a mouth full of little needles provides. In a wolf pack (and other wild canid packs), pups are left in the den while adults go out on the hunt. Those razor sharp puppy teeth could save her life should an intruder try steal her. Look closely at the teeth of a puppy compared to that of an adult and you'll see that the adult's teeth are larger and more rounded than the puppy's. This means that the same bite force from an adult will be less painful and cause less physical damage than that of the puppy. Surprising, I know… but true.

Puppies lose their teeth usually between 4 and 6 months of age. So you might see an increase in biting behavior as they loose their teeth and teethe while the adult teeth are coming in. Further, it takes roughly 12months for adult teeth to firmly set in the dog's jaw. This means that chewing/biting behavior may continue for the first 2 years of the dog's life. Some dogs will need to chew for a lifetime as it's fun and comforting; others completely grow out of it. If you understand why the dog is chewing/biting it can help you emotionally and make it easier to retain your patience as you guide your dog to the appropriate alternatives and help them learn what they can and what they cannot bite.

During the puppy stage dogs learn what is called ‘bite inhibition.’ This is the process of learning how to control the force of the bite (inhibit the desire to bite down fully) so that it is acceptable play and not aggressive or actually damaging to the recipient. The very best way for a dog to learn this is from other dogs. Dogs are significantly better at teaching what I call 'Doggie Etiquette' than humans. Those little needle teeth play a big role in learning bite inhibition because such little force is needed to cause pain. If they bite a little too hard while wrestling with a littermate, that puppy will yelp and cry and not want to play anymore. While playing with older dogs, a too-hard bite from puppy teeth will result in the older dog correcting Puppy by way of a snarl, growl and (if necessary) a corrective nip to teach a younger or less well-mannered dog to back off. The more socialization Puppy can get the better. Dog parks are great places for this. Now, it is necessary to supervise and make sure things don't get out of hand because if she doesn't heed the lesson, she may end up in a scrap that she didn't want to be in. Scraps like that can be excellent lessons, but can also cause damage to one or both dogs and embarrassment for the humans, so we have to find a balance of letting the dogs teach and learn with each other, but also ultimately supervising and intervening when necessary. If Puppy is being overzealous in her biting play with another dog, try to count to 10 and see if the other dog can make itself clear. See if she learns the lesson and backs off. If she doesn't then you'll need to intervene and remove her from that situation. Pay attention. If the other dog is continuing to play with her and is not looking stressed, is not growling, snarling or snapping directly at her face, then they may be playing happily. If the other dog is doing any of the above, or trying to just run away from Puppy, it is time to intervene. If the other dog seems intimidated, is on the ground, showing the belly and/or yelping in fear possibly with hackles raised and tail between its legs, it is time to intervene. We don't want Puppy to become a bully.

CAVEAT: If you interrupt an encounter or split up a scuffle out in public, it is hugely important that you DO NOT LEAVE the area immediately. If you leave on that sour note Puppy will end up associating the park (or wherever you are) with sour encounters and it will either make her hesitant to go again or she will be on guard from the moment of arrival and more likely to "get into it" with another dog at future visits. If there is a need to break up a fight, put her on her leash and walk the perimeter of the park. Give her time to sniff things and enjoy being there again. Give yourself time to catch your breath and calm down. It's important that the last moment of this visit is a positive one. If possible, try to encourage her to have a positive encounter with another dog before leaving - a polite greeting** - so that the parting moment for both her and you is a positive one. That will help make everyone feel better about returning. Be honest with other owners and tell them you're trying to socialize your puppy while she's still young so she can learn to be a polite dog and you're doing your best to let the other dogs teach her - with your ultimate supervision - so that she learns the lessons well.

**Polite Greeting: If Puppy is having trouble greeting dogs politely, ask the owner of a dog that appears to be friendly and fairly calm if they can help you to train your dog. Most dog owners are happy to help. Hold your puppy so that her bum is facing the other dog. The puppy should be on the ground, but you are physically restraining her so she cannot turn around. If necessary, you can put Puppy’s head between your legs/knees so that her head can’t snap around unexpectedly. Allow the other dog to sniff your puppy. The dog will likely sniff the genitals, belly and may even approach the head. Do not allow the head sniff just yet. Once the other dog has had a good sniff, ask that dog’s owner to do as you did – turn their dog around, hold them steady and if necessary, secure the dog’s head between the owner’s knees/legs. Allow Puppy to get a good sniff. Once Puppy has sniffed the genitals, belly, etc., then back her up and have the other owner “free” their dog. Allow the dogs to greet calmly and sniff each other’s ears and face. This may lead to a game – if so GREAT! That was a perfect greeting! It may lead to one or the other dog staring down (challenging) or snarling a little. Pay attention! If this happens, you want to interrupt it before anything happens. It was still a good greeting exercise, they just aren’t going to be friends that day.

All this Dog Etiquette socialization is great, but how do we get Puppy to stop biting US?!?!
As far as her interactions with humans, it is about a consistent response.
Here's what has worked for me:

1. Consistency in response: No teeth contact at all. If you feel teeth, the game ends immediately. Period. And a correction is made (more detail below).

2. Redirect the behavior: Have a toy right there so that when Puppy bites, you can correct her and immediately redirect her to an appropriate alternative.

2a. Have a variety of toys - soft and plush, hard but rubbery so there is some give, hard Nylabone or plastic and even real marrow bone that can crunch and break if she works at it long enough.

3. Encourage gentle behavior: and praise, praise, praise when she is behaving politely.

4. Proper correction (from #1 above): If you feel teeth there is a series of things that will happen simultaneously. The verbal response should mimic that of Mommy dog. I know many suggest mimicking the puppy 'yelp' but I have found that this is usually more encouraging than discouraging. I have had excellent luck with Mom's reaction instead. This makes sense because you are in an alpha role and you're educating your puppy. So, how does Mom respond? With a low, sharp growl. This is not a loud response nor is it high pitched. Men have a much easier time with this because they tend to have deeper, more gravelly voices naturally. I tell women to find their "inner demon". You want this voice to come from deep in your throat/chest and it should be growly/gravelly. The words should be a sharp and quick, "No bites!" and it should sound like a growl; the volume of this is somewhere between a whisper and normal speaking volume. The command you're using is No Bites. This is an important difference from a simple "No" command that we may use at other spontaneous moments of misbehavior. You want to be consistent and specific that you are teaching a specific behavior change and a specific command for it. This will allow you to use that command in other situations in the future, say if Puppy starts to chew/bite furniture or your favorite shoes or even the cat...

As you speak this "Nobites!" command (yes, you want it to be quick and sharp enough that it really does almost run together into a single word), you will simultaneously pull your hand away from the dog's face and pull your fingers into a fist. No, you are not threatening to strike your puppy. You are removing targets from her space. Fingers are moving targets and they are super fun to try to catch - like a gnat that flits around her face. By making a fist you remove all such targets. So at the same moment you are giving a firm, sharp, growly verbal correction you are also removing the target of the dog's efforts to make oral contact. Then immediately grab one of the toys and offer it up. In your sweetest, chirpiest, high-pitched, most playful tone (even a little baby-talkish) tell her, "Bite this instead." You can even get into the game by saying, "Get-it, get-it, get-it!" The important thing in this is to make it exciting. Don't just shove the toy in her mouth. Move it around a couple inches in front of her. Make it a target for her to attack and encourage her to do so. Once she's involved with it, you can play a little gentle tug (nothing wrong with that game - more later) or you can toss it and encourage her to chase it and pounce the toy. When she is making full mouth contact with the appropriate alternative (a toy), tell her what a good girl she is for playing with the right thing.

If she continues to go after you, rather than pick her up and put her in her crate (physically interacting with her more) for a “time out,” simply get up and walk out of the room. Close the door if necessary to keep Puppy from following you. Wait 30 seconds, then return and offer up a toy for a game. This is how to properly end a game when Puppy is not playing nice. You don't want to increase your interaction with her when she bites, you want to end your physical and verbal interaction altogether and immediately. But upon your return, you must act as though nothing happened. Dogs do not carry grudges and she will not understand why you are angry with her when you return. So act as though you're just greeting her for the first time that day and you happen to have an awesome toy to play with.

The other half of this is teaching her what gentle oral interaction is acceptable. After you have given her a Mom's correction and redirected her to a toy, you can offer her the back of your hand (fingers tucked out of reach) or the flat of your palm and encourage gentle interaction – sniffs and kisses. If she sniffs, praise her. If she kisses/licks, praise her. Don't let her get obsessed with licking - three or four, maybe 6 licks while telling her "good girl. We like kisses." and then tell her simply and firmly (but not growling) "enough" and remove your hand from her space. This way you will be teaching her both what is unacceptable interaction and what is absolutely acceptable and appreciated interaction. You can decide if you do not want her to kiss your face or any other particular body part, simply by telling her "no" and redirecting her to an acceptable location. Some people like to have their feet licked, but not their hands - or their hands but not their face. It's up to you. The important thing is that for every "No" you give her, you must also give her a "Yes." Just like with human children, this is how Puppy will learn the boundaries and this is how she'll learn to play gently.

Also, when Puppy is calm, half asleep and just relaxing with you, offer her the back of your hand or the flat of your palm (or whatever body part you’re most comfortable with) and encourage that gentle interaction. She is even more likely to just sniff or lick when she is totally chill and even half asleep. This is an excellent opportunity to capture that gentle behavior and praise her for it. When she is calm and relaxed, your praise should be quiet and calm as well.

Regarding playing tug: Tug is an excellent game for both owner and dog when played appropriately. It is good exercise for the dog's chest muscles and jaw muscles and is good eye-mouth coordination practice. It is a great way to bond with your dog. The rules, though, are important. Tug should never pull you off balance. If Puppy pulls harder than you'd like, simply drop the toy and turn your back. After a brief pause, you can resume the game. If teeth make contact with your hand, the game ends - drop the toy and walk away. Teeth-hand contact typically only happens out of zealousness for the game and the dog’s effort to get a better or more complete grip on the toy, but you need to teach the dog boundaries - that they cannot get too close to your handhold during the game. It is OK to let the dog win a couple rounds of tug - that's what makes it fun, but you decide when the game ends and it ends one of two ways: First (and this is better), you end up with the toy. Second (this can work too, but is not quite as good), you simply let go and walk away. If you wind up with the toy in the end, then you have had a good game that had give-and-take, but in the end you retained your alpha status both by deciding when to stop playing and by keeping the toy for yourself. If you simply walk way, you still retain the alpha status because you decided when you were done, but the dog has the toy and that can possibly leave the dog feeling like they might be able to truly "win" it next time which can make her more competitive. Also, by ending the game the same way you are correcting if there is teeth-hand contact, you may confuse the dog. If when the game ends, she did not have mouth contact with you, it may make it more difficult for her to learn the lesson (make a strong association) that the game ends, or is at least interrupted, under specific circumstances: when she puts her mouth on you. If you don’t want to actually take the toy with you, you can end the tug game with the toy in your hand, and then toss it so Puppy can go chase after it and then you are free to shift your attention or leave the room. Once you’ve abandoned the toy that way, there is no power struggle or even power suggestion when she retrieves the toy.

Tasty But Toxic: Part II - Plants and Miscellaneous Household Items

The Good Dog Blog — Tue, 27 Apr 2010 23:34:00 GMT

PLANTS AND OTHER MISC. STUFF

IF THIS IS AN EMERGENCY AND YOU BELIEVE YOUR PET HAS INGESTED A TOXIC SUBSTANCE. DO NOT WAIT. CALL THE ANIMAL POISON CONTROL CENTER AT 888-426-4435.

More than 700 varieties of plants have been identified as having the ability to cause toxic reactions in our pets. These toxic reactions can range from mild tummy upset to localized irritation of the mouth/throat (if ingested) to death. I am not going to even try to list all of them. This list has a dozen of the most common plants that may be found in homes. They are not in a particular order, so please read through the entire list.

** This list is geared toward dogs, but you can assume that if it is harmful to dogs it is likely to also be harmful to cats. In many cases, these plants are significantly more harmful to cats than they are to dogs. Please research any plants that your cat may have access to in order to ensure its safety.

If you have a plant in your home, garden or other area of your property that is not listed here, please check the following websites for further information.

http://www.aspca.org/pet-care/poison-control/plants/

This is the ASPCA website. Here you can look for plants that are toxic to dogs, cats and horses, or you can limit the search to a single animal. This site includes pictures of the plants for easy identification

http://www.ansci.cornell.edu/plants/dogs/index.html

This link is to Cornell University’s Department of Animal Science site for toxic plants. The list is broken down into categories such as household plants, garden vegetable plants, trees and shrubs, etc.

PLANTS:

MARIJUANA: I mention this one first because it is already very common, and with more states legalizing the medicinal use, its presence in pet-homes is growing. The toxin is tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). Pets are more likely to be affected by ingesting the plant than by inhaling the smoke from the plant, but it is not a good idea to try to give your pet a “contact high” as symptoms may develop from that as well. Symptoms can vary based on individual dog, dosage exposure and potency of product. Symptoms begin 30-90 minutes after ingestion and include: dilated pupils, excessive drooling, disorientation, recumbency (leaning, not holding their own weight), incontinence, increase or decrease in heart rate, extreme sensitivity to touch/pain/other stimuli (hyperesthesia), lethargy, lack of coordination resulting in a wobbly or staggering gate (ataxia), tremors, seizure, depression, excessive sleep (somnolence) which can approach coma, slow or shallow breathing (respiratory depression) and potentially death. THC is stored in the fat cells, so symptoms may last up to 72 hours. Immediate attention from a veterinarian is appropriate if you suspect marijuana ingestion. Veterinarians are not obligated to report to the police, so do not let that stop you from seeking assistance if your dog (or other pet) has discovered your stash.

APPLES, APRICOTS, PLUMS, PEACHES, CHERRIES: Unless your dog has a particular allergy, small bits of the flesh of these fruits should not cause your dog harm. The stems, leaves and seeds of these fruits contain cyanide which can be toxic if eaten. Symptoms include: dilated pupils, breathing difficulty, panting, drooling, dark red mucous membranes, vomiting, lethargy and shock.

ALOE: As an ingredient in shampoos and the like it is not toxic. Ingesting aloe gel can cause diarrhea and vomiting in dogs. It may also cause loss of appetite, abdominal pain, swollen tongue, pale gums/tongue, muscle tremors or full convulsions.

ELEPHANT EARS (CALADIUMS): This common decorative plant can cause irritation to the lips and tongue, vomiting and difficult swallowing.

DEVIL’S IVY (GOLDEN POTHOS): This is the # 1 household plant, so if you have plants in your home, you probably have at least one of these leafy green guys. Ingesting some of this plant can cause your dog to experience vomiting, excessive drooling, difficulty swallowing and localized irritation around the lips and tongue.

LILIES: While pretty, lilies should not be a treat of choice. Most varieties of lily are toxic to some degree to dogs and cats. Symptoms vary based on type of plant, but can include: diarrhea (possibly bloody), vomiting, difficulty swallowing and burning of the mouth and tongue. More serious symptoms may include a drop in blood pressure, arrhythmias (out-of-rhythm heart beat), tremors and convulsions, liver damage, kidney failure and even a suppression in the production of bone marrow.

CYCLAMEN: A very pretty pink or red flower, but it is potentially deadly to our dogs. Immediate veterinary treatment is necessary if your dog ingests any of this plant. Symptoms include vomiting and death.

GLADIOLAS: Often part of bouquets, these flowers can cause depression, excessive drooling, abdominal pain, vomiting (potentially bloody) as well as diarrhea – also potentially bloody.

AZALEA/RHODODENDRON: This is a highly toxic plant. Ingestion can cause a host of symptoms that begin within just a few hours of ingestion. Symptoms include acute digestive upset displaying as excessive drooling, loss of appetite, vomiting, incontinence (diarrhea or frequent bowel movements) and colic. You may also see depression, ataxia (loss of muscle coordination, leg paralysis, weakness), and recumbency (leaning against objects/humans). These symptoms can last for 2 or more days. There may be signs of recovery at that point, or the animal may slip into a coma and die.

DIEFFENBACHIA: This common house plant can cause difficulty swallowing, excessive drooling, vomiting, and oral irritation including an intense burning of the mouth, tongue and lips.

DAISY: This very common garden plant can cause skin irritation, excessive drooling, vomiting, diarrhea and lack of coordination.

DOG DAISY: While it has a name that we may like, ingesting this variety of daisy can cause skin irritation, diarrhea, vomiting and increased urination.

CALIFORNIA IVY: Found in the yards of many west coast homes, ingestion of this ivy can cause abdominal pain, excessive drooling, diarrhea and vomiting. In this case the leaves are more toxic than the berries, but neither should be ingested.

MISCELLANEOUS HOUSEHOLD ITEMS:

Next is a list of various other items that might be found in your home that could harm your pet. This list is far from exhaustive. If you are concerned that something your pet has eaten may be poisonous or in some other way potentially harmful, please contact your vet immediately. If it is after hours, please contact the animal poison control center at (888) 426-4435.

HUMAN VITAMINS AND SUPPLEMENTS: These pills are dosed for humans and not dogs. Giving them without direct supervision by your pet’s veterinarian can cause damage to the liver and kidneys as well as direct damage to the lining of the stomach and intestines.

TYLENOL: Dog livers do not have the enzymes necessary to break down acetaminophen. Small dogs can have severe reactions to as little as two regular strength tablets. Symptoms include abdominal pain, excessive drooling and lethargy.Immediate intervention by a veterinarian is in order if ingestion occurs.

POTPOURRI: While the individual flower petals in a bowl of potpourri may not be toxic in and of themselves to your pet, the essential oils that are on the petals can be quite toxic. These essential oils can cause burns to the mouth, esophagus and tongue. These burns can be severe. Please keep potpourri and the oils used to refresh it well out of reach of your four-legged companions (this includes cats who can get up on higher shelves).

CITRUS OIL EXTRACTS: Can cause vomiting.

FERTILIZER: Ingesting fertilizer can cause severe damage to the digestive tract (esophagus, stomach, intestines) as well as gastrointestinal blockage that can be fatal. Do not allow your dogs to have access to an area that has just been fertilized. Check the instructions on the product to determine how long you must wait before allowing your dog to enter that area.

MOUSE/RAT POISON: If you need to use a mouse or rat poison at your home, be sure to keep your dog away from that area. This is one of the most toxic things your pet can come in contact with. There are three common types of poisons found in these products, all of them can be fatal to your pets. Bromethalins cause central nervous system (CNS) dysfunction while cholecalciferols can dramatically increase calcium levels – resulting in seizures prior to death. The most commonly found poisons in these rodenticides are anticoagulants. Anticoagulants reduce the production of blood clotting factors, allowing the animal that has ingested it to bleed to death. A general rule of thumb: if it can kill one type of small mammal, it can kill another – yours.

STRING/RIBBON/FLUFF: We may think of string and ribbon as a fairly innocuous item, but ingesting it can cause intestinal obstruction. This can be extremely serious and may require surgical intervention. This is true of the string fringe on rope toys and the stuffing from plush toys. This does not mean that your dog can never play with these toys. What it does mean is that they should be supervised toys so that you can remove the strings or fluff as they become separated from the toy. This way the dog can enjoy the toy and you can help to ensure that they do not ingest the bits that can harm them.

TOBACCO: Ingesting tobacco (eating a cigarette) can not only cause digestive upset, it can also have adverse affects on the nervous system. This can cause a rapid heartbeat, collapse, coma and potentially death. Second hand smoke is not quite as toxic, but can have similar affects on our pets as it does on humans, including lung cancer and emphysema.

BATTERIES: Dogs will sometimes swallow the weirdest things. Batteries, from big D cell down to watch batteries and even hearing aid batteries are potentially deadly. Within 12 hours of swallowing a battery, the alkaline acids can cause a fatal ulceration of the stomach lining. If you fear your dog has swallowed any kind of battery, get them to a vet’s office immediately!

MOUTHWASH: It may taste good, but we don’t swallow it and neither should your dog. Drinking mouthwash can cause excessive drooling, vomiting, seizures and coma.

ANTIFREEZE: Antifreeze tastes sweet and is inviting to your pet to lick it up. But the main ingredient, ethylene glycol, is highly toxic. Symptoms of antifreeze toxicity include vomiting, lethargy, stumbling, seizures and kidney failure. Without immediate treatment, this can quickly become fatal.

MOTH BALLS: We may not think about mothballs as harmful, just a bit smelly. But they contain an insecticide. As mentioned with rat/mouse poisons, if it can kill one type of animal, it can have adverse effects on another type as well. In this case, you will see central nervous system (CNS) excitation and seizures. If not treated immediately, your pet can experience liver failure. Unlike many toxic items your dog may get into, this is one case where you DO NOT WANT TO INDUCE VOMITING.

Tasty But Toxic: Part I - FOODS

The Good Dog Blog — Sat, 20 Mar 2010 21:55:00 GMT

IF THIS IS AN EMERGENCY AND YOU BELIEVE YOUR PET HAS INGESTED A TOXIC SUBSTANCE. DO NOT WAIT. CALL THE ANIMAL POISON CONTROL CENTER AT 888-426-4435.

Dogs love to eat. Dogs love to investigate the world around them and they do most of their investigating first by smelling objects, then by tasting them. Oftentimes this is harmless, if annoying, behavior. Most of the things that dogs get into are not going to cause illness or possibly death, but there are some things out there that could. Many of these potentially deadly things are items found commonly in our homes. Many of these items are foods and medications that are perfectly safe for humans, but can cause devastating results if ingested by our four-legged friends.

I cannot speak to the toxicity of the following items in relation to cats, as my expertise is with dogs. But it is probably safe to say that if it is dangerous to a dog, it is probably also dangerous to a cat. Always check with your veterinarian if you have questions or concerns.

For more information and details on what to do if you fear your dog has been poisoned (gotten into something), please see the animal poison control website at:
www.aspca.org/pet-care/poison-control/?gclid=CKyl38mpyKACFRJaiAodnwEjaA

This blog will list the potentially toxic item as well as the symptoms that can occur from ingesting it. It will be presented in two sections: The first blog will be Foods, while the second entry will address Medications, Plants, Miscellaneous other household items.

COMMON FOODS:
These are not in alphabetical order, but rather start with some of the more well known toxic foods, and then move through lesser known items.

CHOCOLATE/COFFEE (CAFFEINE): We know that caffeine is bad for dogs, but there's more to it than just caffeine in chocolate and coffee that make it so dangerous to dogs. There are substances that are collectively called methylxanthines (theobromine and theophylline), which are found in cacao seeds. Symptoms of ingesting products with these substances can cause vomiting, diarrhea, panting,excessive thirst/urination, abnormal heart rhythm, hyperactivity, tremors,seizures or death.

ALCOHOL (WINE, BEERS, HARD LIQUORS): As funny as it may seem to get your pup intoxicated, I do not recommend it. Giving your dog alcohol can do a lot more than just get him tipsy. It can also cause: vomiting, diarrhea, lack of coordination, depress the central nervous system (brain function and thus heart function), cause breathing difficulties, tremors, coma and even death.

BONES: Fish bones, chicken bones, other small bones.Bones can cause lacerations to the esophagus, stomach or intestines. Bones can also cause intestinal obstructions which, if left untreated, can cause death. Treatment for obstructions is surgical intervention.

FAT TRIMMINGS: Too much fat in the diet can cause pancreatitis – that is inflammation of the pancreas. This is an extraordinarily painful illness that can cause abdominal distention, lack of appetite,dehydration, vomiting, diarrhea, yellow/greasy stool, depression, a hunched posture (holding the stomach) and fever. If the pancreatitis is severe, it can cause a body-wide infection known as sepsis, arrhythmias (irregular heartbeat), breathing difficulties, internal hemorrhages. If inflammation is severe enough, it can cause the pancreatic enzymes to release into the abdominal cavity causing the organs surrounding the pancreas to begin being digested by those enzymes. It is an extremely painful and extremely severe condition that can cause death if not caught quickly enough.

TABLE SCRAPS: Table scraps are not nutritionally balanced and can lead to obesity. We all want to give our pets a treat now and again, but table scraps should never be more than 5% of the daily diet. As a general rule, if it is a scrap – a trimming that you are not prepared to eat yourself – then do not feed it to your pets. Obesity and all the diseases related to it, including diabetes, heart disease, arthritis, pancreatitis, and cancer are all observed in dogs just as they are in humans.

LESSER KNOWN TOXIC FOODS

CAT FOOD: Most cat foods are higher in fat and proteins than dog food and thus can cause health and obesity issues by including too much fat or protein in the dog’s diet.Too much protein in a dog’s diet can actually cause behavioral issues such as hyperactivity and aggression.

MOLDY, SPOILED FOOD/GARBAGE: Spoiled foods can contain all sorts of toxins, which can cause vomiting, diarrhea and potentially affect other organs depending on the particular type of toxin.

ONIONS: Raw,cooked, powdered… any way you slice it, onion in large quantities is bad for dogs. Onions, and to a lesser extent garlic, contain sulfoxides and disulfides,which can cause anemia (iron poor blood). This anemia can reach a critical level and cause death. Avoid onions altogether. Garlic is much less of an issue and the amounts typically found in dog foods and treats is not likely to cause any harm. But, do not offer your dog garlic directly, or foods that have been cooked with large quantities of garlic.

BABY FOOD: Baby foods often contain onion powder (see onions above). The formulation of baby food can also cause nutritional deficiencies if ingested in large quantities.

GRAPES/RAISINS: The toxin in grapes and raisins is still unknown, but there is clinical evidence to show that ingestion of grapes or raisins can cause kidney failure and death in dogs. Grapeseed extract does not seem to be correlated to any kidney issues.

MACADAMIA NUTS: The toxin in macadamia nuts is not yet known, but clinical evidence shows that ingestion can cause malfunction of the digestive system,nervous system and muscles.

PERSIMMONS, PEACH PITS, PLUM PITS: Persimmon seeds,and fruit pits can cause digestive obstructions. As mentioned earlier, obstructions typically require surgical intervention, and if left untreated can cause death.

LEAVES OF POTATO, RHUBARB AND TOMATO/STEMS OF POTATO AND TOMATO PLANTS: The leaves and stems of these vegetables contain oxalates.Oxalates affect several systems including the digestive, urinary and nervous system. This is likely only going to be an issue if you have an active garden that the dog can access or live on a working farm.

MUSHROOMS: Toxins in mushrooms can affect multiple body systems, cause shock and possibly even cause death.

RAW EGGS/RAW FISH: Both raw eggs and raw fish can cause B vitamin deficiencies. Raw eggs contain avidin, an enzyme that can decrease the absorption of biotin(a B vitamin). Raw eggs may also contain salmonella which can cause all the same symptoms in dogs as it does in humans. You may also see skin and hair coat problems with the consumption of raw eggs. Raw fish can cause a deficiency of thiamine (a different B vitamin). A lack of thiamine can bring about loss of appetite, seizures, and potentially death.

LIVER: Lots of liver can cause vitamin A toxicity, affecting muscles and bones.

MILK: Just like humans, some adult dogs lack the lactase enzyme that breaks down the milk sugar called lactose. Ingesting milk and dairy products by dogs who are lactose intolerant can result in diarrhea, stomach discomfort and flatulence.There are specifically lactose free products available for dogs. If you drink lactose free milk, small quantities would be acceptable.

AVOCADO: Every part of the avocado is dangerous to dogs (as well as birds and rodents). The plant’s leaves, the stone, the skin and the flesh of the fruit all contain something called Persin. Persin can cause vomiting and diarrhea in dogs.

RAW YEAST DOUGH: Yeast dough can continue to rise after ingestion by a dog. This can cause gas to accumulate in the digestive system and cause something called Bloat.Bloat is extremely painful and goes beyond just a distended feeling. It can actually cause the stomach or intestines to twist on itself or even rupture. This is potentially fatal.Once the dough has risen completely and been cooked, the risk goes down considerably. Small bits of bread are OK to offer your dog, but it should not constitute more than 5% of the dog’s daily diet.

SALT: Ingesting large quantities of salt can cause electrolyte imbalance and possibly even sodium ion poisoning. Symptoms include:excessive thirst/urination, vomiting,diarrhea, depression, tremors, fever, seizures and potentially death.

XYLITOL: This is a commonly used artificial sweetener found in many products including sugar free gum, toothpaste, candy as well as some baked goods. Xylitol causes insulin to be released by the pancreas. Excess insulin causes low blood sugar (hypoglycemia). Symptoms include: vomiting, lethargy, lack of coordination.Eventually it can lead to recumbency (leaning against something for support,part of a lack of coordination/lethargy) and seizures. Elevated liver enzymes and liver failure can be observed within just a few days of toxic exposure to xylitol.

SUGAR: Just like in humans, sugary foods can cause hyperactivity, dental issues, obesity and diabetes.

Part II will provide a list of other household items as well as miscellaneous stuff that dogs sometimes get into that could potentially cause health problems.

Introducing new dogs

The Good Dog Blog — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 18:03:00 GMT

So you want to bring home a new dog, or perhaps you have a dog and you're dating someone with a dog and you want to be able to hang out as one big happy family. How do you go about introducing new dogs to each other? Sometimes, if both dogs are well socialized, it's as easy as planning a play date at the local off leash dog park. It's a neutral area, where dogs expect to meet other dogs. They are off leash and are free to interact and get to know each other. If they don't seem to be best buddies when the park is busy, try arranging a second play date at an off-peak time so the dogs will have fewer distractions. This will work if they were getting along in that first visit, but just seemed more interested in other dogs.

***IF YOU ARE NOT COMFORTABLE DOING INTRODUCTIONS OF THIS NATURE ON YOUR OWN, PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE ENLIST THE ASSISTANCE OF A LOCAL PROFESSIONAL WHO HAS EXPERIENCE IN SUCH MATTERS. IF YOU ARE UNSURE, INSECURE OR TENSE, YOUR DOGS WILL KNOW IT AND ACT ACCORDINGLY.***

But what do you do if one or both dogs is not well socialized? Or if a first encounter didn't "go so well"? Just because the dogs got off on the wrong paw, doesn't necessarily mean all is lost. It may still be possible to create a comfortable coexistence. Keep in mind that dogs are individuals and have personalities that include likes and dislikes. Not all dogs will get along famously. Just because you love that dog's daddy, doesn't automatically mean that your dog will love his dog.... So, if you need to introduce dogs that may not get along instantly, below is a detailed step-by-step process you can do to try to create a more comfortable dynamic. Remember, the dogs don't have to be best friends. They just have to coexist peacefully.

The first step is to make arrangements to meet at a local park - not a dog park. Both dogs should be on leash. If they are not good at walking on leash currently, I strongly recommend practice before trying to introduce them. You want the dogs to be able to walk well with their respective humans while on leash.

Once humans and dogs are comfortable with leash walking, meet at the park. Drive separately. Each human should take her/his own dog for a walk for at least 10 minutes *AWAY FROM EACH OTHER*. After about 10 minutes, when the super excitement of being at this park has started to wear off, do a simple pass-by. Do not try to greet each other. Stay at least 20 feet apart and simply walk past each other. If the dogs remain focused on the walk - only barely acknowledging each other, you are doing great! If one or both go off their rocker, then keep walking separately for awhile and try again. This will take a lot of patience and may not happen the first time out. It may take several such exercises over the course of a couple to several weeks before you can get them to spend time near each other.

Once you get them to walk past each other at such a distance without freaking out too badly, try again just a hair closer (maybe 15 feet). Again, don't even speak to each other. Simply walk past. Don't forget that you should praise your dogs for being polite in the face of such heavy distraction. Praise should be a simple, quiet, "Good job" and maybe a pat on the head. Do not change your walking pace when you offer the praise. The praise is calm and quiet during this exercise because we don't want to suddenly get very worked up and energized as this will feed directly to the dog. Since we are working very hard on keeping our dog calm and relaxed, the last thing we want to do is suddenly shower them with loads of baby talk, treats and ball tosses.

If they can walk past each other at 15 feet, the next step is to fall in line with each other. Start at the same 15-foot distance. Walk past each other, and then one of you (predetermined) will turn around and fall in step with the other. Stay15 feet apart. If they can walk in tandem (in this case tandem is side-by-side, not follow-the-leader) without trying to tear the leash in half, you are doing GREAT! If this is working, you can slowly start to close the gap down by just a few feet every 5 or 6minutes. If you can get to a point where the two humans are about 5 feet from each other, you can move on to the next step.

**CAVEAT:Walking in tandem should have the 2 humans on the inside and the 2 dogs on the outside, so that there are 2 humans between the dogs.

If you can walk in tandem 5 feet apart for several minutes with no ugliness and no efforts to cut across humans to insist on interaction with the other dog, then you can stop walking and stand at that distance and chat. The dogs will hopefully practice avoidance*. If they do, you want to be sure to praise it. If you see any behavior that you don't want, distract them and then praise the calm behavior. Distraction can be giving a command such as 'sit' or 'lay down' and then treating/praising, or it can be just covering their eyes for a moment so they break their focus on the other dog.

*Avoidance in this circumstance involves: no direct eye contact between the dogs, turning backs so they are facing away from each other, laying down, distracted by other things, etc.

Do not pick up little dogs as this will change the entire dynamic. All dogs should remain on equal footing, which means all dogs are standing on their own. Do not coddle dogs if they are showing fear. Ignore the behavior until the dog settles and then praise the calm and relaxed behavior. DO NOT IGNORE AGGRESSIVE BEHAVIOR (GROWLING, SNARLING, SHOWING TEETH, POINTED STARES, EARS FLAT AND TIGHT BACK TO THE HEAD, HACKLES RAISED, STIFF TAIL, OR WAGGING TOO INTENSELY, ETC.) - DISTRACT IT AND PRAISE CALM AND RELAXED BEHAVIOR.

If a dog is yawning, this means they are conflicted. They want to do more than one thing - likely obey their human, but also interact with the other dog.

If you can all hang out with just a few feet between you and there is good avoidance, you can move on to proper introductions. This will involve keeping all dogs on the ground. One human will turn her/his dog (Louie) so that the dog's bum end is toward the other dog. Hold Louie's head between the human's legs to keep him from turning around and snapping. The human will also gently, but firmly, hold the collar and leash (very short) while the dog is in this position. THE HUMAN SHOULD BE COMPLETELY RELAXED AND CONFIDENT THAT THIS INTRODUCTION WILL GO SMOOTHLY. THE HUMAN IS LIKE A SEAT BELT - THEY ARE THERE IN CASE OF AN EMERGENCY, BUT NEVER TIGHT OR CONSTRICTING IF THINGS ARE GOING WELL. Let the other dog (Cooper) sniff Louie's bum and genitals. This is how dogs get to know each other. It's how they learn about each other regarding: age, gender, health, status, sexual readiness, recent diet, etc. It's important that they have this opportunity.

Once Cooper has had a good sniff, Cooper's human will turn him and hold his head between her/his legs. Let Louie take a good sniff of Cooper's bum and genitals.

If the sniffing goes well, you can all sit down and resume the human conversation while encouraging avoidance. If they are calm and relaxed, you can allow them to begin to get to know each other more face to face - perhaps a game. But you'll need to read their body language to determine if they are ready for this. Take note that one may be more ready than the other. So you'll have to feel out the dogs and decide if they should be allowed to sniff each other along the side of the body, sniff mouths (another major social necessity between dogs), play, or if you should continue to encourage avoidance.

If the hair along the back is up, if eyes are narrowed,if ears are pulled back and tight to the head, if tail is stiff or wagging in a jerky kind of fashion or too fast for conditions or pointed toward the ground or between the legs, these are all signs of fear. If they are relaxed, tail is wagging lazily, then they are comfortable with each other.

The important thing in all of this is DO NOT RUSH IT. Even if you can sit and talk while they practice good avoidance, this does not mean the next step is a canine slumber party. There should be 3 or 4 excellent visits in neutral territory before going to a home for a visit.

Once you do get to the home of either Louie or Cooper, you should re-introduce the dogs outside in a neutral area, perhaps across the street from the house, let them sniff each other ("Oh yeah, I know you... we met at the park..."), walk up and down the block together as a unit, and then walk them together to the house. The dog who resides in the house should go first through the door. Keep the leashes on for a while, just in case you need to control them in a smaller space. If they are being calm and relaxed, hopefully avoiding each other or playing nicely, let them just drag the leashes around until you are confident with their behavior.

In short: Patience, take your time, start out with baby steps and work up to the grand finale. Even if Cooper and Louie never reach "best friend" status, it is still possible to get them comfortable enough with each other that you can share a peaceful and harmonious home with the dogs. Even if they've met once or twice before and got off on the wrong paw, with patience and baby steps and the right mindset, it may be possible to help them work through their issues and come to a place of mutual respect.

***IF YOU ARE NOT COMFORTABLE DOING INTRODUCTIONS OF THIS NATURE ON YOUR OWN, PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE ENLIST THE ASSISTANCE OF A LOCAL PROFESSIONAL WHO HAS EXPERIENCE IN SUCH MATTERS. IF YOU ARE UNSURE, INSECURE OR TENSE, YOUR DOGS WILL KNOW IT AND ACT ACCORDINGLY.***

***Dogs that have been fixed are less likely to show dominance aggression, although it is not impossible. Two males are more likely to fight and two females are more likely to fight than opposite sex encounters, but this does not mean that same-sex dogs will necessarily fight nor that opposite-sex dogs will never fight. If one or both dogs has a history of aggression, whether dominance or fear, it is strongly encouraged that you do not attempt this type of introduction without first consulting a local professional who can assist you in your efforts.

Thunder Terrifes Teddy!

The Good Dog Blog — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 18:31:00 GMT

The forecast calls for scattered, severe thunderstorms with a great deal of cloud-to-ground lightning. Whether or not you personally like a good storm, you feel a lump in your throat knowing that Teddy is going to be very upset. Whenever the rains come, Teddy turns from his normal sweet, calm, well behaved pooch into an anxious, terrified dog who does things he would never ordinarily do.

As the storm approaches, Teddy begins to pace the house, pant and get very clingy to the humans that are around. He nearly trips his person as he tries to maintain himself right between her legs as she walks from room to room. If the human sits at a table or desk, Teddy is quick to try to squeeze under the desk and under his human's legs. You may find he's drooling excessively or digging at the floor, a rug or his bed like he's trying to create a den he can crawl into. Or, you may suddenly realize that you haven't seen Teddy in quite a while and search the house only to find him hiding: under furniture, in a closet, in the bathtub, in a room that he knows he is not allowed in. When he sees you, he looks at you with imploring eyes that seem to beg, "Make it stop. Make the Thunder Monster go away!!! Pleeeeeeaaaaase........" He may begin to pant upon seeing you and then begin the clingy behavior described earlier.

All of these are classic anxiety/stress signals that dogs display when they have a fear of thunder or storms. Many people are surprised at the sudden onset of this fear in a dog they've had since puppyhood. A lot of puppies, mine included, seem to find storms interesting and even exciting for their first year, only to suddenly get the canine memo that they are supposed to be afraid of this natural wonder. Suddenly, they begin displaying all of these signs that you thought you might have avoided with this pup.

An extremely common issue that many, many dog owners have to face is "How do I deal with Teddy during a storm? My heart breaks to see him so scared. All I want to do is sit with him and reassure him and hold him and tell him it's OK and it'll all be over soon." This is absolutely the right thing to do with our young children who are afraid of storms. Unfortunately, it's absolutely the WRONG thing to do with Teddy.

Dogs read our reassurance as praise. If they are showing any or all of the above signs of stress and we comfort them verbally, "It's OK, Teddy. It's just thunder. It can't hurt you..." or physically by petting/stroking/holding/hugging them, we are actually reinforcing their behavior. We are unwittingly telling them that their reaction is the correct reaction to the circumstances. By doing this, we are making it much more likely that Teddy will freak out next time there's a storm, and possibly more intensely than he is this time. Our efforts to calm them and reassure them will actually escalate their response to the Thunder Monster in the future.

So how do we help Teddy overcome his fear?

There are a couple of things we can do, and a combination of both is the best way to manage his fear.

DESENSITIZATION
The first step is to desensitize Teddy to the noise of thunder. Thunder is loud and sporadic with no rhyme or reason as to when it will suddenly be there. Even the flashes of lightning only tell us it's coming; it doesn't tell us how quickly it will be here, nor how loud it will be.

Dogs may learn to associate changes in barometric pressure and ozone levels with impending storms. Unfortunately, we cannot easily address these issues in our homes. But we can address the noise of thunder itself.

To desensitize your dog to the noise of rain and thunder, you will need a CD player that has a continuous loop feature and one or two CDs of thunderstorms that run at least one hour. It's important that the CDs do not have music overlapping the rain and thunder. These should be straight thunderstorms, preferably with a few really good, sudden, loud thunderclaps. Play a CD at the absolute lowest volume the CD player has. You should have to put your ear directly up to the speaker to hear the rain/thunder. Put the CD player somewhere fairly central to the house so that the dog can hear it from most anywhere. Put the CD player on continuous loop and allow it to play for a full 24 hours at this volume.

Every 24 hours you will nudge the volume up a little. Perhaps only half a step if you are able. As long as the dog is not reacting to it - completely ignoring it, you are doing great! If, after several days and several nudges in volume, you find that when you go, say, from volume level 4 to 5, your dog begins to show signs of stress/anxiety at the noise, bring the volume back to level 3. That's right, two full steps back. Leave it at this level for 48 hours, then try to increase the volume at a slower pace. Instead of going from 3 to 3 1/2, try going from 3 to just barely more than 3 - if your volume knob allows you to make such small adjustments. The goal is to get the CD playing at the top volume available on your player for 24 hours without any reaction from your dog.

You may want to switch the CD every 3rd day so that the dog doesn't just learn the pattern that every hour or every 90 minutes there's a loud noise and then it's softer again for a while.

If your dog can live with the noise on the CD at full volume and not react to it, he will then be less likely to react to the natural noise of a real storm. It's not a cure-all and there's other work that will need to be done, but it's one step in helping Teddy overcome his fear.

DO NOT CODDLE/REINFORCE BEHAVIOR
If he is reacting to the noise of the CD player (or a real storm if one comes through) do not speak sweetly to him, do not pet/stroke/hold him. These behaviors from us will reinforce for him that his reaction is the correct reaction and make him more likely to be anxious in the future. The better choice is to ignore Teddy when he paces through the house panting and trying to create a glue-like bond to your lower legs. If he decides to hide under some furniture, or in a closet, bathtub or seldom used room - just ignore him. Pretend it's not happening.

If it's necessary to move him or interact with him, give him an easy command that he can do and then you can praise him for doing the command. Call him with a happy, chipper, "Teddy, come!" and then give him a treat for coming to you. Or, "Teddy, sit," to get him out from under your feet. Praise him with a treat for sitting like a gentleman.

DISTRACT/REDIRECT
When you begin the desensitization with the CD, be sure to get in at least 5 minutes every day of training and 5 minutes every day of game play - in the house where he can hear the CD player. Use these opportunities to create happy, fun times with Teddy where he is getting a lot of positive attention and treats and praise. Training can be simple - going through his already learned commands, or more complex - teaching him new commands or tricks. Play should be his favorite games (in my house that's catch/chase with a racquetball). You can even intermix the training with the game whereby you play the game for a couple minutes, and then tell Teddy to 'sit' and 'stay.' Then you count to 10 and toss the toy, telling him "Teddy, go get it!" Provide big praise when he does his commands well and gets really involved in his game.

If you have begun to learn the CD and can anticipate when a particularly loud thunderclap is going to happen, use this to your advantage. Put Teddy in a 'sit/stay' command just before the thunder and wait for it to hit. Then, just as the noise comes, start the game again, or praise him for such a good stay.

You will do this same process during an actual storm. Use the lightning as your guide to when the thunder will come. The more focused Teddy is on obeying a command or on his favorite game during the noisy parts, the less he will react to the noise. Treat him and praise him when he does well. Be extremely proud of him when he shows no reaction to the storm.

What you are doing is distracting him from his fear and creating a new association for him. Up until now, Teddy has associated all the signs of a storm with fear and anxiety. He has learned that when these things happen, he is to be afraid. By distracting him, he is forgetting (even momentarily) to be afraid. Despite his best efforts, Teddy is actually having fun. This is the process of redirecting his behavior. We are creating a new association for Teddy that fun things happen when there is a storm overhead.

It will not be necessary to play/train for the entire duration of the storm. That would be exhausting. But, if you can do some play or training (or both) during the first 10 minutes of the storm, and then some reinforcing play/training say, every 60-90 minutes throughout the storm, you will be teaching Teddy that storms are things to be enjoyed because he has fun during a storm.

PRAISE CALM AND RELAXED BODY LANGUAGE
In between play/training throughout the storm, you should only interact with Teddy if he is being calm. If he is lying near you and calm - no tension in his body, no reaction other than an ear twitch, to a thunderclap, tell him he's doing right. Tell him quietly, "Good job, Teddy." Don't get worked up in your praise during these relaxed moments or you will get Teddy's energy level worked up as well. Your praise should match his energy; if he is calm and relaxed, so should be your praise.

If you can get a meal time in during a storm, that's a great opportunity to reinforce that good things happen. Call him to you, put him in a 'sit-stay,' put his bowl down and then tell him "OK." Eating during a storm will certainly distract him. Hang out with him during these meals. If he does not flinch away from his bowl when a big thunderclap rolls through, praise him calmly, "Good boy, Teddy. You're my brave little man." If he does flinch, just ignore the behavior and wait for him to begin eating again. If he is too scared to return to his bowl, toss him a kibble and tell him, "Keep eating." Once his face is back in his bowl, praise him with a very quiet, "Good boy."

RETRAINING EVERY WET SEASON
Since most places do not get thunderstorms year round, it will likely be necessary to do this retraining at the start of the season each year. But if you do both the desensitization and the distract/redirect exercises, Teddy will be much calmer overall throughout the season. It may never be a complete recovery and he may continue to startle when there is a particularly loud thunderclap, but that's normal. Even I jump when one happens so close it makes the windows rattle...

Hopefully with consistent training and redirection from you, both you and Teddy will get to enjoy the wonder of a good thunderstorm.