Two Bundles Of Joy Up For ADOPTION

I do not usually get involved in adoptions as I do not work for a shelter or rescue, but today I am.  An unusual and sad situation has come to my door step and I cannot help but try to help.  I have a client that has had a life change since getting her two amazing dogs.  This life change has left her no choice but to re-home her two dogs.  The whole story is below, please help if you can.  Forward this to everyone you know that might be interested or might know someone that is interested.   These two dogs are high energy and need an active life, but they are also extremely sweet and loving.  Part of the adoption will be at least two training sessions with me that are being transferred with the dogs, that will help the dogs get settled.

Lorca and Gitana were farewell surprises from Spain on a short trip my partner and I took there in 2010. By the Guadalquivir River in Seville, a young man approached us; his dog had given birth to a litter of 11 and he was out finding the newborns homes. In his pouch were the last two puppies that would then come back with us to the United States to bring us a joy and absolute love we had yet to experience. 

We've had a wonderful year and a half together in New York and now in Los Angeles. Unfortunately my new job requires me to spend most of my time away from home. These pups need a home where they will be loved and cared for all the time, preferably together; a home where their family is always present, where they will not have to sit in a kennel for many hours while everyone is at work. 

Lorca (the tan one) is an incredible character. She is earnest with her affections- she enjoys having her belly rubbed and warming your feet with her chin while you sit working and she dreams. She's quirky- it's a spectacle to watch her scramble under the bed; she's just the right size for the space- at 45 lbs, 28" tall, she just about fits. She also loves resting in the nook between your legs and the couch and taking a snooze. 

  Lorca relaxes indoors to conserve her energy for fun and games outdoors. Outside she loves to play fetch and run around with Gitana. They love competing for branches and playing tug-of-war. 

Gitana (the black one) is a beautiful lady (45 lbs, 28" tall), graceful and obedient. She sneaks in affection any time she gets; it is her prerogative to seek and offer warmth in every sense of the word. Like Lorca, Gitana is a calm indoor dog but knows how to get the best of an open field. She is a fetching pro- an impressive catcher, she glides toward the ball and leaps up to catch it in the air.

At home she loves to cuddle or lay her head on your lap to then sneakily crawl the rest of her body onto it. She understands cues, however, and slides right off If you're not in the mood.

Lorca and Gitana are the perfect home companions and outdoor playmates. They are 1 year, 8 months old, spayed, their vaccines are up-to-date, they are house-broken and they are trained to follow basic commands. 

Although these ladies are mutts (and litter mates), we did meet their mother and father when they were given to us. They were a lovely German Shepherd Lab and an Alaskan Malamute mutt. 

Again, I prefer not separating them but will consider doing so if there are extremely good homes that can only take one dog. I will provide travel carriers and all of their belongings. There will be in adoption fee to be discussed with interested families for the safety of the dogs.

Contact: Natalia
                (347) 542-2502
                ospinati@gmail.com

Please help find these two beauties a home!  They will make great companions for a person or couple that lead a somewhat active lifestyle and can give these two the love and attention that they will return to you.  Feel free to contact Natalia directly or you can also get in touch with me by giving me a BARK!

Good News for Pits!

It is not very often we get the chance to spread good news about Pit Bulls.  Mainly, because the media makes sure to cover every awful and horrific story that reinforces the belief that Pit Bulls are vicious and dangerous dogs.  To be fair, we have in the last few years started to hear some good and uplifting stories about Pits in the news, but they are much less than all the bad ones and unfortunately, the societal view is formed based on all the bad news. 

I find it exhausting at this point to hear another misinformed person talking about how scarey the Pit Bull on the corner is, when more often than not, the dog is actually very sweet.  Just yesterday I saw a client with one of the sweetest most endearing dogs that is a Pit Bull.  We had a conversation about his barking when people come to the door.  Like most dogs (no matter the breed) this dog barks at people when they approach the house and knock on the door.  Now, this dog listens and will settle down, but the problem for my client is that people are scared of his dog because it is now a "vicious" Pit Bull barking at them.  If this was a little Terrier or perhaps a Golden Doodle, people would think so differently. 

So, when I saw this article this morning on Petside.com, I really wanted to share it for all the Pit Bulls in my life.   Ohio has changed it's law and Pit Bulls are no longer a "vicious dog" based solely on their breed.  Below is the full story:

To say the least, it's been a controversial month for pit bulls. Earlier this month, the Maryland Court of Appeals ruled that pit bulls were an "inherently dangerous" dog breed, prone to aggression that results in dog bites. As such, the state ramped up regulations surrounding pit bulls and made owning the breed more difficult by holding not only dog owners responsible for their pup's actions, but holding landlords who rented to pit bull owners liable as well. The decision made animal rights activists and pit bull advocates furious.

In a story that seemed to almost counter Maryland's ruling, a hero pit bull named Lilly saved her owner from certain death on a set of railroad tracks, showing a softer side to the breed. The question of whether pit bulls were actually naturally dangerous was muddled even further. Now, the state of Ohio, which formerly had a hard line stance on pit bulls, has softened their feelings on the breed.

(Maryland rules pit bulls "inherently dangerous")

According to an article on CBS News, a new Ohio law has redefined what it means to be a "vicious dog."

In the old law, a vicious dog was defined as a dog that "has seriously hurt or killed a person, killed another dog or is among those commonly known as pit bulls." The new law removes the references to pit bulls, and allows for pit bull incidents to be handled on a case by case basis.

The new move adds more fuel to the fire in the pit bull debate. The Maryland ruling had left many animal activists fearing that other states would proceed in a similar fashion in regard to their treatment of pit bulls, opening the door for widespread breed discrimination. The Ohio law seems to counteract that though. Perhaps the Ohio legislators were convinced by recent news events that pit bulls do have a softer side.

It is a small step, but certainly in the right direction.  To all my Pit Bull friends, no matter what your issues, I see you as the beautiful, amazing and loving dogs that you all are to me and I am happy for this small victory!

What do you think about Pit Bulls?

Happy Memorial Day!

To all those that serve, both human and K-9, today we salute you and say Thank You!  Happy Memorial Day!

I wish for everyone to have a fun, safe and hopefully relaxing day.  No matter if today is a normal work day, your second Sunday or a project day, take a moment to remember what today is about.  I of course will be thinking more about the K-9s that serve, just because I stand in awe of all service dogs.  But I do recognize that whether we are talking about our 4-legged or 2-legged service men and women, it takes a lot of loyalty and bravery to do what they do.

I hope you all have a great day and for those of you that have today off, enjoy and don't forget to do something fun with your dog!

Holiday Weekend and Your Dog

This weekend is Memorial Day weekend and if you are not traveling, you are likely going to or hosting a party or BBQ.  That is always fun for us humans, but what about your dog?  The good news for us in LA is that the weather is not going to be too hot, just a mild and beautiful warm.  So below are some ways for you and your pooch to have fun no matter what your plans.

Traveling
 
Traveling over the long weekend is always fun, if your pooch is going with you don't forget he might need to make more potty stops than you.  If your pooch isn't use to long car rides, it may be a good idea to have him take a little ginger before you get started.  Even though you are in the car and the windows are down with cool air coming through or the air conditioner is on, your dog still needs water, don't forget to give him water when you stop for potty breaks or while in the car if it is safe to do so.  Lastly, make sure to pack a bag for your pooch with all his favorite toys and blanket, it will make traveling nicer for him.

Hosting

Hosting a party or BBQ are sometimes the highlight of the long weekend, but it can also be a source of fear and anxiety for your dog.  Make sure you set up an area (crate, bed, separate room, etc.) for your dog to go to if they want to get away from it all.  If you know you have a fearful, shy or aggressive dog, set them up in a room or in their crate in a cool, safe place with water and come and check on them every hour or so.  Give them potty breaks, but you should try to avoid putting them in the middle of the party and stressing them further.  If your dog is a social butterfly, allow them to be out and about all you like, just watch out for your guests giving them unauthorized "treats" or teaching unwanted habits like begging or eating from the table.  Don't forget to make sure your dog is keeping cool, drinking water and above all, enjoying himself too.

Going Out

No matter if you are going out for an all day event or a night shindig you have to think about your dog.  If you have a dog that gets along with other dogs and people and you are taking your dog with you, just remember water, and keep them cool (no tethering in the sun).  If your dog needs to stay at home, remember to track how long you are gone, it is not fair to doggie to be gone for 12 hours without allowing him out for a break.  If your dog is use to being in a crate, put him there, this weekend may not be the best time to try out leaving him out.  Depending on what area you are in, there may be fireworks and that can be very scary for some dogs, so keep that in mind when you plan your evenings.

The last piece of advice is to take some time for your dog this weekend and do something special.  No matter if it is going to the beach or a hike or just a little extra play time in the park, include them in the celebration.  Be safe, have fun and don't forget about your dog!

Acupuncture For Neville

We are well on our way with Neville's Acupuncture treatments, yesterday was #6 or #7, to be honest I have lost count.  It is such a pleasure to spend that time with him, it has really become a special bonding time for us.  Yesterday was by far the best to date in terms of his behavior while getting the treatment and the effects afterward.

He always is a bit anxious about being at the vets office, so the waiting period no matter how short, proves to be stressful.  But yesterday he was much better than usual.  There was a cute puppy in the lobby that he was taken with, so I think that helped a lot.  But he was not just interested in the puppy, he also sniffed one of owners, which was a man!  I was already impressed and the session hadn't started yet.

Once we were in the room and the music was going (I play Through A Dog's Ears to relax him) he settled down and greeted Dr. O'Dwyer with a big kiss hello.  He is showing more and more affection towards her which is a great sign!  As Dr. O'Dwyer and I talked, Neville laid down on the blanket between us, that is a first!  He stayed there for almost all the placements of the needles, it wasn't until we had to do the few he is not a big fan of that he got up and moved.

Once the needles were in and Dr. O'Dwyer left the room, he basically laid down and went to sleep and did not stir.  I touched his side at one point and he raised his head, but then went right back to sleep.  He usually lays down and will dose in and out of sleep, but never has he been this relaxed and deep into sleep.

Once the needles were out (which Dr. O'Dwyer is now able to take all of them out without me helping, Neville I think understands she is not placing any more)  he was still so sleepy and remained that way until we were home.  Walking through Downtown from our parking lot to our apartment woke him up for sure, but he was not pulling and seemed to not be shaking.  A skate board even passed us, granted it was a quite one, and he did not react to it.

The late night walk was a little hard to get him going, he wanted to stay and sleep!  But once he was out walking he did great and he did great on his morning walk.  His confidence in the house is changing a lot through this process.  It is most noticeable when someone knocks at the door, it is not just a scared bark from his crate, he is now running toward the door with a deep "scary" bark!  I still make him go to the crate and am now working on not barking at all, this was never a problem as the barks were usually only a few and then he would stop.

When were are out and about his pulling is much less and he is much more tolerant of the people he encounters.  Neville is also showing less stress signs.  They are still there, but much more reduced than they use to be.

My next step is herbs.  I want to see how that and they acupuncture work together.  It is a slow process, but I do see improvements, so I am going to keep going for now.  I am just so happy that he gets some relief from the fear, even if it is just the 20 -30 minutes during treatment.

What Do Dogs Think?

Dogster brought us a story this morning that I was so excited to learn about!  Emory University is doing a study on dogs brains trying to find out exactly how their brain works and what they think.  I know I have my own opinions based on the way my dog interacts with me on how much he thinks and what he is "saying" to me with his actions and eyes.  I have thought for a long time that dogs can communicate with us on a much different level than we give them credit for and I certainly think they can understand our feelings and emotions. 

The video below explains the study and for all of you wondering, they are very humane to the dogs.  The whole point of the study is to examine the dogs brain while they are awake and not restrained.  So they have trained their first two subjects to get into the MRI and lay down and be still.  The video takes you through it all.  Very impressive and interesting!



I hope this study unlocks some doors and allows us to go into another level of understanding our K-9 companions.

Important News About Gentle Leaders

Yesterday it was brought to my attention that Premier, the makers of the Gentle Leader Headcollar, had a defect announcement on their website about specific Gentle Leaders purchased from August 2011 - May 10, 2012.  I use Gentle Leaders all the time in my training and know many other reward based trainers that do as well, so I am assuming a lot of you out there reading this do too.

Below is the statement on the Premier website, it addresses how to check your Gentle Leader and what to do if it is defective.  They will replace any defective equipment free of charge.

Announcement about Gentle Leaders

It has come to our attention that specific Gentle Leader® Headcollars, sold from August 2011 – May 10, 2012, may have a defect in the quick release neck strap buckle, which causes an unintended release. The issue has been corrected. We recommend that all Gentle Leader Headcollars purchased during and prior to this period be inspected. We will replace any that contain the defect. We take this matter seriously and apologize for any inconvenience this may cause and appreciate your cooperation. Click on the appropriate link for a list of affected product, instructions on how to check your MCP/ICP labels if you are a wholesale customer, and defect testing instructions - images and video are both available. If you have any questions or need to exchange a defective Gentle Leader Headcollar, please email us at info@premier.com or follow one of the options below:

If you are a wholesale customer, call 800-933-5595 and press 1 for Sales.
If you are an end consumer, call 800-933-5595 and press 2 for Customer Care.

If you use a Gentle Leader on your dog that was purchased anytime within the dates listed above, be sure to check for this defect.  If you are not sure or need help, call one of the numbers listed above depending on the type of customer you are.