Oh the Teeth!

I mentioned my concern regarding Bella's topped teeth here. And as in all good serendipity, this concern was recently followed by a couple of articles by a local vet in our paper. One was on appropriate chew toys and the other on teeth cleaning. They both just served to focus my attention.

With Lucy, our last dog, I learned through adversity, that teeth cleaning was important. She never had teeth problems, but she had a horrible time with the anesthesia and/or other drugs they gave her during the procedure. She'd stagger around the house crying for hours after the surgery. It was awful. I vowed to be more diligent about this area of doggie maintenance with my next dog. Enter Bella, stage left. I brush her teeth about 5-6 days out of the week. I've never been able to do a very thorough job and noticed some tartar (?) or plaque (?) build up despite my diligence, but it was also how I discovered her "tipped" teeth.

As far as toys go, Bella is a Supreme Chewer. I am one the PetsMart Faithfuls. Every couple of weeks I'm there stocking up on new chew toys. I haven't given her rawhide as I've heard it isn't very digestible. Bones are from the local organic store and thought those would be okay. Nope. No more bones. I recently learned that ice cubes are also on the doggie hit list. (Bella rushes to the refrigerator when the freezer door opens in hopes a cube is in her future. We shall substitute those silly baby carrots instead—organic, of course).

Tennis balls? Those are what she lives for. Scratch! I guess too much dirt stays in the fuzz and can erode their teeth. Back to Petsmart for those stupidly expensive, non-fuzzy Chuck-it balls. After just a short amount of chucking, I must admit to liking them though. They are much more "lively" than a tennis ball and as long as it is round, rolls and bounces, Bella is happy. Hopefully I won't lose one in the bushes!  And price? Well, even though they are expensive, they are a lot cheaper than doggie dental surgery!

I had stopped by the vet's office to pick up more tooth brushes and paste and my vet urged me to come in for a quick exam. In a brief look around Bella's mouth, she said that Bella's broken off incisor showed exposed root and needed to be removed. She also feared the root could be exposed on the tipped canine, but was uncertain about the premolar and molar and would check all three of those when Bella goes in next week for a cleaning and extraction. (If you're curious, here is a series of good pictures on dogs' teeth.)

The vet went on to say that hopefully all Bella needed on the canine was a root canal and not an extraction as that was an "extremely invasive surgery." Please interject an expletive from me here. Here I was hoping all was well and now find myself hoping for a root canal for my sweet girl?

The initial clean and extraction is next week. I'm uncertain when Part II (root canal) will take place. Keep your fingers crossed for Bella!

Learning the Distant Drop

We're signed up for dog classes again. This time it is Intermediate Obedience through Seattle Agility. This particular class fine tunes some of the basics and introduces some new training. In general, I like taking classes. I'm not a trainer and feel the refresher is good for me and my dog. What I've found to be true for myself and friends is we tend to slide in our training once a class is completed. In other words, we get lazy about working with our dogs.

One of the things we'll be working on in this class is "Drop (and stay)!" from a distance. It's impressive to see in action, but more importantly, it could save your dog's life. Because we spend a lot of time mountain biking where Bella, by necessity, is off leash, it is imperative she responds to verbal commands at a distance. The example that is most often given, is that your dog is across the street from you (we won't go into what is the dog doing off leash over there...). You can't call him as a car is coming, but he's trotting back your way. What do you do? Shout, "DROP!" The dog plops down and stays there until the car goes by and it is safe to release him and call him to you.

The instructor is instructing us on how to teach our dogs to target a plate. This is fun and a great use of targeting. Let's assume you've already taught your dog to drop with the hand signal (looks like raising your hand in class to ask a question) at close range.

Place your dog at a slight distance from you. Position the plate at your toes. Make a big deal about placing yummy treats on the plate so the dog is E-A-G-E-R. Don't call you dog to you (you don't want to use "Come" in this instance), but say her name or "OK!" The dog will rush to the plate and gobble up the treats and then look up at you for more. Bingo! Say "Drop!" and give the hand signal. When your dog drops, load a few more treats on the plate. (I'm using a yogurt lid as a plate.)

Once that is perfected, move further away from the treat-loaded plate with your dog at a distance on the other side of it. Go through the same steps. When your dog drops, run up to the plate and drop a few more yummies down. Keep working the distance between the dog and the plate, and the plate and you until you have 100% compliance. At that point you can start fade the plate and start cutting back on the treats.

This is one of those exercises that bears regular practice and repetition. Hopefully you'll never have to use it, but if you do, you want it to work perfectly!

Be the Change—Finding Homes for Older Dogs

Three of my friends have adopted older dogs. They did it a bit for the dog (older dogs having a more difficult time finding a home), but mostly for their own joy. An older dog is mellow (but still active), has manners (yet is still trainable), does not need the constant supervision and stimulus that a young dog needs (but is alert and engaged). One adopted a 5-year old border collie cross, another an 8-year old lab and another a 9-year old lab-rottweiler cross. All three are wonderful dogs: attentive, engaged and endearing.

I've recently learned about a local shelter in our area called OldDog Haven. This is an organization made up of caring individuals who foster senior dogs (8-years old or older). It's non-profit, so they are ever in need of donations (both money and goods) and foster homes with the ultimate goal of placement. Older dogs have a very, very slim chance at adoption via a shelter where the atmosphere is, at a minimum, unnerving for them, while vying for attention against puppies and much younger dogs. Most people don't go to a shelter thinking, "Let's get an old dog that won't live much longer and may need lots of medical attention."

Happy Birthday favorite girl dog!

OldDog Haven has acquired dogs because the owners have passed away, or moved away, may have financial issues that preclude carrying for an elderly pet or unfortunately, some just don't want to deal with older dog issues. This is a great organization. If you—or someone you know—can help financially, by providing a foster or permanent home for a dog, or can contribute to their wish list, know that you are giving some lovely old hound a new lease on life.

Meanwhile, in the backyard…
Bella is two today! She has had several good walks, a rousing game of Chuck-It and is now savoring a rib bone. That's my girl!

Contentment

"I'll always be here for you."

About a year ago my nephew went through a pretty nasty period of emotional upheaval. On his road to healing, he stayed with us for a while and we were happy to be able to offer whatever solace we could. Bella did her part, doing what all good dogs do. She helped with his healing by being present.

Now, passing through again and starting a new, happier phase in his life, our nephew joined us for an evening. Bella recognized him immediately and stuck with him nearly the entire 8 hours he was with us. When he started towards the bed, Bella beat him to it.

Although a rather blurry phone shot, this is how Bella works her magic.

Entangled

Some of you probably remember the news article about the woman who died several years ago after being entangled in a dog lead. From what I’ve read about the original story, it is unclear just what happened, but one can surmise. The bike rider was running his two leashed Siberian Huskies alongside his bicycle when one—or both—dogs ran around the woman causing the leash to hogtie the woman. She fell, hit her head, and later died. This was a horrible—and preventable—accident. 

The story is once again circulating as the city of San Jose (where the accident occurred) just passed an ordinance mandating dogs cannot be on city trails attached to a leash longer than six feet. Those walking, jogging or bicycling with their dogs must stay to the right of the trail. To be honest, I think the new leash ordinance is great. I’m a dog owner, an avid dog walker, an avid bicycler and my husband often takes Bella on leash while he cycles city trails. I could rant along with many others about the misuse of flexi-leads, but it isn’t the flexi-lead, normal leash or the dog that’s the problem, it’s the owner.

I became acutely aware of flexi-lead “issues” with my aggressive, but beloved dog, Lucy. Nine out of ten times, I’d see someone with their dog on a flexi and the owner was oblivious to what and where their dog was in relationship to them. Too often their dog would careen towards us immediately setting off Lucy. If possible, I would turn around when I discerned a flexi-dog in action, but it wasn’t always easy to do with an amped up, 60-pound dog itching for a fight. Too often, the flexi-dog would zoom directly at us before the owner could react. I could control Lucy, but if the other dog also had issues, the owner who was 20 or 30 feet behind, had much more distance between them and their dog making their control of their dog more difficult.

Personally, I’d love to see flexi-leads permanently banned. I’m sure they have a purpose and that some people use them responsibly. But whether it’s a flexi or a regular leash, the owner is ultimately responsible for their dog’s behavior and how it affects others in the immediate environment. I know it is impossible to always anticipate what a dog may do, but it’s a goal we should all strive for. An owner that doesn’t attempt to manage their dog in all situations is going to run into trouble at some time. Blaming the “other” person doesn’t cut it. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard, “I’ve never seen my dog do that before.” Well, it isn’t the dog’s fault; it’s the owner’s issue! If you are taking your dog into a crowded urban setting, control your dog. Don’t put yourself, or your dog, into a situation that could cause another person—or another animal—harm.