Fear Free Happy Homes
Reading Time: 3 minutes It had been a long day, working with cases back to back of dogs displaying significant fear. One client was angry. Two were in tears. And one couple bickered constantly about the severity of the dog’s problem. As a professional dog trainer, I help dogs overcome fear. But it’s not just the dogs dealing with […]
Reading Time: 3 minutes June is both the ASPCA’s Adopt a Shelter Cat Month and the American Humane Association’s Adopt a Cat Month. Either way, it’s a very special month for cats. Cats definitely need adopting. According to the ASPCA, about 3.2 million cats enter shelters annually. However, only about half are adopted. While some are euthanized for medical […]
Reading Time: 4 minutes Dr. Jane Goodall hadn’t heard about Fear Free, but the idea resonates with her. Considering animal emotions is something she once fought for. It’s hard to think of Goodall as a controversial figure, but when she first began her observational notes on chimpanzee behavior at Gombe National Park in Tanzania in the early 1960s, she […]
Reading Time: 3 minutes It’s not only people who suffer from stress; our pets most certainly do, too. The question is, could you unknowingly be the cause of some of your pet’s anxiety? Everyday noises and events that humans take for granted, for instance, can cause pets to be fearful and anxious. And because pets, like people, react differently […]
Reading Time: 4 minutes I love to take summer vacations with my husband and our dogs, Rio and Peach. It’s a thrill to pack the car and drive to an idyllic campground here in Colorado or head west to explore the off-leash dog beaches of Southern California or north to Wisconsin to splash around in refreshing lakes – checking […]
Reading Time: 3 minutes Relaxing comfortably in a crate or carrier is a critical canine skill with many applications. A dog’s crate is an important management tool that assists in building better behaviors and deterring unwanted antics such as chewing furniture instead of appropriate toys or eliminating on the rug instead of outdoors. A kennel is also a protected […]
Reading Time: 3 minutes Connecticut resident Kathye O’Brien Anstis and her family were concerned when Riley, their 5-year-old Beagle mix, started bumping into their legs – it was as if he couldn’t see. They took him to a veterinary ophthalmologist who confirmed that Riley had lost his eyesight and diagnosed him with Sudden Acquired Retinal Degeneration Syndrome (SARDS), a […]
Reading Time: 3 minutes When I worked as a vet tech many years ago, we didn’t routinely “take pets to the back” for treatment. Emergency visits, or pets not easily handled, were the exceptions. But more often than not, dogs and cats had their temperatures taken, vaccines administered, routine blood and stool samples procured, all while in the presence […]
Reading Time: 3 minutes At what cost do you save a life? Or is that not even the right question to ask? What motivates this story is local dog trainer, near where I live, who was recently “outed” for alleged use of aversive methods to save lives. That in itself sounds like a contradiction, doesn’t it? When animal control […]
Reading Time: 3 minutes Saying goodbye to a beloved pet is never easy, but planning and care can help it to be less stressful for your pet, yourself, and veterinary staff. Gracie was nearing 12. She had arthritis in her hips and in both knees. For two years we’d been able to manage her increasing pain with a combination […]