Tuesday, December 24, 2019

Alice met Santa and Didn't Hate It!


Happy Holidays everyone!

Alice still remains the friendliest of any of the dogs we've ever had. She loves all the humans she meets, including weirdly dressed ones! So we knew she'd have a blast meeting Santa. She did amazingly well in a long line of a wide range of dogs. It was so loud, there was so much barking but Alice kept it together. She was SO happy. It was such a fun time!

"Santa, are you my new mommy?" LOL


Monday, November 11, 2019

My Dog Won't Go POTTY! Potty Training the World's Most Challenging Dog

You can lead a dog to grass but you can't MAKE them pee!

If you had told me a few years ago that potty training a new puppy would be my kryptonite, I would not have believed you! I've potty trained or assisted with potty training countless dogs, my own dogs, my family's dogs and client dogs.

"It's not hard", I would say, "just put them on a reliable schedule and take them outside frequently." This year I may have eaten my words.

Quite a few people have told me that small dogs are more difficult to potty train than larger dogs. I've never believed those people. I have always thought that it was just stereotypical "small dog owner" nonsense. Small dogs usually get away with murder. A lot of owners don't train them very much, if at all. I just chalked it up to owners being lazy or irresponsible and didn't think any more about it until I got Alice.


When I got Alice, I did exactly what I've done with other dogs. I put her on a schedule immediately and took her outside frequently for potty breaks, just like you're supposed to do, just like ALL the dog books say to do. When she wasn't attended she was crated. I also used a tether attached to the couch so she could have more freedom. When we moved around the house, she was leashed or carried.

We'd go outside and Alice would sniff around and then look at me like "okay, now what?" We could spend hours outside and she would just hold it. Then we'd come back inside and she would still hold it. She was completely unpredictable and she would not pee or poop. She wouldn't even mark over the other dog's pee. Even worse, she begun displaying behavior that was almost identical to what Zoe did for years (taking hours on end and long walks to relieve herself and never using the same spot twice). Alice's behavior being so similar to Zoe's behavior (that's driven me crazy for 8 years) caused me so much anxiety. I love Zoe but I absolutely did not want another dog like her and I was terrified that Alice was going to be Zoe 2.0. At least in Zoe's case, she never had a single accident in the house.

For months Alice continued to not pee or poop on a regular schedule, despite being fed at exactly the same times and having water available at all times. She would only pee maybe twice per day and I was lucky if she'd poop once daily. Sometimes she'd hold her poop for up to three days. I was either walking her or standing in the yard. If she wouldn't go we'd either stay outside for hours on end or I'd bring her back inside and crate her immediately. Sometimes she would hold her pee for 15 hours, despite many, many trips outside... Which isn't healthy at all. Rinse and repeat over and over with zero progress. We even tried driving her to new places to see if she'd pee at a park somewhere. Even hiking for nearly 3 hours where dogs frequent, she would not pee or poop during outings, either. We saw two different vets by this point and they both said she sounded challenging but normal for a shelter dog in their new home. All the tests we ran came back normal.

Any time she did finally go to the bathroom, I was praising her and feeding her high value treats.


There were times when I felt bad for keeping her crated and we'd be playing inside and then she'd suddenly squat before I could catch her. It's incredibly embarrassing to admit but she had way more accidents inside the house than any dog I've ever had under my care.

The frustration that I felt during this period of time was extreme. I would cry to my husband and friends about it. I had people tell me I should take her back to the rescue, that she was completely abnormal and there wouldn't be any way to fix her. Another friend who is extremely kind and has tons of patience, mentioned that I might be suffering from codependency and she wasn't wrong. I realized that I desperately needed to take care of Alice and she wasn't allowing me to because I couldn't make her go to the bathroom. During these months, my depression and anxiety were at an all time high. I had the puppy blues so badly and it was all over my inability to potty train this dog. My confidence as a dog trainer took a huge hit as well because "potty training should be easy". "All you have to do is put them on a schedule, stand in the yard and then reward them for going." Yeah, no.

In the meantime, during this, I also had neighbor problems. We own our townhouse but have to share a large yard with other neighbors. Most of my neighbors are elderly and don't have much to do, so they were curious at all times about the new dog. They were constantly coming out whenever I'd go outside to see the puppy. So Alice was never not distracted from learning what I wanted her to do outside. I believe she thought that the yard was play and social time and it never really occurred to her that the yard was for pottying.

My new puppy was going to be house trained or I was going to DIE trying.


So after a few months of trying and failing to potty train her I ended up crowd sourcing it. In complete desperation one day, I posted on my facebook wall (most of my friends are trainers) and in my favorite facebook group, the Fenzi Academy: Fenzi Dog Sports Academy Alumni Group. I have taken quite a few of their online classes and have loved all of them. The people who train there are always kind and understanding. My posts received a lot of attention and the advice I got was incredibly helpful.

By the time I decided to ask for help, I had three problems, Alice would not go to the bathroom regularly, Alice would not go to the bathroom in our direct yard at all, end of story and Alice was nervous about me and the yard because I had gotten so frustrated trying to get her to go that she was totally picking up on my negative energy. It got to the point where I would dread waking up in the morning because I knew getting Alice to relieve herself was going to be such a frustrating hassle. I'm also not my best self when I'm low blood sugar, either. We would go outside and she would sniff or eat grass and refuse to look at me. It sucked and I was totally afraid I was screwing her up and ruining our relationship because I was so frustrated.


On the Fenzi group, a few ladies suggested that I up her water intake. They said that Alice might be condensing her urine and if I upped her water intake I'd have more opportunities to reward her for going in the right place. This advice might seem counter intuitive as I didn't want her having more accidents in the house but I had to start somewhere. The ladies suggested that I give her some low sodium chicken broth and wait 20-30 minutes. They also recommended trying to wait to go outside until Alice really had to go and was almost bursting at the seems, so that she would go quickly to reduce my frustration. They were absolutely right. It totally worked. Within 20-30 minutes Alice had to pee! So I started implementing extra water and giving her a splash of low sodium chicken broth mixed with water on a regular basis and then taking her outside frequently. I was able to finally capture her peeing and put a cue on it. So now I have something to work with. She finally understands the cue and I can use the cue when she gets distracted to remind her what we are doing. Hallelujah!

The next piece of advice was from a friend and several people on the Fenzi Academy mentioned it as well for pooping. I was told that I should be giving her an activity prior to going outside to poop. That some dogs needed their bodies to move before they are able to go. So getting her active by chasing a toy, or using the treadmill. etc. Someone also suggested that she might just feel unsafe in the yard and needed a calming activity to settle in before she poops. I also had a friend mention that maybe Alice had a slower gut than my other two dogs. I did some research about this online and found out that some small dogs do have a slower metabolism than larger dogs!

So in addition to giving her an activity prior to pooping, I also decided to add more fiber to her diet and feed her dinner earlier so instead of feeding her at 6 or 7 I started feeding at 4-4:30pm. I prefer my dogs to poop in the morning, right away, so they are all taken care of. So Alice gets a few spoon fulls of plain canned pumpkin and green beans mixed with her dinner. I also give her a tiny splash of low sodium chicken broth mixed with a bowl of water at this time, too. Giving her water at dinner has really helped. We walk the dogs after dinner and she will pee during that walk and then she will pee again right before bed time (in OUR yard!!!) .

You Park Here, Literally!!!

Alice is generally ready to poop in the morning when we wake up but she still refuses to go in our direct yard. On this I decided to give in a bit. I will walk her to the end of the block and back and if she doesn't go in that amount of time (20-25 minutes) then she has to wait until it's the next time to go outside. At the time of this writing, I've been working on getting her to poop closer to home by walking her back and forth in the grass across the street from our grass.

We still have issues sometimes during the mid-day potty break. I give Alice extra water with her breakfast and a lot of the time I'll pop her on the treadmill or run her around with a toy right before a potty break. Then I will hurry her outside and she will usually pee immediately in our yard.

We've had Alice for 9 months now and luckily the novelty of Alice being new has worn off on my neighbors. They no longer bother me while I'm outside with her.

We have not had an indoor accident in several months. She will whine at us now when she has to go and seems to understand that potty should happen outside. Things have gotten so much better!  It's taken a little more work on my part to figure out what works for Alice but she's finally getting there!

I am so thankful for all the people who were kind to me and helped through this difficult time! For all the late night chats and for telling me my dog is normal and to stick it out. That she just didn't know what I was wanting her to do and she was going to be fine. That it was just going to take a little longer than what I was used to but everything was going to be okay. For those people who believed in me and told me I could do it.


To summarize our day:

Morning - Alice has been sleeping with me in bed, so we get up, I toss a few treats in her crate and she hops in. Then I take Phoenix out first, then Zoe, then Alice. Phoenix and Zoe potty in the yard. Alice pees in the yard and then we go for a short walk down the street.

Breakfast - Zoe and Phoenix are fed and then Alice will get a training session or a puzzle toy and a bowl of water mixed with low sodium chicken broth.

After Breakfast - Alice plays with Phoenix and Zoe, then takes a nap

Afternoon - Alice gets an activity, we play fetch or tug, or she does her treadmill workout, then we do a potty break in the yard

Early Evening - She will usually play with Phoenix again and then nap. Sometimes we will play outside in the yard if the weather doesn't suck.

Dinner - Zoe and Phoenix are fed. Zoe and Alice get some canned pumpkin. Alice gets a cup of green beans in a bowl and then we do a training session with the rest of her dinner. After dinner she gets a bowl with a splash of chicken broth and water.

After Dinner - We go for a family walk, usually around an hour, sometimes Alice will poop but often she won't. When we get back, we will relax for a little bit and then we play again.

Bed time - All the dogs go out at the same time for a quick pee before bedtime.

At any time during the day, if Alice whines at all or paces I run her outside to pee. She often gets an extra walk at some point during the day, too and play time with her neighbor dog friend.

So this has been our potty training journey! It's been a frustrating one but in the end Alice is worth every second I spent working with her.

Friday, October 11, 2019

Alice Reviews the new Expedition Parka by Hurtta


With new puppies, comes new adventures and with adventures comes new coats! Alice was recently sent the brand new Expedition Parka by our friends over at Hurtta! Hurtta is one of our most favorite brands. They always deliver stylish gear that is perfect for all of our trips. One of the coolest things about Hurtta is that they are always improving their gear and they actually listen to their customers about what's needed. The Expedition Parka is the updated version of our previous favorite coat, the Summit Parka.


We recently took Alice on a trip to Silver Falls near Salem, Oregon. Waterfalls and the trails around them are generally freezing cold and since little dogs don't tend to do well in the cold, I figured it would be the perfect time to test out our new Expedition Parka. Silver Falls State Park is a gorgeous park, however, it's not very dog friendly. There are only a few trails that allow dogs and none of those trails lead to any waterfalls. Even though we weren't able to hike down to the water, we still had a great time hiking their "Rim" trail.


The Expedition Parka is designed to allow freedom of movement so that dogs can run and play while wearing it. We hiked 9 miles and I have zero complaints about this coat. It kept Alice warm the whole time, even when she fell into the river and got a little wet. We had no issues with the coat rubbing her sensitive armpits.


The Expedition Parka is also fully adjustable, like most of the coats from Hurtta. I also really appreciate that they have notched out the area where the dog's tail goes. Alice has a naturally curly tail that she carries over her back. We've found that other coats really irritate her where her tail is. With the Expedition Parka, I can adjust the back length so it doesn't hit her tail and she's way more comfortable in it.




Some Specs from Hurtta's website:
  •  Waterproof, laminated fabric
  •  Taped seams
  •  Adjustable backlength, neck and chest
  •  In addition to the basic sizes 20-80, there are sizes 40XS and 45XS for Dachshunds and 30XL and 35XL for small, bull-type dogs
  • Reflective 







We also tested the Expedition Parka at the Pumpkin Patch. Alice had a blast dashing through the pumpkins and sunflowers!


I am very happy with this coat. Hurtta has outdone themselves this time! Alice was comfortable and warm on our trip and she was happy to hike for a long time wearing the coat. I can't wait until we can go on more adventures. 

I would highly recommend checking the Expedition Parka out. It's an awesome coat and a fantastic addition to Hurtta's lineup. The coat comes in four colors: Blackberry (black), Bilberry (blue), Beetroot (pink) and Buckthorn (orange). The neckline, back length and belly straps are all fully adjustable. You really can't go wrong with this coat, it should be able to fit any size dog.


Alice gives this coat a full 5 stars!

Disclaimer: We were sent the Expedition Parka from Hurtta in exchange for an honest review. We were not monetarily compensated. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Additionally, in our photos, Alice is completely safe. There's a trail about two feet down beyond those rocks, if she were to jump she'd be totally fine. It's always important to keep dogs safe when taking nature photos. Never put your dog on a cliff for a cute photo.


Thursday, October 3, 2019

Alice - 8 month Update and the Pumpkin Patch!

"She's just one of the pumpkins!"

We've had Alice 8 months now! I can't believe it's been that long already. She's doing so well and she's finally starting to feel like a member of our family and not a foster dog. I've felt like the last 3 years I worked at the dog training facility was all in preparation to own Alice. The minor behavioral problems that we've had have been easily worked out and most of the time I've immediately known what to do if she does something unexpected. Even though I'm no longer at that job, I still highly value all the knowledge and practice I got there. I'm thankful to my mentors for everything they taught me. Alice would not be a successful member of our family if I hadn't had all that training.

When Alice came home, she was always in a high arousal state. She was way too excited about absolutely everything, which lead to some barking and lunging at dogs on leash, she was also extremely intense about the environment and all the creatures around us. She would not take anything but the highest value food (cooked meats), which made training a little challenging at first. It was hard to know which reinforcement would work and which wouldn't so it took some experimenting. We've gotten to the point where in our neighborhood, I can use lower value treats but when I take her on a hike or any other trip, I'm still pulling out the highest value stuff for her. She's not being counter conditioned and fed constantly anymore but I like having the best treats on me for when I need them.


I was really worried about Alice for a few months because the last thing I wanted to do was have another reactive dog. I'm happy to report that with some diligent training, counter conditioning her to dogs and the environment and training of alternative behaviors, we have not seen any reactive behavior in a good long while. She does still fixate on squirrels here or there and I have seen a bit of neophobia (it was dark and someone left an unexpected bag of trash in a weird spot, she couldn't tell what it was so she barked) but she's easily redirected. I've noticed that she has started trusting me and my judgement about stuff. She's really good about all our regular neighborhood dogs, even the ones that bark their fool heads off at us. She can still get a little tense if she smells a new dog but she takes direction well and looks to me for what to do and falls right into the training we've been doing. It's taken a little extra work on my part but she's coming along so nicely.

We've also had a major break through with her potty training. I was extremely and I mean EXTREMELY frustrated with her with the potty training. Alice is the first dog that I've ever known who would not go potty unless it was absolutely urgent for her to do so and it was hard to tell when she had to go. We had more accidents in the house that I've ever had with any dog previously. Even with crating her and watching her and trying to get her on a schedule, it was tough. I ended up desperately asking for advice on a +R facebook training group and I was given advice to up her fluid intake. For about a month, instead of doing training for meals, I would soak her meals in water. I also gave her water mixed with (low sodium) chicken broth about two hours before bedtime, so we could get a quick pee in right before bedtime. With all the extra fluids going in, we finally made progress and I was able to put a cue on her peeing. Occasionally she will go outside and be so distracted she won't go but it's gotten so much better. We are still walking her to get her to poop but with a few spoonfuls of canned pumpkin at dinner time, she's gotten more predictable and regular with that, too. She has started to alert us to when she needs to go outside now, which is great.


In the past couple of weeks I've even started to trust Alice a bit off leash and we've done a few hikes at the park I know best (where off leash is legal). If you're following along on my instagram (@zoepheedogs) you can see some of her beautiful recalls. When I got her I was worried I'd never be able to take the leash off because she'd either take off after a critter or go home with someone else because she's so friendly. She has greeted people on our hikes but has always come to find me right after. It appears that she knows who her family is now and she's choosing me.

With the hikes we've done and the dogs Alice has met, I'm still on the fence with how she feels about interacting with other dogs. I would generally say she doesn't really like dogs she doesn't know well. She greets well and is cool if the other dog is cool. I've never seen her really play with a dog she just met. She's not very trusting. I've also seen her get snarky if another dog won't leave her be. We had to save her recently from an adolescent cattle dog puppy, who wouldn't take no for an answer. That puppy was twice her size and was bullying her and it caused an aggressive response from Alice because he wouldn't stop. The thing is, Alice is definitely a terrier, she's got BIG feelings about things and if she doesn't like something, she won't put up with it. So with that knowledge, I'm being super careful with her dog/dog interactions.


Alice is doing really well with Phoenix and Zoe. Phoenix is still her favorite buddy and she beats Phee up regularly. They have a good time crashing around the house. She still has some trust issues with Zoe. Zoe is definitely that old lady dog who would scream "GET OFF MY LAWN" if she could. We're still working on building a trusting relationship with the two of them. Zoe can be snarky at times but I trust her way more than I did when Alice first came home. Most of snarky behavior we've seen was because Alice was too high in arousal and it bothered Zoe. So we're constantly working to make sure the chaos doesn't last too long, or Zoe is in another area of the house when they're being crazy.


We recently took Alice on a solo adventure to Bauman's Pumpkin Patch and hiking at Silver Falls State Park. (Silver Falls is a gorgeous park but not very dog friendly. Dogs are not allowed on any of the trails to the waterfalls, which was a huge bummer) She did absolutely amazing. At both places, there were people, kids and dogs everywhere. She posed for photo after photo. She did everything we asked her to do and was completely fearless. She was the perfect traveling companion and all the people she met loved her.

Which pumpkin are we getting?

Helping push the wheel barrow to the checkout line!

We still have some things to work on. Alice is still scavenging things she finds on walks. It's been a real problem and she has gotten sick from eating acorns. We've been working really hard on "drop" and "leave it". She's pretty darn sneaky with things she finds on walks. A few times I've had to open her mouth and remove objects. The joy of a former street dog! LOL!

She's also having a tough time leaving the cats and their food alone. Cats are super fun to chase and only one of our cats will correct her. The other cat acts like a prey animal. We've been doing some timeouts for cat chasing and we've had to up our management and rearrange the area where they are fed. Alice was climbing the cat trees! I think we've finally got that worked out.


I am also super aware she's a bit chunkier than I would prefer. We've been doing so much training that she has gained a little weight. I'm very careful with her food intake but with her sneaking cat food and eating nuts off the ground and all the training, it's been tough to keep her slim. I think we're about to the point where I can start reducing my rate of food reinforcement and we're working on adding toys as the reinforcement. She loves running on the treadmill and going for hikes so hopefully we can get about a pound off of her soon.


Alice has been sleeping with me at night and she has been so loving. She's such a sweet dog and has been comforting to me in a way that the other dogs aren't able to. Zoe has always been aloof and Phoenix, while she's my heart dog, she's not into being cuddled. I think Phoenix is finally relieved to have another dog in the house, so she's not constantly being kissed. LOL! Alice absolutely soaks up the attention and wants to be held and petted. I've been really struggling with depression this year and have been having a very hard time. Alice is down for cuddles, she's down for laying in bed if I need her to. She's also ready and willing to go on any adventure I throw at her. She's gotten me out of the house, she's gotten me socializing with people I would of never spoken to. She's so friendly and such a social butterfly that I've just gone with her on her adventures. She reminds me to get up and get outside, she reminds me to get up and get off the computer. It's time to GO! Even though Alice didn't come at the perfect time in our lives, we weren't financially prepared for a third dog with me being unemployed, I'm happy she's here. It's becoming really hard to imagine what life was like before she brought her optimistic, chaotic craziness into our lives. We really love her!

I'll be posting her photos from Silver Falls in a separate post, as I'm reviewing the coat she wore. :)

Wednesday, September 11, 2019

The Girl and the Wasp - Shutting Dogs Down

Once upon a time there was a young girl who was terrified of wasps. You see, her parents used to compete in gardening events and they took her along to all of them. In the summer, this girl has been chased and bitten by wasps, for just playing in the gardens. Over time, she developed an extreme phobia of flying stinging insects.

One year she met her new family and they are very loving people but they don't really understand this girl very well. She's a weird one. She connects with animals better than people and would rather spend hours reading than interacting. You could say she has always had her head in the clouds, dreaming. Her family? They love her but that doesn't mean they get her. The girl's new family loved to have picnics and dinners outside on their patio. Every summer the wasps would come and the girl, she would run for the house, often vocalizing her fear loudly. "GO AWAY, you nasty stinging insects!!!" she would scream. She would scream and sometimes swat at these horrible stinging insects and try to get them away from her. Often times she would resort to having to eat inside the house, with the window open so she could still be with her family.

What did her family do about this? Well, her family thought her behavior was pretty annoying. They wanted to have nice, quiet dinners with polite conversation. They would complain loudly at her and shame her for being afraid. Often times they would tell her that she was "just doing it for attention". They would tell her she was being ridiculous and to come back outside and every time the girl would give in to her fear, the wasps would come. Her family did try some wasp traps but they were never enough, there were always too many.

The girl was VERY embarrassed by her phobia. She hated that these flying insects would make her scream and act out. She was shamed by her family and she was SO ashamed of herself. Often she would wonder why she couldn't just sit outside and enjoy a meal with everyone without being terrified. Eventually the girl was shamed so badly that she would sit outside with her family and when the wasps came she was still terrified of them but she sat in silence, often screaming inside her head, absolutely afraid to move or vocalize her discomfort because it was always met with ridicule. It's not polite in our society to scream and dance around in fear. She was still terrified of the wasps but her family had effectively shut her down. So there she would sit, silently terrified, wishing the flying stinging things would all die and leave her alone.


What does the girl and the wasp have to do with dog training? Well funny you should ask. Every single time a person "corrects" their dog when they display behavior out of fear or anxiety, they are only shutting that dog down. They are stopping behavior without addressing the underlying emotions. You have stopped the dog from moving or vocalizing but they are still screaming silently in their heads, just like the girl and her wasps.

When dogs are anxious in their crates and make noise and their person whacks the crate to shut them up, they might shut up but they are still anxious. Just because you've stopped the dog from vocalizing does not mean you have fixed the anxiety, you've likely made it worse. When you squirt your dog with water or jerk the leash for reacting at another dog, you may have stopped the reaction but you have not made the dog feel better, you've likely just associated your dog's trigger with more fear and pain. The dog learns that they can't trust their owner. Their owner gets mean when their trigger is present. Often times we see reactivity get worse and worse and the owners keep having to escalate the punishment to get the dog to "stop".

We need to remember that our dogs did not ask to be a part of our family. We went out and chose our dogs and we owe it to them to be loving humans worthy of their trust. We owe it to them to use kind, humane training methods. When your dog displays unwanted behavior, you have to figure out what the underlying cause of that behavior is and you have to address the emotions behind it and if you can't figure it out on your own, you owe it to your dog to find a trainer who uses humane methods to assist you.

The girl might have eventually learned to live with the wasps, she might have been able to get over her fear had she been supported through her phobia. She was not and she is still terrified of flying/stinging insects. The girl loves her family dearly but she doesn't visit them as often as she should and she avoids any activity with them that requires eating outside. Everyone has lost in this one. The girl does not blame her family for not understanding her or behavior. It just is what it is. The girl does her very best to never use aversive punishment on her dogs or shut them down because they are scared and displaying unwanted behavior. The girl continues her education and tries her best to be worthy of her dogs and to pay it forward.


Friday, September 6, 2019

West Paw Review! Rumpus Chew & Outings Collar and Leash


We were recently sent some fun items by a great company called West Paw for review! West Paw is a local company out of Bozeman Montana. West Paw believes in making sustainable products that are earth friendly. Their team is on a quest to have a cleaner earth, a healthy community and safe, happy pets.

I love how eco-concious West Paw is! They are a founding member of the Pet Sustainability Coalition. All of their products are made from recycled materials and are made in the USA. You can even recycle your old West Paw toys! West Paw has a "Love it Guarantee" if you don't like your product for any reason they will replace or refund you for it.


Rumpus Chew Toy

The Rumpus Chew Toy is a new toy in West Paw's "tough chewers" line. This is one of their most durable chew toys, it has three chew lobes and has been tested for durability. The toy bounces on land and floats on water, making it a great versatile toy for any environment your dog wants to play in. Alice is just learning to play fetch and she really liked her Rumpus toy!

Dog owners will love that Rumpus is:
  • Dishwasher safe
  • Latex-free and non-toxic
  • FDA-compliant (meaning it's safe to eat off of)
  • Love It Guarantee
  • Made in the U.S.A


We also received an Outings Leash and the matching Collar. West Paw’s latest eco-friendly collection of leashes and collars are designed with fun patterns to make walks more colorful. Made with recycled polyester from recycled plastic water bottles, the webbing is durable and easy to clean. They are machine washable and are designed to dry quickly so you won't need to pop it in the dryer, just hang them.

Dog owners will love the new Outings Leashes and Collars because:
  • Machine washable and fast drying
  • Eco-Friendly webbing made from plastic water bottles
  • Safe & Durable hardware
  • Loop for ID
  • Built for everyday walks



I really love the bright colors of the Outings line and I also really appreciate that they are made from recycled materials. The leash has a very sturdy clip and an extra handle loop near the bottom for those times when we are hiking on a narrow trail. Alice is a member of "over greeters anonymous" and loves jumping on people, having an extra handle near the bottom of the leash is wonderful for being able to control her better until I can get more training on her. The leash also features a small loop near the top that you could hang a poop bag dispenser or even your keys. You can also use that loop to clip the leash to itself for those times when it's okay to let a dog run free. I like wearing my leashes across my body when my dogs are loose, it's the best way I've found to not lose a leash in the wilderness. I really appreciate that West Paw has included this feature.



Overall we have really enjoyed all the products we received from West Paw. Alice has been having a blast playing with her Rumpus toy and the collar and leash are so pretty! I would definitely recommend checking West Paw out. They are an excellent company.

We received products from West Paw in exchange for our honest thoughts. All opinions are my own and West Paw is not responsible for the content of this blog post. We were not monetarily compensated.

Saturday, August 17, 2019

Happy 8th Gotcha Day to Zoe!


8 years ago today, I met a scared little blonde dog all curled up in a snotty (she was really sick) little ball. When I said hello to her, she wagged her tail and calmly came over to lick my hand. I brought her home and our journey began.

You can read more about Zoe by going to her page here: Zoe


Friday, July 12, 2019

Compassion for other Dog Owners. Mindfulness and A Love Letter To Reactive Dog Owners




Sticks and stones may break my bones but words... Words will rip my heart to shreds.

I recently defended a man on the internet, a complete stranger. Someone who does not know me and I don't know him. I wasn't even there when the supposed "incident" with him and his dogs happened but I defended him. A woman wrote on facebook about him and his "dangerous" dogs about how her off leash dog was just passing by his leashed dogs and stuck it's nose out to sniff and bam a bite. Apparently his dogs were very dangerous and out of control and he looked angry. This woman was astonished that this man would walk his dogs at a park on leash in harnesses with no "corrective gear" since they were obviously very bad dogs and out of control. How these dogs don't belong in a "dog park" if they're aggressive. "Don't take your aggressive dog out if they can't handle themselves".

The whole post rubbed me wrong for so many reasons but the very first one is that the park she's referring to is not a dog park. It's a natural area where on some of the trails it's legal to let your dog hike with you off leash. It's not a dog park and the rules state that dogs must be under voice control. It's common sense to not let your off leash dog run up to on leash dogs, let alone a man who's got three large ones he's trying to walk. You never know why a dog is on leash, maybe that dog is old and prone to over doing it (cough, Zoe, cough), maybe that dog is scared, maybe that dog is a brand new dog to them and they don't want them to take off, maybe they are in training, etc. It's just so rude to expect someone with multiple dogs that are on leash to handle your off leash dog and all the things that go with greetings. Dogs are not able to perform natural dog/dog greetings when restrained on leash and the situation can get tricky really fast, especially when it's one person dealing with three dogs and three leashes and there's a loose dog running amock with your dogs, getting in their faces and whatnot. 

Additionally it really bothered me that she implied his dogs were bad and aggressive and he had no right to be out with them. Any dog can display aggression at any time for any reason. Even the world's most friendly dog can have a bad day. Dogs trigger stack, dogs can get scared of stuff. The dog that bit could of just been attacked by another dog or coyote or maybe the dog was old with arthritis and was scared the other dog would hurt them and was feeling defensive. Shit happens, literally. This woman judged this man and his dogs and she only knew him for 5 seconds. 


I used to have perfect dogs. Well, not really but people thought that. Zoe was perfect. Quiet. Walked well on a leash unless she saw a squirrel. "Loved" all her dog friends. Didn't bark and lunge at dogs. Phoenix, too. Phoenix was "quiet". She didn't like other dogs in her face but she rarely barked or lunged at anything unless it was a huge dog in her face or a threatening human. We couldn't have any of Vince's male friends over but she's still perfect, right? She only liked "Uncle" Jeff but he's a guy so she doesn't have problems with men, right?

They could go for walks and walk next to me. People thought they were perfect and I agreed. My ego was inflated, look at my perfect dogs! Oh and by the way, this one, well this one is a rescue that I rehabbed all by myself with no other trainers to help me. She also saved my life from a near assault, too! She's amazing. Look at that perfection. Except when she "nips" those hyper labs that rush up into her face but that's totally not her fault. Everything really is fine. No blood no foul. Inside though, on the inside both of my dogs were basket cases and so was I  (we were working on it with training) but it didn't matter because on the outside where people could see, they were perfect.

You see, I had that childhood. The one where your parents wanted the perfect child. I had to have straight A's. I was not allowed to make a mistake and if I did I got to pick which belt they would use on me. I was expected to be the best at everything. If I failed and disappointed them very bad things happened. They bought me (I was adopted) so I damn well better deliver the results they wanted. After all, didn't I owe them? Our community needed to believe I was their perfect daughter... My parents were awful humans, so bad that some of our neighbors actually sold their houses and moved away. I wish I had the luxury of doing that.

So as a grown up adult, my dogs needed to be perfect because I'm still that scared little girl who was taught that I had to meet everyone's expectations of perfect. We can't bark and lunge, we can't have a moment of anger, even if another dog threatens you. Reactive dogs are just reactive assholes that aren't trained well enough, right? People that own them just need to do a better job, right? I'm literally the making of a perfect compulsion trainer, honestly. Yep, crossover trainer here and still doing my best to use science based learning and not fear or compulsion.


I used to be that dog owner who walked her dogs around the world and judged other owners, your dog having a meltdown? Why are you letting it act like that? Your fault. Train it. Seriously. I never said anything to any of those owners because I'm scared of confrontation but I was thinking it and my face probably gave it away. 

If it was my dog that was melting down? I was the worst dog owner on the planet and I needed to do a better job training them. I was even harder on myself than those random people I came across. One bad incident would ruin my day and I would be really hard on myself and my dogs, I'm still working on this. Social pressure from other dog owners for your dogs to be good is an intense feeling and I hate it so much.

It wasn't until I started working with dogs and specifically working with folks who were dealing with some of the same problems that I had, that my opinion on dogs displaying unwanted behaviors changed. I learned that a lot of the time genetics and the environment rule the behavior. I learned that most people with dogs who overreact to stuff were just as desperate as I was for their dogs to be good and they were doing the best they can. I've met people who's dog was the love of their life and they still couldn't fix them, no matter what they did or how much money they spent on vet behaviorists and training.

The reality is there is no such thing as perfect and there never will be. Dogs are dogs, not robots. They do dog things, sometimes their behavior can be scary to humans but not allowing them to ever get mad? That's like telling someone to drive through Portland at rush hour and you're not allowed to get upset if someone cuts you off. People have meltdowns, people display aggression, too! Everybody gets upset sometimes. It doesn't mean that a person isn't training their dog or the human that's melting down is a bad person. It just means that right now that dog or human can't handle what's happening to them and that's okay. Maybe the dog owner made a mistake (and we all make mistakes, I am the mistake Queen) but we need to realize these owners, they are doing the best they can.


Years have gone by and despite a lot of training my dogs are still dogs. They aren't perfect robots. We've had so many incidents with other dogs. Some of it was my fault. Like going to the dog park too much and just letting whatever happened there happen because "socialization" and "that's what dogs do". We stopped going to the dog park, I don't know if I will ever get the courage to take Alice to an actual dog park. We've had incidents hiking, loose dogs running up to us and jumping them, we've had loose small dogs run right up to Zoe and bite her in the face. Zoe has been attacked by several dogs. Phoenix was attacked after trying to herd a running dog (chasing/nipping). We stopped taking them off leash hiking and slowed way down on the leashed hikes. My dogs main activities were little trips to my work to demo for classes and play after. We also spend time walking around in our neighborhood, where there are dogs we know. Occasionally we'd go to a park but I hate going because there's always loose dogs. 


Then Alice entered our lives like a wrecking ball. This tiny 15 pound teacup of a dog threw herself into our lives and said "You will love me and provide activities". Suddenly I have a young puppy with so many needs. This little dog has got to be a terrier, she needs an activity and she needs it right now, dammit. She's also big into her feelings. She has opinions and they will be heard. One of her opinions is that leashes are frustrating and the whole world is exciting and she needs to get to it. If she can't get to it then the world needs to hear about it. She's actually not truly reactive, she doesn't bark at lunge at everything but occasionally something will get her.

Over the past year both of the older dogs have become even less tolerant of dogs than they were and we've seen some outward leash reactivity. The reactions are typically from Zoe who will scream/whine at loose dogs. "Is that loose dog going to run up and bite me?" If they are leashed she doesn't care and doesn't display that behavior. Phoenix is still pretty silent but "deadly", meaning she will lunge and nip a large dog if they get in her face. If Alice is upset or overly excited she will bark and lunge. The one great thing about Alice is she redirects easily or I can pick her up and she stops but she's one of those dogs that can get worked up and doesn't let something go (cough, terrier, cough). At this point I don't feel like Alice is actually fearful of other dogs, I think she is typically barrier frustrated. She greets dogs well on a long line and gets along great with most of our neighbor dogs. All of these things we are continually working on and training. I train my dogs every single day, rain or shine.


Which brings me to the most insulting incident I've ever had in my life with my dogs. Yesterday we were having a weird day. If you've been reading my blog you know that I've been through a lot in the last couple of months and we recently got more bad news, I have to have major dental surgery. It will be very expensive and we are really stressed out about all the things. The morning just started out bad. The dogs had been doing really well walking together but that morning they were attempting to drag me all over the place, I kind of wonder if the coyote had been back and they could smell him. All of the dogs were overly aroused about something. I've had so much going on that I just didn't think my next move through. I had an errand that was near the park I like to take them to, so I threw them all in the car with me and I did my errand then took them to the park.

We got to the park and the first thing I hear was a dog losing it's mind across the pond from us, this immediately had all my dogs up in their arousal again. I could literally see the adrenal dump. I was trying to figure out where the barking was coming from and if we should just turn around and leave when suddenly a small dog rushed right up to us. I think I said something like "Oh CRAP! ...and you're off leash, too". As soon as my dogs saw this dog, they lost it. Zoe did her scream/whine, Phoenix lunged and Alice I think barked. I have no idea. I just knew I had three whirlwinds happening and the only thing I could think to do was drag them away from the off leash dog. I'm so glad I had the older dogs on gentle leaders because I would of been on my ass if I didn't. As I'm trying to collect them and get them out of the situation the other dog owner says, "It's okay, my dog can handle being off leash. He's TRAINED. Unlike yours."

I was in complete shock. No joke. I could not believe this guy had the audacity to say that to me, especially when he was completely at fault. The ponds where I walk is a nature reserve, it's illegal to let a dog run loose there. His dog caused all of this drama to happen and in the 5 seconds this guy knew me, he judged me to be the world's shittiest dog owner and I was devastated by it. It only took three sentences to ruin my entire day, I didn't even sleep last night thinking about this dude and how unfair he was to me. 

It's not fair to judge another dog owner when you've only met them for 5 seconds or 1 minute or had one interaction. It's not fair to judge a dog by the meltdown they are having. There's no way to tell how much time and effort someone has put into their dogs in one interaction. Absolutely none and when people judge other dog owners they are doing real mental harm to people who desperately want their dogs to be good. 

That man I defended on the internet, I feel his pain so much. I've been where he's at. My three dogs acted out, I'm by myself just trying to deal with them. If you had seen my face after the incident occurred, I bet I looked angry as hell, too and I was. I was really mad at that guy for letting his dog loose and I was really mad at my dogs for not being able to handle themselves because I've spent years training them (Zoe and Phee). I was mad that I had to deal with social pressure from some asshole who had only known me for 5 seconds and didn't know the crap I've been through with these dogs, or the work I've put into them. 


So this is my love letter to reactive dog owners everywhere. I see you and I know you're trying. I know you love your dogs and just want them to be good. The struggle is real. I have your back if you ever need it and I'm sorry if people have been mean to you. We've all got to stick together.

Kindness is everything. You have no idea what someone else has been through or what they are going through. Words can rip people's hearts to shreds.  

Be kind for everyone you meet is fighting a battle you know nothing about.





Monday, July 8, 2019

Alice's 1st Beach Trip! 4th of July Update


We took Alice on her first beach adventure for the 4th of July!


We planned on spending the entire 4th of July on the coast, wanting to make sure we got home after the fireworks, so we took our time, stopping at some hiking trails. This picture was taken on the Cape Lookout trail. It's a gorgeous trail that we haven't hiked since Zoe was an only dog!


Cape Lookout Trail is where a lot of people come to whale watch!


The girls had a blast exploring this "new to them" trail. The trail was super narrow and so busy with other people and dogs. The girls did really well. We did have a few moments where Alice got overly excited but she didn't react and ate all the boiled chicken I shoved in her face. Most of the time the girls just cooperated and moved off the trail to eat while other dogs passed. I am so proud of them.


Alice was super excited when we finally made it to the beach! 
There were smells and sand and dead things to eat! Woohoo!


Run, Phoenix! RUN!

Phoenix is the only one with a reliable recall, so she's allowed off the leash.


There were sisters to play with! 

At one point, Zoe pounced on Alice and said "this is where we play!"

It's been so cute how Zoe has finally accepted Alice into our family! 


Just Zoe and her mini me.


Phoenix just wants to play fetch at the beach!


We practiced lots of recalls! This little dog loves chicken. 
At one point I felt safe enough to drop the leash and she came right back when I called her.


Waves are weird and wet!


Being brave because "sisters". 



Unfortunately we walked too far south and ran into some people with illegal fireworks. Cannon Beach is a Nature Reserve and they don't allow them so I thought we'd be safe. We couldn't get away quickly enough. The girls were exposed to around 4-6 big booms and they were very scared. I had to carry Alice for about a mile because I was worried she'd slip her harness. I'm glad she's little!


It took us about 2 hours to hike back to our car. We did see some recovery in that time. I was able to get their meds into them and they were feeling better after they kicked in. We spent the rest of the evening in the car watching the sunset. Luckily no more fireworks! We made it home just after midnight and our street was covered in firework debris. Even with the few booms we dealt with at the beach, I truly believe it was better than staying home and listening to them all day. Zoe actually ate her food the next day and that hasn't happened in the 8 years we've had her. 

We are planning on going to the beach again soon so that we can make sure those booms did not leave a lasting impression on anyone. We want Alice to love the beach as much as we do.


Since coming home we haven't really had a break from any of the noise, our neighbors are still lighting something off every night. Alice has become really sensitive to loud noises, including the airplanes that fly over. I hope we get a break soon and we're able to work on it. Just like other times when she gets upset about something, she won't take food. I have learned to hate the 4th of July.