Saturday, March 27, 2010
Wondering about your dogs diet?
Check out dogaware.com! Great information on commercial foods, raw diets, and cooked homemade diets! Also lots of advice on keeping your dog healthy!
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
Ten Rules of Tug O' War
Sorry I haven't written in a while! Anyway here are some rules to playing tug o' war with your dog in a productive manner.
8. Children should not play tug with your dog unless and until you are confident they can play by the rules. If you do allow children to play tug with your dog, always directly supervise the game.
Ten rules of tug
There are really only two good reasons not to play tug with your dog: 1) If either you or your dog has some kind of medical condition that rules out this kind of vigorous play (and then you still might be able to play low-key tug) or 2) if you have one of those very rare dogs who just can’t seem to learn to play by the rules, and insists on putting his mouth on you despite your best efforts to teach him otherwise. Barring those, the game is on, with the following rules:
There are really only two good reasons not to play tug with your dog: 1) If either you or your dog has some kind of medical condition that rules out this kind of vigorous play (and then you still might be able to play low-key tug) or 2) if you have one of those very rare dogs who just can’t seem to learn to play by the rules, and insists on putting his mouth on you despite your best efforts to teach him otherwise. Barring those, the game is on, with the following rules:
1. Use a toy that is long enough to keep dog teeth far away from your hands, and that is comfortable for you to hold when he pulls.
2. Keep the tug toy put away. Bring it out when you want to play tug.
3. Hold up the toy. If he lunges for it say “Oops” and quickly hide it behind your back. It’s your toy - he can only grab it when you give him permission.
4. When he’ll remain sitting as you offer the toy, tell him to “Take it!” and encourage him to grab and pull. If he’s reluctant, be gentle until he learns the game. If he’s enthusiastic, go for it!
5. Randomly throughout tug-play, ask him to “Give” and have him relinquish the toy to you. If necessary, trade him for a yummy treat. After he gives it to you, you can play again (see steps 2 and 3). You should “win” most of the time - that is, you end up with possession of the toy, not your dog.
6. If, while you are playing, your dog’s teeth creep up the toy beyond a marked or imaginary line, say “Oops! Too bad” in a cheerful voice, have him give you the toy, and put it away briefly. (You can get it out and play again after 15 seconds or so.)
7. If your dog’s teeth touch your clothing or skin, say “Oops! Too bad” and put the toy away for a minute.
8. Children should not play tug with your dog unless and until you are confident they can play by the rules. If you do allow children to play tug with your dog, always directly supervise the game.
9. Only tug side-to-side, not up-and-down (up-and-down can cause injury to your dog’s spine), and temper the vigor of your play to the size and age of your dog. You can play tug more intensely with a 120-pound adult Rottweiler than you can with a Rottie puppy, or a four-pound Chihuahua.
10. When you are done playing, put the toy away until next time. You control the good stuff.
Happy tugging!
Source: http://www.whole-dog-journal.com/issues/11_9/features/Fun-Games-To-Play-With-Your-Dog_16059-1.html
