Service Dogs

A dog peeing after placement?

admin — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 21:46:02 +0000

Healthy 3-4 year old Greyhound starts peeing in the house after 6 weeks of placement. What to do?

First, since any medical issue has already been ruled out this can only be a behavioral issue. For the first 6 weeks he was on his best behavior in his new families house with no accidents, After 6 weeks dog has claimed the house and family as his own and marking his territory.

It’s time for the family to take back THEIR house! It has already been suggested that the family crate the dog. They say the dog does not like the crate. Family further says THEY do not like the crate. That is the problem right there.

Greyhounds grow up in crates. This dog does not hate it’s crate. The FAMILY hates the dog’s crate. A crate is a dog’s sanctuary. The crate is the dog’s safe place. The family has replaced the dog’s private place with a big scary place that the dog is now desperate to make his own. It’s sad really that the family does not understand the dogs needs. They are doing what they think is best from their human point of view.

The solution: Put the dog back in it’s crate. Keep it very positive. Feed the dog in the crate. Give him a treat for going in it. Leave him in there for an hour or 2 then take the dog out to pee. KEEP EYES on the dog at all times in the house. Leave loose for a bit then back into the crate. Maybe from the crate, after a few weeks, the dog can graduate to a doggie door in the kitchen.

Giving a dog the run of the house from the beginning like they did is just setting the dog up to fail. Sorry to say this is NOT a dog issue this is a human issue.

We all love our dogs and want to do what is best for them but we need to learn to “speak and think dog” in order to do what is truly best for them from THEIR perspective.

- Daniel
Petropolis Park

Happy Halloween – Dog Treats

admin — Sun, 30 Oct 2011 15:16:01 +0000

Dog Treats: Dog Food and Dog Treats are specially formulated for the needs of a Dog. Dogs DO NOT need People Food. Choose a high quality food and match it with equal quality treats. If you are feeding a Super Premium like Taste of the Wild or Solid Gold then do not use “Junk Food” type treats like Beggin Strips.

If your dogs daily food ration is, for example, 2 – 1/2 cups per day then you should figure in your dogs treats as part of that ration. Huh? OK. If my dog is supposed to get 2-1/2 cups of food and I am using 1/2 cup of treats per day then I should cut the food back to 2 cups so that the total daily ration remains at 2-1/2 cups.

When at a weekend competition with GYPSY, I use her kibble as training rewards. I portion her daily meals and use it throughout the day. Usually by the end of the day the kibble is gone. She does not need another meal in a bowl and stays fit and trim. She might not get a meal in a bowl all weekend.

Healthy non-processed treats:

Sliced Carrots, or Blueberries (Freeze them so they are less messy)
Beef Heart, Raw and cut into 1/2 inch squares, then placed in a dehydrator for about 10 hours then frozen. Costs less then $1.50 lb. One pound raw yields about 1/3 pound dry. Yummy!!

- Daniel
Petropolis Park

Why I Love the CGC Test

admin — Fri, 28 Oct 2011 17:51:55 +0000

The CGC Certification is a standardized AKC National Registry. Any Service Dog or Therapy Dog Org can create it’s own Certification test. Any Org working with Greyhounds could choose to exclude a SIT. AKC Does NOT exclude any breed from any part of the test. As a CGC evaluator myself I called and asked, “What are the guidelines for Greyhounds? They don’t SIT.” The answer was, “They don’t SIT, They don’t pass.”
Contrary to the beliefs of Greyhound fans the AKC sees the Greyhound as, “Just another Dog.”

I have people call me to Certify their dogs as Service Dogs / Therapy Dogs. I tell them, “Your dog MUST first be able to pass a CGC test.” Many do not call me back. That’s how I weed out the Fakers.

If you want a REAL Service Dog then be prepared to Do The Work! If a Retired Racing Greyhound can be trained to pass a CGC test then ANY Dog can pass. Just DO THE WORK.

- Daniel
Petropolis Park

What Does Your Service Dog Do?

Daniel — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 20:12:09 +0000

What does your Service Dog Do?? Service Dogs are tailored to those they serve. They all have their specialized skills. Most skills are trained but some just happen naturally. “My Dog is better than Your Dog”, definitely does NOT apply here. In a recent interview I heard Sara say that she could Climb Up Zorro (Malinois) if she needed to get herself up.

Jack (Aussie) can retrieve objects fallen out of Jana’s reach.

At 4 pounds of weight Jonny (Chihuahua) pressed a special panic button that called EMS when his mom was in trouble.

Chuck (Pointer) wakes his mom up in the middle of the night to alert of low blood sugar. Jewel (MinPin) retrieves mom’s asthma inhaler.

Sara describes Hero (Greyhound) as a “Four Wheel Drive Cane.” He Does Not retrieve objects like Jack does. He does Target so I could maybe teach him the Panic Button behavior that Jonny does. At a very sturdy 77 pounds he can support the weight of a 200+ pound man like myself to Climb Up him. Throw the cane away!

“Date Magnet”, is not a recognized Service Dog behavior but Hero gets us lots of attention when we are out.

I have trained my own dog GYPSY (Malinois) to perform a very wide variety of Service Dog behaviors that people might need. She is my Service Dog Demo. GYPSY is my canine training partner.

Years ago I was the victim of a Home Invasion. I was left handcuffed and thrown in my bathtub. It was hours before anyone found me like that. I still occasionally get nightmares. GYPSY wakes me up. I did not teach her that. Some behaviors just happen.

CGC Certification is what EVERY dog should be trained to do. Service Dog Certification is what YOU need your dog to do?

- Daniel
Petropolis Park