 Dear John,
We have 2, two year old Labrador retrievers that provide us with great affection, humour, entertainment and exercise! One has an issue that is food related. He has always been a picky eater but now will often refuse to eat at mealtimes which are twice a day. He will eat some now and maybe some later, maybe not at all. He is a big, strong and beautiful dog, full of energy and mischief. There are no health issues as checked by the vet. Leaving the bag available for him to pick at is not an option as the other one would just consume everything in the bag! Is there something we could do to encourage proper eating habits?
Thanks, Joyce
Dear Joyce,
He may just have a different metabolism and be missing the Labrador Retriever “eat-everything-in-sight” gene recently discovered in the mapping of the canine genome.
If he's healthy, stop worrying about it. I feed adult dogs on a schedule. Once a day for some, twice for others. The food is down for five or ten minutes and then nothing else is offered until the next scheduled feeding. For dogs that are being house trained or are really finicky eaters; not even a treat in between meals. I don't ever waver. You'll find that by the 4th day your dog will be into a meal time rhythm. There are a few reasons for feeding this way.
I believe mother nature does everything for a reason. We don't always know what the reason is but there is always a reason. Here's my theory. It has to do with saliva. When food's about, hungry dogs salivate, some drool. Why is that? Human saliva contains an enzyme which mixes with the food as we chew it. Dogs don't chew and there is no enzyme in their saliva. So why the spit? The answer is lubrication. Free fed dogs lubricate less and hack/cough more. Eating dry food without the saliva to smooth the way must be like swallowing crackers on a dry day without soup.
I've wondered as well if dogs that were allowed to free feed had more dental issues as well. One of the things that cause the most suffering later in life, often leading to death are issues stemming from dental problems. It would be interesting to see if dogs that salivated naturally around meal time benefited from more teeth flushing and had fewer dental issues.
Another reason I like schedule feedings is it's easier to tell if the dog is skipping meals which is sometimes due to illness.
Sometimes dog owners with finicky eaters fall into the “S/he doesn't like this, S/he only likes this.” trap. I like chocolate cake. That doesn't mean I should be eating it 3 square meals a day. Same goes for dogs; what a dog likes shouldn't be the primary consideration, what is good for your dog should be. Good food is usually more palatable anyway. But what the heck is good for a dog? We could go on the basis of just buying foods that are “veterinarian approved” but they're all veterinarian approved. I'd like to meet this veterinarian, because he or she sure approves a lot of different foods. Some with grain content so shamefully high that I should think they're really popular in goose circles rather then for a species that is predominantly carnivorous. Besides, “veterinary approved” to what? Thrive, sustain life, barely keep their hair from falling out? Dog owners should do their own research. If you want to write me I'll send you some information where you can learn enough to make an informed opinion.
So just as your mother told you, tell your dog, “Don't you know their are starving dogs in . . .” and stick to your guns. |
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 Hi John,
I have a labradoodle named Isabelle, she is just over a year old. She is a great family dog, amazing with my three little girls ages 4 - 8 years. The main problem is that Isabelle loves to chew. Her favorite thing is chewing socks, and she has actually hacked one up which is very scary. She also loves chewing on the children's toys. We have tried to remind the girls the if its left on the floor Isabelle will chew it. But them being typical children, they don't always remember until after the toy has been chewed apart. I have bought Isabelle chew toys to which she destroys usually on the first or second day. I have even tried the toys they say are indestructible.
I am a first time dog owner, so I am sort of clueless on all this dog training stuff. And I think I could benefit with a bit of help.
Sincerely,
Jennifer
Hi Jennifer,
I think you counted wrong. You haven't 3 little girls, you have 4 and one is being given freedom she's not mature enough to enjoy. I use the following example with my clients all the time; “If your child can get to the stove before you can get to your child then there are going to be consequences. If your dog can get to the socks and children's toys before you can get to your dog; as you've found there are going to be consequences. You're not supervising in accordance with your dog's maturity and/or life skill development.
It's a common mistake new dog owners make. Here's a rule of thumb; on average a dog is not an adult until it's 18 months to 2 years of age and until then, no matter how gifted you think your “child” is you should know where it is and what it's doing and be in a position to do something meaningful about it at all times.
You manage this well enough with the rest of the girls, but the playing field is too uneven with this one. This particular girl can get to the stove before mom can get to her no matter how much caffeine is coursing through mom's arteries. The easiest way to stay on top is by having her drag a leash around the house so you can step on it when she decides to go off on a sock hunt or grab an errant toy. If she puts the leash in her mouth use a chain leash. It takes 2 or 3 days for the dog to learn to stick close by and you'll find you're not stepping on the leash to stop her near as often. For when the leash isn't enough, put her in a nearby crate. She likes to chew, so have a special “crate-only” chew item.
I've heard a lot of people advise about this sort of thing, particularly with labs, “Don't worry, mine did that too and eventually she grew out of it.” True, some, even many dogs do, but my sons would have eventually grown out of hitting each other with shovels too. The fact is, we all would have eventually outgrown a lot of things but one of the reasons we have parents is to make growing up a little less painful and risky. Positive reinforcement isn't the only thing kids whether two or four legged need, supervision and discipline are important too.
Paws-itively yours,
John Wade
www.dogtrainingwithjohnwade.com |
 I received a barrage of letters after last week's column wanting to know what to look for in a good breeder so here's a start:
Finding a good breeders usually starts with referrals from experienced dog people. There are a few sources. Area veterinarians are one. You want to know if they have any of the same breed you're looking for coming through their clinic that they think stands out. While you're at it ask them what sort of physical problems can be expected in that particular breed as you'll want to match that with what the breeder depth of knowledge.
Another resource is breed specific rescues. They generally know who's who and who's not in the breeding world and might point you in the right direction as well as arm you with questions to ask. They might even have a “ready to go” dog for you. Yet another strategy is getting on line to a discussion group aimed at the breed with a primary focus on health. Lurk for a while to get a sense of who's who and who's not and then ask them questions. Nutrition lists are good too, particularly the ones into all home made natural diets. Even if you haven't the time nor the inclination to do so yourself, or whether you agree with the philosophy or not, the raw feeders that breed are often top notch breeders and the raw feeders have their own discussion groups you can tap into.
You can learn a lot just by talking to breeders. They'll want to interview you which is great but not necessarily a sign of a good breeder. You want someone that has been breeding at least as long as the normal life span that their breed of choice achieves and checks at least annually to see how the dogs have been doing physically and behaviourally.
You don't care how well behaved the parents are or how many ribbons they've won as you have no way of knowing how much time it took to get them that way or maintain it so you want to talk to people living a similar lifestyle as you, that have one of their older dogs. Ask for names and numbers and be suspicious if they're not easily located.
Ask what sort of problems they've had with dogs they've bred, if they say none find out what their secret is because the best breeders in the world haven't cracked that nut. There is no such thing as the perfect bloodlines and the info about the breed you received from your earlier conversation with the vet will bear that out. Ask them if your vet can contact their vet. If not, why not?
On paper the “If there's a problem with your dog, we stand behind our dogs 100% and will replace it.” guarantee may sound good but unless the dog actually dies it's not much of a guarantee. It's not a toaster. People can't trade in their feelings, so for the most part it's a hollow promise. I'd like to hear as a guarantee, “If your dog ends up suffering from a genetically passed trait, we'll spay and neuter the parents so it never happens again and contact everyone that has pups from those bloodlines so they can provide early intervention care.
A sneaky question is to ask them if they make any money breeding. If they begin to laugh so hard they pee their pants it might be a good breeder. Breeding good dogs usually costs money. It's done out of passion not for profit.
Another great clue is their yard. Have a look at the yard they let the pups out in and it looks like a junk yard that's a good sign. They're providing tons of sensory exposure when it counts most. There will be things to climb and balance on, squeeze under, climb over and noisy things to knock over. I've a whole book on this topic as it is critical for breeders and dog owners to apply before 12 weeks is up.
Good dogs might cost more money then greeder dogs but not always, either way the cheapest part of a dog is the purchase price. |
Hi John,
I'd like to suggest you write about shunning the "breeders" of the so-called designer breeds.
I see a number of these mix-breeds coming through my obedience classes and am amazed at how intelligent, well-educated people can fall for the half-truths and lies from these "breeders". They claim they are producing hybrid vigour by mixing the breeds, which of course is not the case. They mix Labs and Goldens with the non-shedding Poodle, and say all of the puppies will be non-shedding. They say they are developing a new breed Golden Doodles (Golden/Poodle mix), Puggles (Pug/Poodle mix) and the latest I've heard of, Whoodles (Wheaten Terrier/Poodle mix) for well over $1,000/puppy. I know responsible breeders of quality, pure-bred dogs who sell their puppies for less and produce litters far less frequently.
There is an over-population problem of dogs (and cats) - otherwise our animal shelters and the rescue groups would not be so busy. If only responsible, caring breeders were allowed to produce litters, there would be no rows of shelter cages full of unwanted dogs in every major city.
With your column, you have an excellent opportunity to educate the general public so I'm hoping you'll act on my suggestion.
-Diane
Dear Diane,
I don't want to hurt the feelings of the good people that opened their homes and hearts to the dogs produced by people with qualifications little better then the ability to tell the difference between a male and female dog and perhaps the imagination to think up a clever marriage of breed names but nor do I want these con artists to think they're fooling any of the real professionals in the dog world. If we had our way these profiteers would be out of business tomorrow. I now use the term 'greeder' instead of breeder for these and any other profit driven or substandard producer of dogs, pure bred or not and I find I have to use my new word a lot in my work.
This next sentence will no doubt raise some hackles amongst the guilty. Greeders are just puppy mills with sometimes better living conditions. No more thought goes into their concept of breeding then that of puppy mill owners. The wretched thing is that some greeders are decent likeable people that just don't know the harm they do and people buy from them because they appear to care. Some do, but whether they have horns or not, I think they need to be marched down to their local shelter and start holding in their arms the million plus of perfectly good mongrels that are euthanized annually in North America because they're producing the same thing; mutts. As owners of greeder dogs well know, a mutt is no less loveable then a pure bred dog, but nor is a shelter dog less loveable then a greeder dog and greeders must shoulder a good part of the responsibility for the annual horrendous loss of dog lives.
Suffice it to say I agree with you and wish people wouldn't support them. For anyone interested, I'll take the time to provide direction on how to find a good breeder or pick a good shelter dog. Both of these groups need the public's support.
Pawsitively yours,
John Wade |
 Dear John,
We have an 8 month old Maltese that is house trained. However, we had an incident this week where he finally made it upstairs unattended for a few minutes. When my husband went up to get him although all the doors were closed he had pooped about 15 piles all over the landing upstairs. He is house broken and does not have accidents. He also had peed twice. My husband said it looked like a war zone when he got there with these small piles of poop everywhere. Is this a behaviour thing or was he frightened because it was dark and he did not know where he was. He is from a rescue unit and has other issues but this is not one them.
S.W. - London
Dear S.W.
I don't think your mountaineering Maltese considered that what goes up must come down. He got to the top of Everest, looked back down, said, “Oh Crap!” and then he did – 15 times apparently.
Young dogs are usually intimidated by their first few trips up stairs but not as much as they are the trip back down. It takes a while for puppies to get in co-ordinated control of their bodies but their minds are well aware that it's quite possible that their back end might at some point race their front end to the bottom.
It's a heck of a slope for a Maltese that at eye level would have been looking straight on to the top of the first step. Were our roles reversed and it was I on a cliff looking down comparatively scaled boulders leading to everything familiar to me in the whole world, well lets just say the subsequent clean up may have taken longer.
He's old enough that he should have been stair savvy by now and co-ordination wouldn't have played a role, more likely lack of experience and therefore confidence due to his back ground. Rescue dogs usually have some sort of baggage. The fact that he was willing to give it a shot upwards speaks well for him and I'm sure with a little time, your helpful hands, and a lot fewer steps to practice on he'll be fine.
Paw-sitively Yours
John Wade
www.dogtrainingwithjohnwade.com |
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