Wood River Weekly A-M – Page 6 – Positive Puppy Dog Training

Collar, Collar, Touch My Collar!

November 24, 2024 Fran Jewell

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I must share a very distressing incident happen this week. I was working with a client in their yard with a very sweet 7 month old puppy. Across the field came a male Akbash limping very badly. He had a collar and name tag on, and was somewhat uncharacteristic of the breed in his friendliness with other dogs, especially considering he was badly injured. He was not just limping, but would not put any weight on his rear leg indicating to me it was VERY painful. Many dogs in pain are not friendly at all! But, this fellow wanted to play with the puppy I was working with.

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The Case for Crates, a Heart Attack Story

November 24, 2024 Fran Jewell

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Wood River Weekly A-M

By now, most of the locals know my recent expedition over Mount Heart Attack. Let me say that the journey there is far beyond any Everest climb! I am here today to tell you this story for several reasons. The first is to pay overwhelming tribute to St. Luke’s ER Doctor Torres and his forthright, honest and hard line that he took with me, someone in total denial of my health condition! The second is that extraordinarily compassionate and capable Life Flight crew that raced me to the Twin Falls Cath Lab to the expert hands of cardiologist, Dr. Hymas. Without all of them and their support teams, I wouldn’t be here to tell you this story.

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Canine Peacemakers

November 24, 2024 Fran Jewell

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Wood River Weekly A-M

Dogs display so many behaviors that are simply enchanting to watch. I spend every day watching dog behavior because it is so fascinating to me. I see their feelings, their hierarchy, and their distinct personalities. As an instructor and trainer, this is critical to helping dog owners to understand their own dogs. I also spend a lot of time photographing these behaviors.

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Canine Identity Crisis

November 24, 2024 Fran Jewell

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Wood River Weekly A-M

I can hear it now, “You have got to be kidding!” I am dead serious! I talk to no end about leadership and how critical it is to dog mental health. Very few dogs these days do not have some sort of anxiety, whether it is separation anxiety, approval anxiety, inability to calm themselves in the house, re-directed aggression, even reactivity to events or other dogs. What is even more unfortunate, is that so many people do not recognize the signs of anxiety and continue to let their dogs live in quiet misery. Our dogs cannot tell us or even talk about how they feel.

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Canine Enrichment

November 24, 2024 Fran Jewell

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Wood River Weekly A-M

Enriching your dog’s life is so much more than walking in the woods, the dog park, or Trail Creek. In fact, many of my clients are overwhelmed by the dogs that mug, jump and aggress their dogs when they try to take their dog for a walk. With the most regretful and saddened heart, I must say that our valley, which used to be dog friendly, is becoming dog unsafe. I am not here to discuss aggression at this moment, but I am here to discuss alternatives to putting your dog in an unsafe environment.

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Calming Therapies for Dogs

November 24, 2024 Fran Jewell

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Wood River Weekly A-M

Somehow in the past couple of years I ended up on an email list for veterinarians. I have no idea how that happened, because I sure am not a doctor, but I get some really wonderful news about what’s new in veterinary medicine. Things that keep popping are new devices, supplies and medications to help calm dogs. Everywhere on the internet and through any animal retailers are devices, hormones, homeopathics, essential oils, flower essences, medications, and behavior modification techniques to help dogs cope with their anxiety and anxiety producing aggression.

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Breed Differences and Why That is Important

November 24, 2024 Fran Jewell

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Wood River Weekly A-M

Because of the popularity of rescues, there are many mixed breed dogs in our lives. There are many pros and cons to mixed breeds, however we can do a few things to help us see more clearly how to live with and nurture our mixed breed dogs. We are now capable of doing fairly reliable DNA testing, which is so easy to do with a cheek swab, to find out why our dog may be behaving a certain way.

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Bells and Whistles

November 24, 2024 Fran Jewell

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Wood River Weekly A-M

One of the reasons many of us live here in the Wood River Valley is because of the many hiking opportunities for us with our dogs. Unfortunately, there are dogs lost all the time in our National Forests due to chasing animals, not coming when they are called or sometimes because something scared them into running away. Dogs and their owners that come from the cities may have no idea of the dangers of allowing a dog to run loose without prior training.

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“Balance” in All Things Dog

November 24, 2024 Fran Jewell

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Wood River Weekly A-M

These days, if you do an internet search about dog training, you will find extremes from one end of the spectrum to the other. I read an article the other day that talked about “the state of your dog’s mind” in how it relates to the dog responding to a simple command like “sit.” It was encouraging that we consider what the dog was feeling before we ask a dog to do something. My thoughts about this came quickly.

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Backyard Paradise

November 24, 2024 Fran Jewell

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Wood River Weekly A-M

As our love for dogs and these incredible natural surroundings grow, so does the pressure on our dogs and the environment. Sadly, many popular places where we walk our dogs are becoming filled with trash – dog trash, as in poop. The risk of disease comes along with that, especially for younger puppies. Pressure mounts on our dogs in terms of having to deal with other dogs that are true bullies. Bullies are dogs that disrespect another dog’s personal space by rushing up to them, barking and flagging with a stiff tail.

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