How large your soul is

Young Queen Elizabeth and her corgi. Source: the3goobers.blogspot.com

“Folk will know how large your soul is, by the way you treat a dog.”

– Charles F. Doran

Happy weekend, everyone! Hope yours is filled with good, long walks.

Review: If Only They Could Speak

If Only They Could Speak, Nicholas Dodman

I know. Another Nicholas Dodman book! This is because I just like reading stories of dogs with behavioral problems, I guess. (And there’s a beautiful Aussie on the cover…)

You could also say that Dodman is kind of like the modern James Herriott: The good-natured, occasionally cheeky veterinarian who saves troubled animals and gets thrilling stories for dinner parties in exchange. He seems amiable and energetic and likes being able to save the day. What I appreciate about Dodman, though, is when he admits to mistakes–or when he occasionally gives his human clients the benefit of the doubt.

His stories also help me empathize with the veterinary profession, especially those who are called in with behavioral problems. So much of their work is rehabilitating the people and convincing them to do what is right for their pets. That would certainly be a thankless task. Re-training a dog isn’t a big deal; re-training a person? Nightmare.

Materially, this book is barely distinguishable from The Dog Who Loved Too Much and Dogs Behaving Badly–except the stories are different. The one divergence is that this book includes cat stories. I don’t know much at all about cats, but I’m trying to learn more about them, and so this book was a helpful–if brief–foray into the mystical, shrouded world of feline behavior.

I like Dodman. Even though I don’t necessarily learn anything new, I’ll probably keep reading his books as they keep coming out–because they’re entertaining and often eye-opening glimpses into the busy, fascinating world of a behavioral veterinarian.

Pup links!

The Amazing Shepherd Balancing Act! Source: Lovinmansbestfriend

Hennessy Grape Harvest in Cognac. I love the images of the winery owner with his pack of spaniels and setters. All the images are just beautiful. (The Selby)

Do Dog Shelters Make it Too Difficult to Adopt? Dog walker and trainer Lindsey Stordahl raises an interesting question about the adoption regimens for shelters. I don’t think my local SPCA has a very difficult standard for potential adoptees, but I do feel like many of the breed-specific rescue agencies may go a bit overboard with their requirements. Regardless of what you think, it’s an interesting perspective. (That Mutt)

5 Ways You Can Train Like a “Pro.” Basic but great points to remember while training. I always have to work so hard at not repeating cues over and over again. (Success Just Clicks)

How to React When Your Dog Begins Resource Guarding Against Other Dogs. A very thorough article about how to prevent and train away from resource guarding. This is a behavior that I’ve always imagined would be difficult to train a dog out of; I think I may appreciate re-reading this article in the future. (The Whole Dog Journal)

Toronto Council Bans Pet Shop Sale of Dogs, Cats Unless They’re from the Shelter. This is great progress in putting puppy mills out of business. If only it would spread to the States! (The Hydrant)

Fetch. This place looks like my idea of a really good time: A pack of happy, eager dogs, ready to play. (Paws on the Run)

A weekend with Ava

This is Ava. She is darling. Source: Me

This weekend, I had a mini college reunion with friends in Virginia Beach. I went to visit my dear friend Catherine and we were joined by Jonathan. Catherine has a one-year old lab/German shepherd* mix named Ava. (*I posit she’s got GSD in her somewhere. She looks mostly lab, but look at those ears! Adolescent GSD if I ever saw one.) Catherine and her husband, Russ, adopted Ava from a shelter in Pensacola, Florida, when Ava was 7 weeks old.

As you can see, Catherine and Ava are very devoted to one another.

Catherine and Ava. Source: Me

Russ is in the Navy and is frequently deployed, so Catherine and “Ava-rice” are constant companions in their apartment (aka Balboa Towers) in downtown Virginia Beach. This pair makes having a big dog in a high-rise apartment look like a piece of cake. I know it’s not, but they manage it well. On Sunday morning, we took a leisurely and enjoyable walk around town with Ava and saw many other dogs and their people.

Watching over the city. Source: Me

Catherine, Ava, and I all shared a (seemingly small) double bed over the weekend. I think this was the first time I had shared a bed with a dog for a night and let me tell you: It is no easy task. They are reluctant to yield their ground. Ava, however, was very responsive to Catherine’s requests to move up, roll over, turn to the side. To my surprise, I actually slept very soundly. And Ava looked like she did, too.

She’s an extremely affectionate dog. She wants to be sitting in your lap, licking your face, or leaning against your knees all the time. Most people would find this annoying, but it was delightful to me. She does jump and beg for table food constantly, but apart from that, she seems pretty near perfect. (I also feel like Ava and Bo would be best friends.) I had a great time with her and wished we could have taken her with us everywhere.

As is expected by now, I left the weekend with my longing for a dog ratcheted up to another level.

Wish list: Mendota leashes

My enchantment with rope leashes has been well documented here. Thankfully, there is an affordable alternative with the braided Mendota leashes. Even though it’s not rope, Mendota makes leashes that are the (much!) cheaper version of that gorgeous Found rope leash.

Mendota snap leash, $12.19 at DogSupplies.com

After you walk a dog on one of these leashes, you’ll never want to go back to flat nylon! With a few uses, the leash becomes very soft and pliable–but still strong. DogSupplies.com sells a wide variety of styles and colors of Mendota leashes. These leashes are definitely on my wish list for our future dog.

What’s your favorite type of leash?

She makes him believe in God

Leonard Woolf and Pinka, Monk's House, 1931. Source: Smith College

“Your puppy has destroyed, by eating holes, my skirt, ate L’s proofs, and done such damage as could be done to the carpet–But she is an angel of light. Leonard says seriously she makes him believe in God–and this is after she has wetted his floor 8 times in one day.”

– Virginia Woolf, in a letter to Vita Sackville-West, on the cocker spaniel Pinka, which Sackville-West gave to the Woolfs as a present.

Review: Shaggy Muses

Shaggy Muses, by Maureen Adams

This book sounded like the perfect diversion from training and behavior books. I was an English major and wrote a honors thesis on Virginia Woolf and had previously loved Woolf’s “biography” of Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s spaniel, Flush. I love reading about women writers–and women writers plus their dogs? What’s not to love? In Shaggy Muses, psychologist Maureen Adams looks at five great women authors and explores their complex and beautiful relationships with their dogs.

Adams discusses the relationships between Elizabeth Barrett Browning and Flush, the much-beloved cocker spaniel; Emily Bronte and her mastiff, Keeper; Emily Dickinson and her sweet Newfoundland, Carlo; Edith Wharton and her various toy breeds, mostly Pekingese; and Virginia Woolf and her various dogs, especially the spaniel Pinka, featured on the cover of this book. (Pinka served as her role model for the character of Flush when Woolf was writing Flush’s biography.)

I found that the common theme of this book was this: Dogs helped these women through grief and loneliness. The life of a woman artist is rarely cheery, especially if you had the misfortune of being a woman artist in the 19th and early 20th centuries. The companionship of a dog, according to Adams, helped these women come out of their shells.

My only complaint with the book is through no fault of Adams’. Rather, it is difficult to know much about some of these women, especially the famously mysterious Emily Bronte, without speculation. Occasionally, I felt like Adams overstepped her bounds as an objective researcher, but she is a psychologist, so I suppose she can’t be blamed.

There are many beautiful and touching comments from these writers about their dogs, many of which I plan to feature here in the weeks to come. So, keep your eyes peeled. Overall, I’d recommend this book as a light and interesting overview of the ways in which dogs have comforted and cheered some of the world’s most gifted artists.

Pup links!

Illustration by Gemma Correll, who is totally rad. Click image for her site.

15 Things to Purchase Before Adopting a Dog. Kristine’s funny, thorough, and honest list about the tools and things one will need when bringing an adopted dog into the home. Definitely writing these down on my shopping list! (Rescuing Insanity)

Pet-Themed New Uses for Old Things. My favorite magazine, Real Simple, provides some great tips for household objects that can be used for daily living with dogs. Some of these things are pretty obvious (duh, use a plastic bag when picking up poo), but some were good to read about. (Real Simple)

10 Signs You Are Matched with the Right Dog. A sweet list that highlights the bond that develops between a dog and its human. (Dog Days)

Balenciaga Dog Sweater. Now this is the classy way for a Crazy Dog Lady to dress. And it’s an embroidered GSD, too! (Miles to Style)

More Dog-Friendly Companies. This makes me wish my office welcomed dogs! I feel like our environment would be so calm and happy if we could have dogs around. (Unleashed Unlimited)

I also found two posts this week about German shepherds who actually herd sheep! Check them out:

Sheepies! Kodiak the GSD turns out to have a lot of natural herding instinct. (German Shepherd Mom)

My GSDs and Sheep. Christine reflects on her experience with herding and Schutzhund with her GSD pack. (Blackthorn Working GSDs)

Pet-A-Likes: Look At Me. The caption is hilarious–and, one believes, probably true. (Awkward Family Pet Photos)

Found photo: Emma

I found this photo of my childhood dog, Emma, on one of our old computers. It looks like she had retrieved a postcard that had fallen off the fridge. Gosh, I miss that dog. I would do just about anything to have her back.

That’s all. Just a brief reminiscence, tinged with slight regret… More coming later this week!

Living in agreement

Source: Women and Their Dogs

“The goal of life is living in agreement with nature.”

– Zeno

Happy weekend, everyone!