Finding His Way

A friend of mine adopted a Great Dane from a rescue organization some months ago. He was not in good physical or emotional condition when he became part of their pack.

They have another dog, a senior-aged Black Lab, who wasn't thrilled with the new arrival but had recently lost his housemate so he was cautiously accepting of the new boy.

It's been a slow recovery for the poor guy as well as a learning curve for his new owners. Always with patience, they have taken things easy with him, not putting too many expectations on him but instead allowing him to find his way, get his paws under him so to speak. He's come a long way--but still has a long way to go.

When he approaches them, he does so with his head down in submission. If he gives a little wag of his tail, it stops when a hand connects with his body to pat him.

When his people enter the house, he greets them in a very submissive manner. His head down, slung to one side, his body curled away from them, tail down. Almost apologetically.

Perhaps he is recalling something learned from his past life . . . expecting what was inevitably to come.

I think he just hasn't learned how to feel free enough to fully express joy and happiness yet. With each passing day, with its sameness and the nurturing they give him, his confidence will grow. Confident that he is 'home'. Confident he will not be punished but will be disciplined in a loving manner. His owners will work at allowing him room for his own personality to blossom.

As the months pass and he experiences their commitment to his well-being, their desire for him to become a well-balanced member of their household, always re-enforcing their actions with love, he will find his confidence. When a hand is offered, he will nuzzle into it, with a tail wagging comfortably. He will go to the door to greet his people with a full body-wag, tail following suit, head held high and proud.

He will learn he is in a place where he can exhibit and share his emotional energy.

Time and love, with some patience, does heal all!

Pseudo-Pregnant Girl

Her mind is telling her body she got lucky during her last heat. (she was not bred!) It's one day short of two months since her heat and she is in the throws of a false pregnancy. She is trying her best to eat for forty. She has spent the last week roaming around the house in her quest for the perfect site to have her phantom puppies. As I write this, she's had two of them-it's a small litter for a Great Dane...one is a muskrat and the other is a lamb.

The muskrat stuffy is in between my pillows at the head of my bed-the lamb has been relegated to the laundry basket in my bedroom closet. (with the door kept open at all times of course!)

She seems to be an attentive mother, going into the bedroom after every meal to carefully arrange my bedclothes into a pile in the center. Once satisfied with this endeavor, she goes over to her muskrat and gives it a few licks, desperately trying to get it to 'do something.' (like breathe I guess!!) When there's no response, she doesn't show signs of despondency, she just carries on. She then turns her attention to the closet and checks on the progress of the lamb in the laundry basket...sniffs at it, (no licks for the lamb) checks out the closet for the umteenth time and when she's satisfied there are no lurking menaces, she returns to the bed to lay quietly for about half an hour.

When we go for walks, there's only one focus---seek out the perfect den outdoors...just in case-dragging me into neighbours' bushes or any corner that has good cover. Old leaves from last fall seem to be a fave, especially if they're piled into a corner. When I stopped to speak with a neighbour on our evening walk, she spotted a crawlspace under the front steps and was through the garden, exhibiting such delight with the thought of finding a possible 'new' spot along our path with such a compulsion to investigate it fully!

This hormone-induced state will hopefully come to an end in another week. She'll tire of the muskrat and the lamb--they'll become stuffed animals once again. I will be able to reclaim my bedclothes and start making my bed in the morning and know it will still look the same way at night. Our walks will be about running and playing with her friends on the beach and checking out the 'pee-mail' in the neighbourhood.

Every female I have ever owned has exhibited the same behavior....has gone into a pseudo- pregnancy after every heat, until the time she is spayed. Going so far as to generations digging under the same bushes, follwing the same paths, preferring the same places.

It's been suggested the reason all my females experience this phenomenon is due to my nurturing, my mothering of them from a young age.


Whatever the reasons, it's a frustrating period for the female and can be exasperating for the owner, so a little extra compassion and understanding helps.

Next spring, if all goes according to plan and I breed her, she'll be an old pro at mothering!

Walkin' the Dog

Convenience-anything that saves or simplifies work, adds to one's ease or comfort, etc., as an appliance, utensil, or the like. (Meriam-Webster)

Or an off-leash park for dogs.

Very convenient for any dog owner.

Open the gate, unhook the leash and let 'em run. Spend the next half hour communing with nature via checking messages on your PDA in the great outdoors or if there are other dog owners in there, pocket the blackberry and be social, excusing yourself only when you have to respond to a message.

Keeping one eye on your four-footed charge, attentive long enough to spy the selected spot, wander over, get the poop bag out, clean up and deposit it into the bin.

If there's a group of dogs 'playing' together let them 'work it out' by themselves. They'll have their own hierarchy down pat within the first three minutes.
Hmm...not my idea of exercising the dog!

The walk is the perfect time to bond with your dog. To mold and teach the dog what is acceptable and what won't be allowed. Everything you ever wanted to know about your dog or teach your dog can be accomplished while you are out on a walk or in a dog park with other dogs. Everything!! (what a concept) After all, it is the highlight of any dog's day!

We have a responsibility when there is more than one dog present to monitor their behavior. Just as we watch our kids in the playground and wouldn't allow bullying that can escalate to the point of physical injury, so it should be with a pack of playing dogs. The big difference is, in a playground, kids have bars and swings, a sandbox and all sorts of apparatus. Dogs have the other dogs, their owner and some wide-open space. Dogs need a job when they are out playing- a focus, whether it's retreiving a ball, playing tug-of-war with a favourite rope-toy with another dog or it may be as simple as calling the dog over every once in a while to reaffirm your leadership. (and hone the dogs training)

It shouldn't be a free-for-all in there. Being alert to the body language of an approaching dog or getting in there when there are three dogs on one and the low dog on the rung is obviously not enjoying it anymore is a necessity! This type of play (bullying) can cross the line from 'socializing' to the 'pack' mentality quickly. I've seen this many times in our off-leash area. The owner watching but oblivious to their dog's situation.

Monitor your dog's behavior when in an off-leash situation!!

There's a 'Code of Conduct' posted at the entrance of our off-leash parks in the city of Toronto.

http://www.toronto.ca/parks/ola_signsamples.htm,

Clean-Up Crew

Most days we get down to the shores of Lake Ontario once--either for our early morning walk or the afternoon one. Our long walk. Our off-leash, socializing, play-with-other-dogs, camera-toting walk.


Today it was the early morning walk. When we got onto the boardwalk, I was disappointed to see an Animal Control van parked on the grass, along the boardwalk, which meant no strolling along the shoreline with my dog off-leash, without chancing a ticket issued to the tune of $500+. No dogs are allowed on the sand of our newly-designated 'Blue Flag' beach. They are not allowed off-leash unless in the designated, partly fenced in off-leash area (but we do take our chances when there are no officers on the beat!)

As I drew closer, it struck me that today was the day set for the dog owners in the beach to come together and do a beach clean-up, sponsored by the Toronto Beaches Dog Association. I assume this is done so we can show how much of the garbage along the beach does not originate from the canine community but from the 'others' who use the beach.

I decided to join in the efforts, since I am a member of the association--grabbed a garbage bag and some gloves (which the TBDA provided) and Journey and I entered the off-leash area. She would be able to socialize while I worked.

After about 20 minutes my garbage bag held some metal shards, lots of plastic items, used kleenex, broken glass beer bottle pieces but....no evidence of anything "doggy"! No bacteria-ridden, dried-up piles of poop, no flea-infested, left-behind dog toys, no sign of any dog-related item. Not one.

There was a great group out there today...the dog owners from our community. I don't recall seeing other groups from within the community exhibiting such enthusiasm and affection for our beach.

On the other paw, I don't necessarily agree we should be doing the city-workers' jobs for them. Just as I don't agree with the Mayor's "20 minute clean up day" across our city. There are staff who are paid a good hourly wage to clean up every day but judging by what's gathered up on that day in 20 minutes, it makes me wonder! I've not seen any city workers do any cleaning up on the beach proper (the sand) for years, although the parks staff are wonderful and keep the garbage bins emptied and the gardens looking beautiful.

On our way home from our morning outing, I came across an area where the guilty parties are definitely of the two-legged variety!! This is evident in the last four photos.

Praying for a Miracle!

A friend called me tonight to share her fabulous news---this afternoon, her girl was surgically implanted with the frozen sperm of a dog who has been chomping bones in the big boneyard in the sky for the past seven years. A visit to the reproductive specialist, a one-inch incision, deposit of genetic material into the uterus, three stitches, et voila-the promise of puppy breath in 60+ days!

You see, she was sharing the news with me because I'm the one who suggested this particular stud dog! Last week she asked me if I knew of any 'good dogs out there.' His name came to mind. He was a good dog, perhaps even a great dog, who lived a long and healthy life, with many accomplishments under his collar. I put her in touch with his owner (well, the owner of his preserved straws) and $4000.00 later, the deed is done! The only memory the female will have of this life-altering event is her trip to the vets office where she fell asleep when she wasn't even aware she was tired!

Her owner is estatic!

Me, I'm thrilled and when she asked me what she can do to ever thank me for helping her with this breeding quandry, I assured her all she has to do is to love those puppies and make sure they go to good, forever homes.

I'm also feeling a little bit anxious. Somewhere in the back of my mind, there are echoing whispers of the'what-ifs' of this breeding. I can't help but feel if anything goes wrong (God forbid!) somehow part of the onus will find its way to my door.

Guess I'll just focus on the fact that any breeding and whelping is not an exact science. We have to leave room for a little bit of a miracle.

I'll be praying for a miracle for the next 60+ days!

Q & A's

I breed my girls occasionally, that is, once in each of their lives, I breed them to a dog who I feel will not only be a good phenotype match but will bring longevity, health and temperament into the mix. I do this mainly to keep a girl to carry on with. At one point I had grandmother, daughter and grand-daughter at one time. Ages 10 years, 5 and 2.

It's a very difficult road, this breeding. So many variables--any number of things can go wrong no matter what health tests have preceded, no matter how many hours have been spent doing pedigree work, no matter how healthy both male and female are. Unfortunately, it's not an exact science. It's a miracle as I see it.

Then once the puppies have been safely delivered into the world and all is well, it only remains so for a short period of 8 weeks....until I have to deal with people who are interested in taking a puppy home with them.

I had calls today from two women, both looking to add a Dane puppy to their families.

Caller # 1 tells me how much she is in love with Great Danes and has done all sorts of research on the Internet about the breed. She has a two-month-old and a five year-old, one boy-one girl. Neither she nor her husband have owned a dog before. So, I patiently answer her questions as best and as honestly as I can. 'Yes, you'll still have to take the dog out in a snowstorm or in the rain (after bundling up your 'other' kids ) for exercise. Nope, a backyard just isn't the be-all-to-end-all when it comes to healthy exercise and responsible ownership. 'Yes, a puppy at six months of age, weighing one hundred pounds can cause bodily harm to a youngster without meaning to.' After an hour with her, she listens to my answers, to what I am saying. I suggest it would probably be best to wait until the children are a few years older. She thanks me for taking the time, for putting things into perspective for her. She has decided to wait a few years.

A little bit of psychology doesn't hurt!

Caller # 2 wants a puppy now. She and her fiance are getting married in June, she's two-months pregnant and has a five-year-old child. She will be off on maternity leave for 9 months, after which she'll go back to work full-time. Yes, she will crate the puppy while at work 5 days a week, 8 hours a day. Her last dog, a seven-year-old Black Lab had to be given to someone who lives on a farm because it growled at her child. A Black Lab--growling?!? (hmm...wonder why?)
'No, sorry you won't be getting a puppy from me and no, I don't know anyone I can refer you to.'

I don't sell dogs as disposable items. Nor do I sell them for income with no thought to their future.

If I had a litter of twelve whining , bouncing-off-the-walls, pooping and peeing puppies at the moment, would I have agreed to sell to either caller #1 or 2...? Nope! A prospective puppy owner has to bring more to the water bowl than that! And a responsible breeder has to responsibly place his/her puppies.

Beach Bacteria

I don't want to sully our enjoyment of the meagre spring weather we're experiencing by bringing back memories of our cold and windy winter living on the shores of Lake Ontario but after reading the article in the most recent Beach Metro our local community paper, I have no choice.

The article headline says it all-'Dog Association Wants Right to Use Beaches in Winter' (http://www.beachmetro.com/)

My concern with the article is our councillor's response to our request. She has asked the mayor's office to authorize a pilot project for next year allowing dogs ON LEASH ONLY to use the area beaches in the winter months, as a way to 'study the impact on our Blue Flag Beaches' citing ' it's a matter of bacteria and cleanliness.'

Well, so what's my issue with that??? We get what every dog owner in the beach has been asking for---dogs being allowed on the beach during the winter months! Right?

So let me get this right....dogs ON LEASH on the beach in the winter months as opposed to dogs running free on the beach will impact the environment differently. There will be a difference in the bacteria count if the dog's are off-leash?

Hmm...this could only be possible if owners are strolling along the boardwalk, sipping their lattes deep in conversation with a companion, mindless of their four-footed charges.(unfortunately, I see this all the time, summer and winter.) These same owners don't even care to know where and when their dog has left its mess until they hear someone call out to them, 'excuse me, your dog has just dumped' or 'excuse me, do you need a bag" ?(pointing in the direction of the crouching perpetrator) Many a jogger is guilty of this offense! Not to mention the mounted police, who exercise their horses on the beach, summer and winter months. I have never in 20+ years seen an officer get off his horse and clean up after it. Nope, it's the dog owners who pick up after them. (unless the dogs get to it first!)

So, for me it goes right back to the basics....responsible dog owners, who are mindful as to the whereabouts of their dog at all times, when off-leash.

I guess whether off-leash or on-leash, if the owners arn't responsible there will be issues with bacteria and cleanliness summer and winter. If not on the beach proper, it will be be in our parkettes along the boardwalk and in the parks. It's not a matter of allowing dogs off-leash or not that will make our beach area cleaner. It's a matter of responsible ownership and taking responsibility for our environmental and ecological footprint.

When by-law officers focus on ticketing the true offenders; the persons who are guilty of riddling the beach with bacteria and dirt, those who leave garbage, be it in the form of dog feces, horse dung or dirty diapers, they will be doing their job. Then perhaps this vilification of all dog owners will cease!

Blue Flag Designation

I've just returned from the very first Toronto Beaches Dog Association meeting. A great turnout with bodies overflowing into the hallway, people straining to hear what was being said.
The politicians of Toronto have met their match with the dog owners .
As far as I can gather, this 'Blue Flag' designation that has been bestowed upon our beach doesn't meet with the criteria for blue flag designation. The Environmental Defence (http://www.environmentaldefence.ca/reports/blueflag.htm) group has measured our beach against the 27 Blue Flag criteria and agree our beach meets these standards. Hmm....
As a person who has walked on the beach three times a day (every day!) for the past 20 years I have a different view.

When I see the litter, the garbage, the pieces of rusty metals; some of which has been there for years, the broken beer bottles (from the teens partying at night) the used condoms left for little kids to pick up, the dirty diapers and chicken bones, complete with used napkins, I am in awe of this Environmental Defence group. Yes, we want to encourage tourism back to Toronto, indeed into the province of Ontario but I have to wonder what kind of political backroom deal this is.
For instance, 'A daily beach cleaning during the bathing season when necessary.' and
' No algal or other vegetation may accumulate and be left to decay on the beach, except in areas
designated for a specific use and as long as this does not constitute a nuisance.'

I have not seen a 'daily cleaning of the beach' since the cutbacks-before that, every other morning there would be a sand-raking machine out there. I have seen the algae in late August so thick, kids wading into the water at certain areas of the shoreline are playing with it and they come out of the water with green legs!

We can't even refer to what is on the beach as sand at Kew Beach, because about 10 years ago there were truckloads and truckloads of crushed stone or gravel brought in to top off our 'sand.'
It would be interesting to analyze the composition of the 'sand' at Kew Beach and let's say the sand down at Woodbine Beach, where the Volleyball nets are set up.

Now we've been told there are no dogs allowed on the beach to comply with the 'Blue Flag Beach' designation. In the European Blue Flag Beach Criteria (2003) it nowhere states dogs aren't allowed on a beach as part of the criteria - it's a 'guideline criteria' so whatever City council decides where this one is concerned, is acceptable.


There is a new website for the Beaches Dog Association and I hope anyone who enjoys the sunrises and sunsets the boardwalk and beach offers, will consider visting the site and signing up to become a member and offer their time and talent. There's also a Facebook group.
I goggled them tonight with no luck but will post the links as soon as I can.

Time to take my girl for her walk.