Tag Archives: dogs

North Meets South ADBA Show

On the weekend of June 1st and 2nd was the Great Lakes Pit Bull Club’s annual show.  This year, the club was joined by the Southeastern APBT Club from North Carolina.  With four shows and two weight pulls, it was a long and grueling weekend since we worked the club being members of the Great Lakes club but it was absolutely amazing.

In recent years, many clubs have seen a massive decline in entries due to a variety of reasons with the largest one being economic and financial setbacks.  The ‘North Meets South’ event, however, didn’t seem to have much of that concern with well over 100 entries in conformation alone for each show.  Weight pull was no different with record numbers coming to pull.  We had some Class A pullers from all across the US who rocked it out on a less-than-favorable track and had two dogs finish their Ace titles as well!  (Congratulations are in order to Clay of Team No Fear with Boogieman and Dave with Bende.)

Our own personal crew did pretty well despite the fact that my husband and I were both running around like chickens with our heads cut off.  Ryker took three 3rd place ribbons and a 2nd which gave him the elusive 99 points – one point shy of finishing his ADBA Champion title.  Mika was shut out all weekend and Lyric made her debut as an ADBA pull dog and landed a 2nd place (and first 5 points of 100) toward her Ace title.

All in all, the show was a huge success.  Both hosting clubs did exceptionally well and the exhibitors all seemed to have a good time (I know we sure did!) and many said they can’t wait for our next one.  Here’s to many more phenomenal shows and  a fantastic rest of the show season.

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Happy 10th Birthday, Luna!

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It’s seriously hard to believe that my sweet little monster has finally hit the double digits but it’s true.  While I struggle to face the reality that my heart and soul, my partner in crime and the biggest reason I’m so enamored with the American Pit Bull Terrier is getting up there in age, she seems to not have bothered to notice – unless, of course, I’ve missed her evening goodie before bedtime.  We just can’t have that!  Imagining her as a “senior” dog is really hard to believe when she continues to run the house with an iron paw and gallops around the yard like a yearling colt.  This gal has seriously got everyone she meets wrapped around her little paw and the older she gets the better she gets at accomplishing it.

Later today (after I actually go to bed), we’ll be hitting all of her favorite places to pick out some extra special goodies.  She’ll get to pick out as many toys as she could possibly desire and we will spend the day together with a trip to a fast food restaurant for some junk food and some ice cream to follow.  She seems to know because she’s been badgering me even more today than usual.

She turned 10 years old, right?  Can someone explain that to her?

I truly owe it to Luna, though, to celebrate her for the absolutely amazing dog that she is.  She’s truly been that once in a million dog.  Never did I expect to have this absolutely beautiful and incredibly intelligent little beast in my home.  There are many days I don’t feel I deserve her kindness and unerring loyalty.  She’s been there with us through thick and thin and given us the hope that only the love of a loyal dog can give.  To imagine my life without her (or any of my other beloved dogs) would be to rip my soul from my body and cease to exist because it is far too painful to even consider.

Thank you, my love.  I hope to spend many, many more years with you.  While I thought you needed me, the reality of the matter is I needed you even more.   Happy 10th birthday, Luna-girl.  Here’s to eternity.  I love you.

K9 Explorers

With spring finally starting to actually happen, the world is starting to blossom and the urge to get out and do things is finally starting to creep in and set fast.  Winter is always a tough season for me (and the dogs) because I have to drag myself out to do things because I hate the extreme colds it produces.  Yeah, we weight pulls in the winter months but it was indoors but that was pretty much the extent of it.  (No snow pulls this year for us!  Brr!)

My husband and I have been looking into doing other things with the dogs outside of competing.  Don’t get me wrong, I still have my competitive “We can do this!” spirit with the dogs but I’m settling down a bit and just want to spend time with the dogs and do things in time.  That is what brought us to finally biting the bullet and looking into joining K9 Explorers.  It’s a really awesome group of people who get together just to DO things with their dogs and even help the community with different projects too.  I’d been following them for a couple of years but it really never kicked that it was something I wanted to do seriously until this year when I got the guts to as the founder, Heather, if I could tag along on one of the hikes.

We had a blast.  The dogs were tired.  We were tired.  We got to hang out with like-minded people who thoroughly enjoyed their dogs and their company.  These were people who enjoyed doing things with their dogs for the heck of it.  Sure, there were a few dog sport competitors in the group like Abby and Therese from Team Puggle (seriously awesome team, by the way!) but for the most part it these were folks who just genuinely loved their pets.  It was such a wonderful treat that we were hooked.

We’ve decided to make the plunge to join and enjoy ourselves and help out in the club to make sure things run smoothly.  It’s going to be a blast earning badges like we could have in Dog Scouts of America since they wouldn’t accept a couple of our dogs for not being particularly doggie friendly, helping the community and enjoying doing things with the dogs outside of the normal competitive setting and I highly recommend the group for anyone in the Metro Detroit area too! (If you’re interested, you can find out more about them here.)

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Ryker playing on some of the agility equipment at the first meeting of the year.

Breed Advocacy and the American Pit Bull Terrier

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Ryker at Michigan Renaissance Festival 2012

The topic of breed specific legislation and bully breeds is an incredibly hot button topic and it has a vast array of thought processes from the overzealous “can do no wrong” breed advocates to those who are more realistic about the history and temperament on this breed.  My friend Liz recently wrote an article titled “Advocacy As I See It” on her blog after having another breed advocate accuse her of supporting breed specific legislation because she is incredibly realistic about the breed – especially since she shares it with one very special dog named Inara who has had some ups and downs becoming a model doggie citizen in a state that was known for its horrendous BSL (that was recently repealed!  Yay!).

Now, I’ve been involved in the breed on a major level after my husband and I brought home our very first dog as a budding young couple in 2003.  My first taste of hatred actually came from my own mother who told me to take my 4 ½ week old “baby killer” out of her house and get rid of her.  (Guess what didn’t happen?)  I was shocked and furious.  How dare she talk about my baby girl like that?!  It didn’t take long for her to change her tune and now she brags about her “grand dog” to anyone who will listen.

Unfortunately, though, she’s not the only one who has thought like that.  Some have changed their mind through persistent education from an unemotional friend who would rather facts be there and not phobia but others still have fear and loathing for the American Pit Bull Terrier.  Let’s face it, these dogs have a history because of a propensity to be dog/animal reactive or aggressive and are incredibly powerful. In the wrong hands, they can be a walking disaster and the numerous media accounts that happen almost weekly are proof testament to that very real problem in this breed.

The unfortunate problem for this breed though isn’t so much the ignorance of the owners (though that’s a major portion), but the caliber of those who advocate for the breed.  To realistically sit there and deny the history of the breed and what it was bred for in its infant stages is to deny the very reason we have such a human stable (or at least they should be!), biddable, wonderful companion who is so versatile they can do just about any task you set in front of them does this breed an incredible disservice. Or as Liz put it, “Blowing smoke up people’s behinds to make them sound like magical little bunny-hugging unicorns in a compact, muscular body doesn’t do anybody any good.  Especially the dog.” And it’s true!

Unfortunately, those who would love to think that they are supporting this breed in its entirety are actually harming it by spreading false propaganda about these dogs.  Phrases like, “Pit bulls were nanny dogs!” (Which isn’t correct!  Staffordshire Bull Terriers hold that title.) and “Pit bulls were bred as herding dogs.” only serve to get those who would prefer to see these dogs demolished more fuel for their fire.  These dogs don’t need lies to pump up the fact that they have a strong and loyal following of responsible owners that they can prove their worth on their own.

For this breed, those responsible owners are actually becoming a minority because we choose to realize that our breed was bred for a purpose.  While that purpose is no longer legal, it doesn’t mean that the breed doesn’t still have the genetic traits that were sought after for that original purpose.  (Genetics are quite funny, one change could tip the balance and screw things up royally – take a look at the Extreme American Bullies for example.)  The ability and willingness of a pit bull to be reactive toward another dog (or animal) is still something that is incredibly prevalent in these dogs.  It’s one of the key reasons many pit bull advocates chant the mantra “Never trust your dog not to fight.”  They may not start it.  They may not engage fully.  They may only snap and snarl at another dog but they most certainly will be blamed for it.

Now, this is not to say that every single pit bull is going to be reactive, aggressive or even selective toward another dog but the genetics behind it are there.  They are, after all, bull and terrier-type dogs and both types of dog are known for those exact traits and it’s something that needs a special owner who is willing to put time and dedication into training, socialization and maintenance of their four-legged friend.

These dogs aren’t meant for every Tom, Dick and Harry after all.  They are a LOT of dog and unfortunately the “Save Them All” faction tend to down play that and make people feel sorry for a dog that would not be a good fit in every household.  No one breed of dog is right for everyone be it a poodle, Shih Tzu, German Shepherd, or Great Dane and until people start to realize that, even if it sucks having to admit that (even to yourself!) then the breed will suffer at the hands of its own advocates because they would rather bury reality into a fluffy, rainbow-colored package that barks lullabies and poos glitter logs.

Being an advocate isn’t always pretty but we have to do it for our dogs.  We have to protect our breed from the ignorance, the over-caring and the unkind.  We have to make sure they are not set up for failure or we will eventually lose this wonderful breed to the government bodies that would seek to regulate these dogs out of existence.

So, please, if you want to be a breed advocate know your breed – the pros AND the cons.  Be realistic about your dog no matter how much you love them and realize that those same breed traits you may want to suppress into you subconscious are still there and because of your unwillingness to embrace (even if you abhor) those traits could set your dog up to fail and your advocacy to crumble.

Two Weeks: Give ‘Em A Break

* The two week shut down is geared to teen to adult dogs . Puppies do need a bonding time with their new humans, a whelping period so to speak, but they have a different requirements than a more aged dog . It is important to fully vaccinate and de-worm your puppy before venturing out into the world. I suggest strongly getting your new puppy to a veterinarian for proper de-worming and vaccinations. But note the shut down period is not recommended for young puppies as they have crucial needs that are special than older dogs in proper development and socialization.

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The Action:

  • “I have a new dog!”
  • “I introduced her to 15 people”
  • “He was a bit leery but seems to like my other 3 dogs”
  • “She went everywhere with me ” …

All in the first few days of the new home….. (!!!)

The Reaction:
In about two weeks later we get the call back to the rescue;

  • “I think we will have to rehome the new dog.”
  • “The new dog barked and nipped at my kid”
  • “We had a dog fight”
  • “What do we do?”

Ok, folks, here it comes, the big secret to many foster homes success with a new dog that came from unknown or even not so good homes!

Doggy shut down!  A “get to know you “ time! Giving the new dog, post finding, adoption, buying, etc, time to adjust to you  and your family and the dogs in the new environment.

Why The Two Week Shut Down?

The Two Week Shut Down is a time familiar to a dog’s mind, as it mimics the whelping box when first born, as the puppy’s eyes are not open and it relies totally on the mother’s ability to take care of it.  By smelling, sensing, listening the puppy starts his journey into the new scary world.

New adult dogs come into our home the same way, “a journey into a new and scary world”

By giving the dog a “time out” the dog can learn its new world, its new people and begin to relax and blossom under the care of the new care giver.

Why we all want to run out with our new dog, show everyone our new pet, we forget that even an adult dog is now back to a puppy newborn like mind, all is new, the voices speak a new language, cars might be new, leashes and handling under nice people might be new.

Even petting and acceptance of a pet is stressful on a new dog,. “Who are you?  Where did we come from? Where are we going? What is expected of me?” –the dog thinks!

Just like a new born baby we wouldn’t rush out and pass the baby from person to person, we set up a stable and save environment, our new dogs are just like that , our newborn baby.

Step back for a minute, and think how you might feel if you were never going to go back to your “home” and that you were expected to live with new people who didn’t understand your language. What if these new people took you to all sorts of different places expecting you to greet everyone happily and feel comfortable with an overload of attention all at one time? How might you feel after all of that, to have to go to your new “home” and interact with a bunch of strangers? It’s very likely that you’d feel exhausted, overwhelmed, and wanting  to retreat, but really have no place to go to. You might begin to act out  at people for pushing you into these situations and insisting that you do this and do that.

Well, many dogs are put in the very same position and the only way they know how to get their point across is to act out or “misbehave.”  The dog may act out by nipping at children for he didn’t understand them and was corrected harshly before knowing how he was to be around them! Growling, like when being moved off furniture –“ he didn’t know he couldn’t be here. What is expected ? Where am I allowed ?”  Starting fights with the other animals in home – it may feel that the new humans are not leaders or beings to look up to for help in decisions , The dog begins to think “I must defend myself!”  “Who IS this new dog?”

How To Do The TWO WEEKS – “shut down”

For the first two weeks, (sometimes even longer) a dog takes in the new environment, who is the top persons, dogs, who ARE these people!

A great way of thinking of this time is; “this is the dating period NOT the honeymoon”

When you first met your “mate”, you were on your best behavior, you were not relaxed enough to be all of yourself, were you?

Just think of the things you do physically once you get to KNOW a person, you wouldn’t run up to a stranger and hug them and squeeze them!
Imagine, if on the first date, this new person, was all over you touching you and having their friends hug you and pat you on top of the head, and jostle your shoulders, then he whisked you off to another stranger’s home and hey did the same thing.

Would you think this person normal and SAFE?

 Would you feel invaded and defensive and begin to get a bit snarky yourself?

Wouldn’t you think to push these people away for obviously your date is out of their mind and they aren’t going to save you from these wierdos!!

Yet we do this to our dogs, and then get upset or worried that they aren’t relaxed and accepting of EVERYTHING instantly!

*Why do we expect a dog to accept a situation when we ourselves could not?

By shutting down the dog, it gives the dog TIME to see you, meet YOU, hear and take in the new sounds and smells of your home.

  • Crate or keep  the dog in a room by itself if possible.
    (Believe me, dogs are sensory animals, they know more than you think without seeing it
    This allows the dog to take in the new world and not feel assaulted at the world coming AT him visually).
  • Leash (so I don’t have to correct it ..I don’t have that right yet!) This also teaches the new safe zone for the dog is around you and the humans in the home.  Leash the dog right to your belt or under a piece of furniture.
  • No obedience like training at all, just fun exercise and maybe throw some toys for fun, leash the dog if you don’t have a fence outside. But I DO NOT leave my yard, AT ALL in this time.
  • No car rides, no other dogs, (unless crated beside them), no pet stores, no WALKS even, nothing but me, my home, my yard. (Unless of course the dog needs to go to the veterinarian.)
  • Don’t go crazy petting and handling the dog! Even petting and being “out” in the home puts pressure on a dog, as everything is so new.
    Allowing the dog time to absorb and the decision to come to YOU for pets and affection can do a lot in taking pressure off a new dog.
  • Exercise – but in your yard!  All dogs need to burn off energy. Do fun toss the ball games in your yard or on a lunge line if no fence.  Remember to just have fun, let the dog run and explore .   Exercise is a great stress relief so we don’t want to add stress to what is an out of energy.
  • Again- no walks yet!  Walks are stressful for there is so much coming at you.  Being a new person to this dog you have no clue how the dog is reacting to the walking environment. The dog may react to something and we start correcting it with the leash and we just installed a VERY STRESSFUL moment to the dog in what should be a fun and happy walk.

TEACH the dog by doing the shut down, that YOU are the one to look to, that you are now here for the dog! He can trust in you and look to you as its new leader!!

Then on walks you will see the dog look to you when he sees something like a kid or a dog to see what your reaction is, lessening his mind about having to defend or control the environment, he has YOU , the dog now can relax and enjoy the walk more.

*In the house I have the dog out only for about 20-40 minutes post exercise/yard times. And ALWAYS on a leash. Then PUT THE DOG AWAY. Let it absorb and think.  Even if just for a little bit.

A few minutes of “down time” allows the dog to overcome things that we may not of seen triggered anxiety or fear in the dogs mind, and allows the mind to be fresh for more “new” and adventures in your home and life.

If the dog goes to his crate on his own, he is telling you “I need a time out” allow him this time.

By having the dog out for long periods of time we are forcing the dog to keep accepting all new things , by putting the dog away we are asking him to accept a few things, then go think and absorb, when we get him out later we introduce a few more things, so the three new things are three new things, not 3 x 3 x 3 – possible shut down from the dog.

  • No new buddies !  Do not introduce the dogs for these two weeks, they can be side by side in the crates, (not nose to nose for they can feel defensive). Some dogs will bond instantly with the other dogs if we don’t bond FIRST with the dog, and this can lead to some other issues, as the dog will look to the other dog(s) for guidance and not YOU!  A good way to meet dogs POST the two weeks is each dog have a handler and go for short walks ON LEASH. Walking helps relieve stress and worry.  Each having their own human gives control to the moment. Do not allow them to be close enough to touch.  But near each other, side by side if possible. Then later in home and again, use LEASHES!  The easiest way and calmest way to control a dogs movement!
  • Ignore Bad behavior – Ignore crying and/or barking. If you run to the dog each time they bark, whine, or cry, you are teaching the dog that doing those things gets your attention. The dog must learn to be secure when you are not there.  Use the leash to softly correct jumping, exploring counters, etc.   Most dogs I have taken in will “cry” in their crate/room for about 2-3 days. Its just their way of stressing . Its hard, but let them cry it out.  If we go to them each time they cry/whine or bark we might be setting up for separation like behaviors.  We want our new dog to be able to be “alone” and still know its SAFE.
  • Praise Gently Good behavior – ex. Dog is sitting nicely next to you, touch or softly pet the dog “good boy/girl”  let then know you appreciate GOOD behavior.  This makes naughty behavior not so fun if you ignore THAT but praise the good!

Literally in two weeks you will see a change in the dog and begin to see its honest and true personality. Just like a house guest.. They are well behaved and literally shut down themselves these first few weeks, then post this time, they relax and the true personality begins to shine thru!

So, please, if nothing else for your new dog, give it the time to LEARN YOU as you are learning who they are!

This method works on shy dogs, confident dogs, abuse cases, chained dogs that come in, rowdy dogs, all temperaments!  And it works on all breeds from little dogs to big bully dogs.

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Amazing, isn’t it?
Article originally published on Pitbull Forum by Luvnstuff/Stacie Sparks Vredeveld who is a volunteer for Pound Buddies in Muskegon, Michigan.

Dog Park Dangers

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Many years ago this article would have never been written.  I used to firmly believe that dog parks were an excellent way to expend the energy of a drivey, happy-go-lucky dog – more specifically, our pit bull Luna.  (No, folks, I do NOT encourage bully breeds in dog parks and we lucked out with having a pretty dog social pit bull but they aren’t all like that.  BAD RAP has a GREAT article on dog parks for bully breed owners.) The allure that they were a great place for dog-dog socialization was there and perhaps the initial purpose behind dog parks had this thought but it couldn’t be farther from the truth.

We used to attend one of the many in the Metro Detroit area like it was going out of fashion – we’re talking about nearly every single day no matter what.  Luna loved it.  She would romp with her doggie friends and we’d chat with other dog owners while they frolicked.

When Luna was about eighteen months old we stopped going to the park.  Our work schedules had changed and we were unable to go to the park with any real frequency and started looking into other options for exercising her – like dog sport classes and hiking.  I didn’t think much of it until I went back with a friend’s dog a couple of months back – a cute little lab mix with boundless energy.  Let me tell you, I was absolutely shocked at what had changed.

  • The amount of feces that was left behind after a dog pottied.  Owners just seemed to walk around it or ignore the fact that their dog had just left a pile behind.  I silently worried about things like coccidia or other parasites that a dog could be shedding in those piles.
  • The owners all gathered in one spot near the entrance despite the fact that there was an acre and a half completely open an unsupervised with dogs running amok.  Many were chatting or on their cell phones(!) and not paying any attention to their canine charge.
  • There were TONS of out-of-control dogs with no manners, no recall and no direction.  Many of them often bullied other dogs and their owners thought it was adorable or were completely indifferent about what was happening – like the intact pair of male Labradors that humped everything they could wrap their paws around and the more the other dog fought back the worse it got.
  • Those same out-of-control dogs seemed to be attached to equally out-of-control owners (I got a taste of that when I pulled the two labs off of my friend’s young dog for the millionth time and got told NOT to touch his dogs.  My reply wasn’t very politically correct, to be honest, because I was sick of seeing this happy, exuberant dog get shoved to the ground by two jerk dogs but I got the point across and those dogs left soon afterward, thankfully!)
  • The wrong type of equipment was being left on dogs (pinch collars, harnesses, choke chains, etc.) that could have caused severe injury or even death to a dog if a fight broke out or a dog’s jaw got caught while grabbing a hold of another dog in play.

We spent a total of about 45 minutes there and I have to admit, it sucked.  I couldn’t believe how much things had changed and while some dogs may be phenomenal at a dog park because they have been well-socialized and have owners who are on top of everything and not about being social divas, I personally don’t think they’re really a good thing for the vast majority of dogs out there – especially since most people sadly use dog parks as a way to cheat the system and not take their dog for a walk to expend energy.

There are a plethora of other options out there instead of visiting your local dog park to expend that boundless energy – especially if you have a bull breed like training classes, hikes or even a fenced in baseball diamond or tennis court with just you and your dog or a couple of like-minded owners and their dog-social dogs.

Snowpocalypse 2012

Okay, so it wasn’t exactly the worst snow storm in the planet and barely created a fuss for most of Michigan but you’d think that the way the news channels were panicking that it was going to be some sort of major to do – you know, like it was the end of the world or something.  Other than a few short hours where five sissy bulls absolutely refused to set foot outside because they might get flurries up their derriere it amounted to nothing more than eight inches of cold, non-snowman making snow pile up that gave the dogs an opportunity to romp like madmen (and women!) around their Nana and Papa’s yard (since that’s where we were for the first part of this week).

Imagine that, romping around 2.5 acres like little snow piranhas while beating one another up with frozen Kong Wubbas and Jolly Balls.  It was all rather amusing but I seriously froze my fingers off (because I couldn’t find my gloves and said “oh, well!” like an idiot!) watching them be little nimrods and merrily photographed the whole thing.  This, of course, amounted to waaaaaaay to many photographs to sort through and process but it was worth it.

Now that they’re all edited and ready to go, I’ll post them here for your enjoyment.  Did you survive the Snowpocalypse of 2012 or are you an abominable snow zombie like I felt after a few hours in the sub zero temperatures? (You can view the whole album here.)

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Luna gets a good roll in the snow.

 

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Lyric likes to sass me when she doesn’t get the toy NOW.

 

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Ryker and Lyric nag at their Poppa to THROW THE BALL!

 

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Mika mid-shake with her Wubba.

 

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The chase is on!