Friday, December 22, 2017

Wait! Your Paws are Muddy!

This fall has been a bit extended, and with the constant freezing and thawing, there's been a lot of mud. Never fear, your furry pal can be taught to help you out by wiping his or her feet at the door before coming in!

This can often be taught quickly with some well-placed treats and a clicker (or marker word like “good” or “yes”). Steps:
  1. Get out your towel or mat and have your dog sit-stay while he watches you place a few treats under the mat. 
  2. Release your dog to go get the treats.  Many dogs will quickly start pawing at the mat to get at the treats. 
  3. As soon as your dog starts pawing, mark (click or say your marker word) and reward with another treat on top of the mat. 
  4. After a few trials, stop putting treats under the mat and see if your dog will still try to paw at the mat. 
  5. Start adding a verbal cue like “wipe” before your dog starts pawing.
 Practice, practice, practice for many repetitions! Pretty soon you can ask your dog to wipe when coming in from outside! Not only do you get to let your dog do all the work, but it’s also a cool trick to show off to friends and family.


If your dog just won't paw at the mat or you don't have time to train this skill (it will take a lot of repetition so in the meantime you might need a way to clean his or her feet more thoroughly), consider helping your pup associate positive thoughts with getting their feet wiped if your dog doesn't particularly enjoy this event. After coming inside, wipe one paw at a time and feed a small treat before and after wiping your dog's foot. Soon your dog will learn to love to have his or her paws cleaned! 

 Happy Training!

Fear Free Veterinary Care

I worked for several years as a veterinary technician, and sometimes I would take my dogs to work with me. They were always very excited to go along and would race inside when we arrived, quite likely because they got lots of treats from my coworkers and sometimes the clinic cats hadn’t finished their food - the dogs were very eager to help with that. But occasionally I brought them along because they needed medical attention. Finley was very wise to this game – the lobby was fun, the kennel area was okay, but if I asked her to come into the treatment area, that meant something bad was about to happen, and she would flatten her ears, tuck her tail and try to go back to the kennel.
Many dogs are fearful at the vet’s office and often those fears are confirmed because we do something painful or uncomfortable like draw blood, trim nails or express anal glands (a major concern for Finley). At times, it can seem best to just get things done as fast as possible. Multiple people may restrain the struggling dog to complete the necessary task, leaving the dog even more wary the next time. Luckily there are more and more resources available for veterinary staff to take a more fear free approach. Actually, there is a whole Fear Free Certification program that covers canine and feline body language, restraint techniques, desensitization and counter-conditioning (teaching pets to accept and even enjoy handling), and medications for fearful patients. Recently the Fear Free folks launched a new initiative – Fear Free Happy Homes. You can join for free and get access to helpful information and products to make your pet’s vet visit as stress free as possible.
As our pets grow older we tend to make more frequent vet visits, and possibly need to provide extra care for certain ailments. For example, Finley recently developed some laryngeal paralysis, making her more susceptible to over-heating. I got her a cooling collar to help with this, and while she doesn’t mind it at all, some dogs may find having this put over their head aversive. A little bit of training can go a long way to making your older pet enjoy a new care routine – check out Finley learning to put her collar on herself, and having fun doing it!