Gooddogz
Nancy Freedman-Smith CPDT, certified pet dog trainer and owner of Gooddogz Training, provides a place for dog owners to find positive training tips, canine-activities and places to visit along with the latest information on keeping your dog healthy and active. Nancy lives with her three kids, Charlee and Finney the dogs, Jeffi, Pumpkin, and Pepper as well as guinea pigs, canary & clicker-trained rat. Staying current, keeping fresh, and always learning new things is a must for Nancy and her profession because one thing that animals surely teach you is "the more you know, the more you know you don't know."
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Wednesday's true pet (and kid) confessions
Mar 26, 2008 01:47 PM
Maybe I feel the need to come clean because I just came from prison. Cleanse the soul so to speak. The life of a dog trainer is not as rosy at you may think and my dogs (and kids) are far from perfect, as today's tales will prove.
Easter Sunday we came home from skiing (or should I say Skister Sunday since I am Jewish), to find that my two lovely dogs had eaten a pound of chocolate eggs. Opened up the plastic eggs to get them out all by themselves they did. Without opposable thumbs even! Who'd a thunked it. My six year old was crushed, but we figured out a way to still hold a decent egg hunt anyway.
Aside from the brown mess that I found on my bed when I got home, the dogs were fine. I am still not sure which end or which dog it came out of. Certainly they should have gotten much sicker. My sister speculates that Finney swallowed the foil wrapped chocolate eggs whole and that they took longer to digest, which in turn saved him from getting really sick. I think she has something there. You can see the shiny foil sparkle in the sun in my yard on their latest "packages".
Last month I had convinced myself that Charlee was dying after she had two weekends in a row where she vomited for 24 hours straight. She got better just as quick as she got sick. Yes I did call the vet, but no I didn't take her to the ER, although it was a very close call both times. After some serious interrogation of my three children, I strongly believe that she got sick from "fishing" in the toilet. My 6 year old recently got her ears pierced and she was throwing cotton balls drenched with ear cleaning chemicals in the toilet, and not flushing. We have a strict "defcom lid down rule" here at all times, but after all they are kids and Charlee is a dog.
sigh
Oh and Finney eats the crotch out of my daughter's underwear. Stay tuned for a sniglet contest on that one real soon. Of course the kids are supposed to put all their dirty clothes deep in the laundry basket, but you guessed it, they are kids and Finn's a dog.
sigh
Sounds like I am making excuses. I am not. Just saying.
Remember that rule I preach a lot:
"Don't let your dog practice unwanted behaviors, or they will get really good at them."
That applies to me to.
And lastly, I was hoping to introduce you all to our new little baby girl rats, but while Finney was all hopped on stolen chocolate Skister eggs, he knocked their cage over and set them free.
We have only been able to catch one of them, and yesterday I borrowed a humane trap from the ARL (big thanks!) .Our as yet un-named rat has been seen on video tape going close to the trap, but so far not in it. My 15 year told me this morning that the rat is not hungry because she has plenty of spaghetti to eat in his base board heater.
Well she is a rat and he is a kid..but say what?
sigh
That leaves our three Guinea pigs, Jeffie, Pepper and Pumpkin. The other pets listed above in the heading on this blog are long dead and buried. The Guinea pigs are no trouble, no trouble at all. Bless their sweet little hearts.
Kids tell me they think Pepper is pregnant.
SAY WHAT?
SIGH
At least I didn't loose a snake like Dr Khuly...
Easter Sunday we came home from skiing (or should I say Skister Sunday since I am Jewish), to find that my two lovely dogs had eaten a pound of chocolate eggs. Opened up the plastic eggs to get them out all by themselves they did. Without opposable thumbs even! Who'd a thunked it. My six year old was crushed, but we figured out a way to still hold a decent egg hunt anyway.
Aside from the brown mess that I found on my bed when I got home, the dogs were fine. I am still not sure which end or which dog it came out of. Certainly they should have gotten much sicker. My sister speculates that Finney swallowed the foil wrapped chocolate eggs whole and that they took longer to digest, which in turn saved him from getting really sick. I think she has something there. You can see the shiny foil sparkle in the sun in my yard on their latest "packages".
Last month I had convinced myself that Charlee was dying after she had two weekends in a row where she vomited for 24 hours straight. She got better just as quick as she got sick. Yes I did call the vet, but no I didn't take her to the ER, although it was a very close call both times. After some serious interrogation of my three children, I strongly believe that she got sick from "fishing" in the toilet. My 6 year old recently got her ears pierced and she was throwing cotton balls drenched with ear cleaning chemicals in the toilet, and not flushing. We have a strict "defcom lid down rule" here at all times, but after all they are kids and Charlee is a dog.
sigh
Oh and Finney eats the crotch out of my daughter's underwear. Stay tuned for a sniglet contest on that one real soon. Of course the kids are supposed to put all their dirty clothes deep in the laundry basket, but you guessed it, they are kids and Finn's a dog.
sigh
Sounds like I am making excuses. I am not. Just saying.
Remember that rule I preach a lot:
"Don't let your dog practice unwanted behaviors, or they will get really good at them."
That applies to me to.
And lastly, I was hoping to introduce you all to our new little baby girl rats, but while Finney was all hopped on stolen chocolate Skister eggs, he knocked their cage over and set them free.
We have only been able to catch one of them, and yesterday I borrowed a humane trap from the ARL (big thanks!) .Our as yet un-named rat has been seen on video tape going close to the trap, but so far not in it. My 15 year told me this morning that the rat is not hungry because she has plenty of spaghetti to eat in his base board heater.
Well she is a rat and he is a kid..but say what?
sigh
That leaves our three Guinea pigs, Jeffie, Pepper and Pumpkin. The other pets listed above in the heading on this blog are long dead and buried. The Guinea pigs are no trouble, no trouble at all. Bless their sweet little hearts.
Kids tell me they think Pepper is pregnant.
SAY WHAT?
SIGH
At least I didn't loose a snake like Dr Khuly...
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