DOG Universe
May 2015 Volume 1
MAGAZINE
San Diego Edition
The10 commandments of proper dog Training
Fiesta Island Dog park, pure Utopia for FIDO
How to deal with food aggression
Leash training 101
Meet BELLA
The 10 Commandments 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
Never say NO to your dog Only respond and reward GOOD behavior Never yell at your dog Reward perfect behavior frequently Excersize - Training - LOVE, in this order only
The 10 Commandments 6. Speak calmly with 100% consistancy 7. Wait for eye contact before treat rewards 8. Be patient with your dog 9. Ignore any and all bad behavior when training 10. Love your dog immediately after training is over
COVER By Robert Chartier shot at dog beach in San Diego. Bella is this months cover girl. PUBLISHER Chartier Media Group www.ChartierMediaGroup.com EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Robert Chartier CREATIVE DIRECTOR’s Robert Chartier / Alison March Brodrick Graves / Larkin Day ADVERTISING MANAGERS Benjaman Wiseman / Tom Sade ACCOUNTING Tuesday Virnochini / Faith Holiday SALES REPS Dave Becker/Sally French / Chiis Lansky Bart Mull / Ross Fine / Yancy Gates GENERAL TELEPHONE 858-568-6673 EMAIL ADDRESS doguniverse@chartiermediagroup.com SUBSCRIPTIONS Adicus S. Bunker Jr. CONTRIBUTING EDITORS Dave Sampson / Wendy Hersh / Sanuel Pride Wallace Juskil / Irene Landry / Rob Thomas DOG UNIVERSE PHOTOGAPHERS Robert Chartier / Eric Freedman Becky Walsh/ Wendy Timms / Bob Ross Edmonds White / Lansky Pope / Al Harper Yolanda Lee / Leslie Walsh Chartier Media Group strictly prohibits any form of reproduction of the contents contained herein and retains full copyrights to any and all images, articles, stories, and all print contained within the pages of this publication 100% exclusively.
Your dog wants to be a good follower but the master needs to learn to lead well first. Your dog does not learn like we learn, they learn like a dog, therefore we must teach dogs like dogs not people. If your dog is confused, you are to blame, not the dog. A dog will want to be trained and will want to please you. Teach in baby steps. All training is a process. Give the process time.
A dog thinks dog so human thinking can and will often backfire. Pay close attention to how your dog responds to your voice and actions. Observation of your dog is a huge part of proper dog training. When your dog gets restless, it’s time to end the training. A dog can learn much more than most people think. If you invest quality time with your dog, you can expect quality behavior in return.
Meet Bella
Bella is a Am-staff blend, blended with exactly what is a TBD. At 18 months, she is a ball of energy, a bit wild, and the most friendly dog on the beach on her weekly trips to DOG BEACH in San Diego. Having FUN with her treasured green ball is her trademark. Playing fetch is a game Bella excels at, in fact, water and fetching is where she can all her pent up pit bull
energy drive expelled and get her doggie ZEN into balance. She loves all people, dogs, and children, in no special order. Bella is the consummate social butterfly with a tail in constant wagging motion and pep in her step that commands attention. In the water, she is a swimming machine, power and grace would sum up watching her as she makes a bow wave like a power boat. After about and hour, she will start to
power down and begin relax. Her endurance is impressive to put it mildly. We found Bella at the San Diego Humane Society after loosing two of our cherished dog family members Oscar and Basia, both Dachshunds that we loved for 10 and 17 years respectively, and both on the same day. Oscar had advanced Kidney failure and Basia had complication from old age. Oscar pass away in my arms and Basia was put to rest at the VET on the same day only hours apart 5/18/2014. Samantha, Basia’s twin sister is still with us and going strong, but after her brother and sister passed, Sammi would howl and cry for them and was impossible to console. So after only 30 days, we had to get a dog into Sammi’s life to save her life basically. We found Bella on our first trip to the pound, first door, first cage, first dog we saw. I new she was a good dog, but we did go and look at every other dog avaialble in the public viewing area after Bella, thinking it was too good to be true to find a good dog so fast. She was 7 months old and 39 pounds at the time, and having a big dog after living and loving 25 to 20 pound dogs for over 17 years was a big adjustment and consideration. Plus, having an older dog with special needs and basically bringing home a big puppy was really difficult to consider. Especially a pit blend. But Bella passed the 30 day test with flying colors and learned that Sammi was not for active playing or big on games as Sammi is ot blind, deaf, and soon after lost the use of her rear legs, but she is 100% with it and aware of what is going on around her, even with a few senses missing these days.
Bella did try her best to get Sammi to play, but soon figured out her little sister was just for loving and licking. Bella soon became Sammi’s guardian and protector after the play thing did not work out, and as a blessing, Bella never would go near Sammi’s food bowl. I guess you could say Bella warmed up to her handicapped sister like pea’s and carrots. Bella absolutely loves Sammi and god forbid anyone or anything were to even think about harming Sammi as her big sister is bonded like superglue to Sammi these days and the love between them is mutual. Bella saved Sammi’s life with her warm and affectionate personality which is known to be contagious to all that know her. Now Sammi can be seen in her stroller at the beach as Bella get’s her wild on attacking the water with every fetch of her treasured ball. We consider Bella to be a near perfect dog in fact as she is super attentive, an impressive guard dog with protection being in her DNA, and one of the most affectionate dogs one can imagine. She is both sensitive and fearless, sensitive to our needs to have her be well disiplined and to listen, and fearless to protect her family which a trait deep bred into her bloodlines. Bella is a lover, but make no mistake that protecting her pack is job#1 when required, which her natural instinct will call out on “auto pilot” so to speak as when she get’s into protection mode, nothing will divert her focus or attention, she is emotionally locked on like a guided missile once any threat is perceived, and she stays on full alert until she feels she can disarm and disengage.
Bella is just a (68 pound) goffy fun loving kid 99.9% of the time with us, so when she goes into that intense protection mode, it is always a little surprising to see the switch happen in a nano second as there is absolutely no transition period whatsoever, which is common in her breed bloodline. I must admit, you do feel safe with Bella and you know the house has the best alarm system ever created on earth with a ZERO response time for any intruded foolish enough to enter the house with a dog that is basically all solid muscle and equipped with dental work that results in the closest thing to a shark bite on land once engaged. I guess one could say Bella is pure love with a wicked bad ass potential to protect her family from any harm and the front end equipment to get the job done with expert precision. Other than that, she will wear your skin off with licking and kissing all day long, a trait many people do not know most all pit breeds express with a high drive passion. Pit breeds are some of the most loving dogs on earth when raised be responsible humans and they love people as a rule. Pit breeds were never bred to harm their masters, only to engage with each other, but this trait typically needs to be encouraged to express itself, and only a fool would do such a thing to such a big hearted loving dog breed. Sure some pit blends can be assertive towards other dogs, but this is not even fractionally as common as misguided news media hounds love to report. Statistically speaking “Golden Retrievers� have one of the highest bite rates reported and the tens of thousands of small dog bites typically never get reported as there is no hospital visit as a result in most cases.
People that meet Bella for example soon discover they need a lick protection device as she will have your face slimmed with doggie saliva in under 30 seconds flat. She will place her big paws on your shoulders and proceed to give you a righteous tongue bath. Out in the mountain wilderness, Bella is a trooper on the trail, always sure to keep us well in sight and under her watch at all times. She is like a mother hen to us always on the watch for anything that could be a potential threat and she keeps her head on a swivel at all times like a well trained Navy Seal stalking through enemy territory. The level of situational awareness is ever so apparent in her every step. I have had many great dogs in my life, but Bella is a whole different bag of tricks. Her bloodline had traits I never experienced with any dog before. High drive with a desire to be ALPHA dog in the pack with persistence and determination being something that stands out in this breed, reason why this is not a first time dog owners dog to own, and unfortunately why shelters are filled with pit blend dogs. It is not the breed, it is the humans that are not prepared to handle the bloodlines natural instinct and inner drive. This is not a Lapso Apso or Poodle, this is a breed that must be thoughtfully and kindly dominated by they owners will care and affection, otherwise this breed with take ALPHA position with a high degree of certainty. Training any shade of pit blend to accept your position as ALPHA dog is not optional to maintain a happy and healthy relationship. As loving as Bella is, she will never will be an exception to this rule.
Daily training is a part of Bella’s life as she spends 30 to 45 minutes every day learning how to be a better dog and a more disciplined girl with good doggie elicit. She still has not so perfect behavior moments, so reinforcing the more ingrained skills helps support the new and fresh skills. When her masters are eating, she knows “go to your place” and stays there until released, well she self releases from time to time after 15 to 20 minutes. She will wait patiently for treats for over 5 minutes and always takes food with a gentle touch. When food is placed on the floor, she will not touch it till she gets the “OK. take it” command. When chow time comes, she sits and waits for permission to eat, then very calmly empties her bowl with a nice moderate eating pace.
When bed time rolls around, about 10pm most nights, Bella will get between her 2 owners and stay there for the night with very little movement. A paw in the face or nudge can be expected, and if she stands up, she will smash you when she drops like a rock to settle in with a new position. Much like having a full size bean bag dropped on you from about 18” off the ground, you definitely know that close to 70 pounds came down fast and hard, but with a bit of softness. 7am sharp Bella is up and headed for the chow bowl for a nice big breakfast and a big drink of H2o for a full day of activity. She will grab a toy and get crazy running outside like a race horse sporadically thrashing her toys with head whipping and growling at them. Just another good day for Bella ~
Leash Walking Woes When a dog pulls on leash it can be very frustrating for the handler, and for the dog. Fortunately, through positive reinforcement techniques, you can teach your dog to want to walk with a loose-leash. Dogs will only expend energy if they believe there is a reason to do so. Many people believe dogs are trying to assert dominance by pulling on the leash, but it is actually because pulling allows them to obtain a wide array of things they want. Through pulling, dogs are able to obtain real-life rewards; sniffing bushes, eating food off the ground, greeting people or other dogs, picking up sticks, or simply going forward. Because the dog gets all kinds of wonderful things through pulling, this highly undesirable behavior to the human becomes the best behavior ever to the dog! Anything your dog wants is a reward. You can use rewards to show him that it is more worthwhile to walk loose-leash than it is to pull. To teach your dog to walk with you, you will need to use proper equipment and leash mechanics, practice leash-walking games, and be consistent in preventing him from pulling toward rewards. Equipment (available at San Diego Humane Society’s on-site retail store, Muttique): • Sense-ation or Sense-ible Harness • Flat-buckle or nylon collar • 4-6’ leash • Treat pouch • Food treats that your dog loves Mechanics of leash walking: • Choose the side of your body (right or left) that you want your dog to be on. • Hold your leash in the hand opposite from the side that your dog is on (e.g. if your dog is on your left side, hold the leash in your right hand, allowing the leash to swoop across the front of your body). • Put your treats and treat pouch on the side that you want your dog to be on. • Make sure the leash has only a slight dip in it when your dog is in the walk position. • Keep the leash a constant length by holding your leash hand close to your body at all times (e.g. thumb always against belly button).
Set your dog up to succeed at loose-leash walking by practicing leash games in non-distracting locations such as the house, backyard, or front block. When first practicing leash games, you may just go back and forth on one block until your dog understands that pulling never works to get him what he wants. Whenever your dog does any of the following, deliver a high-value treat behind your heel or knee in the walk position: 1) responds to an orienting sound (e.g. kissy noise or whistle), 2) chooses to be in walk position (on or off leash), 3) releases tension on the leash and/or moves toward you, or 4) follows you as you walk backward. One of the most important leash games to practice is “Let’s go.” The cue “Let’s go” lets the dog know you are about to change direction. Before or when your dog pulls, say “Let’s go,” then apply gentle, steady pressure on the leash as you guide him toward you. When your dog gives into the pressure and comes with you, praise him and deliver a high-value treat behind your heel or knee in the walk position. To learn and master the “Let’s go” game and other leashwalking exercises, you can attend the Leash Walking workshops, as well as many other training classes offered at San Diego Humane Society. In addition to loose-leash walking exercises, you will also need to prevent your dog from obtaining real-life rewards by pulling. Let’s say your dog wants to sniff an area of grass. Because sniffing grass is a reward to your dog, you would not want him to get the reward by pulling toward it. Instead, when he pulls, stop and prevent him from obtaining the real-life reward (do not snap or yank on the leash). Now you have two options: 1) say “Let’s go,” then apply gentle, steady pressure on the leash as you move away from the reward or 2) wait for your dog’s focus to be on you, then say a permission cue such as “Ok,” and walk with him over to the real-life reward keeping the leash loose the entire time. Through these positive training techniques, your dog will learn that in order to get what he wants, he must display impulse control and pay attention to you. Eventually, he will choose to walk next to you in n arly any environment because a loose-leash is just as desirable to him as it is to you.
For more information about classes and tips for introducing a new dog to your household, contact our Behavior Helpline at (619) 299-7012 x2244 or visit www.sdhumane.org.
Fiesta Island Dog Park
Bella and Maximus water racing at Fiesta Island Looking for that perfect dog park? Well look no further because Fiesta Island in hands down one of the very best dog parks to be found in San Diego County. Fresh ocean air, large space, beach, trails, and hill climbing for your dog all in one area for your dogs complete and utter bliss and enjoyment. With mountain trail type paths, high and low walking elevations, and massive open field with acres of open running space, this is pure utopia for fido. This is a warm and friendly place with an off the lease option which is great for the well trained dog to roam and explore. Occasional dog misunderstandings can break out as in any other dog park, and just as long as the owners are pro actively monitoring their dogs to break up a tiff, it’s all good. Centrally located in San Diego next to Sea World marine park this is a very accessible location with great freeway access points. Just take the SEA WORLD exit off I-5
and you are there! About a a mile from the exit to the gate of the dog park. Locked gates are in place to assure your dog cannot get in or out unattended. NO key required, just lift and open the horse shoe style secure gate lock and you are in, or out. What we really love is the feeling of wide open freedom here, which also keeps most dogs very relaxed as there is never any space crowding as can happen at other dog beaches with narrow places dogs and people must navigate through. Even Dog beach in Ocean Beach has a few places that squeeze dogs together in passings which can create tension between certain dogs which would otherwise elect to ignore each other. It is amazing at how dogs of every breed on the planet can just “be” and get along here. The energy is very calming from our experience in the park. Just a place you want to come back to again and again, and so will your dog(s). Great place to take photos of your dog as well with such cool backdrops of ocean water and
with the smooth walking paths and very nice Cityscapes as a passive juxtapose backdrop. If you want action shots with water play, hill climbing, long beaches, and wide walking trails, this is the place to get then all in a 4 mile walk in just this one location. Just a little creative photo shooting can give you so many different looks of your dog at play. Just look at your backdrop and get your puppy into position with a ball of stick running into a warm sunset will get you spectacular shots suitable for framing if you have your camera dialed in right for the shot you intend to capture. Just be sure to set your shutter above 1/1000th of a second to freeze motion and at about 1/125th of a second or less as you track your dog to get great action blurring running legs and splashing water. May take some practice, but what fun it is to just be here and shoot for money shots
Maximus having a great day at the park of your dog at play as you soak in the sea air and sun. This is a place you can fall in love with as we have shooting many photos here of dogs doing what they love to do best which is enjoy life with the master. You can even run here with your dog a many people do here daily.
Once you discover this place, you and your dog will be planning a return visit on the way back home. Bring plenty of sun screen and fully charges batteries for the camera because you will be shooting at least a hundred frames on your visit here to get a few really great images to be proud of.
So what are you waiting for? Jump in the car with doggie in tow, plenty of water, a few treats and we will see you here in the future where your Mutt may even be discovered and get on the cover of a future Dog Universe magazine!
Looking South towards Downtown San Diego
Bella making a friends with a Ridge back
Max and Bella racing back when called
Huge St. Bernard wadding in the water
Food Aggression
By Jon Bastian When a dog shows aggression to protect his food, it can be a serious issue. Not only is there the danger of other dogs or humans in the house being bitten, but over time it can lead to the dog becoming possessive over everything. What is food aggression? Food aggression is a form of resource guarding in which a dog becomes very defensive when eating, using threats to force others away. It can be directed towards other animals, humans, or both. The behavior can also extend to treats. There are three degrees of food aggression: Mild: the dog growls and may show its teeth. Moderate: the dog snaps or lunges when approached. Severe: the dog bites. While it’s easy to assume that all cases of food aggression are a show of dominance, this isn’t necessarily the case. In a dog pack, the alpha dogs always eat first after a successful hunt, and then the other dogs get what’s left according to their pack position. For an alpha dog, showing food aggression is a form of dominance, but for dogs with a lower pack position, it can be a sign of anxiety or fearfulness. Remember, in the wild, dogs never know where or when their next meal will be, so it’s very instinctual for them to gobble up whatever food there is whenever they have it — and to protect it from anything that approaches. How to recognize food aggression When a dog is eating, his body will stiffen and he may keep his head down. He is using his body language to “hover” over the meal and protect it. Other signs are that the whites of your dog’s eyes may be visible, their ears are held back, their tail is lowered, or their hackles may rise. A dog may show any or all of these signs. Finally, there are the abovementioned signs of the severity of the problem: growling, lunging, or biting What to do about it The first step is to assess your dog’s overall behavior. Is she only showing possessiveness over food, or does the behavior extend to other things, like favorite toys, resting spots, or even people in the pack?
If the behavior isn’t limited to food, then your dog is showing general resource guarding, so you’ll need to use the techniques listed below as appropriate in all cases where your dog is showing aggression using the target object instead of food. Also assess your dog’s overall confidence and behavior. If he is naturally a dominant dog, then you will need to assert yourself as the Pack Leader in a calm and assertive way. On the other hand, if he is timid or fearful, you will need to build up his confidence and teach him that his food is safe with humans around. Finally, determine whether your dog’s food aggression is mild, moderate, or severe. For severe cases, start off by consulting a professional until you can get the dog down to a moderate level. Once you’ve completed these steps, you’re ready to start changing the behavior. Here are some of the techniques to use. Be consistent If the source of your dog’s aggression is fear or anxiety over when the next meal is coming, then be sure that you are feeding your dog at the same times every single day. Dogs have a very good internal clock, and with consistency, they quickly learn how to tell when it’s time to get up, time to go for a walk, or time for the people to come home. Mealtime should be no different. Be regular in feeding to take away the anxiety. Must work for food Before you even begin to prepare your dog’s food, make her sit or lie down and stay, preferably just outside of the room you feed her in. Train her to stay even after you’ve set the bowl down and, once the bowl is down, stand close to it as you release her from the stay and she begins eating, at which point you can then move away. Always feed your dog after the walk, never before. This fulfills his instinct to hunt for food, so he’ll feel like he’s earned it when you come home. Also, exercising a dog after he eats can be dangerous, even leading to lifethreatening conditions like bloat. Pack leaders eat first Remember, when a wild pack has a successful hunt, the alpha dogs eat first, before everyone else, and it should be no different in a human/dog pack. Never feed your dog before or while the humans are eating. Humans eat first and then, when they’re finished, the dogs eat. This will reinforce your status as the Pack Leader. “Win” the bowl Food aggression can actually be made worse if you back away from the bowl, because that’s what your dog wants. For every time that you do walk away when the dog is showing food aggression, the dog “wins.” The reward is the food and this just reinforces the aggression. Of course, you don’t want to come in aggressively yourself, especially with moderate to severe food aggression, because that is a good way to get bitten. However, you can recondition the dog until she learns that she wins when she lets you come near her while eating.
Here are some of the techniques you can use: Hand feeding: Start your dog’s meal by giving him food by hand, and use your hands to put the food in the bowl, which will give it your scent. The goal is to get your dog used to eating while your hands are around his face, and to have no aggressive reaction if you stick your hands in or near the bowl while he’s eating. Treat tossing: Drop your dog’s favorite treats into the bowl while she’s eating so she’ll learn that people approaching the bowl is a good thing and not a threat. You can also put treats into the bowl when you walk near it and she’s not eating. This reinforces the connection in your dog’s mind that people near her bowl is good. “Trade-Up”: When your dog is eating their regular food, approach them with something better, like meat or a special treat. The goal here is to get your dog to stop eating their food to take the treat from you. This teaches your dog several things. One is that no one is going to steal his food if he looks away from it. The other is that removing his attention from his food when people come around leads to a reward. What’s going on? In rehabilitating a food aggressive dog, two things are happening. One is that you’re desensitizing your dog so that she will no longer become protective when anybody approaches her while she’s eating. The other is that you’re counterconditioning your dog by teaching her to associate people approaching her bowl with good things. There are many other techniques you can use to reduce food aggression or to prevent it from happening in the first place. The key, as always, is to be calm, assertive, and consistent. The term “food aggression” can be misleading because people can easily interpret it as dominance, and it really is better to think of it as resource guarding. As humans, we need to establish our place as Pack Leader, and teach our dogs that there’s no reason to guard their food from us. Have you established a feeding ritual for your dog?
Our Favorite places to eat here at DOG UNIVERSE
#1
Broken Yolk... Just the perfect place to have a bite and get any day started off on the right foot for us. The omelets are all great and the OJ is to die for.
Open from 6am to 3pm, this is the place to eat breakfast and lunch. Very reasonable prices and fast friendly service that never fails to deliver a great meal which is delicious, nutritious, and with a flair and presentation no other restaurant we know of can deliver so consistently. Love the place, period. With locations Downtown, in PB, and Point Loma, there is always a great reason to take a trip to this San Diego eatery, just because it is so darn tasty!!!
#2
WAKE UP WITH US! POINT LOMA
6AM-3PM
BREAKFAST Brunch&Lunch
DAILY S ALWAYH
FRES
POINT LOMA 3577 Midway Drive 619.358.YOLK (9966)
BYC FAVORITE Golden State Benedict and many new items!
THEBROKENYOLKCAFE.COM
Jersey Mike’s... This sub shop has been making the best subs on the planet since “1956” and is a National Institution in the business of SUB sandwiches.
Try it, you’ll like it as they say. Great prices and really clean tasting breads and meats always. Fresh as possible SUBS that will get you going and never make you feel sluggish because this is pure clean eating and farm fresh veggies that just gets that hunger under control with pleasure in each delectable bite. Get a bag of chips and a cool ice tea to wash down these fine SUBS and you will never be disappointed with any choice on their menu. Enjoy!
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