Great Deal on Gentle Leader Harness

Doggyloot has a fantastic deal today!   Currently, they are offering the Gentle Leader harness from Premier for only $15!  That is a fantastic price for a really incredible product.

I have found the Gentle Leader to be the very best option amongst the harnesses / halters on the market, and I have tried many of them.  I think that Premier's other product, the Easy Walk, is also a good product, but for Mumble and me, the Gentle Leader really works the best.  It helps me to keep Mumble from dragging me down the street when he decides to pull on the leash to chase a squirrel or whatever, and also gives me good control over him if he "misbehaves" for whatever reason.

Now, I am not a person who believes that something like a harness should take the place of good training.  I don't think that you should view a harness as the "easy way out" rather than training a dog to walk nicely on a leash.  But this is the real world, and no dog is perfect, and a good tool that will help you without being negative to your dog is acceptable in my book! 

Check out the doggyloot deal to snatch yours up at a great price today!

Canine Good Citizen

Last night, Mumble and Chopper had their "final exam" in Obedience 2 class at the Zoom Room in Culver City. The class was all about learning the behaviors and skills necessary for the AKC's Canine Good Citizen program so that the dogs could pass the CGC test. You can read all about the AKC's CGC program, the test, and the purpose of CGC on their website, www.akc.org/events/cgc/, which provides a lot of useful training related information as well as details about how to be evaluated. I'm really grateful that the Zoom Room offers the class and test, and there are also some other programs in the LA area that have similar obedience classes.

Chopper's mom has written a good description of the test items from last night's exam on her blog, According to Chopper.

Going into the exam, I wasn't honestly sure that Mumble was ready to pass it. In fact, we had signed up for a second 6-week class of Obedience 2 at the Zoom Room, thinking that the advanced obedience training is good practice either way, and that 12 weeks would probably be better for mastering everything required for the test. Mumble is extremely smart and good at training, but he sometimes is very willful and has a mind of his own about how he wants to behave. That what you get with the combination of a Border Collie and a Bull Terrier - I always say "a smart & stubborn breed plus another smart & stubborn breed equals a crazy Mumble!" This is why its necessary to keep doing all of these training activities with Mumble - not because he hasn't already learned most of these things, but because he is a dog that requires lots of structure and practice on an ongoing basis or else he decides for himself how to act. So I was worried about a few of the items, as I thought it would all ultimately depend on how Mumble was that particular day.

One thing about the test, as opposed to training / practice, is that you cannot use treats during the test! You have to reward with praise, petting, etc. Dave said if he "saw" the treats, that was a problem, so I basically hid some in my pocket so that Mumble would smell them and I could occasionally make my fingers smell like treats in case I needed to distract Mumble. I don't know if this is technically allowed or not, but that's what we did. I'm not sure this was a good idea for Mumble. Basically, he knew I had the treats somewhere, and that he wasn't getting them, so he just stared at me and even barked / begged when he still didn't get a treat. When I would "shush" him or say "quiet," he's just do his really soft bark that he uses when he wants something. I think he thinks "quiet" means bark quieter instead of don't bark at all!

The first thing I was worried about was getting Mumble into the test area calmly. Generally, Mumble comes barging into the Zoom Room raring to go, because he is use to doing something exciting like agility when he's there. Last week, we kind of had a "practice test" for the next-to-last class. That day, I took Mumble to daycare at The Loved Dog, where he goes a couple of times a week to play with other dogs all day (herd them and boss them around, more like). He absolutely loves it there and usually comes home and goes to sleep right away. I figured he'd be pretty tired and mellow when we went to the Zoom Room that night, but I was WRONG. Instead, he seemed to be hyped up and energized. It was like he couldn't regulate himself from the freedom of playing and doing what he wanted at TLD during the day to the structure of the class and wanted to keep playing and being rambunctious instead. When we came into the Zoom Room, there were several "extra" people there - people who were observing the class to check out the Zoom Room, and people who were friends/family observing specific dogs (including Chopper's grandpa). In general, even on a good day, Mumble is suspicious of anyone new at the Zoom Room. I think he's been going there so long that sometimes his "I want to be in charge" mentality is hard for him to suppress when he's there. If we are in the middle of a class and someone comes in the door, he stops what he's doing and gives a warning bark. So when we walked in and he saw a bunch of strangers, and was already on alert and hyped up, he just immediately started barking. Dave said that would be an "automatic fail" if it were the real test.

Thus, last night I was trying my best to keep Mumble focused before we even went in the door to prevent a repeat of that situation. He did really well coming in, and during the middle of the test there actually was a real-life-situation of a disruption by someone who was not in the class. Someone who works for Dave came out of the back room - a person Mumble has barked at in the past - and actually stood about 3 feet from where Mumble was in his down-stay to talk to Dave briefly before leaving. I was working hard on "look at me" to keep Mumble focused, which worked because he did not get up or bark.

The other thing I was worried about was walking past other dogs / reaction to another dog. This was something we practiced a lot back when Mumble took his Therapy Dog class, but he was never really good at it. In real life, this is the thing we struggle with the most. Mumble's border collie instincts and behaviors are really strong / dominant. When he sees a dog or cat out on a walk that he wants to see, he goes immediately into a herding stance with intense eye gaze, kind of hunches down, and perseverates on the dog until he gets it to come to him. I can keep him going and get him refocused on me instead of the dog only if I catch the behavior in time. He knows he's not supposed to hunch down and try to herd the other dogs, so what he does instead is lay all the way down on the ground to stare at them. If he lays down, it's almost impossible to get him back up and walking unless I practically pick him up!

During the class, we walked past the other dogs while we were doing the "loose leash walking" item, walking in a circle. Dave would have us go around one way with the dogs on the outside of the circle, then the opposite way with the dogs on the inside so that they were basically passing by each other (it was a small circle). Back when we were doing the Therapy Dog class, we did this "item" in two ways - one was by approaching each other from a specified distance, stopping in the middle and shaking hands, during which time the dogs were not supposed to lung towards each other, try to play, jump on the other dog/person, etc. In the other situation, the other dogs in the class would be lined up on either side of the room and one dog and its owner would walk between them. Both the dog that was walking and the ones that were sitting on the side were supposed to show no more than a casual interest in the other dog.

Mumble has no concept of "casual" anything, certainly not of a "casual interest" in something. If he's interested, its a perseverative/obsessive kind of interest! So this was certainly not his strongest item. During the test last night, Dave had us do the second way we use to do this in Therapy Dog - all of the other dogs (there are 10 dogs in this class) formed two lines on the sides, so that there was a path down the middle, and each dog took a turn with its owner walking down the middle. The dog was to walk nicely and was not supposed to try to go to the other dogs. As soon as this item started, I felt my blood pressure go up because I feared that Mumble would think this was a great opportunity to go around and visit all the other dogs in the room.

To my pleasant surprise, Mumble actually did very well on this. He walked nicely with me the whole way, only sniffing the ground occasionally and never once trying to herd any of the other dogs towards him. There was one dog in the class he never has liked (the dog barks annoyingly almost constantly), and when we got close to that one he kind of glared at it for a second, but then kept going immediately when I said "come on." I guess that passed for "casual interest." I totally give credit to Dave for our success in this - one thing I definitely know that I have become better at with Dave's training and guidance is how to keep Mumble under control.

The item I was not worried about was "coming when called," although there was a time that Mumble would have not passed this. Here, I have to really give the credit to Tamar Geller (owner of The Loved Dog) from whom we took a obedience class (Basic Manners) when Mumble was still a puppy. The very first day in that class, Tamar started teaching us the "here" command. She took each dog in turn by the leash and walked with it to the other side of the room away from its owner. After a few minutes, (she had dropped the leash), you were supposed to call your dog and hopefully it would run back across the room to you. Every other dog at least partially did this task. Some of them started towards their owners and got distracted; some were slow at coming; but they all eventually got there. Except Mumble. He absolutely just stood there next to Tamar and could care less that I was shouting his name and clapping and doing whatever I could to try to get his attention. It wasn't until the sixth and final class that Mumble ran to me when I called his name. Every week we worked on it at home and in class. What I learned from Tamar (through tears that first day) was the importance of your relationship with your dog, and how that is just as important for training as your dog's intelligence and other factors. When I realized the meaning of this and worked on it from that angle, Mumble learned to come to his name because he wanted to come to me. Now, every time we do this at the Zoom Room, including last night during the test, Mumble watches me and waits patiently the whole time he is in his down stay, and as soon as I give him the command (which I can do in any of three ways - saying his name, saying "here," or two taps of my hands on my knees/legs) he runs really fast straight to me and immediately sits.

Mumble's grandma, of course, thought that I never should have doubted him! I guess I have to give him much more credit now that he's certified as a "good citizen!" On the other hand, Rascal (the cat) had his doubts even afterward. When we got home last night, Mumble and Rascal chased each other around, playing, and Mumble basically chewed on Rascal's whole head (which he does until Rascal kicks him in the face). Rascal gave him a look like "someone gave YOU a certificate for being good? really?"

Health Update

One week ago today was the start of Mumble's recent illness. He spent that day at daycare, and apparently spent much of the day just lying around and also threw up once while he was there. That night and into the next morning, he was vomiting almost constantly, not even holding down water, and we rushed to the vet on Tuesday.

Since then, he's been doing much better. The injections and medications the vet used to calm down his upset stomach and reduce the nausea really seemed to work well, as he was showing signs of improvement almost immediately. For several days following that, he was on a totally "bland" diet made up of cooked chicken and rice, which he ate in several small meals throughout the day instead of two regular sized meals. This meant he has been coming to work with me every day, so that I could monitor his health, give him all of his doses of medications, and feed him on his frequent-meal schedule. He, of course, has loved coming to the office and getting all of the attention from everyone here!

As of today, he's doing so much better I'm almost willing to say he's back to normal. "Almost" because he still has been having a little bit of digestive issues, although there has been absolutely no vomiting since we went to the vet last Tuesday. With Mumble, it is so hard to tell what is really going on with these types of things. Any change in his food whatsoever, even change to a "bland" diet, typically makes him a little bit sick because he has such a sensitive digestive system. So when he was getting better and better, but still having some diarrhea, it was hard to tell if that was still related to whatever was going on last week or if it is just because the chicken and rice is "different" than his normal diet.

I like to have answers. I tend to overthink things, read everything I can about any topic I need to know anything about, ask millions of questions whether in a meeting for a client or a doctor's appointment for myself, and try to decipher logical explanations for any and everything. There were no definite answers for why Mumble was sick (although I am grateful that there was a clear answer for what to do about it). The X-Rays taken by the vet showed a blurred appearance that she said was sometimes present as an indicator of pancreatitis. This seemed to have really surprised her though (indicating that other signs of such a serious condition weren't there?) because she said that she had them repeat the X-Ray just to be sure that he was actually lying perfectly still.

All of this lead to me going home and reading everything I could on canine pancreatitis. I tend to utilize a few different books whenever I have health-related questions about my pets. One is the Dog Owner's Home Veterinary Handbook, by Debra M. Eldredge DVM, the second is the Veterinarians' Guide to Your Dog Symptoms, by Michael S. Garvey DVM, and the third is the Natural Health Bible for Dogs and Cats, by Shawn Messonnier DVM, each of which I have on my Kindle. So I went home and consulted them to find out about this pancreatitis thing. What I read was pretty scary, but it seemed unlikely that this is what Mumble has. Although not uncommon, pancreatitis can apparently be life-threatening, and certainly some of the symptoms matched what Mumble was presenting with - vomiting up water, for example. It seemed like all of the descriptions I found, however, were of much more severe symptoms, like of dogs being so lethargic they were almost non-responsive, in so much abdominal pain that they wouldn't want to lie down, or showing signs of shock. So either Mumble only had a mild form of this, and I got him to the vet so quickly that these signs didn't show up yet, or it was not truly pancreatitis at all. Another thing that made me doubt that this could be what was wrong was that pancreatitis is most commonly seen in dogs that eat a lot of fatty foods or table scraps. Mumble is certainly not one of those dogs, given how limited his diet has to be because of all of his existing allergies and digestive issues. Also, pancreatitis is more common in middle-aged to older dogs, and according to some sources, more common in females. Again, all not characteristics of Mumble.

The vet determined that the best course of action was to immediately (and thoroughly) treat Mumble's symptoms, and that if he showed any signs of getting worse in the subsequent 48 hours or if he did not improve, then she would run some blood work to determine if indeed he had pancreatitis. Ultimately, we did not go that route because he was immediately so much better, so I guess we'll never know what the blood work would have shown, but the point was for him to get better, and he did.

What we did know is that Mumble did not have an obstruction in his bowels, he did not have bloat (thank God!), and he had not eaten anything poisonous. And what was suspected was that he did not have pancreatitis. That leaves more questions that answers, and not wanting him to go through this ever again, it leaves a huge "unknown" as to how to prevent it. I'm all about preventative treatment. Mumble is on every supplement and herbal remedy that has been suggested for him and eats organic dog food because these things are supposed to prevent his allergies from acting up, his joints from becoming arthritic, etc. So I want something we can do to stop this from happening too!

One thing that the vet mentioned is that all of this could have been related to his existing allergies. Mumble definitely suffers from seasonal allergies, and he is much more itchy, sneezy, runny, etc during this time of year. Generally, he goes through at least one time period in the spring or early summer where he just doesn't seem to feel 100% because of allergies.

Another thing that is possible is that his existing digestive issues flared up and caused this more extreme reaction. I've always suspected that Mumble could possibly have inflammatory bowel disease or irritable bowel syndrome. It doesn't seem like we need to put him through any tests or anything like that for this though, as all of the possibly-related issues are very well managed with a carefully planned diet and supplements. I've also always thought that he has excessive amounts of stomach acids. Whereas most dogs benefit from "fasting" when they have any kind of stomach illness, this has only ever made Mumble worse. If he has an empty stomach, he retches and vomits. I learned that early on with him, and in the countless times he's had an upset tummy, I never fast him like many people do with their dogs. I may reduce his food or give him rice or something else bland, but I know that an empty stomach will just make him worse.

You know how when you were a kid and you didn't feel well and your mom would say "if you'd just eat something, you'd feel better." And even if you felt like you'd throw up if you ate something, you'd trust her and eat a few crackers or some bread or something else really bland, and it WOULD make you feel a little better. Well, there's no way to reason with a dog in that way. No matter what I did, I couldn't get Mumble to eat that day when he was so sick. So my suspicion, not being a vet but just an overly-vigilant pet mom, is that Mumble was feeling ill because of allergies or because his tummy was just a little upset, and then he didn't want to eat because of that, and after skipping just a few meals, we found ourselves in the situation of him being really sick. It's like a bad cycle - he doesn't feel well, so he doesn't eat... he doesn't eat so he has an empty stomach and throws up... this makes him not feel well, so he continues to not eat.

Maybe this explains why the medicines worked so well. One was basically Pepcid, so it definitely would have reduced the stomach acids. Once those were in his system, he finally wanted to eat food and then he was on the way to recovery. I guess I'll never know for sure what caused all of this, but I'm grateful it didn't become anything more serious, and I'm beyond grateful for the thorough and expert care he got at Shane Veterinary Medical Center. And now if he ever DOES have pancreatitis, I guess I'll know what it looks like!

Chopper turns 5

Happy 5th Birthday
to Mumble's very best friend - Chopper!

Happy Easter!

Rascal and his Easter basket!

Rascal loved this basket! Even before he took the toy out of it, he was rubbing on it and sticking his head down into the basket. He's such a funny cat! His goodies included a stuffed ice cream cone toy (the big hit of the items!), some chicken strip treats, some cat nip, some fish flavored treats, and some bubbles (sometimes he enjoys chasing bubbles).

Mumble and his Easter basket!

At first Mumble was much more interested in Rascal's basket. I think he was trying to figure out what was so great about it that was making Rascal so excited! Finally, he nosed around in his basket and pulled out a toy. His goodies included a new collar (really cute collar with bumble bees and little dogs w/ bee wings), some chicken strips, rawhides, soft treats, and two toys.

Mumble got one of those toys that has an empty water bottle inside and makes a loud crinkling noise. He's always trying to steal empty bottles to chew them up, so I thought this was a good choice for a toy for him. He loved it, and has been chewing on it every day since!

Rascal's toy was a stuffed ice cream cone. It's really a dog toy, but he already plays with Mumble's toys, so that doesn't really matter. For Rascal, a toy's worth is determined mostly by the texture of the fabric. The fabric on this toy was similar to a small cat toy shaped like a strawberry that he already has and loves, so I knew he'd like it. He must have played with it for a good 20 minutes when he first pulled it out of the basket!

Mumble, at age 2

Mumble recently had his second birthday, and we had a birthday party at the Zoom Room in Culver City with a few of his dog friends. He jointly celebrated the day with Kihei, who turned 1 two days before Mumble's birthday. The party was lots of fun for the dogs and the people. We had food, favors, and of course birthday cake (both for people and dogs to eat).

Mumble has been through a lot of changes recently. Several months ago, his regular dog walker moved away and we started the lengthy process of searching for a good replacement. Mumble's new dog walker has not been with him very long now, and although I think in general it's working out, she's had her hands full with him as they both adjust to each other. Some days, inexplicably, he simply refuses to go on a walk with her for more than a few yards away from the entrance to my apartment building! He's such a stubborn, independent dog!

Additionally, Mumble had a sprained leg, which resulted in being on "house arrest" for a few months, with no daycare and no agility. He has recently been given the "all clear" to return to both of those activities, but we are supposed to be "slowly working up to full activity levels," meaning that at this point, he can only go to daycare for a few hours at a time.

I don't know if it was the change in his exercise levels, his "depressed" state when he no longer got to go to daycare, all the training we've been doing, or simple maturity, but definitely there have been some changes in Mumble's personality at age 2. He's generally a little less crazy / hyper and a little calmer, although still far from being what you would call a "calm dog" overall.

Health-wise, we are still on the ever-changing quest for the right balance of food, supplements, and medications to keep him healthy with all of his allergies and digestive difficulties. Certainly we have learned a lot, and all of those issues are much more under control than they were when he was still a puppy. It is such a relief to have less frequent allergy attacks, significantly less frequent bouts of diarrhea, and a quicker response to treatment when either of those things still happen!

Overall, I can (a bit sadly) report that Mumble is definitely more and more of a grown up dog and no longer a puppy!

Some pictures from Mumble's Birthday Party

Mumble recently celebrated his 2nd birthday at (of course) Zoom Room Culver City. It was a joint celebration with his friend Kihei, who turned 1 the same weekend! Here are some photos:


Mumble is checking everything and everyone out, and trying to decide if he needed to herd anyone back to where they belonged (according to him, at least). He spent the first half of the evening pretty much over-stimulated and trying to run around and control everything.

Mumble and his birthday hat - the dogs weren't nearly as into it as the humans wanted them to be :) They kept trying to remove them, but we managed to get a few pictures in.
Below is Kihei in his birthday hat!

Chopper hanging out during the party. Sadly, we didn't get pictures of all of the guests, but we did get this one of Chopper's big goofy smile :)

The Birthday cake! (thanks to Mandy)

Mumble and Kihei wrestling

House Arrest Continued, another appointment with the Vet, and a difficult week overall

Mumble has now been on his "limited activity" restrictions for healing of his shoulder & elbow sprain for two weeks (today is Day 15 to be exact), and we've now gone back for our check up with Dr. Shane.

First, I have to start by acknowledging the emotional difficulty of this particular week. It was two years ago this week that I lost Padfoot, and while that is emotionally heart-wrenching for me in general, the stress of thinking about Mumble having any health problems that could be serious on this particular week was not easy for me to deal with. Not a day goes by that I don't miss Padfoot, as much as I love Mumble and am grateful to have him in my life. The thought that I could ever prematurely lose him as well is terrifying, even if that fear is not totally based in rational thought. So I didn't love the fact that we had a vet appointment scheduled for this particular week, and sat in the vet's office today petrified of what she could possibly come back and tell me.

In general, this week was a little easier than last week, however, in terms of Mumble's healing process. The positive impact of having the walk at the beach with Chopper and Mandy over the weekend appeared to have some lasting affects, so while I still had concerns about his loss of appetite and he still had times where he resisted going for a walk, in general I saw an improvement in his overall demeanor. The instances of visible "limping" were extremely rare, so he seemed to also be improving greatly in terms of his physical injury.

I was hopeful going into the appointment with Dr. Shane that Mumble would be given the "all clear" to return back to normal, but such was not the case. Although with the medications, he is improving and his pain is managed, the orthopedic exam still showed signs of tension in the shoulder and elbow, evidencing the sprain/injured joints.

Dr. Shane therefore continued to advise limited activity levels, although modified to start to allow for some increases in a careful, planned manner. Walks are still OK. Additionally, he is permitted to go back to doing some agility activities, although without the A-Frame, the weave poles, or any "sharp turns." Which leaves (I guess) low level jumps, the dog walk, and the table? It's not much but at least he'll have something! We can do this no more than one time per week. As to daycare, a full day would still be too much for him, as would multiple daycare visits per week. Thus, she said he was allowed to do "half-days" a couple of times per week. I don't exactly know how that will work out with my work schedule, but I guess we'll figure something out.

As to medications, Dr. Shane believes Mumble will need to be on the Glucosamine supplements for the rest of his life. I've actually done a lot of research / reading on these supplements, and I believe that this will have a positive impact on his health and well-being going forward, so I am OK with this being a permanent addition to his health supplements. He will no longer take the Traumeel (the homeopathic anti-inflammatory) on a regular basis. Instead, he will only take it "as needed" if he shows any limping or signs of pain without it.

The prognosis? The vet still believes Mumble will ultimately heal and be back to normal, but she wants to reevaluate him in one month. This type of injury, she explained, could lead to the onset of arthritis in those joints if not treated. Thus, if he is still not healed after another 4 weeks, she will do X-Rays and we will decide whether or not surgery is the appropriate treatment option. She stressed that for a very active dog like Mumble, surgery could be the most appropriate thing if he is not healing so that he is not limited by arthritis and joint issues on a long term basis.

Overall, it was overwhelming, but I still feel like we are on the right path and doing the right things, and that ultimately Mumble will get better, hopefully without surgery. I'm thankful that this issue is something we can treat and deal with, and not something potentially life-threatening. I am also thankful for everyone's well-wishes, support, etc during the past few weeks about this!

Shelter Donations in Honor of Mumble's Birthday

Mumble's birthday is coming up, and I came up with a great idea to celebrate it!

We'll be having a small(ish) party for Mumble at one of his favorite places, Zoom Room Culver City, and inviting some of his doggie friends, and some of his favorite humans. In addition (this is the "great idea" part), I thought it would be nice to honor his birthday by making a donation to the animal shelter.

Mumble was found on the streets as a little puppy and brought to the South L.A. Animal Shelter. He was rescued from there when he was 13 weeks old by his foster mom, Erin. I found Mumble on Petfinder.com, where he had been listed courtesy of Star Paws Rescue. I knew the moment I saw his picture with his inquisitive expression and adorable floppy ears that he was meant to be my pup, so I contacted them right away, and the rest is history!

So many dogs are homeless in L.A., and the shelters are so overcrowded with pups looking for their "forever homes." Thank goodness for rescue groups like Star Paws, and people like Erin, who help locate good homes for countless dogs! With all of the overcrowding and lack of resources, shelters really need donations, not just of funds, but of desperately needed items! Mumble will be inviting lots of people to his party, and he really doesn't need lots of "stuff" from birthday presents! Although I'm sure he'd love a rawhide or two, he can't really eat most treats because of dietary restrictions, and his toy boxes are already overflowing! He has all of his needs (and most of his wants) already met, but so many doggies in the shelters, in the same place where he was almost two years ago, can't say the same thing!

So for Mumble's party, we'll be sending out a request with his invitations for people to bring one item from the shelter's "wish list" to be donated in honor of Mumble's birthday. Zoom Room Culver City has agreed to post a flier in their lobby to ask for items to be dropped off there anytime before September 19th. We're hoping to collect lots of good stuff, which I will then be dropping off at the shelter the following week.

Zoom Room Culver City is located at:
11836 Teale Street
Culver City, CA

South L.A. Animal Shelter's "Wish List"

Blankets/Towels
Newspapers
Dog/Cat Bowls (Stainless Steel Only)
Gallon jugs of white vinegar
Small and medium-sized rectangular litter boxes
Jingle cat toys
Cat treats
Laundry Detergent
Fabric Softener Sheets
Non Clumping Cat Litter
Dog Treats
Dog Food (Wet/ Dry)
Grooming Supplies
Reptile Supplies
Turtle Supplies
Rabbit Supplies
Hamster Supplies
Guinepig Supplies
Leashes
Collars (Martingales)
Heating Pads
Digital Camera's
Hand Sanitizer
Mops
Brooms
Dust Pans
Bleach
Dog Beds
Cat Beds
Parvasol/Parvo Away
Pooper Scoopers
Cat & Dog Shampoo and Conditioner
Grooming Aprons
Combs & Brushes
Collapsible Crates
Carpet
Indoor/Outdoor Carpet

You can also check out these articles online about the top things to donate to Animal Shelters, and other interesting facts.

Top 10 Things to Donate to Animal Shelters, by associatedcontent.com

Animal Rescue Donations, by hubpages.com

10 Household Items to Donate to Animal Shelters, by apartmenttherapy.com

House Arrest Days 7-9

Today is Day 9 of Mumble's limited activity restrictions, to promote healing of his leg sprain. Only one week to go until we go back to the vet to check on how things are going!

On Day 7 (Wednesday), Mumble came to work with me during the day, and seemed to enjoy that. He loves seeing all of the people in my office and playing with his toys here. He was not too active during the day, but he was a little bit demanding (for attention). When he was bored, he'd sit by my chair and very softly bark at me. He got to rotate between my office and Mandy's office though so that kept him entertained. He seemed to be at his most "normal" on that day, so far.

Wednesday night, we had our last Therapy Dog class for this session at the Zoom Room. Mumble had an overflow of energy and excitement going in, and then there were some "extras" that night, including an additional dog doing a makeup class, and the trainer's two kids. Mumble was pretty obsessive with wanting to play with or bark at the new dog, and wanting to run around with the new kids, so he did not do as well on some of the "items" as he normally does. During the loose leash walking item, where they are supposed to be able to pass other dogs and distractions, Mumble was pulling on the leash and just generally acting hyped up. After a while though, he did seem to settle down and get into the routine of class. We'll definitely be taking another session of Therapy Dog to continue to hone and perfect his skills!

Thursday was a difficult day. I did not want to write about this when it was happening until I got home and was able to see Mumble for myself and check on him. The day started with Mumble having some sneezy / scratchy allergies in the morning, and just generally being a little more tired than usual. He did have plenty of energy to be "naughty" on our walk though! We walked to Coffee Bean on our morning walk, and after I got my coffee and came back outside, Mumble got away from me when I was untying his leash and just ran around all of the table trying to get people to pet him or give him food. The rest of the walk was pretty uneventful.

Thursday afternoon, I got a call from Mumble's dog walker, which sent me into a slight panic. Even though she said Mumble didn't appear to be in distress, when the words "he doesn't seem to want to get up and walk" came out of her mouth, all of the memories about losing Padfoot came rushing to me, and I had to force myself to remain calm. This is Mumble, not Padfoot. He has an injury, and is not feeling well, but he is not dying. OK, so then I asked her a bunch of questions, and ascertained that Mumble was not wanting to go for a walk, and when she finally got him to go out, just spent the whole time trying to turn around and go back home. When she brought him back in, he went straight back to bed and refused to do anything else. For a dog that is usually extremely hyper and active, this was definitely not normal, and caused her concern. However, his breathing was normal, he didn't seem to be in distress or even in pain.

I contacted Mumble's vet's office and talked to one of the vets there a little while later. After listening to my description of the details from the dog walker, she did not think that being lethargic as a reaction to the medications was the issue. Her opinion? Mumble is "sad" or "depressed" because of the drastic change in his lifestyle over the past week. She said it wasn't uncommon for "working dogs" to become depressed after they were injured or something because when their normal activities were taken away they became frustrated and sad. Poor Mumble, but at least she doesn't think it is something to cause serious concern. Because I google everything, I found this article about dog depression online, and it really does seem to make sense that this could be what is happening to Mumble.

I cheered Mumble up that evening with a visit to Mandy and Chopper, his favorite human and favorite dog pal. On his walk with Chopper, Mumble showed absolutely no signs of not wanting to walk, being tired, or wanting to turn back, which I guess would seem to support the depression theory rather than that something else is physically wrong.

This morning (Day 9), Mumble's lethargy and resistance to his walk continued with me. He was at first just appearing to be tired and not wanting to get up. When we went out for our walk, he was doing fine for the first block. Then out of nowhere, he turned around and tried to head back towards home. I guess this is what he was doing to the dog walker? His tail was between his leg, and he had a slightly panicked look. It is the way he acts when he is scared of something (usually nothing, or something irrational). From that point forward, he did not want to be walking, he just wanted to go back home. I tried giving him commands to walk nicely, to look at me, etc. I tried giving him treats (he clamped his stubborn jaws shut at that), and encouraging him to keep going. It didn't matter. Nothing changed the fact that he just wanted to go back home. When we made it back, he went straight to his favorite spot in the living room (the cushy armchair) and laid down. But back in the house, he was willing to take treats and come on command, etc, and did seem much more relaxed.

The other thing worrying is the loss of appetite. For the past few days, he eats hardly any breakfast and usually has to be coaxed to eat all of his dinner. He has several medications and supplements, some of which he takes with his food, and I don't know if he doesn't like the taste of all of that or what. The vet does think that one of the supplements could cause a loss of appetite, so maybe that's it. Although I guess if he is really depressed, he wouldn't want to eat, right?

In terms of the physical injury, he does seem to be healing well. But I don't know how we are going to make it through the next few weeks if we keep having to "rest" and not go to daycare and agility. I just keep thinking of all of those "depression is real" commercials on TV where someone talks about not wanting to get out of bed or eat, and I think - oh geez, now that's my dog!

House Arrest Day 6

Today is Day 6 of Mumble's "limited physical activity" sentence for the healing of his sprained leg/shoulder. Things are reasonably going well so far, but I definitely notice a difference already in his behavior.

First off, and on a positive note, in regards to his injury itself, I am really amazed at this medication the vet has put him on, because it seemed to help with the pain right away. And presumably it is helping with the inflammation too, so he is definitely showing signs of limping and stiffness less often. The medication is called Traumeel, and it is a natural, herbal anti-inflammatory and analgesic that is actually made for humans but can be used on dogs. Natural / herbal pain relief is probably better for Mumble, who has previously had an adverse reaction to either pain medication or sedatives. Given that Mumble now takes so many pills and supplements I had to create a chart to make sure I gave him everything at the right time, I decided I should become more educated about what I am putting into his body and did some online research. Traumeel is something that is apparently frequently prescribed to people for their sport related injuries, sprains, and recovery from surgery. It is a homeopathic blend with a lot of different active ingredients that stimulate the "healing of wounds, fractures and dislocation," act as an analgesic, and prevent inflammation and infection. What's great about it is that it can be given to dogs without the extensive bloodwork that may be required for ongoing use of more traditional pain medications. What I know is that Mumble seemed to react positively right away. Remarkably, as soon as his next walk after his first dose, he was already showing signs of improvement. So he'll continue taking his two pills twice a day, hidden in whatever I can convince him to eat at that moment, until the vet tells us otherwise.

In terms of Mumble's reaction to the limitation on his physical activities, I think overall he is doing well, but there is definitely a difference. This will be the first week since Mumble was 5 months old that he didn't go to daycare for at least a couple of days. Well, that's not totally true, he didn't go to daycare when we were in Georgia for Christmas, but that week he had my sister's dogs, Penny and Dexter, who are just as hyper as him, to play with every day all day, so that doesn't really count. Usually, he gets to spend at least a few days at The Loved Dog running around with 30-40 other dogs all day, herding them, and acting like he is the king of the place. So it's a big difference to go from that to being at home with no dogs to play with, only Rascal to herd around, and no one to be the king of (there is no way Rascal is letting Mumble be in charge of anything!).

So while I have not seen any "bad behaviors" (I don't want to dare to say "yet"), he is showing signs that he's a little bored. Last night (Day 5) when I came home from work, he greeted me as usual, and we went on a normal walk. His normal evening activity level is pretty mellow when we are just at home. He may play a little, we may practice some of his tricks or other stuff, and he might even chase around a treat toy, but he's pretty content to lounge around on the couch for a majority of the evening and have his belly rubbed. Last night, he was much more active. He started pulling apart stuffed toys, strewing stuffing around the room, chased Rascal back and forth to the bedroom and living room (until Rascal was tired of that game and with one scathing look, stopped Mumble in his tracks, and then retired to the back of the couch), etc. The worst though was that he was generally trying to demand constant attention. He attempted to destroy a treat toy because it was empty, and kept sitting right next to wherever I was and barking at me ever so quietly to get me to play with him. Maybe this is normal? I don't know; I've always been a believer in "a tired dog is a good dog," so Mumble stays pretty active and entertained so that he doesn't have to engage in inappropriate behaviors to gain my attention for an activity.

The sad thing was that as much attention as I could give him, I couldn't give him what he wanted, which was a lot of physical activity. He was whining at me because he wanted me to play rough with him on the floor, or throw a ball for him to run after, or take him outside to play with the dog from upstairs when it went by. My "attention" of petting him, and trying to get him to do low-impact things like trick or behavior skills would only placate him for a little bit, and then he'd be begging all over again.

We'll see how he is behaving tonight (Day 6) after yet another day at home. We had a great walk this morning - long, but not at a fast pace, and with plenty of "training" along the way. He is mastering the automatic stop and sit at the curb before we cross the street, so if he takes a new skill out of all of this, I guess that's a good thing too. Tomorrow, he'll most likely be coming to the office with me during the day, and then we'll still be going to our "Therapy Dog" class tomorrow night (it's the last class, and the vet approved his participation in this - but not in agility). 10 days to go until we go back to the vet for a check up to see if he is healed, or if the sentence continues!