Having a Dog in your Bed

I just received an email from one of our Dog Loving friends, and I'm so grateful to them for taking sometime to visit and read our posts which they appreciate. And I thank them also, for sharing a very informative article that our dog owners would like to know.

Our friends from dogfencediy.com came up with this original piece on "having a dog in your bed." It was written for us by their staff Veterinarian, Dr. Susan Wright.

This is a very interesting post, in fact, I know a lot of people who share the bed with their dogs. So, I guessed they have to think about of sharing their bed with their dogs again after reading this.

Here is the actual article.

Is having a dog in your bed a good idea? That's a bit like asking if babies should sleep with their parents. Some will say it's fantastic for all concerned, yet others will say that it's not okay under any circumstances.

Very young children should not be allowed to sleep with their dog. They may inadvertently kick or nudge their sleeping dog, and knock him out of bed. If he lands awkwardly, he may be injured. Older children with a medium sized, calm natured dog often love having something warm to cuddle, and love having their dog with them at night.

Most people would agree that it's not a good idea to have young puppies on the bed. They're not usually toilet trained and you may end up cleaning up more than just dog hair. Wait until your dog is fully toilet trained if you'd like to have him snuggle up with you in bed.

Consider the hygiene aspects of sharing your bed with your dog. If he has fleas, they'll breed in your bed linen and you'll wake up with itchy flea bites. Older dogs may have incontinence issues and you'll have to take steps to keep your bed clean and dry.

How big is your dog? Depending on the size of your bed, a giant breed won't leave much space for you. A toy breed may become lost in the blankets, or you may roll on him during your sleep. If you do, he may wake with a start and bite you before he knows what he's doing.

Are you a light sleeper? Dogs fidget, snore and snort in their sleep and may disturb you several times during the night. Conversely, if you find it hard to go to sleep, you may find that your dog may help you settle into sleep.

One big issue that many behaviorists have is whether or not having your dog on your bed makes him more dominant. There is a school of thought that allowing a dog to sleep where you (the pack leader) sleep elevates him to the same status as you.

This may be the case if your dog already feels he's dominant. However, if you have already put time and effort into your relationship with your dog and he respects you as his leader, having him sleep on your bed shouldn't be a problem.

If your dog does think he's the boss, he should sleep elsewhere. In fact, if he does think he's in charge, you need to work with a trainer to show him where he fits in, in all areas of your lives together.

Clean, well behaved dogs who know their place in your household are a pleasure to own. There's no reason why such a dog can't enjoy a good night's sleep on your bed.

Website: www.dogfencediy.com

A Dog Loving City in Ruins-Typhoon "Ondoy"

Marikina is just one of the ill fated places that “Ondoy “destroyed. It used to be one of the cleanest and progressive cities I’ve seen. I’ve known and admired the place for its passion and love for dogs. Marikina is a very dog loving community, an ambassador of animal welfare particularly dogs. An active participant and event host for Dog Shows, Exhibitions, and other pet relevant programs, and now, a dead city that would perhaps take years to recover and rebuild what it has lost.

It’s hard to imagine that the so clean & lovely city of Marikina that I visited a week before is now submerged in muddy flood, cars were piled up like matchboxes washed away from the garage and into the streets, elegant homes destroyed and ended like eerie caves, and what was even worse was seeing bodies already floating around, including the body of a 3-month old baby stuck in a car windshield!

“It is too devastating, shocking and horrifying!” These are the words you’ll hear from the people who is now in severe desperation and trauma caused by the tragedy that Typhoon “Ondoy” left them. Too many families are now suffering from hunger, sickness, and emotional distress. It’s a tragic fate. Billions worth of property were lost, but what’s most painful was the lost of a loved one. So now we pray that after this great tragedy, people will continue to move on with high hopes and in time return to their normal happy lives.

Most Amazing Invention for Dogs

PIDOE Says: Our First Dog Advise Seeker:Fixing Aggression

Hi Pidoe,

Image by Steffe via Flickr

First of all, I would like to say that your site is great and pretty cool, especially the so “help desk” that I would like to consult. I have a lab-shepherd mixed dog named Rupert, and I’m not sure if he is really an aggressive one, kind of unpredictable. Sometimes he would bark and lunge on other dogs in the park, and sometimes he just plays with them, no harm done. The worst part is, he does the same thing with certain people. He is suspicious and nervous unless he knows them well, I was afraid that sooner or later, he might bite someone or any other dog we might come across.

What do you suggest to control his aggression?

Best regards
-Susan-

Pidoe K-9 Advisor Says:

Hi Susan,

Would you believe, I had the same problem with my dog before, and it really took a while before I knew it, that dogs behavior has something to do with genetics and how it was brought up. It is so important that you know the cause and source, where this negative behavior is coming from, with that we can assess and recommend the best training approach in dealing with it.

You have mentioned that Rupert is a lab-shepherd mix dog, knowing that, we can look on the possibility that your dog’s strong aggression could have been inherited from the genetics of a German Shepherd, that’s why it is so important to know its parentage, I’m not saying that German Shepherds are bad, in fact they are one of the best breed there is, but naturally they are protective of their masters, and their aggression is one way of instilling fear on people or dogs alike they feel as a threat or harmful. However with proper training this aggression can be controlled and commanded at the right time.

Another possibility of the cause of your dog’s unbecoming behavior, could have been inflicted during his puppyhood, I have an article about the importance of socialization. I said in that article that dogs need to have a constant interaction with different people and animals, in various situations and environment. And most importantly it should be a positive experience for the dog especially when he/she is still a puppy. Although, I have no idea of what it’s like for your dog when he was growing up, since you have not mentioned it. What I’m saying is, your dog must have lacked the socialization he needs during the early stage. That explains why he is so suspicious and nervous or better say uncomfortable with unfamiliar things or people that surrounds him. He is confused how to react to such situation, so he decides to display dominance thru aggression to counteract his fear.

Learning those two possibilities, the first thing you should do is train your dog to get used to his environment, by spending more dog walks with him. You need to use a training collar (you can choose between a choke collar and a prong collar, you can research on these on the Web) to correct any of his unnecessary behavior, and get his attention that you are the Alpha, Master and Leader. Your dog should know his position in the pack; he's the follower and you’re the Leader, A simple rule of the thumb in the Dog World.

Another thing when walking, don’t let your dog go ahead of you, so start with a short leash first during your walks, (you can read the article about the proper dog walk) so he stays close to you as possible especially when you come across another person or dog, in this way you can easily get control of him but make sure you’re getting slack in the leash, so it goes loose-tight-loose, your correction will be a sudden quick pull on the leash which will make the collar tight for less than a second. The objective is associate a negative reinforcement to a negative behavior so as not to repeat what took place. You'll know when it is motivational when she stops that bad behavior, and looks at you or submits every time you do the correction. You will have to be consistent on this until your dog gets accustomed to the surroundings and situations you used to avoid. I would suggest that you walk with other people, who walk their dogs too, its one way of getting your dog socialized with them, its called a “pack walk”. The dog will only consider the people walking with you as members of your pack as long as you the “Alpha Dog leader” allow it.

Practice the sit-stay command, if your dog has no obedience training yet, you can check the videos I have on my blog and watch how it is done. It is best that you make her in the sit-stay position while other dogs walk around and smell him. If he decides to lunge or bark, correct him with the “No!” followed by a quick pull on his leash then repeat the sit command. He needs to stay relax on a sit position until you give him the release command.

Always use positive reinforcement, like rewarding your dog with a treat, toy or a simple praise for every positive behavior he does. Let your dog play with other dogs, you can start with the dogs his familiar with.

I hope that helps. Good luck to you and Rupert.

Your K-9 Advisor

-PIDOE-

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A Dog's Grief for his Alpha

For the past several days until now, We Filipinos are still in great grief over the succumbed of a great historical leader, an icon of true democracy, an advocate of God, a persevering peacemaker, and most of all a loving, caring and enthusiastically supportive mother to her family, all these adjectives best describes a queen worthy of her throne, a president best commendable for her country, and I spoke of no other than Madam Corazon “Cory” Aquino. We were stunned by the overwhelming respect and honor given by infinite number of Filipinos whom she led with spirited great deeds.

Though it may seem awkward to say, but I saw the characteristics of a true alpha, based on my dog perspective point of view. An assertive and calm leader of a pack, for even the cunning wolves vowed their heads in submission.

Truly, with her remarkable spiritual prowess, and honest leadership, she will not be forgotten as one of the simplest, most honored, loved, and respected President of our Nation.

The 3D Illusion Dog

Here is something that will astonish you, it may look creepy though, yet its fun looking at it. You might think its magic, but I assure you its all illusion, I know so, because I actually made one, and it really works. At first glance, the head did not appear to be moving, but as I stare longer while moving from different directions, suddenly, it started following me, shifting its head from various angles. Its really amazing.




Would you like to have the 3D Illusion Dog and know its secret?
Email me,so I can send you a copy of the pattern.

PIDOE Help Desk is now open

Good news for our Paws and Bones' friends and visitors. As part of my advocacy and mission to create a friendly and happy human-pet relationship particularly with dogs, I have created a widget that would facilitate queries, and information about training,behavior,and other related stuff sought by dog owners and wannabes. It's like a help desk that gives advises and tips on resolving problems in handling our canine friends.

Pidoe is your friendly online k-9 consultant and adviser. You can see this section along the side bar.