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Teaching Dogs Alternative Behaviour Dogs need to be able to understand what we require of them, if they don’t understand then we can’t expect them do as we ask and quite often without realising it we send them mixed messages which they find confusing. When a dog barks at a knock on the door it can be seen as doing what a dog might be expected to do, so it receives praise for it. Good dog for barking and letting me know there is someone trying to get into my house. To begin with the dog may be allowed to greet the visitor and as far as the dog is concerned this has now set a pattern for all future visitors. But with each visitor the greeting gets a little more exuberant and the dog begins to think that maybe the visitors are really only there for his benefit, and while he thinks he’s in charge his owner is becoming more exasperated. The dog has been told clearly that he is a good dog for barking and then he’s been told ‘no, leave, down,’ and countless other commands, coupled wit...

A Dog’s Worth Over the years rescue and rehoming has changed, and not all changes have been for the better. The dogs that came in to rescue were mainly dogs that had been neglected, abused, or found as strays. The few dogs that came from private homes were usually homeless due to family bereavement or a change of circumstances. Those cases now often struggle to find a rescue space as kennels are full of dogs that people have acquired and no longer want. Does that sound harsh and does it sound almost unbelievable? Probably but then you will be one of the people who will stick by your dog no matter what, because you love your dog. Three words describe everything about breeding, obtaining, and living with a dog. Care, Love and Respect. Care enough to breed and home sensibly. Care enough to take time to learn about and understand the dog you take home. Love the dog you are breeding with; it is not a commodity. Love the dog you take into you home, whether it is a pup or a rescue dog y...

A Christmas Story She had never been able to have puppies, she had tried so hard to mother every fluffy thing she saw, slippers, woolly socks, kittens and even chickens had been used as substitute offspring but none had ever been able to stay with her. Clothes had quickly been returned to their owners, kittens went back to their own mothers and everyone seemed to think she would eventually harm the chickens so she was shut away from them. Time had managed to dull her ache to be a mother, she was twelve now and even if she did get friendly with the new farm dog and this time it worked, she really was too old to be bringing a litter into the world……………   The puppy was dehydrated and its chances of survival were slim, her mother had died shortly after she was born, she had been a young fit dog and her death had been both a tragedy and a shock to her owners. They had done everything in their power to keep her alive but fate seemed to have decreed that healthy or not she was onl...