Five year old Beagle Carlos hates the dog next door. He can’t see Cockapoo Sheldon. An 8 foot stockade fence separates the two dogs. It doesn’t matter, though. The first thing Carlos does when he is let outside to do his business is to race the fence and skim the base of it with his nose, hunting for Sheldon. Then, let the barking begin. How the Carlos/Sheldon feud began is a mystery. Carlos’ owners moved into the neighborhood first. When Sheldon’s family arrived, it appeared

Owners of two or more dogs will tell you that dogs are just as guilty of peer pressure as any group of teenagers. Herd mentality, mob rule, collective behavior, flocking, swarm intelligence, or team players – whatever the terminology, dogs (and people) in packs act differently than they do on their own. Chance and Joey are two male Havanese, age three. They are from the same litter and have been together all of their lives. They are rarely, if ever, separated. When they are,

After spending some time recently at my local dog park, I have decided that there are lessons to be learned there. For example, contrast the arrival of a newcomer to a high school in any teen movie, say, Mean Girls, with the appearance of a newly arrived dog at the dog park. The new girl in school is usually scrutinized, avoided, and gossiped about. She is made into a pariah unless another teen, one who had been treated just as shabbily as she in the past, takes pity on her

Households with two or more dogs are more common than you think. Here’s the scenario I hear over and over: “We went to the breeder and there were only two puppies left. We had only planned to get one, and we picked out the one we wanted, but then the other one looked so sad to be left behind, so we took that one, too.” Uh-oh… This occurs so often that I’m beginning to wonder if breeders put two puppies in the pen and remove the other littermates to some other place while ther

Everyone who has two dogs, raise your hand. Everyone who has two dogs AND walks each dog separately because one or both are terrible on...

Two year old West Highland Terrier Stella takes her job as protector of the house and its contents very seriously. So much so that she...

Usually its because they have added a puppy to their household when they already have an adult dog. The puppy, being a puppy, wants to...

Edgar is a 2 year old Miniature Dachshund who has never known a day without his siblings Rottweiler Hannah and Pitbull mix J.P. All of...

Maisie is a 4 year old Golden Retriever that never learned to sit. There is nothing wrong with her physically to prevent her from...

Yes, I know. My motto, theme song, tag line, reason for living, is “Don’t Shop! Adopt!” The rest end up in shelters or euthanized. That...

Sally Mae is a terrier mix with a tendency to vocalize. That is, she barks. A lot. She barks to be let outside. She barks to come back...

A client once told me that his dog was “well-behaved but not well-trained.” Rosalita is one of those dogs. She may not know any tricks or...

Brooks is a flashy, feisty little Long-Haired Chihuahua. Her big “brother” Dunn is a sweet-natured Lab mix. The dogs sleep together in a...

Aussie Labradoodle Martina can do no right. Her two “brothers” – Lab mixes, ages 8 and 10 – nap most of the day, rising only to follow...

At the risk of sounding like a naysayer, I confess I must share a significant No No with you. Yes, I know, one of my recent blog posts...

Will all of the estimated 43 million U.S. dog owners bring their dogs to work with them this Friday? Maybe YOU will! If you’ve never...

My history with Pugs is a long and varied one. I have trained them (P is for Park), feted them (Pet Fair and Pug Fest), calmed them (Get...

I went to see Brad Paisley at SPAC last summer. Paid a lot of money for great seats. Really looked forward to an amazing concert. Why?...

Seamus is an Irish Setter, but not the frenetic kind. In fact, he is rather torpid and slow-moving, especially when compared to his new...

Wendy’s two dogs might have had some obedience training at one time, but you would never know it if you visited her house. There are pee...