21Nov
We all want to share the good things in life with our dogs- and Thanksgiving is a good thing. But please, don’t overfeed your dog, or give him things that could hurt him, like bones or too much gravy. Spending the day after such a nice holiday at the vets’ with your dog miserable beside you will completely ruin the holiday. Instead, spend time with your dog if you can, and give them treats just for them, like those below. If you can’t be with your dog or watching them, consider crating them with a stuffed kong or other delicious treat.
Here are some ideas for safely treating your buddy this Thanksgiving!
After Dinner Delight
Ingredients:
Leftover turkey
potatoes
squash
cranberry sauce (take it easy on this one, dogs don’t need a lot of sugar in their diets!)
any other vegetables (not onions!)
Directions:
Mix together all of the above, and drizzle lightly with a tablespoon or two of gravy. Don’t give your dog more than one serving (approximately how much he’d eat anyway). Make certain there are no bones in the meat. Remember, while hot food tastes great to humans, dogs’ aren’t used to it. Let his food cool thoroughly.
Tags: dog products, dog safety & health
16Sep
These sound yummy! (reposted from food.com)
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 cup canned pumpkin
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons dry milk
- 2 1/2 cups flour (wheat is probably better!)
- water
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Blend eggs and pumpkin together; add salt, dry milk, and flour.
Add water as needed to make the dough somewhat workable.
The dough should be dry and stiff, don’t be concerned with crumbs being left in the bowl.
You will need to mix this with your hands because it is too stiff for an electric mixer.
Roll to 1/2-inch thick. Cut into shapes.
Place 1″ apart on ungreased cookie sheet.
Bake for 20 minutes on one side, then turn over and bake another 20 minutes.
Tags: dog products
06Jun
Just Jump That Contact...
…wait, what? Actually, yes. You want to give your dog any and every temptation possible in practice, after he’s learned the correct behavior. Then when he’s in competition, he will stay on the straight and narrow, ignoring that dropped hot dog and the screaming people. Practice should be so much more exciting than simply running around the backyard or agility field!
These proofing cards are awesome for step-by-step proofing your dog up to and not including swinging a dead cat. (No cats were harmed in making these cards, we swear!) Front and back temptations to not make contacts, to run-by, leave the start line, and refuse are covered, and how to teach your dog to do its’ job come hell, high water, or flung fluffy toys.
…and dropped hot dogs.
…..or weird hats.
Your dog WILL do his job, if you do yours with these proofing cards!
Tags: dog products
07Feb
We’re having a mini-series here on Agility Fusion- Multi-tasking obstacles! Look for one (or more) posts on how you can make obstacles work for you each week!
We’re kicking the series off with a fairly new item. Freestanding base Competition Adjustable Jumps are perfect for less than perfect ground training- but what else are they good for?
I’ve found them useful for weaves- not a full set, no, but I’ve used them as four weaves, just to practice with since I was too lazy to get a weave set out. Quick doesn’t really know how to weave yet, but he and I had fun weaving in and out! Just take the jump bars off and turn them so their jump cups are away from the dog. I know some think that this leads a dog to not recognize the obstacle, but I want to teach Quick very good obstacle discrimination, so he’ll know when a jump is a jump and when it’s something to just go between.
You can also use the uprights to teach handling skills as you guide the dog around the upright and slowly work in more and more distance. You’ll be gambling in no time!
Why should, or shouldn’t you multipurpose obstacles?
Next week: Tunnels!
Tags: agility obstacles, agility training, dog products
30Jan
I was lucky enough to be able to test a dog IQ game- I chose the Dog Brick, and I took it home.
Wow, I really can’t believe how much fun it was! Quick and Nova both loved it. Nova became obsessed. Have you ever seen a hard-core person playing bingo or any kind of gambling game? Where they’re stamping all the dots very very quickly, intense concentration on their face? So focused you could set off an alarm and they would keep playing? Nova was just like that with this game! She absolutely loved it, and begged for more when I put it away! I laughed so hard as she snuffled and pawed at the board. She’s really very cute! She got the concept right away.
Quick was a little more difficult, but he enjoyed it too! I had to make sure he found at least one treat very quickly, or he got frustrated. However, I intend to slowly work up his endurance with this toy. It’s low-key to play with- lots of fun, quite easy if you want it to be- so that’s good. I plan to slowly lower the reward rate so he has to work harder for his treats. I think that’s a good thing, because he really needs to learn that it is okay to not get the treat within a few minutes.
I haven’t had this much fun with my dogs since Quick was introduced to his first tunnel. Nova, Quick, and I had a real blast with these toys, and I hope you try them out for your dogs- let us know if they’re as much fun for you as they were for us!
Tags: agility oddities, dog products, dog tricks, simply funny
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