Well, I did it. I took Bowser to a fancy board and train resort. He will get intensive one on one training for three weeks. I pick him back up on March 11th.
While he is gone, I will be working on training my other dog myself, and also fixing up my backyard.
This is exciting! I am looking forward to seeing what progress he's made when I pick him up.
Wednesday, February 19, 2014
Tuesday, February 18, 2014
Valentines
Bowser does not have heartworms, hurray!
I bought some heartworm prevention that also deworms other worms. Bowser's weight meant I had to buy a pack for dogs 50-100 lbs and another pack for dogs up to 12 pounds, and he has to take two pills each month. It isn't cheap stuff, but if it also deworms all other kinds of worms too, it is worth it.
I got a "Valentine" in the mail yesterday from dogsdeservebetter.com
I went to the website, and found that in order for me to have gotten it, someone had to have given my address to them.
The "Valentine" is a plea to not keep your dog chained up or penned up, because it is sad and unfair to the dog. My neighbor has a Dogs Deserve Better bumper sticker on their car, so it is pretty obvious that my neighbor thinks I am a bad dog owner.
My dogs are not indoor dogs. Bowser was for about 6 months of his life. During that six months, my walls developed permanent discoloration due to his drool. Every baseboard in the house was blackened with dirt. Every corner of every room had a tumbleweed of dog fur. The chewing of doors and window sills I can blame on me, but no matter how much I cleaned (which was a lot!), even with just Bowser in the house, my home was unsanitary.
Our downstairs opens into a basement and a garage. This is the area that I have set up for my dogs. I sweep and pick up daily. I have beds, blankets, toys, filtered water containers, and 10x20 kennels for each dog down there. They also spend about 7 hours a day outside in our fenced backyard. Since my neighbors can not see the inside of my house, I presume that it is the hours that they spend in my fence that I am being judged for.
Yesterday I was really offended and angry to have gotten that "Valentine". Today I realize that I *haven't* been fair to my dogs. I know this. The beginning of my blog is all about that. I am trying hard to change things, and I will. I am just sad that my neglect was noticeable even by my neighbors.
Soon, maybe even today, Bowser will head to doggie bootcamp for three weeks of training. While he is gone, I intend to work on training my other dog, and I also want to find ways of making my backyard a fun place for the dogs to play. I have ideas: a tunnel, some platforms and ramps, stairs, etc. I can't bring my dogs inside. My desire to provide a sanitary home for my baby outweighs my desire to have my dogs indoors, but I can do better about making sure my dogs are living fulfilling lives.
I bought some heartworm prevention that also deworms other worms. Bowser's weight meant I had to buy a pack for dogs 50-100 lbs and another pack for dogs up to 12 pounds, and he has to take two pills each month. It isn't cheap stuff, but if it also deworms all other kinds of worms too, it is worth it.
I got a "Valentine" in the mail yesterday from dogsdeservebetter.com
I went to the website, and found that in order for me to have gotten it, someone had to have given my address to them.
The "Valentine" is a plea to not keep your dog chained up or penned up, because it is sad and unfair to the dog. My neighbor has a Dogs Deserve Better bumper sticker on their car, so it is pretty obvious that my neighbor thinks I am a bad dog owner.
My dogs are not indoor dogs. Bowser was for about 6 months of his life. During that six months, my walls developed permanent discoloration due to his drool. Every baseboard in the house was blackened with dirt. Every corner of every room had a tumbleweed of dog fur. The chewing of doors and window sills I can blame on me, but no matter how much I cleaned (which was a lot!), even with just Bowser in the house, my home was unsanitary.
Our downstairs opens into a basement and a garage. This is the area that I have set up for my dogs. I sweep and pick up daily. I have beds, blankets, toys, filtered water containers, and 10x20 kennels for each dog down there. They also spend about 7 hours a day outside in our fenced backyard. Since my neighbors can not see the inside of my house, I presume that it is the hours that they spend in my fence that I am being judged for.
Yesterday I was really offended and angry to have gotten that "Valentine". Today I realize that I *haven't* been fair to my dogs. I know this. The beginning of my blog is all about that. I am trying hard to change things, and I will. I am just sad that my neglect was noticeable even by my neighbors.
Soon, maybe even today, Bowser will head to doggie bootcamp for three weeks of training. While he is gone, I intend to work on training my other dog, and I also want to find ways of making my backyard a fun place for the dogs to play. I have ideas: a tunnel, some platforms and ramps, stairs, etc. I can't bring my dogs inside. My desire to provide a sanitary home for my baby outweighs my desire to have my dogs indoors, but I can do better about making sure my dogs are living fulfilling lives.
Friday, February 14, 2014
To the vet we go
Today I loaded Bowser up in the car and took him to the vet.
He was about 2 months overdue for his yearly vaccinations. He has a circular spot of hair loss that I am unsure of the cause of. I also am worried about the potential for heartworms since he has not been on any preventative.
The vet gave him his vaccinations, including rabies and bordatella. She took a look at his hairless spot and was baffled. She told me to put a cream made for athletes foot on it and if it wasn't better soon to have a skin scraping done. I got his blood drawn for a heartworm test and I am supposed to get the results of that tomorrow. I'm crossing my fingers that he does not have heartworms!
All in all, today was a productive day.
He was about 2 months overdue for his yearly vaccinations. He has a circular spot of hair loss that I am unsure of the cause of. I also am worried about the potential for heartworms since he has not been on any preventative.
The vet gave him his vaccinations, including rabies and bordatella. She took a look at his hairless spot and was baffled. She told me to put a cream made for athletes foot on it and if it wasn't better soon to have a skin scraping done. I got his blood drawn for a heartworm test and I am supposed to get the results of that tomorrow. I'm crossing my fingers that he does not have heartworms!
All in all, today was a productive day.
Thursday, February 13, 2014
A cold bath
Today I marched myself over to Petsmart and spent far too much money.
Bowser has been entrenched in mud and snow for months without a bath, so he was in desperate need. He's also had a circle of hair loss that has not gone away for almost half a year now. I did some reading online and concluded that it was likely a fungal problem, and so while at Petsmart I picked up a special shampoo and conditioner that is supposed to kill fungus and bacteria.
Our guest bathroom's bathtub has been unusable since the last time I bathed Bowser in it. His hair clogged the drain, and neither Drain-o, nor a drain snake has been able to uncork it. So poor Bowser was in for a cold bath outside. I brought warm water in pitchers from inside the house and set to work lathering him up, rinse and repeat. I bought a special brush called a Zoom Groom that I massaged his skin with as I bathed him and he seemed to like that.
That big boy was dirty! I also discovered he has a healing injury, probably a bite from my other dog, on his nose. When I tried to clean it off, thinking it was dirt, it re-opened and began to bleed a little. All of this really drives home how much I have neglected my poor dogs. It isn't going to happen again!
After he was clean I introduced him to his new bed... a Kong bed that is supposed to be chew proof, and it better be for how much it cost me! In the past every dog bed I buy gets ripped to shreds in less than a day. We'll see how well this one holds up. The downstairs where his 20x10 kennel is set up has hard concrete floors, so I really would like him to be able to sleep on a soft bed. For those reading, the rest of the house also has hard flooring, so it isn't as simple as moving his sleeping spot.
I have been aware of how filthy the water bowls get and how quickly they run dry, so I also bought two 2.5 gallon filtered gravity water bowls. I just fill up the jug, screw on the filter, flip it onto the bowl and it keeps clean water in the bowl at all times. What a great invention!
The dogs finished their last bite of dog food yesterday, so I also picked up some new kibble. Before I was feeding them Petsmart's brand of dog food, alternating between that and Walmart's Pure Balance. Neither of those foods are terrible, but they aren't awesome either. So I picked up a big bag of Blue's Limited Ingredient Grain Free kibble. I also bought Missing Link Skin, Coat, and Joint supplement to add to the food. It had terrific reviews online, so we'll see how it does for my big boy.
I mixed up the food in the new stainless steel feeding bowls I got, adding the Missing Link, and also a deworming medicine, and when I offered it to Bowser he ate it like it was a T-bone steak. I suppose he approves of the changed I've made.
Lastly, I purchased a Gentle Leader harness. This harness is supposed to redirect the dog when they try to pull on walks. I got this so that I would be more apt to take Bowser on walks. Right now I resist walking him because he pulls my arms out of socket and he's always trying to get to other dogs. Maybe with this little device, at least until he gets into training, he'll be more manageable.
I have a few more items I want to purchase, but for now I think there have been some major improvements made. Today was a good day, and I think the dogs agree.
Bowser has been entrenched in mud and snow for months without a bath, so he was in desperate need. He's also had a circle of hair loss that has not gone away for almost half a year now. I did some reading online and concluded that it was likely a fungal problem, and so while at Petsmart I picked up a special shampoo and conditioner that is supposed to kill fungus and bacteria.
Our guest bathroom's bathtub has been unusable since the last time I bathed Bowser in it. His hair clogged the drain, and neither Drain-o, nor a drain snake has been able to uncork it. So poor Bowser was in for a cold bath outside. I brought warm water in pitchers from inside the house and set to work lathering him up, rinse and repeat. I bought a special brush called a Zoom Groom that I massaged his skin with as I bathed him and he seemed to like that.
That big boy was dirty! I also discovered he has a healing injury, probably a bite from my other dog, on his nose. When I tried to clean it off, thinking it was dirt, it re-opened and began to bleed a little. All of this really drives home how much I have neglected my poor dogs. It isn't going to happen again!
After he was clean I introduced him to his new bed... a Kong bed that is supposed to be chew proof, and it better be for how much it cost me! In the past every dog bed I buy gets ripped to shreds in less than a day. We'll see how well this one holds up. The downstairs where his 20x10 kennel is set up has hard concrete floors, so I really would like him to be able to sleep on a soft bed. For those reading, the rest of the house also has hard flooring, so it isn't as simple as moving his sleeping spot.
I have been aware of how filthy the water bowls get and how quickly they run dry, so I also bought two 2.5 gallon filtered gravity water bowls. I just fill up the jug, screw on the filter, flip it onto the bowl and it keeps clean water in the bowl at all times. What a great invention!
The dogs finished their last bite of dog food yesterday, so I also picked up some new kibble. Before I was feeding them Petsmart's brand of dog food, alternating between that and Walmart's Pure Balance. Neither of those foods are terrible, but they aren't awesome either. So I picked up a big bag of Blue's Limited Ingredient Grain Free kibble. I also bought Missing Link Skin, Coat, and Joint supplement to add to the food. It had terrific reviews online, so we'll see how it does for my big boy.
I mixed up the food in the new stainless steel feeding bowls I got, adding the Missing Link, and also a deworming medicine, and when I offered it to Bowser he ate it like it was a T-bone steak. I suppose he approves of the changed I've made.
Lastly, I purchased a Gentle Leader harness. This harness is supposed to redirect the dog when they try to pull on walks. I got this so that I would be more apt to take Bowser on walks. Right now I resist walking him because he pulls my arms out of socket and he's always trying to get to other dogs. Maybe with this little device, at least until he gets into training, he'll be more manageable.
I have a few more items I want to purchase, but for now I think there have been some major improvements made. Today was a good day, and I think the dogs agree.
Wednesday, February 12, 2014
So far
When I first had the thought of getting involved with dog shows and dog sports, I assumed I would need to purchase a new puppy. I felt sure that I had let Bowser get into a condition that he would never be able to come back from, and there was no way he would ever be presentable or respectable in a ring. The idea of adding an additional critter to my list of beings that demand things from me stressed me out though.
My husband, upon hearing the price of one of the puppies I was looking at, turned to me and said
"Can't you just use Bowser?"
I balked at the idea. I explained to him that Bowser was far too old and he would be laughed out of the ring, probably after peeing on everything and pulling my arm out of socket trying to get to another dog.
But the stressful thought of adding an additional dog to our family made me rethink what my husband had said. I decided to suck it up and purchase a copy of Bowser's five generation AKC pedigree to see how badly bred he was. I was sure it would confirm my view that Bowser's breeding and lack of training would make him a worthless dog for the show ring or dog sports.
The Dogue de Bordeaux is a new breed to the American Kennel Club, so when I looked at my dog's pedigree, none of the names were the red text color of champions. "Just as I thought..." I mumbled to myself. Out of curiosity I pasted his great grandsire into the google search bar and clicked 'search'.
The results surprised me. The dog was an international champion. I pasted more dogs into the search bar. More champions!
I was pleasantly surprised. Bowser's pedigree was not entirely made up of champions, but he did have quite a few. Maybe his breeding wasn't as bad as I feared it to be. The next step was to compare him to the AKC standard for the breed. He had no disqualifying faults or major faults, and while there was room for improvement in some areas, I really started to believe that he might have a chance.
So I had made my decision. Even if Bowser wouldn't get me to Westminster, we were going to take this journey together. I discovered a class near me that meets weekly to teach conformation showing that I intend to take. I found a great dog trainer that will help me undo two years of training neglect for a pretty penny. I ordered some books on how to get involved in dog showing. I intend to take Bowser for a checkup at the vet this weekend. This is just the beginning, but the dream has started to take shape!
My husband, upon hearing the price of one of the puppies I was looking at, turned to me and said
"Can't you just use Bowser?"
I balked at the idea. I explained to him that Bowser was far too old and he would be laughed out of the ring, probably after peeing on everything and pulling my arm out of socket trying to get to another dog.
But the stressful thought of adding an additional dog to our family made me rethink what my husband had said. I decided to suck it up and purchase a copy of Bowser's five generation AKC pedigree to see how badly bred he was. I was sure it would confirm my view that Bowser's breeding and lack of training would make him a worthless dog for the show ring or dog sports.
The Dogue de Bordeaux is a new breed to the American Kennel Club, so when I looked at my dog's pedigree, none of the names were the red text color of champions. "Just as I thought..." I mumbled to myself. Out of curiosity I pasted his great grandsire into the google search bar and clicked 'search'.
The results surprised me. The dog was an international champion. I pasted more dogs into the search bar. More champions!
I was pleasantly surprised. Bowser's pedigree was not entirely made up of champions, but he did have quite a few. Maybe his breeding wasn't as bad as I feared it to be. The next step was to compare him to the AKC standard for the breed. He had no disqualifying faults or major faults, and while there was room for improvement in some areas, I really started to believe that he might have a chance.
So I had made my decision. Even if Bowser wouldn't get me to Westminster, we were going to take this journey together. I discovered a class near me that meets weekly to teach conformation showing that I intend to take. I found a great dog trainer that will help me undo two years of training neglect for a pretty penny. I ordered some books on how to get involved in dog showing. I intend to take Bowser for a checkup at the vet this weekend. This is just the beginning, but the dream has started to take shape!
New beginnings
I have always loved animals, particularly dogs. When I was younger most of my free time was spent in the backyard teaching my dogs tricks, or taking them to the dog park. My friends' parents would hire me to train their dogs, I would labor over hand made dog clothes, and I spent almost every dollar I had on dog toys.
Then I grew up. I got married. I became a stepmother. I got pregnant and had my own child. I still like dogs, but they have been relegated to spending almost all of their time in the backyard. I have been buying cheap dog food and never take them for walks. Recently I shamefully realized that my favorite dog, a Dogue de Bordeaux named Bowser, that I have had since he was a tiny puppy, is almost two years old... and he doesn't even know how to sit on command.
Becoming a wife and a mother takes a lot out of you. I have been spiraling in an angry depression. As I write this, I have no friends outside of my husband and mother, and I haven't talked to anybody that wasn't family or a store clerk in almost a month. All of my hobbies have been put on the backburner for so long that I can't even remember what I liked to do.
A few days ago, I watched one of those court TV shows... a guilty pleasure when I am at my mother's house. At the end of the show, the judge dispensed her advice. She said "Don't just let life happen to you. Decide to decide." Those words hit me right in the heart. I realized in that single instance that I had been letting life happen to me. I have not been in control of anything for far too long. I've been complaining and miserably unhappy, bored and lonely, feeling used up and spit out... but not doing a thing to change it.
I realized that what I needed more than anything was a hobby. I needed something I could take pride in, something social to do, and something that allowed me to become my own person again. After a lot of thought, I decided I would transform my yard dog into a respectable show dog, and in the process I would learn a lot and meet a lot of people with similar interests. As I go along, I'll update this blog to share my experiences with others.
Then I grew up. I got married. I became a stepmother. I got pregnant and had my own child. I still like dogs, but they have been relegated to spending almost all of their time in the backyard. I have been buying cheap dog food and never take them for walks. Recently I shamefully realized that my favorite dog, a Dogue de Bordeaux named Bowser, that I have had since he was a tiny puppy, is almost two years old... and he doesn't even know how to sit on command.
Becoming a wife and a mother takes a lot out of you. I have been spiraling in an angry depression. As I write this, I have no friends outside of my husband and mother, and I haven't talked to anybody that wasn't family or a store clerk in almost a month. All of my hobbies have been put on the backburner for so long that I can't even remember what I liked to do.
A few days ago, I watched one of those court TV shows... a guilty pleasure when I am at my mother's house. At the end of the show, the judge dispensed her advice. She said "Don't just let life happen to you. Decide to decide." Those words hit me right in the heart. I realized in that single instance that I had been letting life happen to me. I have not been in control of anything for far too long. I've been complaining and miserably unhappy, bored and lonely, feeling used up and spit out... but not doing a thing to change it.
I realized that what I needed more than anything was a hobby. I needed something I could take pride in, something social to do, and something that allowed me to become my own person again. After a lot of thought, I decided I would transform my yard dog into a respectable show dog, and in the process I would learn a lot and meet a lot of people with similar interests. As I go along, I'll update this blog to share my experiences with others.
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