dig by dog

Got a dog who loves the water?
The Troy Family Aquatic Center is hosting the “Dog Water Extravaganza” tomorrow for those pooches with a passion for swimming.
There will be three separate swim times for large, medium and small dogs. Dogs weighing less than 40 pounds can swim from noon to 12:45 p.m., dogs weighing between 41 and 65 pounds are slotted for 1 to 1:45 p.m. and big dogs, those weighing 66 pounds or more, can swim from 2 to 2:45 p.m.
All dogs must be six months of age or older, and all must be wearing their dog license.
Owners have to register their pooches and pay a fee of $11 for Troy residents and $13 for nonresidents.
You’ll get a commemorative t-shirt, but that’s not the reason to go.
Everyone knows the benefits swimming has for people — it feels low impact and is really easy on our bones and joints, yet it’s truly a huge work out for us.
Swimming is so good that water therapy is often used to help people rehabilitate from injuries and build muscle strength.
Think it’s any different for our dogs? Nope.
It’s just as good for them as it is for us.
Especially for those of you with senior dogs or dogs that have hip dysplasia or other joint issues, swimming is really good.
It doesn’t hurt their knees or hips and it isn’t overwhelmingly strenuous for them, yet it’s a fantastic exercise to help your aging, round-bellied dog shed a couple pounds here and there.
Which, by the way, is also important. The less weight on the dog, the less miserable their aching joints feel.
On another note, if you’re dog is afraid of water but friendly with other dogs, this may be a great opportunity to get them swimming.
Of course, you never want to force a dog into the water. I’m just saying, if your dog sees a bunch of other dogs swimming around and having fun, it may perk their interest enough to make them want to give swimming a try.
The event is co-sponsored by Camp Bow Wow and Longview Boarding & Gromming, and the Troy Aquatic Center is at 3425 Civic Center Drive. Call (248) 524-3514 for more information.

If my dog is biased as to which one of us, my husband or I, he loves more, then it all comes down to whoever walks in the door first.
For almost all of his life, I’ve been the last one home at night. I didn’t even realize what I was missing out on.
Lately, Brent’s been working long hours and they keep getting longer and longer. For the first time I can remember, I’m now the one who walks in the door first.
Sensi is there waiting for me, his tail thumping the wall with every excited wag. He prances around excitedly, licking at my hands and knees, until I kneel down to greet him. Then he climbs up my lap, his heavy front paws balancing precariously on my thighs, and proceeds to lick every inch of my face for as long as I’ll let him.
The greeting isn’t done there, either. After Sensi’s doled out all the affection he can muster, he runs and grabs whatever toy has his fancy for that day and jovially teases me with it.
I like to think that he believes playing is as important to me as it is to him, so he’s being a good friend by trying to welcome me home with a good play session.
More often than not, I’m tired as can be and dreading the cleaning, cooking and more cleaning that awaits me. But I indulge him anyhow and usually find a quick game of keep away or tug gives me a little energy boost.
When I’m the second one home, on the other hand, I barely even get greeted. I’ve turned the corner into the kitchen before the dog even realizes I’m home and I’m usually setting my stuff down in the office before he slowly stretches his way off the couch and meanders over to me.
I might get a cursory hand lick, but Sensi’s only motivation to do that isn’t actually to greet me, but rather to begin begging for dinner.
This whole realization has made me think that if Sensi is biased about which one of us he loves more, at least we know it’s a pretty thin line. Whoever gets home first gets all the loving and that’s fair enough for me.

The answer sadly is apparently not.

Yesterday I went with my sister and her boyfriend to look at a litter of bulldog puppies. Those who have been followers of the blog may remember she lost her last one back in May. (Here is his story for those interested: http://www.dogstardaily.com/blogs/story-journey )

The breeder we found that met our criteria (health testing being number 1) had requirements of her own. Yesterday was their two hour scheduled meeting to see if they met her expectations. (of course I tagged along to help) I am happy to report that the meeting went well and my sister will be getting her bulldog puppy. (Its a boy!)

Alot has happened to get to this point. Finding the breeder was only one step. The biggest one was educating my sisters boyfriend on the process. He had almost fallen prey to the website puppy shopping syndrome. I have to admit there were times I totally understood the urge. Finding a breeder of healthy bulldogs was a huge challenge. And where there are people out there selling them online, like inanimate objects, it can be tough to resist the urge to take the easy road. (Click this button to Buy Now!!! Credit cards accepted.)

Here is why you need to resist that urge however: Reputable breeders do health testing. The puppy you buy online is being produced simply as a product to make someone money. Health testing cuts into their bottom line so they dont bother. They also dont care about good temperment. Many times they will even ship a puppy out to young because it is still cute even though this can mean serious behavior problems for the puppy down the road. (8 weeks is minimum for good behavioral health) In the long run, while the reputable breeders puppy may cost more initially, you are saving money in vet bills down the road. Cant afford it? Would rather be able to use the credit card? Save your pennies one at a time in a special account. It might take time but so will finding a good breeder.

By buying a puppy off the Internet you are adding to the supply and demand of puppies as a product and helping to keep puppymills and their ilk in operation. By purchasing that puppy you have added another nail in the coffin of the dogs that helped produce him. Most of those parents have horrible lives kept in cages and are bred like livestock to continue churning out puppies as product. Do NOT become part of an industry that continues thinking of puppies as a product!!!

Getting a puppy from a reputable breeder gives you a support system. If you have any trouble with your new puppy they will help by answering questions you have for the lifetime of the puppy. If a worst case scenario happens they will even take the puppy (or by then adult dog) back. This ensures that your puppy will never end up in a shelter situation.

Some of those Internet sellers are scams. They can use the bait and switch and send you a different puppy than the one whos photo you saw. Many times because the photo you saw was one they stole off a good breeders website because their puppies dont look as good. Breeders looking to produce a product dont care if their dogs meet the standard for their breed after all. Sometimes the puppy you get is sick. Good luck trying to enforce any health guarantees long distance. (And a health guarantee in most cases is written in such a way no one would ever use it. Who is going to send a puppy back they have already bonded to for another one from a clearly inferior breeder?) Another scam can be that they take your money and you never get a puppy at all. Good luck trying to find them to pursue legal action. Websites can be hosted from anywhere, including other countries. These breeders are taking advantage of the ignorance of first time puppy buyers. I dont know ANYONE who bought from a pet store or off the Internet that repeated that mistake.

The Internet can be a helpful tool when looking for a puppy. But as with any tool there is a right and wrong way to use it. Educate yourself before jumping in with both feet. TAKE YOUR TIME!! To many people succumb to the "I want it now" syndrome and settle for less than what they really want. In many cases that turns out to be a healthy pet.

Expect to travel. It is unreasonable to expect to find an excellent breeder in your back yard that has what you are looking for. I had to fly to Ohio to pick up our frenchie and 2 of my akitas were shipped to me. (from a breeder I knew personally very well)

A good breeder is going to ask you questions. They want to make sure you are the right home for one of their puppies. I know some people are put off by that but consider why they are asking. The ones asking care about their dogs. The ones that dont ask are simply selling you a product. How sad that a puppy is only a product to some people. In some cases you might not be allowed to pick out your puppy either. This is also normal practice for a reputable breeder. Because the breeders know the puppies very well they might prefer to match what they believe is the best puppy for your situation. Some may also let you chose out of a few they think might work for you. And of course they will have kept the pick of the litter for themselves and their breeding program. Of the 3 akita puppies I have had in my life I never actually chose any of them out of a litter. And in all cases they were the best match for me at that time.

**Sidenote: Reputable breeders breed a litter so THEY can have a puppy to continue their lines to show or for them to have a new performance dog. The rest of the puppies are extras because dogs rarely have just one puppy litters. This is why you may need to get on a waiting list. They arent breeding continually to have puppies for sale to the general public.

A good way to find a reputable breeder is to ask the rescue group for that breed for a breeder list. Many reputable breeders are also involved in rescue for their breed as well. Rescues WANT people to go to reputable breeders because their dogs dont end up as a drain on rescues resources.

We are all very excited to be adding a puppy to the family. Yesterday was incredible and I am very impressed with the breeder we found. We got incredibly lucky to find her only 4 hours away from us. The momma dog was super sweet and happy and we look forward to seeing that in this little guy. He wont be coming home until he is old enough to leave him mom and siblings. (ten weeks for optimal behavioral health) Im sure I will have many more pics in the future to share. For now here is a photo of my sister with her new boy. It isnt a great photo of the pup because I didnt want it stolen by the above mentioned B*%&#%*s to be used on a crappy website somewhere.


Here it is, the beginning of the next journey.