Will your Dog get enough exercise during the cold months

If you’re like me you’d rather wrap up in warm fuzzy fleece and hide under the blankets than face below freezing temps. But when the dogs need to get outside in the morning I begrudgingly put on the winter wear and brave the cold. The rest of the day our walks and other outdoor activities start tapering off to only as needed outings. Standing out in the freezing cold waiting for a dog to ‘take care of business’ is sometimes more exposure to the elements than most of us want.
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Like us our dogs can get used to a comfy sedentary life indoors during the cold months. This can take a toll on my dog’s health and well being so we find other outlets for exercise and mental stimulation.

Of course, braving the cold and going for a walk is great exercise, it’s not always possible this time of year so let’s look at other possibilities:

Get our with your dog to dog friendly stores. Lowe’s, Bass pro, pet stores, are great places to walk around with your dog.

Train your dog to walk on a treadmill.

Designate an indoor area for dog play. Dog proof an extra bedroom or basement for a some tug games and toy tosses.

Find Me! This is always fun and gets your dog moving. Just wait until your dog isn’t paying attention and hide in the other room. Call your dog or squeak a toy to get them going.
Where’s the treat. Hide a favorite treat or toy somewhere in a room and have your dog search for it.

Puppy pushups. This having the dog Sit and then Down and then back into a Sit for several repetitions. Helps build muscles too.

Sniffer Mind games. I do these with my older dogs to keep their mind and nose tuned. All it entails is presenting new foods and other smells to your dog to sniff and in some cases taste. Chapstick, bar soap, unusual spices can get your dog’s nose going (or backing away). It also lets your dog know that not everything you have is an edible tasty treat like they believe it to be. Celery, carrots, green beans, small bits of apple, or bananas are fun food treats for your dog to experiment with.

Obedience classes. It goes with out saying that learning something new is great mental stimulation.

Use the coming winter months as an opportunity to bond with your dog. We offer many ways to get over cabin fever so let us know if we can help.

We have a lot of opportunities for you and your dog to get out this Winter.

Scent Detections Fun
Trick Classes

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Get Rich By Breeding Dogs!

O.K., the title is a joke. 

But only barely. 

Though show dog breeders may not be getting rich, many show dog people breed dogs to defray their show ring expenses -- payments to professional handlers, payments on motor homes and hotels, veterinary expenses, etc.

With "hobby" expenses of several thousand dollars a year, selling puppies is a significant part of the economic engine driving the show ring model.

The need for uninterrupted puppy sales is one reason the show dog world is so resistant to change.

If show ring folks could not sell their current crop of dogs because an AKC standard had been changed in order to improve canine health, that would be a serious economic hit.

There is another reason breed clubs are resistant to breed standard changes, and an increased focus on canine health issues; it is a negation of their own life and their own expertise. 

What does it say about the breed club, and its breeders, that the dog they claim to love so much is now in such dismal shape?

Dogs are not dying young and in pain because they are committing suicide.

Entire breeds have not been wrecked by accidental vehicle impacts.

No, the story here is quite a bit sadder than that. It is a story about a lot of people with misplaced priorities intentionally breeding dogs, and the horrific results they have achieved despite decades and decades of putative expertise "in the breed."

For these folks to admit that the results achieved have been a collective disaster, has a huge emotional cost attached to it.

They are in the same position as the person who has given this or her entire life to a company only to be fired in humiliation, or the wife who has been married for 25 years who comes home to find her husband in bed with another man. Was the whole thing a joke? A charade? Did this investment of my life mean nothing?

Little wonder that a lot of people are willing to do almost anything not to have to face those questions!

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