If you want to learn what NOT to do when adopting a rescue dog then tune into Animal Planet and catch their new show “”Who Gets the Dog". This is the same show that I signed an online petition and vehemently opposed before it first aired quite some time ago. (Dog people are good like that). I must have been sent that petition from at least fifteen concerned people from ten different states! The premise of this new reality show centers on a dog being selected from a shelter by a "Fairy Dogmother" (the host). Three different families are invited to 'compete' for the dog by performing various assigned tasks with time limits. The dog is left overnight with each family and their activities are videotaped.

If you're planning on adopting a new dog, or have done so recently, then please visit the link below to the New England Border Collie Rescue website for some pertinent advice on bringing home a new dog. The article is geared towards bringing home a rescue Border Collie, but the adoption truths and advice given are universal. The WORST thing you can do is to add more stress to your new dog’s life. Teaching the dog new tricks, like how to crawl and jump over obstacles, are things better suited for later on in your relationship. For the moment, it's far more important to establish a routine and to take it slow!

Give your new dog time to adjust to his new home gradually! For some dogs, who have been in shelters a long time or who may not be accustomed to family life, you may need to limit all handling for as much as two weeks to give your dog time to decompress. The day you bring the dog home is not the day to teach it to crawl, jump hurdles, teach tricks or commands, brush their teeth, clip their nails, or have a Pug party. I only watched two shows and these are some of the incidents that left me shaking my head.

The first days in a new home can be very stressful time for dogs and they are a critical bonding time for new owners. Bouncing the dog from a shelter to overnight stays in three new homes in as many days is overwhelming for even the sanest of dogs. In one show they had a poor Beagle surrounded by kids. His eyes were red and bulging and the smallest child was dangerously close to his face. As a trainer and Mom to three kids, I can assure that would never happen in my house with a new dog! All dogs can bite. Even the kindest and sweetest creature can be pushed beyond their tolerance limit, particularly by young children. Even if this was the world's sweetest beagle, what kind of lesson does this send to the viewing public? To make matters worse, there is a Vet and a Behaviorist on the judging panel and their apparent endorsement of these activities lends an air of credence to the show.

I hope this reality show finds its way to the animal graveyard soon!

A well meaning friend recently emailed to tell me of about a recent Dr Phil show, in which the good doctor was dispensing dog training advice. Apparently he now considers himself a qualified dog trainer and in his professional opinion the only place that the family’s out- of- control, biting Lab could be helped was by sending it to a farm.

If one more person calls me wanting to give up their dog “to the farm” my head will explode.
There is no farm and there is no such quick fix for owners. Owners need to resolve their own dog training and aggression problems. There is no farm on earth where an aggressive dog will not come into contact with human beings at some point. Don’t farmers have families, mail, neighbors, visitors, friends, kids and an occasional delivery just like the rest of us? Just how many farmers are completely self sufficient, and why would they want our problem dogs on their farms? Can someone tell me how this problem is solved by sending a dog to a farm?

People are always asking me about indestructible dog toys and the Boomer Ball certainly fits the bill. Used in zoos as boredom busters, they come in sizes from terrier to elephant!

If the man who brings his young Rotti to the dog park on Valley Street in Portland is reading this-please do us all a favor and go buy one! This guy apparently brought a heavy cement ball for his dog to push around in a public place and I had the misfortunate of thinking it was rubber, kicked it and nearly broke my toe. Being the big idiot that I am, I apologized for being so dumb as to kick cement, but after talking to other people at the park, I have come to find out that I am not alone in the toe aching department. The dog's ball looks surprising like rubber.
I still feel like an idiot, but only for not speaking my mind to that dog's owner. Obviously this owner already knows the dangers, but continues to use the heavy ball as a form of his personal entertainment. Ouchie!