Goldie and new home

I was very busy in the last few months.  It's because I am selling my apartment.   When I was ready to sell, I invited my real estate agent to come to my unit to gave me some advice.  First thing she said to me "No dog is allowed to stay while selling your place".   I know where she is coming from but it's hard to believe that potential buyers are lethally allergic to pets.  She also said Men usually don't want to see pets during home shopping.  Really???

I did not argue with her. Goldie can move to Ratty's unit.  Not a problem at all.  At first Ratty was a bit upset because Goldie would change his lifestyle.  But I offered to give him a hand.  So I can walk over to his place and walk the dog based on our schedule.  It works out quite well because Spring is here.

In May, I finally received a conditional offer for my current place and I also submitted a conditional offer for future place.  It's amazing how things can be done in parallel at difference pace.

What about the future of Goldie?  It reminds uncertain.  I try my best to persuade Ratty to re-home Goldie to someone's house.  But it's not an easy decision for him to make.  So, right now, Goldie stays with Ratty and we take on step at a time.  

I don't go out and campaign people should crate their dogs at home.  I found it's sad.  Imagine our parents left us home whole day by ourselves.  It's so cruel.  But under certain circumstances like me, Goldie stays in the crate whole day for now. 

Goldie....  If I can turn back the time, I wouldn't adopt you.  I should let the LV bag lady take you home.  They seem to be living in a bigger place.   :)   

Daisy the cat

Daisy met Goldie before.  They didn't met face to face.  When I took Goldie into Ratty's condo, cats went hiding or taking high ground.    So Daisy knew Goldie. 

Funny how dogs reacts to smell.   They hold their head high and then they sniff the ground.   They are all the same.  Cats?  I don't know much about them.     However cats are much sensitive than dogs.  A lot of online videos shows dogs and cats show down.  A lot of time cats won.

Back to Daisy,  she was a very sweet cat.  She is the sweetest among Ratty's cats.  When she sensed Goldie marching in the condo.  She didn't freak out.  She jumped up places where Goldie cant reach nor see. And she then sat quietly and observed.  I only remembered she peeked when Goldie was sniffing around like snoring drugs on the floor.   I wonder Daisy would think Goldie was a dummy. 

Today Daisy left us.  That's why I want to remember by writing a blog about her.   She was drifting away.  We took her to the vet and she only struggled once.  When we walked pass the clinic restricted area, she meowed and clawed the edge of the door.  She was so weak and then she was slowly going downhill.  The scene reminded me Petty last visit.   It was quite sad to see animal passing.   The vet was trying to find the vein for euthanasia.   It was very difficult. Even though he found it but no blood was dripping out.  Her blood pressure was very low   Her breathing was quite shallow..    After almost 30 mins, she was put down. But that 30 mins she didn't struggle a bit.  

If Goldie ever met face to face before, I wonder they would be friends.   Daisy is gone now. No more formal introduction can be done. RIP Daisy.  I told your doggy friend that you are gone.  After the talk, goldie gave me a big kiss.  Not sure if she understands, its the kiss Daisy you won't like.

Dog training class is done. Now what?!

Awww! They are sniffing at each others. So here is what happened next..

They chased each other, they jumped up and down, they wrestled and barked. It's very unsettling to watch Goldie playing with new dogs now. We are avoiding the park when there are more than a handful of unknown dogs. That's the advice from the dog trainer

Even though I know the other dog owners, I will leave the park as soon as another playful dog is ready to come. Apparently, Goldie doesn't like the idea of other dogs ganged up on her. At the same time, she doesn't like the idea of sharing playmates.

If I know other dogs are only playing fetch with the others, Goldie is totally fine with their existence. As soon as new dog coming in at the gate, she will run towards them. Imagine I dont know you and I run to you for attention. Would you be scared? Most of the time, I will leave right after this 'RUN TO YOU' behavior. From time to time, Goldie gets hackle. That's a sign of getting too excited. I will stop her before any misunderstanding situation happened.

In general, dog owners have their own schedule. Goldie schedule is based on mine most of the time. So I know other dog owners and their dogs are fine with her. Otherwise, I don't even bother to get close to the park

The trainer told us an interesting theory. What is a 'PACK'? A pack of dogs mean they sleep, eat and play with each other all days. If you go to the park and not knowing other dogs, you are not socializing your dogs with others. You are causing stress of your dogs. It depends on your dog behavior. If your dog is a very submissive one, they might have their tails close and heads down, they won't enjoy being left alone with other dogs. If your dog is a very outgoing one like Golide, just be careful. That's because other dogs might not like to play with yours. Any altercation happened..!!! Whose fault is that?

Being at the right place at the right time. Everyone would enjoy their space and their company. Happy new year, Goldie

Look down look down 24601. Happy Halloween

Do dogs need clothes?  My answer is no.  They are hairy and they take care of themselves.  Or I would said it depends.  Some dogs are not as hairy as the others.    Does Goldie need to wear anything.  Hell no except Halloween.   Haha 

Guilty. That's her costume.  Actually Ratty bought her a few pieces.   One is a bunny with a carrot.  The other one is Winnie the Pooh.  No matter how cute they are.  Hell no. I ain't going to walk her in cartoon costume.  

Prone collar or not

A lot of people will probably stop reading this when I said I tried the prone collar on Goldie. But a lot of people don't understand prone collar is only used for training. It's should not be used forever.  It's a tool for a period of time (during training).  You don't expect your dog to wear it inside the house or in bed.

When small dog owners let their dog bark at bigger ones, all the pedestrians might think that's so CUTE.  When Goldie does the same to the smaller dogs, people would want me to control and calm her down.  To the extreme, a lady swore at me in the off leash park.  She was upset when Goldie chest bumped her small dog when her dog barked at Goldie.

What's wrong in the picture?  Am I not walking her enough, letting her socializing with other dogs nor teaching her like a kid?  Dogs need stimulation.  Walking in the downtown cores is not a fun experience.   There are a lot of people, a lot of cars, a lot of dogs and a lot of noise.   And dogs are constantly fighting their own space with others on the side walk.   Dogs are animal not wearing shoes nor clothes. Sidewalk becomes sizzling hot in the summer and irritating in the winter due to the salt.   Can you imagine you have to be on leash and walk bare feet.  Then you need to deal with the surrounding at the same time.  STRESSFUL.

Before I used the prone collar, I asked myself questions.  Did I try other methods?  Of course, I did.  I talked to her while we were walking.  I made sure she make eye contact and I had good treats in my pockets.  I took her out early in the morning and it's a good time for her to focus on me because the streets are a lot   more quiet than rush hours.    She was doing great but I just can't stop her from charging at other dogs while she was on leash.   I can't expect other dog owners walking back and fro to teach Goldie not to charge.  I also tried to bring toys and clicker with me.  And she was getting better and better but again, I can't stop her from charging at other dogs.

Why would she do that?  Frustration?  Aggression?   Goldie doesn't charge at dogs she knows. She charges at dogs she doesn't know and those dogs are staring most of the time.   If another dog is walking calmly and Goldie will not charge at all, they will just meet and leave.

Let's assume Goldie has minor level of aggression.  She doesn't take No from other dogs for sure.  She becomes territorial in the park.  She becomes a bouncer but she doesn't stop dogs from coming in.  Goldie only wants the dogs calm and be nice.  That makes me hesitate to bring her to the park when a lot of dogs are there. (I meant 20+ dogs in a small fence area)

So how can I change her behavior?  Training her with the prone collar is an OPTION not a writing on the wall.  I like the fact that she is a quick learner, she knows she shouldn't pull the leash right away.  She walks beside me at my pace.  I praise her a lot and make sure she knows it's good.

At this point, I am still working on charging.   At least now Goldie is not trying to run against the motocyclists while she is on leash.   How long does it take to change this behavior?   4 hours in total

Like I said , this is just training, prone collar shouldn't use for long term.

Oh, what is the assessment results of Goldie last Saturday?  Prone collar is one of the tools we will use for now

Is Goldie becoming an aggressive dog? Ratney and I might be responsible for this changing behavior

We only know Goldie for a few months since May 2013.  We don't know much about her background.  We are second guessing her age, her birthplace and her breed.  And that's all.

We don't know what she has been through for the first 18 months.  Maybe she was born inside a loving home and got lost in the woods. Maybe she was neglected.  Maybe her previous owner was sick and couldn't take care of her anymore and she ended up in the pound.

Adopting a pound dog is not the same as buying a discounted gift basket from the store.  You can't choose something you want to keep from the basket and discard the rest.  Dogs are not toys.  They have needs and feelings. And you are the providers. Like I said before, they can't choose you but you choose them.

Due to a lot of unknown, we are having a tough time to understand why she becomes "bossy".  She played well in the park before but now she seems to be the bouncers in the park. She tries to choose who can come in and play and who should not.   That's a territorial behavior.

At the very beginning, she was care less who coming in and out.  As time goes by, she hangs out by the entrance.  She seems to be a greeter.  But not every dog wants to meet other right away by  the gate.  There were a few occasions that some dogs were very nervous and started to bark before coming in.   OK. That's how it started.  Goldie knows she can use her voice too and tell others she is here inside.  Well some dogs think their dogs are friendly and good greeters.  Are you serious?  Do I want to see strangers standing by the playgrounds' entrance and starting to padding my shoulders and all that.  I don't and Dogs don't.   Goldie is not allowed to be at the entrance at all.  I now start to leash her out of the area and give other dogs space.  I don't tell other owners what to do but at least Goldie is not allowed

Then I found her whining while she is waiting to play.  Barks, trying to charge, pull the leash.  Sorry Goldie, other dogs are still checking newbie out and you have to wait.   I tried to draw her attention with treats and waved my hands in front of her.  I am sure it takes a long time to adjust but at least I need to be in control

If I think Goldie will play nice after a proper greetings, that's wrong.   She plays rough.  It really depends on other dogs behavior.  Most of the time, they are less than 3 years old.  They are just chasing and wrestling.  However many times dogs gang up on each others. Goldie was freaked out.  And she became defensive.  90% of the time, I stopped her. But 10% of the time, she was ran far away, it took me a while to calm her down.    So what's next after all the barking and chasing?   I choose to stay away from the commotion and put her on leash for 10 mins.   If she is not calming down, I will leave.  I am sure this will become a long process.  At least, I assure other owners that I am in control and I am not walking away from the situation

The other thing I am going to change is to walk her first then go to the park.  In the past, I walk to the park with her.  Now, I need to take her out for a longer walk first.  Then went home, wait till the outside is dark, then I will go to the park.  Usually bigger dogs owners go to the park later, less small dogs at that time.

Many people would say, "why don't you take her to training school".  Good question, I will probably write about this after 19 Oct.   We will take Goldie to the chain pet store for an assessment.  It will be interesting

So when your dog becomes aggressive, who are at fault? Whose behavior should be changed first?  Don't expect your dogs will behave perfectly when you can't change your behavior.   We are the pack leaders.

Finding a boarding place or Kennel outside Toronto ,,, Greet and Meet

Google...  Toronto dog boarding ... No
Google.... Markham dog boarding .... No
Google.... Oakville boarding....  No.
Google again... Toronto dog boarding and scroll down

That's interesting.  

We took Goldie up in Uxbridge (1 hour drive from Toronto downtown core)  We found a place where Goldie can run around in the farm area.  It's all fenced.  She can meet other big dogs and play whole day. But the business owner has to meet her first. It's so called Greet and Meet session.  I talked about it later.

What's Greet and Meet? For professionally run businesses, they would like to make sure your dog is healthy with up to date shot, not showing aggressive behavior to others.

We know Goldie is a big young girl. She is strong, she is young and she has a lot of energy.   And we only have her for a few months.  We are still not clear about her behavior under different circumstances.   Off leash park is totally different than the doggie camp.  That's because no every single dogs has their owners with them.

The good thing about this boarding place, they let their dogs out from the house one at a time.  So Goldie will not be overwhelmed with all the new dogs at the same time.    It was an interesting experience.  I never really met a Malamute dog before.  And they had one there.  It's very good looking big dog.  Damn! I forgot to take pictures.

We spent about 40 mins at the doggie camp/boarding place.  It's absolutely well managed.  They told us they would pair up dogs to sleep inside the same room which is stable-like. And if dogs love to crates, they are available too. It's heated floor (they claimed), I am not quite sure but CAD50/night on the weekend, the concrete floor better be heated in the winter.

At the end, we let Goldie stay there for one night.  Ouch!  that's what I sounded like when we paid the fee.  And she had a very good time.  Looking forward to bringing her there for a 2-week doggie vacation