Extra sensory perception - Page 3

Developing some "Jedi" scout K9's?

Prager, that's a sound principle: spend time with your dog, and I couldn't agree more.  I'm not fond of seeing "training only" relationships anymore than I like breeders who produce with the "strangers" in their back yards.

Well, now, wait a minute!

"In a perfect world", none of us would have to go to jobs or other responsibilities, and we would all have housekeepers who wouldn't quit when we worked them too hard (assuming that we have housekeepers, at all.. I never have).

Not all dogs are Rin-Tin-Tin. Some are a disaster in the house. When one bitch chewed my favorite nightshirt and a nice Pendleton wool blanket in the few minutes I was in the shower, that was it, for her. She was not a house dog, after that. If she was psychic, you could fool me.. She sure didn't see the can of Acme ass-whoop she had coming when I found my stuff chewed up.

Don't like it? Too bad! Come clean my house for me and buy me a new blanket!

This is not to say that I don't enjoy having a dog in the house, now and then, but it's supervised time. I also have the responsibility of the care of an invalid who is bedridden, and she's heard those stories about dogs chewing old ladies' arms off, missing lips and nose, etc. Even if nothing would ever happen, it would not be right to make her that nervous, would it? And, I have to say.. I really would hate to have my dogs in the news in such a manner.

I love dogs.. But, I love them AS dogs, warts and all. I don't need to idolize them. I don't need to set them up for expectations exceeding the realities. Yes, it is a "shame" that we cannot all live perfect lives.. dogs included. But, I think that a lot of us are living with lives and realities which are disappointing, right now. That's life. If we are going to say that only perfect owners should have dogs, then there will not be many dogs around, anymore... 'Cuz I know you can't do a lot to change people. Like most dogs, they are what they are, and you make the best of it... or, you get them out of your life.

I do think that a lot of people have become too fussy.. hand-wringers and want to live lifestyles that very few people can truly afford.. or, play the part. If living with my dogs in the house was that important to me, then that's what I'd do. And, my house would be a bigger mess than it so often is.. But, I guess I'd be happy.. Whatever floats your boat!

I do like to have one personal dog.. And, I admit that it is "not fair". It wasn't fair when my daughter died at age 16, either.. which has nothing to do with it, of course.. But, I'm trying to say something here.. Life is NOT "fair". You just do the best you can and learn to accept the things you cannot change. We've completely lost the life we had 100 years ago, when we were in close contact with the land, the seasons, nature and other creatures. All of these things used to be a part of daily life. The dogs we have are one of the few things remaining to keep us grounded. But, if people come over to visit and see our drapes torn down, foam cushions from the couch shredded and strewn about, and we smell like dogs whenever we go out, they soon think we are crazy.. OK, I guess we are. But, let's try to put limits on the insanity. One or two dogs in the house, OK. More than that? Maybe on supervised visits, only.

So, you all can have a pack of dogs running through the house if you want, or you just have one or two dogs and that is certainly the preferred thing, isn't it? I was always happiest with one or two dogs. But, if you are in the dog business, you obviously cannot make a business on one or two dogs, or even half a dozen of them. I'm not in the dog business. But, I know that those who are do not have the dogs all hanging out in the house. I have psychic abilities and have used remote viewing to verify this. Like most of us who have more than two dogs, their dogs live in kennels and come out for training, etc.

I'm actually a big believer in kenneling for the safety and health of the dogs. Go to a veterinarian's office and hang out for awhile. You'll see dogs coming in on a regular basis that got into household chemicals and poisons, chewed and ingested verious kinds of cloth and plastic materials and ended up with bowel impactions, escaped out a front door or side gate and got hit by a car, and so on.. None of these things happen to kenneled dogs, unless the person is doubly negligent. Kids don't get hurt, other animals and livestock don't get hurt, and dogs don't tend to get as many bad laws written about their ownership.

How about accidental breedings, and dog fights? Do kennels begin to look a bit better, now?

It's fun and interesting to speculate about the psychic abilities of dogs, which they may have.. But, they don't have a lot of common sense and don't understand how to read the human rule books.. They don't know about lawyers and lawsuits and a hundred other kinds of trouble they can get into in five minutes or less, just being a dog.

Sorry guys.. I'm a pragmatist about stuff like this. Call me a wet blanket if you like. If I was rich or married to a sugar daddy, I'd have my own entourage of dogs and assistants with me, most of the time. This just isn't the world I live in.

I'm going to take a moment here to tell you about a type of kennel which I believe is the best ever created. Unfortuneately, some people don't understand them and have called them, "rabbit cages" and so on. They are widely used by hunting and gun dog trainers and breeders, but have never become a part of our culture. Now that these two communities are merging a bit in the area of sniffer / detector dogs, that may change.

I call these kennels, "platform kennels" or "plats" for short. If you wanted to be upscale about it, you could call them "penthouse kennels" and the name would not be inappropriate, because they are are lofty and very luxurious for the dogs. They were first described in print (to my knowledge) by Dr. Leon Whitney, DVM, who was a Dog World Award winner for his achievements and contributions in dog literature.

You can go to Amazon.com or eBay to find a used copy of "Breeding Dogs" by Dr. Whitney.. I think this is the title. It's long out of print. Or, you can find T.E. Scott, Inc in Indiana and take a look at their version. I modified their design for my own purposes and used stainless steel flooring to replace their galvanized kit.. which lasts only a year or two before rusting. The stainless floors had to be resourced and engineered, then made from scratch. But the metal will last through the generations... assuming that there is a need. The floors are not "wire". Wire is drawn through dies and is much thinner than what I used to use, back when I was raising dogs. The stuff T.E. Scott sells (and what I bought) is called "bar". I used 1/4" diameter round bar, laid into routered spaces in joists, capped with 1 and 1/2" wide flat bar. All stainless product.

If you don't like that, you can use a product from Canada which is carried by Farmtek. It looks like a black waffle and works basically the same way.. most wastes pass through. Frankly, they involve more maintenance and cleaning, not as hygienic. But, at least no one can say that you are keeping your dogs on "wire" floors.. which are legal by USDA standards, by the way.. but may not be legal by state regulations and just may not pass the "sniff" test by overzealous, anti-breeding animal control officers (who may not know their ass from a hole in the ground, and are hardly masters of animal husbandry).

The only thing I used from T.E. Scott, in the end, was the wire panels.. which are outstanding.. and the hardware to put them together. Their floors suck. Roofing you can get locally at a lot of building centers.. galvanized corrugated sheet metal, cut to size. All the lumber was bought locally. I changed the design to a modular one with interchangeable components.

The benefits are too many too list. Healthier, bigger pups. Almost escape proof kennels, safe for anyone to come and clean after the dogs. The dogs stay wonderfully clean and healthy. Almost no grooming needed. Always smell wonderful and  you can snuggle them and bury your face in their fur.. no rank "toilet" smell, common to concrete kennels. I actually think that these kennels can significantly reduce the incidence of hip dysplasia and are roomy, comfortable, well ventilated. They also make wonderful use of space and save on labor.. so, you have more time to train, or anything else you want to do!

The Europeans have actually been using their own versions of modular kennels for a long time, now. .Not like these, but they use "vereinsboxen" extensively. These are basically just large compartments sort of like stacked airline crates, but better designed and all in one unit, different sizes. A lot of dog sport people in Germany do not even keep their dogs at home, and may live in an apartment or flat where they cannot have a dog. The dogs total care ma

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The Europeans have actually been using their own versions of modular kennels for a long time, now. .Not like these, but they use "vereinsboxen" extensively. These are basically just large compartments sort of like stacked airline crates, but better designed and all in one unit, different sizes. A lot of dog sport people in Germany do not even keep their dogs at home, and may live in an apartment or flat where they cannot have a dog. The dogs total care may be all done at the club grounds, and that's OK. It certainly seems to work well for them!

We are fairly ignorant about dogs in the USA, still. We get into lots of silly little arguments about who is the best dog-mommy and how dogs should be treated, when it is really all coming down to best practices in animal husbandry, and fulfilling the mental / social / emotional needs of these animals as well. It happens that when we are fulfilling THEIR emotional needs, we are also fulfilling ours, which is why we have them, for the most part. These needs can all be balanced. Speaking of mental / social / emotional needs, why do we prepare separate rooms, painted in pastel colors and with colorful mobiles for babies, down the hall from us... when all they want most is to be close to us, to feel our warmth and heartbeat? We give LESS sensible care and concern to our own infants than we do our dogs, in some cases! Do you think that a newborn baby gives a shit about a mobile above his bed? That baby wants ONE thing, and that's to know that you are within arms reach. I used to have a little laundry basket by the bed and when I went to sleep, my hand was always in that basket. We took her up into the bed with us when we were awake and just kicking back. NO WAY would I put her in a room by herself, down the hall! What the hell is THAT about?

How about some common sense, here? I had a work friend who thought it was "cruel" to keep a dog in a large fenced yard, and actually called animal control to report someone, once. The dog was fat and healthy, and snoozing in the warm sun. I saw him, myself! Meanwhile, she and her significant other left their little Brittany Spaniel bitch to roam the neighborhood when they were off to work. That bitch had been in surgery no less than three times, to pin her pelvis back together! I kid you not! She never for a moment thought this was not cruel! I don't understand this kind of thinking.. VERY nice person, by the way, but crazy when it came to taking care of dogs. The problem is, now, that people with these kinds of views are directing the legislation which affects those of us who really do have a more sensible approach.

I think I've gotten onto one of my rants.. I'd better stop before I get too deep into it.

In short, yes.. I want to make dogs a big part of my life. That doesn't mean letting them completely take it over. If they can have their space and the humans can have theirs, everyone can get along much better.. And, when it is time to come together for fun and training, or even short visits or slumber parties in the house, then it's just a lot more novel and fun. If the dog is not underfoot when I'm in a bad mood (it happens.. stress), then it doesn't get yelled at. I think everyone needs to have their own space and together time has to be managed to make the most of the experience. Just my opinion...

Dang!!  Little carried away with that, I think.

I'm not saying you shouldn't kennel or crate your dogs, but If you don't bring your german shepherds within your home because "they'll wreck the place", that's the wrong answer.  Read the standard again, unless you're talking about malinois.  Obviously, being left unsupervised within the home has nothing to do with spending time with your dog anyway.

Even with multiple dogs, you can rotate them every other day or more if necessary.  Or, not at all, because we're talking about spending time with the dog.  If that's too much, then perhaps you have too many dogs.  I have no clue what your situation might be, but every case can be unique for various reasons, and at different times.

I often kept 5 to 7 in the home and without any crates, with another 2 or 3 in outside kennels.  In my current situation, I have 2 full time house dogs and 4 full time kennel dogs with no rotation at all, but I spend individual time with each of them.

Me? I think we are often too linear with our thinking when we are near dogs. We are civilized and softened to the end that we no longer need special senses we have once had, but our dogs still have these senses. I also think that the bond between a dog and master can be much stronger than the bond that could ever exist between two (2) humans.

I have also noticed these behaviours with dogs I owned for a long time. For example, I can think about going outside for a cigarette, and my oldest bitch will suddenly jump from the couch to go with me. I can think the command "sit" and at least two of them will do it. It has happened too many times to be a coincidence.

My wife has an unusual work schedule, and I usually know when she is coming home. On many occassions they will all get up and look through all the windows maybe five (5) minutes before she arrives. So yes, I do think that dogs can read our thoughts if they are strong and direct, and especially if we have a strong bond.

Best Regards,
Bob-O

You guys are right in a lot of ways. It's wonderful when you have one dog which is absolutely bonded with you. I have a little guy like that here in my small kennel right now. He would love nothing more than to be ever-so-close to someone of his own. I try my best to be sensitive and kind to him. He's a very good dog, and I don't want to spoil his natural curiousity and willingness to learn and please. It's hard, sometimes. When I go in to clean his kennel, he's all like, "What'cha doing"? and "Is there something I can do?" LOL.. But, he's just getting in the way. He is really such a kewl dog! Very smart, too!

I did have him in the house a lot as a little guy, but I don't have time to watch everything a young dog does in the house. They're just like two year olds.. They have to check everything out, and they're going to mess up a lot. Rather than lose my patience and snap at them (thinking only of my own momentary inconvenience), I would definitely rather keep them in a crate.. But my house is only 600 square feet.. Where do I put dog crates? Actually, I'm thinking strongly to repurpose one of the two bedrooms for the dogs, and then just sleep on the couch in the front room. This would be a small sacrifice, really. The reason I'm thinking to do it is to keep the noise level down. We've had a lot of problems with stray cats roaming at night, also sirens and howling. Quiet dogs make happy neighbors and these people mostly go to jobs and need their sleep.

But otherwise, if a dog is in a crate, it's not getting much quality time, anyway. It might as well be in the kennel, outside.

One thing I really cannot stand to see.. But I think we all know people like this.. Is the person who has the dog in the house but nags and yells at it constantly. These people have real anger management issues and tend to do it with their children, too. Sometimes, it takes a LOT of effort not to do this. People are under a lot of stress, right now.

I started out as a young girl, training and riding horses, and I was lucky that I hit the books and learned from people who knew, before I ever got my hands on my first horse. I learned that you must never train in anger.. You may be angry, but you can NOT let it get away with you, or you will make very regrettable mistakes which may not be possible to undo. A lot of people don't understand this and don't want to. They have a hard time dealing with ONE dog in a way that's fair to the dog, much less seven at one time. Personally, I can't see doing that. I never tried.. Maybe someday I will. I just see it as something which would serve no real purpose in the raising and training of working dogs. Lots of opportunity for social conflict and strife, I would think. I think I'll pass on that idea, LOL..

I suspect that the real answer to this question is not one, but many.. In other words, our dogs need to learn to live IN the house, AND outside. They need to learn to interact with us as individuals, AND as a group / pack. There is no one right way to raise a dog, and the more versatile you can be in your approach, the better adapted the dog will be. This takes a lot of effort, but worthwhile. Our dogs are not "things", to be put on a shelf when we don't have time for them. We must make the time and take the effort, or there is no reason to have them.. and, it is not fair to them, either. Even bad dogs can be made better, if someone is willing to take the time and effort.