Lucy shopping at Phydeaux

Lucy loves going to our local pet boutique, Phydeaux. There, she likes to examine, aka sniff, the latest toys, treats and large bags of dog food.

Exhibit A:



We stocked up on those beef bones she likes to chew on. I've heard that they are healthier than the traditional raw hides and she likes them a lot more too. Yes, they are more expensive, but I give them to her only occasionally as a special treat. It's always an adventure going there!

Great dog book: The Other End of the Leash

There are also a lot of great reads about dogs. A few of the books I read the past 2 years include:"Dogs Make Great Pets" by Margaret H. Bonham, "How to Speak Dog" by Stanley Coren and "The Other End of the Leash" by Particia B. Mcconnell, PH.D.

My most recent read, "The Other End of the Leash", was very touching and written by an animal behaviorist, Dr Mcconnell, who also runs a sheep farm and uses dog to help her heard her sheep.

She had a chapter dedicated to the topic of puppy mills and how important it is to vet out breeders if you feel the need to purchase a pure bred species. I was saddened to learn about puppy mills across the US. It made me want to ban the sale of puppies in those big box stores like PetSmart. I highly doubt that they are visiting the breeders and ensuring the conditions are not only loving but at the minimum sanitary.

I was also touched by her stories of companionship with her dogs and by the strength of personality she conveyed for each of her dog companions. I was especially touched at the end of the book about grieving for the loss of a loved pet. She really emphasized that the emotional bonds between humans and dogs are very strong and that our society could be gentler to humans who have lost their canine companion. When the author grieved over the death of one of her dogs, it wasn't even in consideration that she could take some time off of work to grieve and be alone. That section had me teary eyed.

Overall, it was a wonderful read -- personal, entertaining, informative and, of course, all about dogs. Honestly, it was my favorite read. What more could you want?

Lucy diagnosed with a urinary trac infection

Lucy was staying with my parents overnight for a visit and they noticed that she didn't sleep well and whined in the middle of the night.

The next morning, she didn't want to go outside and seemed to point behind the door, where she had peed. Once my mom saw it, Lucy ran under the kitchen table with her tail between her legs. She thought that maybe she just had an accident, but at lunch with some friends, a friend said that those were signs of a UTI.

Thankfully, she was able to rush Lucy to the vet. Her friend was correct. She needs antibiotics immediatly. I wonder what caused the infection. The vet, over the phone via my mom said that "it just happens." I googled and found this nice website that discusses causes:

http://www.uti-in-dogs.com/signs-of-uti-in-dogs.php

It seems that possibly drinking water with bacteria or food with some bad bacteria could lead to a UTI. Lucy likes to lick the floor and eat dust bunnies, so it's hard to know how to prevent her from getting bad bacteria. I guess we'll have to swiffer more and make sure we clean out her water bowl more often, daily at least and maybe even more.

Sister's dog Katie "singing" at Christmas

Christmas 2009 - a dog agility book as gift

Although I didn't spend Christmas with my dog Lucy, I thought alot about her and our fun plans for dog agility. In addition to the hand made agility set from Stuart, I got a dog agility training book from my sister for Christmas, which I proceeded to read at lightening speed. The title is "The Beginner's Guide to Dog Agility" by Laurie Leach. In that book, I learned of a few associations for dog agility like:

Northern American Dog Agility Council(www.nadac.com)

United States Dog Agility Association(www.usdaa.com)

Dogs on Course in North America (www.docna.com)

Based on a search on the website www.usdaa.com, I found a local dog agility training center. Their classes start up again in mid January for 8 weeks. Due to the very cold winter we are having, I think I'll wait til spring to get Lucy started in that class.

In addition to the long list of dog agility associations, I was surprised that in the author's bio, she listed membership in the "Dog Writers Association of America". I had to check out their website to find out more. I have to admit that I did chuckle to myself at first thought, but upon further reading, found it a very interesting association. There are many dog lovers and animal trainers and animal behavior specialists who love dogs and love to write about their experiences and share their knowledge.

I'll need to re-read the book in sections as we work with Lucy on her new agility set that Stuart built for her. She's fine with the jump, but jumps too early off of of the "teeter", doesn't quite go into the tunnel the first few tries and hasn't been trained yet on the weave poles. I've heard that weave pole training is the most difficult.

I really appreciated the gift of this new dog agility book and found it a very fun and inspiring read. I can't wait to get Lucy into training for dog agility in 2010!

Lucy's first adventure on her new doggie agility set

Stuart surprised me with a hand made doggie agility set for my birthday!!! It includes a see-saw, a jump, a round tunnel and the weave poles.

We introduced Lucy to the agility set for the first time this past Sunday. To my pleasant surprise, she literally jumped right into the whole set. The cheese treats didn't hurt either. Check it out:

Lucy jumps even higher!

Check out Lucy's increased jumping skills:



Lucy playing fetch with her signature high energy approach: