Heart Like a Dog

The Good, the Bad, and the Oh My God of living with dogs!

Poo Sticks…Day One Hundred and Forty

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My grandson has a book named “Pooh Sticks,”  (or something along those lines) in the story Winnie the Pooh and his friends play a game with sticks by dropping them into the brook to see which stick gets to the finish line first.

Since this blog is

1) About my dogs and

2) Poo is spelled differently than Pooh, you would be correct in assuming this blog is not about my dog(s) dropping sticks in the brook.

WARNING: THIS BLOG IS NOT FOR THE FAINT OF HEART OR FOR THOSE OF YOU WITH A QUEASY STOMACH. 

I have a dog that eats poop.  

Notice the words are “whispered”.   That is because I am embarrassed, mortified and disgusted; similar to the time I had to go to the computer store and say that my computer had a virus.  (Like I actually let my computer sneak off and do something nasty.)  

The fact of the matter is that lots of dogs eat poop, whether it be their own or (GAG) some other dogs.  Yes, I know this for a fact because I have been researching solutions for this problem which is why I am sitting here with a queasy stomach writing this blog.  There is actually a name for this disgusting habit; Dog Coprophagia (go ahead, Google it, I can wait.)

Now I won’t say which dog is partaking in this really disgusting habit (Delilah) but I will tell you this is becoming a problem for me and how I interact with my dog.

1) I don’t want her to “kiss” me.

2) She licks everything, from the floor to the counter, so I now must become a cleaning fanatic (I don’t like this.)

3) Her breath smells and when she burps or farts; (just use your imagination on this one.)

From what I’ve read, opinions are mixed about why dogs do this and what can be done to prevent it.  I read that feeding them pineapple will stop the habit.  So every morning the dogs get a spoonful of pineapple mixed in with yogurt in their breakfast.  So far that hasn’t stopped her.

Delicious pineapple and yogurt to go with the green bean filler.

 

I did find a natural product, Solid Gold S.E.P. , the S.E.P. stands for “Stop Eating Poop,” naturally I ordered 2 containers, (God, I’m desperate) but besides that the only solutions I found were:

1) Teach your dog to defecate on command (seriously, WTF? I can’t get my dog to come when I call her and you want me to teach her to poop on command?)

2) Clean up after your pet immediately so there is no opportunity for munching (really, I don’t want to clean the counter continuously, why would I want to follow the frigging dog around the yard?)

3) Always take the dog out on the leash (I have a fenced in yard specifically so I don’t have to do this) and yank the leash when she makes a move for the poop.

4) Put hot sauce or something equally distasteful on the poop piles so she won’t eat them (really if I’m out in the yard looking for poop piles, I might just as well pick them up.)

I guess my only option is to go out in the yard to see what I can pick up, and I will sit here holding my breath; waiting for my Solid Gold S.E.P. to arrive.

God help me.

Who would think someone with this sweet face would have such a disgusting habit?

The Truth About Garlic…Day One Hundred and Thirty Nine

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People are always a bit surprised when I tell them I do not use a topical flea and tick prevention medicine.   As I have stated before, I personally feel putting something on my beloved pet that is poisonous enough to kill a biting insect is detrimental to my pet.  Instead I use a natural insect spray and feed the dogs…garlic.

What’s that you say?  You heard that garlic is bad for dogs.

Yeah, I heard that too. 

I decided it was time to research the topic and find out once and for all.  Now when someone asks me about garlic and dogs, I can give them the proper answer.  So here it is.

Yes garlic is bad for your dog;  if he/she eats about 50 cloves of it.  According to sojos (natural food and treats for pets) garlic has many medicinal uses and has been used for thousands of years.  

Springtime Inc. has a wonderful webpage that references studies completed on the healthy benefits of garlic, studies such as:

Insecticidal and Repellent Effects

Low Cancer Rates Associated With Regular Garlic Consumption

Immune Stimulant Effects of Garlic

Antioxidant Effects

Antidote for Heavy Metal Poisoning and Other Toxins

I’m sure if we really looked; we could find many more studies and articles touting the healthy effects of garlic.  The key as with anything, is moderation my friend.  Everything in moderation.

I will tell you of the one serious side effect I found from using the garlic; the dogs get gas, and it really smells.

While garlic will help keep the fleas and ticks off your pets; it will NOT keep your dog from running like a lunatic into muddy water.

What? It's just a little mud!

Food Fight…Day One Hundred And Thirty Eight

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We’ve had a couple of incidents in our house that revolved around food; trouble is I wasn’t certain until this weekend.

I wasn’t even really sure what happened the first time or who was involved.  I did know that I had two dogs waiting for breakfast in the kitchen and one cat crying in the doorway.  I had my back to them and I heard a growl and a snap and when I turned around Sampson was on the floor, Delilah was in one corner and Bob the cat was in the doorway.  I wasn’t sure if one of the dogs went after the cat or if one of the dogs went after the other one.

The second incident happened Friday between Delilah and Bob.  I was making pizza in the kitchen and Bob was crying in the doorway for food.  I opened the pantry door and Bob thought he might check it; trouble is that is Delilah’s job (at least according to Delilah.)  She told him verbally and with her body language that the pantry was off limits.  Naturally I told her to back it down.

The third and defining incident (at least for me) happened this morning.  We feed our dogs the raw diet, which consists of ground meat at night and turkey necks in the mornings.  Because we buy in bulk, every three weeks or so I have thirty pounds of turkey necks defrosting in my bathtub; today was one of those days.  Of course the door to the bathroom has to be shut tight, otherwise Delilah would be in there eating frozen turkey necks; all thirty pounds.

I went in this morning to package up the defrosted necks and naturally Delilah came with me, but this time so did Bob.  I saw her turn and let him know once again that he was treading on hallowed ground.  That was when the light bulb went off and I realized the dogs are becoming a bit possessive with Bob about their food.  At that moment, Delilah and Bob were banished from the bathroom while I did what I needed to do. 

Now I know what is going on and as the saying goes, “Knowing is half the battle.”

I think I will try feeding Bob first in the morning so he is out of Sampson and Delilah’s space, and if necessary I will implement a “No dogs in the kitchen rule.”  We can’t have the dogs going after the cat.

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