Champion of My HeartA dog blog, where everything is a work in progress, by Roxanne Hawn

Remember, my quest to get written prescriptions with plenty of refills so that getting Lilly her medications wasn’t such a hassle? Remember how it took two visits to get the prescriptions because of another emergency at the hospital? Well, imagine my frustration to find that the prescription was wrong — all wrong — when we finally needed refills.

Silly me for assuming it’d be right. Silly me for not looking more closely at it this whole time it sat in my drawer waiting to be needed. Silly, silly me.

I dropped it off at Walgreens, with plans to pick it up a couple days later while racing across town on errands. The staff at the pharmacy realized that the prescription called for .75 mg of xanax (alprazolam). The med isn’t available at that dose.

So, I think, Oh … Lilly has been on 1.0 mg. They say they’ll call the vet hospital and get it all straightened out. Fine.

Fine.

BUT, when I got back to pick it up, instead of getting 120 pills, which should last us 2 months, I get 12. Yes. 12.

I don’t realize the problem until I get home because I flew through the pharmacy drive-thru and ran home.

So, I call the pharmacist when I get home and ask (nicer than this), “What the @#$@#?”

We talk through it, and it turns out that Lilly had been taking .50 mg, not 1.0 mg. My mistake there, but the vet hospital did NOT correct it. And, they indeed had written down 12 pills, not 120.

Beyond OY!

So, when we took Ginko back for his post-op appointment, I asked our veterinarian to rewrite the prescription, and I specifically wrote out a note that said, we need 120 pills (with refills) at the dosage of .50 mg.

I took the new prescription back to the pharmacy and days later picked up the bottle … only to find that I indeed had 120 pills, but they were 1.0 mg, not .50 mg.

At this point, I figure, @#$@# it!!!!

I’ll just cut the pills in half, which means I just got 4 months of Lilly meds instead of 2. Right?

Well, maybe.

You see, and I know people who have learned this lesson the hard way, a half of a whole isn’t necessarily the .5 you need.

After a few days of missing this med because of the mix-up and a few days of 1/2 pills, Lilly’s behavior showed it:

• She was hiding.
• She was upset.
• She was flipping out over simple things.

I literally could NOT bring myself to go through another BIG hassle over the prescription. I honestly considered just NOT giving her the medicine anymore because it’s become such a @#$@ mess.

BUT, over time, Lilly seems to have adjusted to 1/2 pills sort of being about the right dose she needs. It isn’t perfect, but we can make it work.

Maybe this is a welcome boon to my budget since 120 1.0 mg pills is about the same cost as 120 .50 mg pills, but they last longer.

I’m trying to think that, at least, because getting these behavior medications Lilly needs has been nothing but a tour of customer service failings since day one.

Today, we officially launch our Be the Change campaign and service project over at Never Shock a Puppy. Each Wednesday, between Sept 1 and Oct 20, we’ll be blogging here and over there on the the topic of the week. For the big kickoff, let’s start with the big picture — the philosophy, the mindset — behind our Never Shock a Puppy efforts.

[The Never Shock a Puppy Mindset]

Simply put. It all begins with Lilly, and I cannot imagine using pain to interrupt or “punish” her behaviors … even the ones that drive me batty.

Roxanne & Lilly Hawn from Champion of My Heart, a dog blog, team up with a coalition of pet bloggers to raise awareness of humane alternatives to shock collars and other painful dog training tools and methods via the Never Shock a Puppy campaign.

Yes, I Know … Dogs are Not People!

I understand that, and I know things can get complicated when those of us who adore our dogs beyond all measure cross over and anthropomorphize our canine friends and our relationships with them.

HOWEVER, why is it that using a shock collar on a child is prosecuted as abuse but doing so on a dog is not?

Oh, I understand that often in these child abuse cases (yes, there is more than one) feature prolonged use of the shock collars, but how is punishing a child this way or “teaching a lesson” all that different from how some people use shock collars to teach their dogs appropriate behaviors … or, as is most often the case, the punish them for inappropriate behaviors.

The Fearful Dog Bias

Indeed, the vast majority of my dog training skill and knowledge has come in the last 6 years with Lilly, who is clinically fearful (not just shy). I joke that I’ve earned my PhD in dog behavior from the University of Dogs With Issues, so I completely own that what I know about dogs and dog training and how I handle any given situation is DIRECTLY related to the fact that I have a VERY sensitive dog:

• Lilly interprets even an exasperated sigh from me as a harsh reprimand.
• Lilly will have high anxiety and even hide (for hours) if anything startles her.
• Lilly takes days to process stress hormones and recover from a fear-inducing incident, making her more reactive even to small incidents.

The 10% Rule

Dog behavior experts suggest that about 10% of dogs are naturally fearful, probably with some genetic basis. Lilly is in that 10% for sure, and certainly her deprived puppyhood (we adopted her at 6 months old, after she’d been in 2 shelters and a foster home) and early illnesses (parvo and so much more), did NOT help.

This idea makes me wonder. Is there perhaps a 10% at the top of scale? Is that where we find so called “bomb proof dogs” that would keep wagging no matter what they encounter?

If so, then we have 10% of dogs like Lilly that could easily be ruined by a shock collar (or other pain-based or intimidation-style training). And, we might also have 10% that wouldn’t be phased at all. That leaves  … 80% that *might* suffer some ill effects, if someone uses a shock collar on them.

Relationships First

Because I believe that dog training is more about building a relationship than it is about instituting “control,” I just cannot imagine causing Lilly PAIN to accomplish any dog training goal.

It has taken me quite some time to build trust with Lilly, and I believe with all my heart that using a shock collar would ruin all that.

Personally, I would NOT stay in any relationship where someone physically harmed me — even just once on a while.

And, if I wouldn’t, then I don’t expect Lilly to do so either.

We’re in this together.

How You Can Help

This is just the beginning. I hope each Wednesday, during Never Shock a Puppy, you will not only visit the main site but also the blog hop hosted there. That’s where you’ll see all the other pet bloggers who are working on this campaign. Each of us brings a unique view to the issues and tasks we plan to cover in the 8-week campaign.

And, if you support our work, then I hope you will consider a donation to the Humane Society of Boulder Valley (where we adopted Lilly). During Never Shock a Puppy, we’re going to raise at least $2,500 to support their upcoming No-Choke Challenge, which will launch in November 2010 and will include all kinds of media outreach as well as events where they will give away humane dog training tools to people who turn in their choke/pinch/shock collars in Boulder, Colorado.

If for some reason you cannot see or use the donation widget below, please visit the Never Shock a Puppy Donation Site instead.

I must have jinxed myself by declining the new dog tag and nagging about how important I think collars/tags are because last Wednesday, Lilly’s went missing. Seriously. Vanished. No idea where it went.

Clearly, she had it on when we walked in the morning, but just after lunch, she boasted an entirely naked neck.

I’d been inside working. Lilly had been outside poking around by herself and goading Tom into throwing the stick, while he worked in the garage.

I’ve walked the fence line looking for spots she might have gotten hung up. I’ve checked around the deck and the shed, thinking maybe she had shirked it while starting at bunnies. I’ve even walked the pastures, hoping for a glimpse of something shiny.

Nothing.

So, I guess I’m VERY lucky that, as The Thundering Herd warned in comments that day recently when we talked about collars, Lilly didn’t get so hung up that she choked herself.

Our ONLY guess is that she might have lost it in a mud-sucking hole because Tom did see her come up from the creek bed, literally covered in mud from her chest forward — both legs, entire head, etc.

Alas, the grasses are tall. The mud is real, and the snakes are OUT, so I’m not too keen on slogging the length of the creek, looking for new holes (from hunting mice).

It sounds silly, I know, but I loved that collar. Loved it. Loved it.

The story goes that her foster family bought it for her. I liked it, so I’ve kept it all these years. In fact, I hoped it would be Lilly’s one and only collar in her whole life.

Weird? Maybe.

But, I try NOT to just buy her things for the sake of buying her things. I recommitted to this frugal idea even more after blowing a huge amount on a fancy collar and leash for her first (and so far only) on-camera media interview in May 2008 (which went exactly nowhere … thanks for asking).

For the life of me, I cannot find the post where I wrote about the fancy, fancy dog collar and leash. So, this photo will have to do. Yes, it’s pink leather, and there is a matching leash. I’d already had a simple tag with her name and phone number made for it, but it’s sat in a drawer for 2+ years.

The collar is pretty. I’d actually planned on giving it away, but now we need it for a backup until:

• We find her old collar.
• I find another collar I like.

This one is OK, but Lilly is NOT a sissified city girl. She is a rough-and-tumble mountain girl. And, her old collar said all that and more.

For some odd reason that collar meant a lot to me, so I’m just crushed that it disappeared.

KB’s dog K (another hearty mountain girl) used to have one just like it (different colors), so I suppose I could buy another one, but it wouldn’t be the same.

So, if there is a patron saint of missing collars, I could use some help.

P.S. And, yes, we tried asking Lilly where she lost it and to “use her nose” to find it, with no luck.

Typically, Lilly can tell from my morning routine whether or NOT I have time for a long walk. Sure, I’ve accidentally fooled her before, as told in Signs Point to Yes, but usually she knows or at least waits (somewhat) patiently until she has enough information. This process, including how she can guilt me into walking even when I’m short on time, inspired this story told in photos from Saturday morning.

Things aren't looking good. Mom looks busy. Maybe if I act really pathetic she'll change her mind.

Sigh. It sure is a nice day out. I wonder if Mom has noticed.

Wait? What do you mean ... Wait? You're moving too slow, woman! I want to walk. I am Lilly. Hear me roar ... or at least yawn in total frustration.

Now, this is my happy face. We squeezed in a short walk with Jo, that new puppy next door, before Mom & Dad had to race off.

Because we’ve had less than zero luck trying to use BAT (behavior adjustment training) in the real world with dogs (because the ones we run into have their own issues), I tried doing a little BAT work with Lilly and this one black-and-white horse who loves to run out and follow us (along the fence line) on our walks.

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Whether it’s because of the economy, reaching a certain age, or other even-less-pleasant circumstances, many people now seek some sort of reinvention in their lives. Yes, I’m talking to, you, (insert your name here).

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Once upon a time there was a writer girl with a fearful dog, she started a blog to lament their failures, celebrate their successes, and chronicle their daily lives in hopes of someday getting a book deal … I’m happy to report good news.

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When we’re teaching or shaping a new dog behavior, many of use the click/treat strategy that marks the behavior (click or verbal marker like YES!) just before we reward the behavior (with food or a toy). Dogs need to know every time they get it right … at first. Later, we introduce more intermittent reinforcements, where the dog doesn’t know which correct response will earn a reward. We’re told that a variable reinforcement pattern is the MOST motivating one out there.

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Psychology experts call our sense that “dog people” are nicer a “fundamental attribution error.” That doesn’t mean we’re necessarily wrong in our assumptions. It simply means that we assign and potentially over-estimate the depth of someone’s character based on seeing them with a dog.

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Dear Sam: This is sort of a Weekly Dog Training Update, so please stay tuned … because Lilly is learning to ride in Tom’s truck while wearing the newer, neoprene-lined Ruff Rider Roadie doggy seatbelt harness thing. She even went on her first real outing this week and had a ball.

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