Saturday, I caught up on my dog grooming duties. Most weeks that means Lilly and only Lilly, but I decided I’d attempt to trim Ginko’s front toenails. With a muzzle and enough cheese, I can occasionally get him to cooperate. Just as I imagined myself drafting a victory blog post, our celebratory dog training jackpot went terribly wrong.
One of the best ways to get readers’ (and, therefore, editors’) attention is to use superlatives. If something you write about is the biggest or smallest, best or worst, or better yet ONLY or FIRST, then chances are you’ve got a winner of an idea. However, the problem with such thinking is that it can warp you.
Well, kids. Today is my birthday, so rather than reinvent the wheel. Allow me, please, to merely point to my latest post over the Dog Food Dish (my new paid blogging gig), where I talk about the role of fat in dog food.
Some days, my brain buzzes with larger, more philosophical sides to dog training. In part, this happens because of items I see in dog world news such as this dog training summit. At some point soon, I may rant a bit on that very topic since I’m not shy about the fact that I’m no fan of “He Who Shall Not Be Named.” But, today, I wanted to share a distinction I think will help.
Based on discussions with my dog writer & dog blogger friends, I’ve began to wonder … just how many dogs does it take before you (or anyone) truly knows anything about anything when it comes to dogs.
Ginko and Lilly express their expectations differently. The more I ponder yesterday’s Signs Point to Yes, the more I realize that the disparity in their responses to disappointment or anticipation reflect their formal (and not so formal) dog training.
Last Friday, I accidentally pulled a terrible trick on my sweet Lilly. I rushed around in the morning before an entire day of eldercare efforts, and I didn’t realize what Lilly assumed based on various visual clues until I stepped toward the front door to leave.
You know how I so often say I’m grateful that Lilly doesn’t have separation anxiety (among all her other fears)? (I’d like to keep it that way.) Well, we learned last Friday that there is one instance when she VERY much minds being alone. The little stinker barked and howled for one hour, 10 minutes,…
Ginko is still having pretty consistent trouble with his right knee (we assume). Right leg, at the very least. We keep swearing that we’ll keep him quiet, that we won’t let him run, and so on, but it is very hard with so much else going on. Since Feb 1 was conveniently on a Monday…
So, one of the weird parts of being on Facebook is “friending” family members. (Yes, I was about the last person on the planet to join.) BUT, it kind of amuses me to be connected online with a couple of my cousin contemporaries. You see, there are four of us in my large Italian family that are essentially the same age. It’s kind of cool, I think. Anyway, I’m now connected with a cousin who moved from Colorado to Florida. I just laughed and laughed when I saw profile pictures of his dogs. Talk about extremes.
