Dog Tales - The Funnier Side of Dog Training

Here are my true stories in Blog form, of my life with dogs, from childhood to the present. I will have stories about dog training and tales from the Doggy Daycare owner side of things. I like to concentrate on the lighter side of a situation and the stories will reflect this. Sit, Stay and read for a little chuckle. Anyone who has had a dog, knows a dog or even is just interested in dogs, will find something of interest here.

Sabre

I was a teenager when we got Saber. He was a wolf x shepherd. He was huge. His previous owners could not handle him. He was an escape artist and a garbage raider. My dad thought it would be a deterrent for burglars to have this huge dog. He was intimidating! He and I struck a bond immediately. I felt so bad for him that he had had it so rough. I treated him like a little kid. I would call him onto my bed to cuddle under my housecoat with me. Let me say, he was a blanket hog, but he settled right down and would fall asleep. He snored. LOUD! What a love! I would take him for drives in my car. I had a Mazda RX3 at the time. I would have to recline the front seat all the way for him to have enough room to sit. His nose would be up against the windshield! It definitely made people take a second look. I worked at McDonalds at the time, like most teens, and would bring home the cookies after my shift. I kept them on my nightstand and would munch on them as I did my homework. Well, one day I came home from school and got right to my homework. I reached for a box of cookies and it was so LIGHT! The tab on the end was closed, just the way I left it, but it was EMPTY! How could that be? Maybe I didn't throw out the empty box when I was finished. So I just opened another box.This exact same thing happened again! I just didn't believe that I would have forgotten to throw an empty box out again! I couldn't figure this out.A few weeks later, I came home early from work and walked into my room only to catch Sabre eating the cookies! He had opened the box, was holding it between his front paws and would stick his tongue into the box and bring out a cookie! Just like an anteater! How could I get angry? He looked SO funny! I learned that nothing was safe from Sabre and everything needed to be put into a drawer or cabinet if I intended to keep it for myself.Boy, did I love that dog!!

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Tiffany - Belgian Turveren

Best dog ever. Being a shepherd she would herd my kids in the back yard by bumping them lightly on the back. She loved to chase flies and bubbles. We got our son a Bubble Mower for his birthday and the dog, in her athleticism broke her front leg trying to catch bubbles. We had the vet replace the cast 3 times because she was so intent on chasing bubbles and flies. The bubbles, we stopped. The flies, well, they were inevitable. Tiff would see if there were any flies to chase in the yard and if none were to be found she would "go poo" just to have them attracted to our yard! We loved her so much. We still talk about her, and that keeps her alive in our hearts.

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Queenie - Timid, Shy, and howled at sirens.

Queenie was a white German Shepherd who was kept in a mucky back yard with a leash suspended from a clothesline. We rescued her when I was around 9 years old. She didn't know anything about being a family member.I had to teach her how to navigate stairs, how to drink from a water dish, and that the dish would never be empty. She did not trust men and howled when a firetruck or ambulance would drive by. We had a special bond and she would not bark at anything. Years of desensitizing and reassurance made her a much calmer more balanced dog. She was a very quiet, sweet dog, with a temperament of an angel. Maybe that was why she was white. She was also a cake eater. She ate three quarters of my sister's birthday cake that was left out on the counter. I thought it was the funniest thing ever. My sister, not so much. HE HE HE

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Lady - The Deaf German Shepherd

I guess I have been a dog trainer for my whole life.

When I was very young, under 6 years old, my best friend was our German Shepherd, Lady. She would let me dress her up in my housecoat with a scarf over her head and play house with me. I never really thought about her deafness, I just used a form of sign language to tell her what to do.

She was always with me. As I got older, I asked my mom why Lady couldn't hear. She told me that Lady and one of her litter mates got Distemper. Lady was the only one to survive.

I think Lady was the reason I wanted to be around animals. She showed me that you don't need to talk or hear to understand. She passed away at the ripe old age of 12 years.

I am the youngest of seven kids and the age differences made it difficult to form bonds with my siblings. The dogs were my family and even now, I would not be able to live without a dog in my home.

More later.....

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