What's NEW!

Lots of new things going on here and I really need to sit down and catch up on posts telling you all about it! I'll begin here - there is a new bar across the top of the blog page where you can put your email address and subscribe to get all my new posts here delivered straight to your email box!  This way you won't miss any!  

Treasure, Vinny and I represented double merles at Double Merle Awareness Day on May 20th.  We had a table to greet people and educate about the dangers of breeding merle to merle, as well as about how even blind and deaf dogs can be amazing!  We had so many people come to meet the dogs and talk to us!  It was a great opportunity to get our message out.  Thanks to Keller's Cause (www.kellerscause.com) for creating Double Merle Awareness Day, and for sending banners and handouts all across the country to make it easy for us to all educate others!

Treasure, Vegas, Vinny and I were featured in Effingham Magazine with another opportunity to tell people about how to prevent double merles (just don't breed two merles together!) and how to live with and train a dog that may have different abilities (blindness and/or deafness).  The reporter and photographer did a wonderful job on the story!

Uniquely Paws-Able online school is growing!  We are now offering Positive Reinforcement and Clicker Training as a self study class, so anyone is able to take the class at any time that's right for them and their dog!  A new class is starting June 10th with the topic of Grooming, Husbandry and Handling Games!  This is very exciting, as there are so many dogs that find touch, grooming and veterinary exams to be stressful. Often these situations turn into a struggle for dog and person.  This class will show how to use positive reinforcement to create a dog that is willing to cooperate with every day tasks such as giving eye drops, cutting toenails, grooming and more!

If you haven't signed up at Uniquely Paws-Able, be sure to go check it out.  Creating an account will sign you up to receive updates as more classes and resources are added at the site.  And, it's very easy from there to look over the courses that are offered and enroll in the classes you'd like to take.  Everything is online and we have students from around the world.  We'd love to have you join us!

Vinny the Great!

Vinny was born into greatness.  Born from two merle parents, it was soon apparent that he could not see or hear.  The veterinarian was consulted about what to do - after all, what was a blind and deaf puppy worth? But one of the vet techs knew about Debbie and her experience with double merles.  A couple phone calls later, and Debbie had arranged to go pick up the special puppy.

Vinny was 8 weeks of pure Collie adorableness.  And even in that moment, he began his role as educator.  Debbie and Vinny explained to the breeder why he had been born blind and deaf.  The breeder had not been aware of this danger, and was grateful to know how to prevent this from happening in the future and was very relieved that Vinny would be safe.

Vinny has gracefully evolved into his role as ambassador for the humane society where he accompanies Debbie to work every day.  His many fans come to visit him, and he uses his special-ness to educate others about the dangers of breeding merle to merle, and about adoption.  He is a strong ambassador for blind and deaf dogs and that they are capable of living full and happy lives.  Through social media and a teaching blog, plus many videos, he is paving the way for other differently-abled dogs to be adopted and trained.

Vinny also spreads joy through visiting people in the community.  Young people are drawn to him and relate to his differences.  He teaches them acceptance and compassion.  When visiting with a group of Scouts, one girl said with disgust, "Eww, his eyes look different.  They look weird."  Very quickly, another said, "He doesn't know they look that way, and he is perfectly happy.  We should be too."  When Debbie looked closely, she realized the girl that had answered had a difference of her own and had related quickly to Vinny's differences.  These comments led to wonderful discussions of differences and acceptance.

The senior population have also been inspired by Vinny, who shows such happiness even though he can't see or hear, just as they are beginning to lose these senses themselves and are wondering what life will hold for them now.  One woman told Vinny that she was going blind, but seeing him and how happy he was made her guess that it was all going to be OK.  She thanked him and together they shared a private moment.

Vinny is a typical puppy - lively, playful, and yes, even a bit full of mischief at times!  But when he's visiting, all of that fades away and he shows calmness and understanding way beyond his age.  Although he can't see or hear, he finds a way to position his body next to someone with limited mobility so they can reach to pet him, and he gently puts his head under their hand.

This special dog and his person together spread joy, laughter, smiles, hope and inspiration.  Debbie teaches Vinny using mostly touch cues.  She touches various parts of his body in different ways to communicate her requests to him.  He knows basic obedience and manners, as well as many different tricks.  As a matter of fact, Vinny has already earned his Novice Trick Dog title and is working toward higher levels.  He loves to learn new things and is taught strictly through positive reinforcement methods.

Vinny also gathers lots of information about his environment by scent and by feeling vibrations.  He recognizes air currents when a door opens.  He can quickly  map out a new area when he goes somewhere new.  He loves to travel and has already traveled to several different states with his partner Debbie.  Vinny plays with the other dogs in the house and loves to play with toys of all kinds!  He gets lots of time to enjoy being a puppy, and he brings much joy and many smiles to Debbie daily.

Vinny's reach into the community and the world is already significant and will only continue to expand as he gains experience in his new role.  He and Debbie are amazing partners in advocating for rescue, adoption, responsible breeding, and the joys of differently-abled dogs.  They spread messages to everyone about compassion, acceptance and being kind to others - all things that the world needs so much of right now.  It is their hope that by spreading ripples in their own little corner of the world, that those ripples will continue to spread into something magnificent that blankets the world with love.

(The above was Vinny's nomination for the Collie Club of America's Shining Star Award.  Congratulations to Vinny and the other winners of this year's award!)

Presentation at ASSA National

Treasure, Vinny and I had a wonderful time visiting Purina Farms and the ASSA National Specialty. There were Shelties everywhere!  Vinny was also happy that there were some other Collies making an appearance here and there as well.  This was our first time to Purina Farms, and we hope to be able to go again.

We were there to do a presentation about double merles.  Topics discussed included:

What causes double merle

What can be done to educate so we can prevent it

How to screen and educate adopters

Tips for foster homes

How to train dogs that may be blind, deaf, or both

Equipment that may be useful

And, the many myths surrounding double merles and blind and/or deaf dogs

Thanks Barbara Edelberg for the photo

Treasure's Travels (and Vinny's too!)

My beautiful Treasure and Vinny accompanied me this past weekend on an adventure!  Treasure and I are very accustomed to traveling together, and Vinny has traveled with us a few times during his puppyhood, but he had many firsts during this trip.  I am so very proud of how he responded to all the new experiences!  I wondered how he would do - visiting a museum, going to a large dog show, and staying in a hotel.

Our first challenge was learning to navigate together through the Museum of the Dog - Treasure in her stroller and Vinny learning to walk beside it and keep his toes out from under the wheels!  This was the first time Vinny would be walking with the stroller.  After only a couple times of walking in front of the stroller and tangling his leash, and a few times of his toes getting bumped by stroller wheels, Vinny said, "Piece of cake, Mom!"  He walked like a pro.  

Both dogs were a bit puzzled by the numerous dog statues that smelled a little strange.  I couldn't help but wonder what my other dogs would have thought, since they can see and some of the statues were large and even a little scary looking!  Of course, Treasure and Vinny are both blind and deaf, so they didn't know what the statues looked like, but they spent a lot of time sniffing them and trying to figure out what kind of dogs they were!  

I didn't think about the fact that Vinny had never been on an elevator before until we were about to step onto the one in the museum.  He went into it easy enough, with no hesitation, but as the elevator began to move downward and the floor moved down under his feet, he looked at the floor with a puzzled look.  I was pleased to see that he wasn't very concerned about it - probably due to all the work we do with moving surfaces.  Going up didn't produce the same puzzlement.  He acted just like a pro.  

When we got to the hotel later, there was once more where he pondered the elevator moving downward, but after that, he didn't even seem to notice anymore.  He checked out the hotel room when we arrived, just like he had been doing it all his life.  Very confident, sniffing every corner and all the furniture, finding his water bowl, playing with his toys.  He did take more trips to come check in with me than Treasure did, wanting to make sure I was OK, no doubt.  

And, while Treasure fell quickly asleep next to me, Vinny continued to check on me all throughout the night.   He would sleep for a bit and then come up to poke me with his nose to be sure of where I was.  I guess he didn't want me to be scared in a new place.  That was very thoughtful of him!  

Eye to Eye

Fear.  We all experience it.  We all allow it in some way to affect our behavior and our choices.  Sometimes we face our fears and sometimes we run from them.  The same is true of our dogs.

This past weekend I was reminded just how much we fear what is unfamiliar to us.  Hmmm ... we're not that much different in that respect to our dogs.  It can often cause issues for us when our dogs react with fear to something new they are encountering.  That's why we try so hard to socialize our dogs and expose them in a happy way to all the things we can think of when they are young.  This will reduce the number of things they may find unusual and scary.  

My heart was truly touched, and I want to share a story with you, about a person I met this past weekend. After hearing me talk about Treasure, a woman commented to me hesitantly that she had never seen a dog without eyes before.  When I asked her if she'd like to have a closer look at Treasure's eyes, she quickly said yes.  

But when I lifted Treasure so the woman could see her face, my heart sank.  I saw this woman quickly turn her face away as her eyes filled with tears.  Try as she might, she couldn't make herself look at Treasure's face.  She tried again and again, but each time she turned away crying.  She told me that Treasure's eyes scared her.  But she didn't want to be afraid.  She was afraid because this was something so different from anything she had known before.  

I wanted so much to reassure her.  To let her know that this wasn't such a scary thing.  But as we all know, fear is very personal.  Just because we say it's OK, doesn't mean the person (or dog) will suddenly not be afraid anymore.  I did reassure her that Treasure wasn't in any pain, and I told her about the special care I give Treasure to keep her eyes clean and pain free.  

My heart went out to this woman.  She wanted to understand and feel comfortable.  Yet her fear held her back.  It was then I realized that she had not yet actually met and interacted with Treasure.  She had only looked at her.  When I asked if she would like to meet Treasure, she was very eager to do so.  

It only took a moment before this woman was holding Treasure in her arms against her chest.  I stepped back and just quietly watched while Treasure worked her magic.  The tears faded away quickly and were overtaken by a huge and joyful smile which stuck around a while!  And guess what?  All of that woman's fear faded away too.  She was able to now look at Treasure with a smile on her face and understanding in her heart.  

The story itself is heartwarming.  I experience stories like this often when Treasure works her magic.  But this story left me with a new perspective of fear.  I told you about this woman's fear, but what the story is really about is her courage to see past that fear.  Her courage to come to an understanding.  Once we have an understanding of something, it is no longer different and scary.  Then the fear can leave and compassion can arrive.  

It also caused me to think about the similarities between us and our dogs and how we experience fear of things and others that are different.  Why do we continue to be afraid of those who are different than us?  Is it because we allow our fear to hold us at a distance so we don't ever become familiar with those differences?  I learned something amazing from that woman.  Her willingness to learn about something she feared broadened her life experiences and made her a new friend.  I hope the next time I feel fear or uncertainty about someone's difference, that I can make a similar choice.  Thank you, my new friend, for this lesson from the heart!  

Exciting New Opportunity!

I am so excited to be able to announce to you the opening of my new online school - Uniquely Paws-Able!

After consulting with people from all over the world, who are living with and teaching dogs that are blind, deaf or both, and finding that so many of them are looking for the same support, I decided to create an online community where we can share and learn with each other!  The classes will allow me to share information with so many more people than doing one-on-one consulting.  

Having an online class allows for anyone, anywhere to have access to information at any time.  Written lectures and videos will be released weekly (for 6 weeks) for discussion and practice at home with your dogs.  There is a private Facebook page also, for those who enjoy sharing in that way, strictly for students of this and upcoming classes offered by Uniquely Paws-Able.  Your instructor (Me!) will be available for feedback and to offer bonus information depending upon the interests and questions of the students.  

The first course offering is Positive Reinforcement and Clicker Training and it starts March 25th!  

Some of the lesson topics covered include: 

How dogs learn

What is positive reinforcement

What is a marker (clicker) and how to choose the right marker for your dog's abilities

Teaching check ins and attention

What to do when your dog doesn't do what you want

Learning about ways to teach behaviors and when you might choose to use each one

How to change behavior using positive reinforcement

Some fun tricks and games

How to use reinforcers other than food

How to teach quiet

And ... more!  

Come on over and check out the new school!  I'd love to have you join us for our very first class!  Or, you can choose to sign up with only an account for now, to get information about future classes that are already in the planning stages!  

Hope to see you at Uniquely Paws-Able soon!  

Tools to Help With Separation Conditioning

If your dog is already upset by being left alone, think about how you can change the picture for her.  If she is normally left in a crate, can you leave her in a different way?  Perhaps in an ex pen or a gated room?  If she is left in one area of the house, can you leave her in a different area?  Take time to condition her to enjoy and relax in the new area, just as if she was a baby puppy learning for the first time.  Can you avoid leaving your dog alone for a while until you can teach her a different way?  Perhaps taking her to a dog daycare or finding a friend or family member to stay with her while you’re gone? 

Giving your dog a totally different picture and environment can help break the habit of being stressed, but only if you take the time to help her know that it is OK to be alone.  Moving her to a different area or situation will prevent her from reacting to any possible associations she’s created with the current confinement space.

The more stress you can eliminate from your dog’s life in general will also be helpful.  There are several blog posts on this blog about recognizing and lessening stress in your dog’s life.  Dogs, like humans, hold their stress cumulatively, which means while they may be able to handle a little stress just fine, the more stress that just piles up and piles up on them eventually creates a breaking point and that’s when their behavior can really go south. 

There are tools that can help you in conditioning relaxation and low stress separation.  Of course, this list of tools is not complete.  It is meant to give you some options that you may not have considered before.  Not every tool is right for every dog or every situation.  Some dogs may not need any of them, and some may be helped by several. 

Remote treat dispensers – Remote treat dispensers can be set up to reinforce your dog while she is in the confinement area, and can be used to distribute treats when you are not in the area, so can be useful for transitioning to you being gone.  Be aware that if your dog gets very excited by food, this may not be the best option, as you won’t be conditioning calm, relaxed behavior if your dog is starting at the machine anticipating a treat all day.  These dispensers can be a nice tool to get you started though or to reinforce specific behaviors like being quiet in a crate.

Enrichment – Any enrichment activities that you can fit into your dog’s day will help with giving her mental exercise and help her be more likely to be able to relax when you want her to.   Some enrichment may be safe to leave with your dog unsupervised to help give her something to do while you’re gone.  This will depend upon your own individual dog and finding what works for her.  There are many posts on this blog about enrichment toys and games that can be used for any dog, not just blind and deaf ones.

Covered crate/ open crate – Some dogs are more comfortable in a covered or airline type crate with solid sides, and some are more comfortable in an open wire crate.  Yes, even blind dogs seem to have a preference.  Solid sides make for a more cozy feeling and prevent air drafts coming in from all directions which is disturbing to some dogs.  Some dogs can relax better in a solid crate because they feel secure knowing there is only one opening, where the wire crate feels open on all sides and can cause them to feel nervous or vulnerable and unable to completely relax.  Some dogs are not comfortable at all in crates and prefer a totally different solution. 

Chew toys – Any toys or bones that you leave with your dog unsupervised need to be very safe, and you need to have watched your dog with them enough to know they will not be biting chunks off and eating them.  Chew toys can help by giving your dog something to do and to help them relax.  Dogs tend to relax and nap after a good chew.

Bodywork – Bodywork can help your dog learn how to relax, and you can use it with your dog while she is in her confinement area to help her associate being there with relaxing.  Using bodywork at her normal bedtime may also help, as she will associate it with relaxing and then drifting off for a long sleep.  Massage, Tellington TTouch, Healing Touch for Animals, or any number of bodywork modalities can be helpful.  Some of these can be learned from books and videos, and others can easily be learned by taking classes in your area. 

Essential oils – Some essential oils like lavender have long been known for their relaxing effects.  This is not the only oil that may be helpful – consult an experienced practitioner or veterinarian for more information about this.  The best results come from therapeutic grade oils, not ones just made synthetically to smell pretty.  A practitioner can help you choose a quality that is appropriate.  Diffusing the oils in the room where the dog will be can help, especially if she is conditioned to relax with the oil diffusing before being left alone. 

Thundershirt, TTouch wrap – These are great tools for increasing your dog’s feelings of well-being and confidence, and in helping a dog learn to relax.  But they need to be worn when the dog is being supervised.  So, they could be worn if you are practicing separation but you are home and checking on the dog often to make sure she is not tangled or that she is not eating the shirt or wrap!  So, if you are doing cycles of leaving and coming back, this could be helpful. 

Sniffing and nosework games – I love any type of sniffing or searching games as enrichment.  Dogs love to sniff and search.  Giving them games like this to play every day, and especially before you leave them alone for the day can put them in a better frame of mind for relaxing and a long nap! 

Calming music – If your dog can hear, playing calming music can help her to relax, but can also drown out noises from outside which might keep her alert and wondering what’s going on out there.  It is best to condition the music during relaxing times when you are home at first.  Classical music can work well.  Two of my favorites are Through A Dog’s Ear and Healing Touch for Animals CD’s created with relaxation and calming of dogs in mind.  Even my deaf dogs respond to the music’s vibrations and will often lie by the CD player on the floor so they can feel the vibrations.  They also seem to be able to feel it if the CD player is on top of a solid crate.   Be sure to keep any cords out of chewing range and tucked away so the dog can’t pull the CD player down on top of her. 

DAP collar, spray – Dog appeasing pheromone products can also be very useful.  I find the collars (which stay on all the time) or the spray to be most useful.  I have not had much luck with the plug ins, but know people who have.  If the dog is staying in a crate, I would opt for the spray so the collar won’t get caught on any part of the crate.  The spray can be spritzed on the dog’s bedding before you leave or can be sprayed on a cover put over the crate. 

I hope this has given you some new ideas to try.  Put these last several posts together to create a program to help your dog feel more relaxed with staying alone.  If you would like help getting started, find a positive reinforcement trainer in your area to work with to help get you started and set up a plan that you can continue to work on.