Fitness for Blind and Deaf Dogs

Treasure is embarking on a new and improved fitness program.  It's hard to keep her fit and trim because she is not as active as the other dogs.  They want to go, go, go (and quickly!) on their walks and they enjoy running together in the nearby field.  Treasure's pace is one of leisure, carefully smelling her way through a walk.  She prefers to walk slightly behind me so she can follow my scent.  I would not be able to walk her with my other dogs and give them each what they need and want from a walk.  This means that I need to make it a priority to take them out separately.  

When Shelby was alive, she and Treasure both walked slower and we would take a separate walk around the yard - just us three girls.  As Shelby slowed down even more, those walks became shorter and eventually all but stopped except for her really good days.  I didn't make it a priority to take Treasure out again for a walk by herself.  So, she spent a lot of this winter in the house.  

She started to put on a couple extra pounds, so I cut back on her food amount to help with that.  And although she is now a good weight, she is out of shape.  I want her to live for a long time, so I want her muscles, heart and lungs to stay strong and for her joints to remain flexible for as long as possible.  This means - exercise!  

Now that the weather is getting nicer, I will be focusing on building up Treasure's endurance for walking with me, and then experimenting to see if we can quicken the pace just a bit.  It is unlikely that Treasure will go any faster than a slow trot, because she can't see what is in front of her, so she's learned to go at a more conservative pace to avoid smacking into something hard or falling into a hole in the ground.  But I would like for her to be able to go on longer walks with me.  

Treasure does enjoy her time with me learning tricks and doing nosework.  She does get some exercise doing various tricks that allow her body to stretch and move in different ways and improve her balance and proprioception skills.  I have balance discs, and a balance ball and peanut and each of these challenge her to use her muscles and help keep her toned.  

I know all too well that starting up a new exercise program can leave muscles sore and tired.  I also learned recently that if there is pain during a workout, the muscles protect themselves and don't work as hard, so they are not really building any strength.  So, my goal is to go slowly enough that Treasure is always having fun and ready for more when we stop, and that she never gets sore.  That's no fun for anyone, and I want her to build strength, so it's important to keep her under that pain threshold.  

Walks are such good exercise physically, but walks also allow Treasure to experience different surfaces, smells, textures, and sensations.  She loves to feel the warmth of the sunshine on her coat, and to smell all the amazing farm smells on the breeze.  Each new surface - grass, gravel, black top, wood - is a new experience for her and requires her to adjust her balance and pace somewhat.  

I'll try to keep the readers updated on our new fitness adventure.

Enjoying our longer walks together ...

March happenings

It's March already.  The time has certainly flown by.  We've all had a couple months of changes and adjustments and being cooped up inside way too much because of the winter weather.  

Our dear Shelby (Jack Russell/Dachshund mix) passed away in late January.  She had been with me for nearly 18 years, from the time she was a puppy.  She was the oldest here, and all the dogs had learned to respect her and to watch out for her.  It's interesting while going through my own grieving process to see how each of them looked for her and reacted to her being gone.  But slowly our lives have returned to some sense of normalcy.  

As many times as I have sat down to write about Shelby, there just don't seem to be adequate words to express how integral she has been in my life for the past 18 years.  So I haven't written anything yet.  But she is so very missed ... 

While we were stuck inside this winter, the dogs and I have been working on their trick dog titles.  Vegas and Treasure both earned their Intermediate Trick Dog Titles!  Owen earned his Expert Trick Dog Title, and Brinks earned his Advanced Trick Dog Title.  We've been very busy.

Trick Dogs!

A project we’re working on over the winter is for Vegas and Treasure to learn enough new tricks to earn their Intermediate Trick Dog titles.  Tricks are a great way to spend time with your dog and a good way to help their bodies and minds get exercise when all we want to do is hibernate inside where it’s warm!

Each dog needs to learn 12 new tricks to earn this new title.  Vegas has learned 8 on the list so far.  He is working on developing the muscles needed to sit pretty (beg) on his own, hide in a box, weave through my legs as I walk, and do tricks with a pedestal.  He loves his lessons, which are a time for just him and I to play and have fun!  I can’t wait to show you what he has learned!

Treasure knows 10 of the intermediate level tricks!  Only 2 more to go!  She is learning to work with a pedestal and do different tricks with it, go to a mat (which is proving to be easier than I thought with a blind/deaf dog!), and to weave through my legs (this one is tricky for her).  She is also working with paw pods and learning to put one paw up on each pod.  She can do the front two pods very well.  It’s much harder for her to find the pod with her back feet. 

While we play with intermediate tricks, they are also both learning some tricks from the advanced and expert trick lists.  This is really great fun!  It challenges my skills as a trainer – doing shaping with a tactile marker (clicker signal that Treasure can feel), figuring out how to adapt each exercise for Vegas’ limited vision – and it is fun for the dogs to get one on one time with me and lots of praise, treats, and fun!  

Welcome 2015!

The start of 2015!  So much to look forward to in the coming year!  And, we are stuck inside here due to the bitter cold.  So, once again, I look for new ways to keep my dogs busy and using their brains.  Doing puzzles and learning activities for their meals is always a popular activity.  Since my dogs do like to eat, giving them a game to play to get their food and treats stimulates their brains and problem solving abilities.  As a matter of fact, my dogs get so much more excited to eat when they see the puzzle games coming out rather than their food bowls. 

I saw online something called a snuffle mat.  There are many different kinds of mat, some are sewn with intricate pockets and closures to hide goodies.  Some look like a version of a shag carpet, with high fibers for the treats to fall into and the dog to search and “snuffle” about for.  I thought perhaps I could figure out how to make one of these mats myself.  I found a plastic sink liner with one inch square holes in it and I cut strips from some old fleece I had in the basement.  By tying the fleece strips to the sink liner, I created this snuffle mat. 

On the left of the mat, you can see some of the sink mat that doesn't have fleece on it yet.  Sorry, forgot to take a picture before I started making it.

This is very definitely a supervised toy with my dogs.  I have one dog in particular that enjoys the game, but if I left him alone with it, he might start to chew off and eat the fleece pieces (he enjoys doing this with his toys).  So I am careful to be nearby when they are playing with it, and then I pick it up and put it out of reach until we use it again.  Plus, it’s just  more fun to play with the toy with my dogs! 

While we have some of the fancy manufactured dog puzzle games and Kong toys, some of our favorite food toys are from the recycle bin.  Of course, these are also always supervised, because most materials from the recycle bin are not dog-teeth safe. 

An empty and dry water bottle is a fun toy at my house.  For the dogs that can hear, the crinkling sound of chomping a bottle is so much fun!  For the others, it moves and spins across the floor dumping tasty pieces of treat all over to search and find!  Easy enough to dispose of after playtime, and replace the next time!  

This is a tea bottle, so a bit more sturdy than a water bottle, but any bottle can work. Remove the cap and any plastic rings on the top.  Put treats inside - simple!

A plastic container can be used to make frosty dog snacks, just watch that your dog isn't trying to eat the plastic part as they chew at the frozen snack.  You can easily run the outside of the container under warm water enough to loosen the frozen snack so it pops out and into a bowl for licking if your dog is eating the plastic part. 

This frosty snack happens to be yogurt mixed with ground meat and frozen.  You can use any number of dog-friendly foods to freeze.  

Some dogs like to lick out a yogurt container that you’re finished with.  This can keep them busy for a little bit.  Please make sure your dog is OK to have yogurt, and that the yogurt is not flavored with anything that may be harmful to your dog (Xylitol or other sweeteners, for instance).  You can also smear a little bit of other foods around the inside of a plastic container – peanut butter, canned pumpkin, and other dog-safe foods.  It doesn’t take much to keep your dog busy and too much of a rich food may cause your dog to have an upset tummy. 

The dogs and I love learning new tricks together!  Using their meals for some of our lessons helps to ensure that they aren’t getting too many extra calories.  It is winter and they aren’t getting as much running around with us being inside more now.  If I gave their regular meals and then lots of treats on top of that, they might get upset tummies, but they would certainly gain weight which wouldn’t be healthy for them. 

Stay warm and have fun learning new things with your dogs! 

A White Christmas

May each of you and your families (furry and otherwise) have a very Blessed Christmas!!  

The Treasure Claus

T'was the Night Before Christmas ... (Treasure)

White Christmas (Vegas)

Handsome Boy Vegas

Another Trick Dog!

Vegas has recently completed the requirements to earn his Novice Trick Dog title!  He learned and demonstrated 15 tricks including putting his paws up, unrolling a carpet, jumping through a hoop, trotting through cavalettis, and many more!  I use all positive motivational methods to teach my dogs, and Vegas was no exception.  Because he is deaf and visually impaired, I had to make a few minor adjustments with how I trained him.  I use hand signals close to Vegas' face so he can see them, and he can't differentiate signals that look similar, so his signals have to appear very different to him in order for him to tell them apart.  I also use touch cues, which he picks up very quickly, and some scent and context cues to let him know what we're going to do next.  Here is Vegas demonstrating his 15 tricks ... 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7KjMISb5Fyo&list=UUBaUUGAnbEi0LGzzqAWJykw

October is slipping away!

The month of October is slipping away!  It's almost half over already and I have not written a blog post.  Wow.  Things have been busy!

Treasure and I have returned from a trip to MD for our fourth Tellington TTouch training.  We both had a great time visiting with old friends and meeting new ones.  There was lots of practice with touches and wraps and playgrounds!  Treasure and I got to share a hotel room with our friends Mickey and Rose too!  That was fun!  It had been a while since we've seen them. 

I have now completed requirements to become an official Tellington TTouch Apprentice!  I'm excited to expand my use of TTouch now as I continue to prepare for certification as a practitioner!

Treasure telling Mickey a secret in the car on the way to training.

I'm official!

Treasure napping during lectures.