Don't have a close enough relationship with your dog? Follow these easy steps to make your beloved pet feel loved and how you can love it.
1 Give your dog plenty of exercise. When your dog needs to go out, take him or her out. You will know he needs to, because he will give you pleading looks, stand by the door, bark, etc. There may be whining, scraping and barking accompanying the need for exercise outdoors as well.
2 Pet him. If he puts his head in your lap, don't scratch behind his ears! Well, you can, but when dogs do that, they're actually trying to figure out where you've been, who you've been with, and what you just ate! Dogs just want to be loved. They love neck and tummy scratches and a dog massage is one of the best ways to show your affection for your dog.
3 Try (if possible) avoid hugging your dog. Most dogs, especially large dogs, hate this because dogs want to feel dominant. If you are holding him back, he doesn't feel like he's in charge.
4 Reward your dog. Many dogs, Goldens and Shelties in particular, exist to please their owners, and they will do it. You have to reward them. Give them treats that are healthy and made specially for dogs. You don't have to buy the treats, you can make excellent ones yourself at home. (Try looking for a safe recipe in a book that has recipes for dogs, or look on the Internet for recipes recommended by professionals.
5 Talk to your dog. Dogs love it when you talk to them. You will develop your own language together and share intimate moments. And no dog will ever tell you to stop going on about a bad day at the office!
6 Spend quality time with your dog. Your dog loves attention. Set aside time every day to spend just with your dog. Even if it's just lying in front of the TV together, stroking your dog's ears and resting together.
7 Prioritize yourself to your dog. Set regular and consistent times to feed your dog and take him or her for walks. Your dog will love you for it because it's doing him or her a world of good for their well-being. Doing things for your dog at the same time every day will let it know what to expect at that time.
8 Cherish your dog. Always respect your dog and the love that your dog has brought into the house. Be kind, caring and considerate in the way that you treat your dog. Your dog is a family member.
9 Give your dog a comfortable place of its own. Your dog's sleeping area should be its alone, not to be shared with piles of washing or storage boxes. Make sure it is out of the way of people who walk through and other annoyances. (Again, try to avoid cages. Mabe buy a dog bed and place it in a room itself for the night (or workday), but try to keep your dog happy by allowing them to feel dominant.)
10 Discipline your dog. Just like a child, if you don't discipline your dog, that means you don't love him or her too much. Whenever your dog does something wrong, discipline him/her! You can do this by being consistent and sticking with the rules.
you never forget moment you first get your dog.
1 They think that everything you say is FUNY...
2 They'll never argue with you about what show you want to watch...
3 They're always up for a run
4 Or a long walk on the beach
5 They're always willing to help you with your work....
6 They're around to hang out when mo one else is...
7 They'll always let you use them as a pillow...
8 They'll never object to you dressing them up for halloween...
9 They aren't afrid to rescue you if you're in trouble
10 And they'll asmit it when they're wrong...
11 The birthday gift you gave them is always perfect...
Your dog is lost! What should you do? Here is a timeline for immediate action, what to do after two hours, two days and beyond.Speed and thoroughness are essential for bringing your dog home safely.
1 Get your dog microchipped. If you got your dog from a shelter within the last few years, it is probable that he or she has already been micro-chipped. A microchip is a harmless chip that is inserted into the back of the neck. The chip contains an ID that any vet or shelter can scan for. The ID can then be searched through a database containing your contact information so that a vet or shelter can contact you when they find your dog.
2 Make sure that your backyard is secure. Fill in any holes in the fence and make sure that your gate latches securely. If it is soft soil and/or your dog likes to dig, but rocks on the ground or use another method to make sure they don't dig under the fence and get away.
3 Don't let your dog out of the house unattended. Make sure to bring them inside at night, especially in forested or rural areas.
Don't waste time! Get a couple of people to work in an organized way simultaneously. In the first two hours, get as many people as you can involved in your search. Ask any family, friends and any neighbor you see to search around town and up to a three-mile radius of the location where the dog was last seen.
2 Search the neighborhood by foot. Create flyers to hand out and/or staple to telephone poles so that your information is readily available and easy to share. Put a photo (preferably color) of your dog on these cards or print out some images of your dog separately to accompany your information cards. Give these cards to anyone you encounter during this first search.
3 Bring along your dog's favorite toy or other noise, for example a bag of food, that makes him/her come running. Dogs can hear sounds from very far away and may come if they hear a comforting sound.
4 If possible, bring another dog along with you on your search. Dogs are social creatures and will be attracted to the friendly dog companion with you. If you do see your dog do not chase them. They may become frightened or playful and run away. Instead, coax the dog toward you with toys and by talking in a soft voice.
5 While you're out searching, have someone else make phone calls to your local Humane Society, animal shelters, rescues, vets, and police departments.
If your local TV and radio stations make community announcements, ask them for help. If making this type of announcement is not against policy, these people can be very helpful. Make sure you follow up with the local pounds and shelters.
If someone does find a dog and brings it there, make sure they do not question who it belongs to by staying in constant contact. If they do say they have a dog that sounds close to a match, make sure to see the dog yourself, and don't call off the search until you're sure it's yours.
Two descriptions can sound similar, but can describe two very different dogs. Also, ask people to call you and describe the dog to you. If you give out too much information someone could find the dog and decide to keep it for themselves.
6 Create an ad with a recent picture of your dog. Describe the dog so that an average person would recognise him/her if they saw the dog.
Include identifying information about him/her like his collar, dog tags, tattoo, identifying features like scars or unusual coloration or microchip ID number.
Be specific: "LOST: (Dog's Name) a brown dog with white face and paws, SPAYED female; 60#, got loose from yard on Dec. 1, 2005 (Location where lost) near the post office in Our Town, PA around 4 p.m. Wearing a pink collar with rabies tag and license. Is on anti-seizure medication. Family pet. REWARD. Call (66) xxx-0000."
"Family pet" tends to motivate people to look. Advertising it as a "show dog," "breeding dog," "therapy dog," or "search and rescue dog" is not a good idea. Too much disclosure is not always the best policy in these matters.
A reward tends to motivate people. However, don't state an amount. If you make the reward too large, like 5000B, people will wonder about the dog's value and some people may not want to return your pet.
Always say a female is spayed, whether she is or not. Again, this is to protect the dog from the unscrupulous who might see a breeding opportunity. The same logic applies to a medical problem or genetic defect. People will be less likely to think of breeding a dog that could be perceived as valuable if they think it has a medical problem. That gives an urgency to the ad, too.
If the dog is friendly, say "Please try and coax her into your garage or fenced yard and call us." If the dog is not friendly or could be a fear biter say, "Don't attempt to corner her. Simply call us with her location ASAP."
It is a good idea to make a few copies of flyers in different languages, like Spanish or French, especially if you live in an area with people of many different backgrounds.
7 Intensify the search after your dog has been missing for 24 hours. Make at least 200 photocopies of your ad. (Printer ink runs in rain; photocopier toner won't.)
Start posting on bulletin boards and in high visibility areas like gas stations and grocery stores in your neighborhood. Tape flyers to phone poles (in many places, it is illegal and unsafe to use staples because it's a danger to pole men).
Ask friends and family members to distribute flyers door-to-door. Be sure to put extra flyers around that playground, or notify the owners of that dog park.
8 Take "found" calls with a grain of salt. At this devastating time, you are vulnerable and there are unethical people who may try to take advantage.
If someone calls and describes your dog from your ad and says, "I've got your dog here," respond, "Does she have a black mark inside her right leg?" and they say, "She sure does" and your dog doesn't, hang up quickly. You don't want to deal with such people.
If they say, "No, she doesn't" and you think it could be your dog, simply say you made a mistake, that's another dog you've seen before.
If someone tries to blackmail you into a higher reward before returning your dog, try to make sure they have the right dog (or any dog at all) and ask the person to meet you in a public place. Then go with another person to meet them. Don't be taken advantage of. If it is your dog, offer a token reward.
Recent scams include people calling for out-of-state airfare for your lost dog. They might say your dog has been stolen and dumped far from home and they found him 200 miles away. Don't fall for it.
9 After two days, extend your search.
Go a little further by vehicle and start spreading the word to local mail carriers, UPS and Fed Ex drivers, joggers, runners, bikers and anyone else walking around the search areas.
Continue using strong ad messages to spread and expand your search.
Expand the radius of your search area by several miles. Call shelters even beyond the area you think your dog could have reached.
Visit the animal shelters and rescue leagues to look for your pet every other day. Don't expect volunteers to recognise one brown dog from another.
If the dog is a dirty, matted mess that lost weight, you may have trouble identifying your own pet. Ask if there is a quarantine area or an area where injured animals are kept in case your dog is separated from those shown to the public.
Check the "found" ads in they newspaper each day your pet is lost. Check online databases of lost and found dogs.
10 Stay positive. Dogs have been re-united with their owners even after a year or more. Keep going back to the shelters showing pictures of your dog.
Be persistent and do not give up until a reliable conclusion has been made. Who knows, maybe your dog will find you!