Billie Still “HITting” It at 10 Years Old – Watch her Round
OTCH MOTCH FTCH AFTCH Tanbark’s Orange Crush, UDX, MH “Billie” – earned a 199.5 and 198 (HIT) at the WSOTC Trials in WA this past weekend. I can’t believe Billie will be 10 years old this June. She just loves to compete, what a wonderful girl she is, I just adore and love her to bits!
TNT Training Welcomes Time 4 Dogs Boarding
We would like to welcome Time 4 Dogs Boarding to the TNT family. Lâle Aksu (pronounced Lally, a trainer here at TNT), husband Matt Hoekstra and Eddie their Manchester Terrier are now the new managers of our boarding facility and owners of Time 4 Dogs.
Time 4 Dogs puts your pet first. It is important to have a place where you can leave your dog without any worries and Time 4 Dogs is the place to be. Not only is Time 4 Dogs a Dog/Cat boarding facility, but also offers daycare, adventure hikes, in-house training, and basic grooming services.
You can check out the Time 4 Dogs website for more information on services and rates and make on-line reservation for your pet at www.time4dogs.com. Of course you can always give Lâle a call at 604-857-4949 to make reservations or to book an appointment to tour the facility.
The facility boasts 18 large Indoor Canine accommodations (6ft X 22ft), feature large, double-paned windows for plenty of natural light, built-in water and food bowls and In-floor radiant heating combined with conditioned air exchange to ensure a comfortable stay for your pet.
Additionally, the facility is equipped with 4 large outdoor exercise yards and 2500 square foot grass play yard to provide enough exercise for your pet. Extra Recreational services are available upon request.
Supervised daily “Play Groups”, on leash walks exploring the 50 acres of rolling hills and ponds, or one hour Adventure Hikes are all extra services that can be booked to ensure your pet’s comfort while you are away.
How to Handle Moving With Your Dog
Last weekend I managed to persuade, beg and cajole a number of my friends (and their pickup trucks) to help me move from my apartment into a house with more space for me and my 4 legged family members. All in all it was a successful albeit tiring move. Mother Nature was on my side and provided a rare and beautiful sunny Sunday. But what does this all have to do with dog training?
When I moved my ‘stuff’ I also had to take into consideration the impact of the move on my animals. The packing up of all the household belongings and he stacking of boxes is enough to drive a sane person mad. Can you imagine what your dogs are you thinking as you spend hours putting all your precious belongings in boxes? Your stress is probably so thick you can cut it with a knife. Your dog may not be able to understand why the boxes are being loaded but can read you and your stress.
What can you do to minimize your dog’s stress when moving? Here are a few tips. In fact, these tips can be used not only when or if you move but even when planning a weekend getaway or a longer holiday…any move that may cause stress (positive (exciting) or negative)
- Prior to moving day or vacation time, make time for a small run through if possible
- Keep bedding and food dishes in ‘normal’ spots until the dog is ‘packed’ into the car
- Have your dog crate trained so that the crate becomes the home away from home.
- Try and visit the ‘new’ place prior to actual moving day with your dog
- Leave your dog with a friend or in the car until the boxes and furniture are moved into the house (avoid from being under foot during the confusion/chaos)
- Ensure dog bed and dishes are unpacked and place in secure places before introducing your dog to the new location (they will smell like home)
- Take your dog for a walk on moving day and the days prior and post move (it helps calm everyone’s nerves)
- Initially don’t leave your dog unattended unless confined (preferably in a crate)
- If your dog is fairly stressy, make him/her wear a Thundershirt to help calm the nerves.
For some dogs, as with people, change maybe eagerly received. This isn’t the case for many dogs. A completely different approach to moving or traveling may be to place your dog with friends or in a kennel (www.Time4Dogs.com) until things settle down or return to ‘normal’.
Basically, there is no single magic formula to ease travel or moving stress or I would have used it on myself last week.
For those of you preparing to move this spring or fall, happy packing and for the rest of you I hope you are able to plan some wonderful holidays with your four legged furry friends.
Sophie Budin
Sniff, Sniff, Hooray…
The nose knows…Of the five senses, the sense of smell works immediately when puppies are born. With instinct and sense of smell, they are able to locate their mother’s nipple for food yet as humans; we primarily train our dogs with hand signals (eyesight) and verbal cues (hearing).
A dog’s sense of smell is said to be 1000 times more sensitive then that of humans. Check out this article on aDog’s Sense of Smell. For this reason, dog’s noses have been used to locate illegal drugs, sniff out cancer, or in search and rescue situations. Mind you, the dog nose is also used for saying hello to fellow dogs…no shaking hands for them.
TNT offers you the opportunity to harness your dog’s powerful sniffer and put it to work. Sniffer classes are being offered starting Tuesday, March 6, 2012 at 7:30pm. Sniffer classes introduce you and your dog to the basics of searching and identifying ‘finds’. Dogs of any breed and young or old can participate in this class. If they have a nose, they have the proper physique for it.
If your dog spends oodles of time with his/her nose glued to the ground or sniffing the air for the illusive ball, food, perhaps a squirrel or bunny rabbit or your dog just needs a bit more mental stimulation in his/her life, this class is for you. If your dog needs to develop a bit more confidence or is reactive to other dogs, this class works with dogs one on one. Only one dog is working in the building at a time while the handlers observe and learn before then bringing in their own dogs.
Allowing your dog to be a dog and hunt for something specific and then being rewarded for it is the ultimate dog job. The skills taught in class can be practiced in your backyard and even in your living room.
So sniff your way to the registration section of the TNT Training website and sign up today for the next set with starts on Tuesday, April , 2012 at 7:30pm and explore the world fro your dog’s perspective.
Video on Demand Contest!
How to Enter:
- Write a short note describing which topic or training problem you would like to see Janice demonstrate and or problem solve for her Video on Demand training clips.
- Then submit it to us by either emailing it to tntkennels@telus.net (with ”CONTEST” in the subject line) or visit the TNT Training facebook page and post on our wall. At the end of April Janice will look over all the submissions and choose the one she likes the best.
Winner will be announced on our website, our facebook page and the next issue of the newsletter. Not only will the winner win the Step by Step DVD set mention above but… your topic will be featured next month as the TNT competition training tip!
