Bark City Doggy Daycare

Stress... Ughh. We all get stressed. As humans, we know that familiar feeling of strain or pressure that slowly creeps up on us. And, we have figured out ways to reduce our own stress (hopefully!). Prolonged stress can wreak havoc on our health and well -being. Our canine companions can also feel stress. Just like us, they need ways to reduce their stress or the body will respond through illness and disease. Unfortunately, we humans don't speak dog and dogs don't speak human. It's up the the canine owner to recognize the signs your dog is exhibiting through "dog language" that they are stressed. To recognize the signs of stress in your dog, you must first know your dog's baseline behavior and body posture. Often, stress cues in your dog are very subtle and can mimic normal behaviors. It's up to you as the human to know your dog's normal communication behaviors and then differentiate when something is off a bit: Pacing and Shaking : Dog's wil

In a past post, I wrote about how to deal with food aggression . Today, I will talk about TOY aggression. Both are types of resource guarding in which your dog is exhibiting signs of aggression towards humans or other pets that approach your dog when it's in possession of something highly desirable. At first, this can seem somewhat tame and a little bit annoying, but if not dealt with, it can lead to a dangerous situation for all humans and pets involved. Signs That Your Dog May be Resource Guarding : When you (or another pet) approaches your dog when in possession of a prized object, do they: Refuse to give it up when asked? Snap? Hoard all toys and treats sometimes hiding them? Growl? Exhibit jealous behavior like butting another dog out of the way when you are petting the other dog (Congratulations! You are the prized object!)? If you answered "Yes" to any of these, your dog is exhibiting signs of resource guarding. At first, some of these may seem cut

Emergencies are a type of event that you don't know you are going to have until you are having it. Some emergencies require a brief absence from your home, other emergencies require permanent evacuation. Your four-legged companion is part of your family. If you have family evacuation plans in place for your two-legged family members, shouldn't you also have them for your four-legged? It's always a good idea to have plans in place well before you actually have an emergency. Here are a few things you should think about while you a planning out your emergency protocol: Rescue Alert Sticker : These are those little stickers on your front door that tell emergency workers how many pets you have, what they look like, their names and your veterinarian's phone number. You can get a FREE sticker here .  Evacuation Plan : If you are not safe in your house, your pets aren't either! Please make sure you don't just leave them behind to fend for themselves. Develop a p

Degenerative Joint Disease (DJD) is also known as Osteoarthritis. It is the progressive and permanent long-term deterioration of the cartilage surrounding the joints.  DJD is the #1 cause of chronic pain affecting one in five adult dogs.   For more information on DJD, please see these links: Canine Arthritis Treatment , The Whole Dog Journal, http://www.whole-dog-journal.com/issues/10_3/features/Canine-Arthritis_15910-1.html   Vet Advice: Relieving Your Dog's Arthritis, The Bark, http://thebark.com/content/vet-advice-relieving-your-dogs-arthritis 10 Ways to Help an Arthritic Dog, Vet Street, http://www.vetstreet.com/care/10-ways-to-help-an-arthritic-dog    How to Treat Arthritis in Dogs: Glucosamine, Chondroitin Sulfate, Steroids and NSAIDS , PetMD, http://www.petmd.com/dog/general-health/evr_dg_remedies_for_arthritis_in_dogs#

Because we have a great Enrichment Program , I thought it would be fun to post some enrichment games you can make for your dog at home:  Image: Yes Missy The Muffin Tin Game is somewhat like Hide-and-Go-Seek, but with treats instead of humans. It's pretty simple and easy to put together. You just grab a muffin pan, and place a few treats in random indentations in the pan. Then, place tennis balls over all the indentations. You dog needs to A) figure out how to get the balls out and B) figure out which indentations hold the treats. A full tutorial can be found here: Yes Missy . Image: The Nerd's Wife This enrichment game was found on The Nerd's Wife and will keep your dog entertained for hours. I do want to write a little disclaimer: The Nerd's Wife tutorial on how to make this enrichment toy also endorses Purina Beyond Pet Food. Though Bark City thinks this is an awesome idea for an enrichment toy, we are not endorsing Purina Beyond.... Because, well...

Recently, I have been thinking about the first dog I owned and all the things that I did wrong that caused behavioral problems. I wish I would have had a short list of do's and don't s when I adopted that dog so long ago. It's always easier to think back on these things in hindsight. This week I have decided to compile a list of common mistakes and maybe it will help some other dog owner out there: 1. Treating Your Dog Like a Human : Dogs are not humans (Thank goodness!) They speak a completely different language. Things that humans find appealing may not necessarily mean dogs like them. Take for instance hugs. Most humans like hugs, but often a hug for a dog makes them feel stressed and claustrophobic. Hugs mean something completely different in dog language. As a dog owner, it is really important to learn your dog's language and how they communicate their different emotions. AND, it is equally important to teach your children. For more information on how to tra