Mia Semuta

It’s my first birthday! One year ago today I began training dogs full-time. In the past year I have learned so much, picked up so much 💩 and have laughed and smiled more than I have in 10 years.

My pack has grown to nearly 100 dogs but is now 2 kitties fewer. 🐶 We’ve had amazing triumphs and heart-breaking losses. It’s all about balance.

In honor of the big one I’m offering a special for the first week of July. $100 off your tuition on the Good Dog Program if paid in full upon signing. Same great program and perks, same access to personal lessons and pack life, same dedication and attention- just a little less expensive. 😉

Love & Belly Rubs, Zia

My sweet Gigi just turned six.  Probably.  I’m not really sure, she’s only been with me for a year and a half.  Pony will be seven in August.  Again, probably.  By all accounts, they are really good dogs.  They still wear their e-collars every day. 

I am frequently asked by new clients, “How long will he have to wear this?”  The answer is forever is best.  It’s more than just a training tool; it’s a communication tool.  Once those lines of communication are open why are so many people so eager to close it? 

When I take the collars off the charger in the morning, the dogs dance around excitedly, vying to be the first to have it put on.  To the uninformed and sadly mistaken the thought is, “Why are they so happy to have a shock collar put on?”  That entire thought process is a perfect example of how misunderstood e-collars are. 

The e-collar, when used properly, is the Rosetta Stone.  It translates between human and dog.  It allows your dog to understand what you want and need from him.  That’s all he really wants, to make you happy.  By knowing how to do that, as well as knowing what not to do, he is able to complete his personal mission:  making you happy.

They know all of their commands, they are trustworthy, they are eager to please and they wear their e-collars everyday.  Ain’t broke, not fixin’ it.

Love & Belly Rubs,

Zia

Let’s take the dog for some fun and exercise with other dogs!  It’s safe because it’s all fenced in and- just as the title suggests- it’s designed for dogs!

Oh. My. God. No.

Hard No.

Absolutely not. 

Don’t go there.

The picture featured on this post is a stock photo I found when I googled “dog park.”  It features well-mannered, happy dogs, engaged people and grass.  This is a viciously misleading fantasy.  Dog Parks are not the utopian canine paradise others would have you believe.  They are equivalent to an unsupervised after-prom party with plenty of alcohol. 

Most dog parks are populated with dogs who don’t get regular, structured walks.  Their parents often think that a trip to the park is exercise.  Sure, it may tire them out but it’s no substitute for a structured walk.  Dogs need exercise that will engage their bodies and their minds.  Being asked to follow all of the rules for the entire walk is the important piece.  This does not exist in the pup mosh pit.

The people at the park are often not paying attention to their dogs or they are grossly uninformed about what’s happening.  It is not normal for dogs to be humping and acting as bullies.  These are dominance establishing behaviors and have no business in a pack of domesticated dogs.  If there are humans involved then the humans should be in charge.  Ergo, there is no need to hump to determine the leader.

Those same people who don’t know how to manage their dogs?  They don’t always clean up after them, either.  After two days of rain, I went out into my back yard with my gloves on and cleaned up all the crap.  Why?  Because I don’t want my dogs running through their own waste and filth!  At a dog park there is almost always piles and piles of poo just hanging around waiting for someone to step it in.  No, thank you very much.

Free play is an amazing reward for a pup who has worked hard to earn it.  I like to offer play time at the end of every group class and as often as possible on our regular outings.  I am picky about whom my dogs play with because I want to know that their playmates are vaccinated and healthy.  I want to know that their playmates’ parents are paying attention and prepared to step in if the need arises. 

You don’t have to go to the extreme that I did and begin your own obedience school!  You can just join mine. 😉

Love & Belly Rubs,
Zia

This is Willie.  Willie died today.  It wasn’t his fault, but still, he’s at the Bridge now waiting for his person.  It’ll be another 40 to 50 years but one day they will be together again.  Willie will wait for him because he is a good dog.  He is sweet and loving and loyal and affectionate.  He is loved.  He has a family who is crying and will miss him forever.  So, why did Willie get only two short years on this earth?

He was in a high-kill shelter in Alabama when a rescue in New York pulled him off of death row.  Nobody is sure how he ended up there.  Considering that he had no manners it’s likely that he was feral and had to fend for himself for most of his life.  He was taken to a veterinarian then to a foster family before he was adopted by a family in New Jersey this past December. 

Oh, what a Christmas that must have been!  Mom, Dad, two kids and their existing dog joyously welcomed Willie into their family.  They bought him beds and toys and really good food and they loved him.  They loved him so very much.  As he settled into his new family he showed them his appreciation with affection and lots of puppy kisses.  He loved them as much as they loved him. 

And then it happened.

Willie bit Grandpa.  His dad tells me he should have been paying better attention and that he should have stopped it.  But then Willie bit again.  Then he jumped over the fence to chase a deer and didn’t come home until 4 AM.  He was out for a walk with his Mom when he lunged at another dog.  Willie’s bad manners and scary attitude started rubbing off on the other dog in the house.

Willie’s parents had a serious talk about if theirs was really the forever home for him.  They decided to send him to me for a couple of weeks of intensive training.  They so wanted it to work, they wanted him to learn good manners and to come back home confident that he would not to hurt people or animals and to stop escaping.  Their daughter sent me the sweetest note through her Dad’s facebook messenger:

Dear Ms. Semuta, Thank you for helping our dog, Willie.  I know you are going to teach him good manners.  Please don’t teach him not to lick our faces.  I like that.  Your friend, L*

Ever the teacher, I wrote back:

Dear L*,

I promise to take very good care of Willie and teach him all the very best manners.  I also promise that you want him to lick your face or your hands or your toes or even your bellybutton he will still do that!  You promise me that while Willie is at school with me that you will work hard in school at home and when you are all back together you will both be so proud of all your hard work. 😊

Your friend,
Zia

Willie arrived on a bright and sunny Saturday morning.  I had coached his family through muzzle training him so that I wouldn’t be another hand on his rap sheet.  We took him for a walk in the park with my dogs and another graduate of the program.  He was amazing.  He wasn’t sure what to think of the collars I put on him but he caught on and was soon enjoying his new friends without the muzzle.  His Dad drove back to New Jersey with my assurance that he would be a well-mannered gentleman by the time he returned in two weeks to pick him up. 

He was amazing.  For over a week he fit right into my pack and learned the rules.  He obeyed my commands and passed all of his milestones.  He earned privileges and began setting an example.  I kept wondering why his parents sent him to me.  He was such a nice boy! 

On Day 10 Willie showed me why he was here.

He attacked another dog.

It’s that simple.  He was not provoked.  He was not in fear for his life and as much as I wanted it to be something I missed he did it because he snapped.  He gave me no warning, gave no indication that something was wrong.  I so wanted it to be my fault.  I wanted to have made some mistake because if it was me then I could fix it.  The other dog was taken to the vet where they cleaned him up and gave him some anti-biotics. He is fine and Willie went right back to his happy-go-lucky self. So, no harm, no foul, right? 

Wrong. 

Now, I didn’t trust him.  Now, I was afraid. I replayed the incident over and over in my head. I kept trying to remember some little twitch or tell that I had missed. I had missed it before, what if I miss it again? 

No more group class or lessons for Willie until I did some research.  I reached out to my peers on the internet for their thoughts, I spoke at length about him with Jeff and JoElle from Solid K9 Training when they came to visit my class a few days later.  I kept searching for the thing I missed that could have stopped it from happening.  I really wanted to have missed something.

There was none. 

I hadn’t missed a sign or a twitch or a tell.  Willie gave no warning, he just attacked.  I set him up.  I created an environment in which he was likely to react the same way again.  He fell right into my trap.  This time, I saw his tell.  He was obviously loading and I corrected him using the nuclear option.  He passed the next test with flying colors!

Again, no harm, no foul, right?  Willie was fixed.  We found the problem and we fixed it!

No.

See, here’s the thing.  No matter how well I taught him manners and how well he passed the tests I set up for him I could not shake that nagging feeling that he never gave me a warning before he attacked the other dog.  He just didn’t.  I could not look his family in the eye and tell him that he wouldn’t do it again.  I wrestled with my conscience but kept thinking about the little girl who wrote me that sweet note and the little boy who was afraid that when Willie left he would never come back.  And I thought about their other dog and their Mom who was so terrified when she took him for a walk.  He had learned all of his commands and even graduated but I took a long, hard look in the mirror and then I spoke the words out loud.  The kindest thing for Willie is to euthanize him.

I couldn’t recommend he goes back to live in a family who was now afraid of him.  I could teach them all of the commands and how to use the e-collar properly.  I could coach them on high-risk situations and how to balance praise and discipline.  The one thing I could not do is tell them why he did it and how to tell when he will do it again.

His Dad and I spoke briefly about re-homing him but I couldn’t ask another family to take on that risk, either.  I still can’t tell when he might snap again.  A sanctuary, perhaps?  A dangerous dog rescue?  For this 15# little terrier mix who wants to snuggle and love 99% of the time, is that a life?  Isolated in a kennel with minimal human interaction?  His little mind and soul are already tormented; that environment will only exacerbate the problem.  It’s not only about who Willie might hurt next but also about how badly Willie himself is hurting. The stress and mental torture of needing to fight the urge to be violent is astronomical. The kindest thing for Willie is to release him from his demons and to let him go. 

He’s now at peace.  He is no longer in pain.  His demons have been exorcised and his little soul is free.  I was there; Pony and I took him home to New Jersey and we spent the day with him and his Dad.  When the time came, I went into the hospital with them and I enveloped him with as much love as I had to give.  I bore witness to his crossing and I was in agony.  I ugly cried tears of anguish when his little soul slipped out of his body as his heart stopped beating. 

It was the right thing to do.  It was the hardest thing but it was the right thing.  I wish I could have given him a better life than whatever it was that affected his mind so severely.  I really, really wanted to fix him but he was just too far gone.  All of the obedience and love in the world could not unbreak his psyche and so letting him go was the last thing we could do for him.  Willie died today and he took a little piece of my heart with him.

Love & Belly Rubs, Zia

My dogs don’t shake.  They don’t give a paw or high five, they don’t roll over.  Hell, Gigi doesn’t even want you to notice she’s in your presence let alone touch her!  I don’t teach my dogs tricks. 

Pony and I spent the afternoon at a charity golf tournament yesterday.  We helped at hole # 5 at Tee Off Against Cancer.  We served beer and chatted with golfers while explaining the $10,000 prize if they should get a hole in one.  For the most part, Pony just laid under the table and waited for someone to call him over.  He obliged and lovingly received the attention and pets.  I had brought along some treats because people like to give dogs treats.  It was for a good cause so why not?  He was a terrific morale boost but so many of them were disappointed that he doesn’t shake.

I’m not.

When I call him, he comes.  When I tell him to do so he sits and lies down, he gets off the couch or onto a place I indicate.  He keeps an eye on my nephew or brings back the kitty when he gets out.  Pony maintains playtime perimeter and helps teach all the new dogs in the pack the ropes.  He calms the nervous ones and plays fetch or chase with the playful ones.  He offers comfort to the sad and joy to the heartbroken.  He has laid patiently on the driveway while my godsons drew a chalk outline of him and has been known to sleep on the floor next to the crate of a terrified foster puppy who needed him to be able to sleep.

Gigi obeys the commands I give her and helps teach manners and boundaries to all the new dogs.  She’s a shy girl and appreciates that I don’t make her socialize with strangers.  She’ll take a treat gently if told to do so but she has no interest in performing for your entertainment.  She’s not as outgoing as her brother but the role she plays in our family and business is no less important. 

Most dogs come to me for training because they are lacking in basic manners.  Gigi is super quick to let them know when they’ve violated her personal space.  She’s quick to defend Ruben, the cat, which may seem strange but she’s also obsessed with his cat food so I’m thinking she doesn’t want to lose that meal ticket.

I often wonder if maybe I should teach them to shake so that they have a trick to show off.  That thought never lasts long because who cares?  When we’re walking and I tell them to sit and stay so I can clean up after them they do it even if an ill-behaved dog comes wiggling past trying to tempt them.  If they take off after a bunny and I tell them to stop they do.  Pony even helped a police officer locate and destroy a rabid groundhog once.  He was so proud!  They get a drink or potty on command.  That’s super helpful on a hot day and I don’t want them to get dehydrated or in the middle of a blizzard and I don’t want to be standing around outside while they find the perfect spot.  They set a fine example for all the dogs in our pack and lead the way.  If I want to watch a soccer or baseball game they lie on their little mats next to my chair and don’t fuss so I can be the crazy aunt cheering on the sideline.  They love me unconditionally.

But they don’t shake.

I’m totes cool with that.

Love & Belly Rubs,
Zia

Imagine your baby just turned a year and is freshly walking.  A little unsteady on her feet but she’s getting around.  Oh my goodness, she’s adorable!  And she’s smiling and curious, so happy and alert.  Why don’t you take her out of that stroller and let her wander around the park?  She can go meet people and their dogs, explore her surroundings, put things in her mouth.  I mean, after all, you want her to be friendly, don’t you?  You don’t need to hold her hand!  She’ll be fine.  She needs to explore and discover her world, don’t stifle her happiness by keeping her close.  She can go play with those kids over there without your help.  They’re just kids.

Are you freaking kidding me?  You wouldn’t you let your human child do that so why on earth is it okay to let your dog?

I am frequently criticized for not allowing my dogs to wander too far from me or to meet strangers.  Guess what?  I don’t care.  Even in the best of circumstances, with all the right training and with all the proper precautions, dogs can snap and an unfortunate situation can escalate in a heartbeat.  My dogs, on their leashes in a proper heel or off leash under voice command are not oppressed or denied their “dogdom.”  No, they cannot smell every blade of grass and pee on every spot that strikes their fancy.  Do you knock on every neighbor’s door asking to use their bathroom when out for an evening stroll?  When the conditions and playmates are right they get playtime and they are allowed to rip and tear and sniff and pee on anything they want.

Dogs do not need to do those things.  They do not view and value freedom they same way that we do.  They value rules and boundaries.  They value understanding where they belong and their security.  If you truly, I mean truly, love your dog and want what is best for him then be picky about with whom he interacts.  Not every child who rushes up to you to pet the puppy needs to be indulged.  It’s totally okay to say no.  If the kid asks politely I may even say, “No, we’re working but thank you for asking.”  If it’s a rude little kid who rushes forward, hands outstretched, I’m maybe not so nice. 

Again, why?  Because if this were my human child I would not allow every random stranger to hold her.  Hell, I might not even let some family members near her until hands were washed and cigarettes are long since extinguished.  Nothing to apologize for, I expect you to want the best for your entire family.  Expecting the best means not falling for the emotional blackmail that tries to tell you that your dog is sad because it can’t take candy from strangers. 

Love & Belly Rubs, Zia