Pawsitive Pack Leader

06/25/2023

👇🏻

Bingo!

06/05/2023

Blue-green algae is extremely fatal to dogs! If you notice any body of water that looks like this, do not let your pet swim in it or drink it. If you think your dog has come into contact with blue-green algae, rinse them off immediately with clean water and call your veterinarian.

05/23/2023

Website is down apparently for anyone trying to place orders.
Will get fixed later today.
PM me.

04/21/2023

11/24/2022

My early morning coffee crew this morning ☕️
Murphy & Molly are here for a little staycation while their hoomans are taking a little vacation ❤️
Welcome aboard friends ☺️

08/19/2022

We are excited to welcome BREA into our Superstars Boarding and Training School for Puppies. BREA is 5 months old. She has some undesirable habits that need to change and will be spending time with ODT training partner Heather Shilling.

Stay tuned for updates!

06/10/2022

If you're considering hiring a dog trainer, you first need to decide how badly you want your dog's behaviour to change. If you are not willing to also make changes then hiring a dog trainer may just be a huge waste of your hard earned money! Us humans need to step up and take responsibility for the influence we have on our dog and how it affects their training.

06/05/2022

Congratulations to our Graduates 🎓 ❤️

04/24/2022

People can be so disappointing.
Keep your dogs safe.
Be smart, stay away from dog parks.

Uncooked hotdogs with fishing hooks inside were located attached to and along the fence line at the dog park (Kerr Park) off of Beaumont Drive, in the Town of Bracebridge, Muskoka. The Bracebridge OPP is seeking the public’s assistance to identify the individual(s) responsible.

Please remain cautious, keep a close eye on your pets and report suspicous persons or activity to OPP at 1-888-310-1122 or Crime Stoppers of Simcoe Dufferin Muskoka anonymously at 1-800-222-8477.

03/11/2022

03/11/2022

03/08/2022

Land of the littles today 🐾
Ellie & Jemma are here for a visit to check everything out before they board with us next month.
Ellie was quick to remember us & went right to task to show Jemma around.
Welcome ladies 💕

02/21/2022

Jay & Levi are hanging out with us for a little staycation while their family head out for a long overdue vacation 💕
Jay is a past training client of ours & has stayed with us in the past but this is the first visit for his little brother Levi.
Welcome boys ♥️

02/16/2022

Always so great when good friends come for a visit 💕
After a day of fun & friends, everyone is ready for a nap 😴
We have missed you Emmy! Thanks for bringing your new sister Spark to visit.
Rumi, who boards with us regularly loves to come & meet new dog friends.
She needed some work with proper introductions so we are always happy to help.

01/05/2022

Great diagram on potty training! 🐾

12/11/2021

⚠️🆘⚠️🆘 URGENT NOTICE 🆘⚠️🆘⚠️

If you purchased the Irish Rover advent calendar from Costco this year, please stop feeding the treats immediately!

Irish Rover and Costco are contacting customers who have purchased the calendar to indicate "it does not meet their standards and to stop feeding the treats".

There have been worms found in the treats.

They are not officially announcing a recall and there's a couple of reasons why.

⚠️ Legally they're not required to

⚠️ Recalls are considered a voluntary option for manufacturers as the Canadian pet food industry is not regulated

⚠️ It's not food

Many dogs have already been reported to have become ill from eating the treats. Symptoms include:

🆘 Diarrhea

🆘 Vomiting

🆘 Lethargic

Costco is issuing refunds for all calendars purchased.

As noted above, please stop feeding the treats from the 2021 Irish Rover advent calendars sold by Costco immediately.

If your pup is experiencing any of the symptoms after consuming the contaminated treats, please contact your vet.

12/04/2021

The old school bland diet for pets with diarrhea or occasional digestive upset was ground beef and rice, but many veterinarians (including me) have changed their recommendations to 100% pumpkin puree in place of white rice (far less sugar and more beneficial fiber), and ground fat-free turkey in place of hamburger (which has much higher fat).

Have you upgraded your bland diet recipe for the animals in your household?

Click here and subscribe to my daily blog for free to learn more about the benefits of this bland diet for occasional digestive upset: https://bit.ly/3xxgdSQ

10/08/2021

It seems that the ultimate goal for dog owners is to have a dog they can bring to a dog park because that must mean their dog can tolerate and deal with anything 🧐

And I wonder why that's so important?

I understand that many owners with this as their goal in mind, doing it with the best intentions, assuming they’re doing the right thing and are improving the quality of their dog’s life. And for a small amount of dogs, it can be a great experience.

But…

If you have a dog that doesn't really enjoy other dogs, you don't do your dog any favor trying to get him to a point where he can "tolerate" being at the dog park...usually it's quite the opposite and you'll lose your dogs trust that you got his back.

Or if you have a dog that enjoys playing really rough, why is it so important that he can "play" with the miniature doodle at the park rather than finding him a personal play mate that is on his level?

There's many reasons why I don't bring my dog to a dog park regardless of how well tempered and balanced my dog would be...the environment is just way too uncontrolled.

It's like going to a night club, you never know what to expect LOL

The fact that the majority of dogs are dog selective, meaning they prefer a more social circle than having to hug and kiss every stranger they come in contact with, is just another one.

But one of the big reasons I don't bring any dogs there is, because it really is a very unnatural environment for dogs and if you'd like to understand more about this, read my article on that topic.

https://www.k9possible.com/single-post/2016/04/05/Why-Dog-Parks-Are-Unnatural-How-To-Properly-Socialize-Your-Dog

09/19/2021

https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/11/5/1298/htm?fbclid=IwAR2eVERKzkN68yZT8uaDQZiT4s9h_SmOtrRbU8uQBS0_d1ZYCtslEf6tKI0

An online survey about puppy training was sent to members of the Center for Canine Behavior Studies and posted on our social media platforms. Six hundred forty-one (641) qualifying owners provided information on 1023 dogs. About half (48%) of the dogs involved in the study attended puppy training an...

08/16/2021

Excellent points to consider 👌🏻

08/05/2021

👇🏻 Good Read

Let’s set the scene. This may become a bit sensitive for some, and I apologise in advance.

You’re out somewhere. You might be at a restaurant, a bar, a public park on a sunny day enjoying the sunshine with your family. It may be that you’re on your way home from work or trying to catch the bus. You’re just minding your own business.

Suddenly, a person comes straight up to you. They give you anxiety. What is this person going to do? I don’t know! The person is walking with a friend and the friend sees you’re a bit anxious and calls out to you saying “Don’t stress, she/he’s all good!’’ But they keep approaching you. And when they finally reach you they randomly hug you. Touch you. Walk circles around you. Start talking to you. Don’t let you leave.

What would you call that? Harassment? Assault in severe cases?
How would this make you feel?

Now, after the initial shock you find your courage and you ask the person to go away. Leave you alone. But the person doesn’t stop and instead touches your arm or your hair. “Oh come on, we’re alright. I’m not doing anything bad I’m friendly! Just let me be around you.’’You get upset and might push the person. Shout at them. If you’re a bit more of an assertive person you might punch them. Who knows.
Then the person and the friend get upset. Well? WHY are you here then? What are you doing in this public space if you don’t like being around other people? You have no business to be here, minding your own business in this park with your family without allowing me to sit with you, play with you, touch you, talk to you. Actually, you know what you should do? You should be more social! You should go more often to random groups of people.

_______
Do you see what I did there?
If you thought any of the above situation is not okay (and I sure as heck hope you do), then why do we think it’s okay to let dogs run up to strange dogs and say ‘It’s okay he’s friendly’?

What we do in the dog world is the exact opposite what we should be doing. We label the harassed dog as aggressive and the harassing dog as the victim.

Dogs have emotions. They have feelings. They have their own characters and personalities. There are many, many dogs that are not interested in making new friends or being with dogs they don’t know they can trust.

And sure, some dogs love playing with other dogs. Those are the extraverted dogs. Just like we have people that LOVE hugging or love making new friends even as adults, but to be honest.. how many of those people do you know? I think if you put it into a % its lower than the people that rather just are with their select group of people and be left alone by random strangers in public spaces.

So don’t assume the dog your dog is running towards on the beach, is willing to play with your dog. Being in a public space means you need to have your dog under effective control. And if you can’t call your dog back, it should be on a long line until you can.

——-

In case you’re interested.. after quite a few requests I made a video version of this blog as well.

Your dog is NOT friendly, he's harassing others
https://youtu.be/YlWf02MHKCo

05/03/2021

Attention Pet Parents!

According to Zuke's Natural Dog Treats: "We are proactively and voluntarily removing all Zuke's Mini Naturals from store shelves as well as various online retailers. Out of an abundance of caution and to ensure Pet Parents only have the best experience with our products.

For retailers: Promptly dispose of all Zuke's Mini Naturals products in a safe and lawful manner that ensures the product does not re-enter the marketplace. Please provide documentation of all product disposal.

If you aren’t completely satisfied with your recent Zuke’s Mini Naturals purchase, we are always happy to issue you a refund. To reach a member of our Pet Parent Relations team, please visit website or give us a call at 1-866-985-3364."