No Jumping

Nov 18 2014 : Mirror (Bangalore)

Jumping is one of the most common problems that I see with my clients' dogs. I stay up at night to think about this rather J interesting problem. You see, as we walk our dogs, along the way, our dogs have made friends with a few homeless dogs. So they play with each other. And there is no jumping in that play. The homeless dogs come up to us to get petted and there is no jumping there either. Then what happens to these dogs when they come into our homes and become part of our family? Where does this jumping come from? Simple answer ­ us. We teach them that. In that light, it's a very good exercise to examine what we do to encourage our dogs to jump, something that is actually not so natural for them to do.

Tigger gave me a very good guide on how this simple need to get our attention transforms into jumping. When she came to us, she was a true blue homeless dog. She did not jump and wanted physical contact in very limited ways. But over time, we have successfully taught her to jump. How? By rewarding her profusely when she jumped. Each jump was followed by immense petting and lots of affection. To a point that she got addicted to that reaction and would jump higher, more enthusiastically, faster and now even theatrically...anything that gets a reaction.

I am not on a mission to get her to stop jumping. It's very easy with her. She is a little dog. So when she jumps, I consciously think of what might constitute a reaction and refrain from giving it to her.She backs off and then I call her to me when she is sulking away in a corner and compensate with love and treats.

My other dog Nishi, on the other hand, is a massive dog. The first challenge is to ignore her jumping and give her no reaction at all.At the least, most people squeal out of surprise or pain when she jumps, as she is one muscular, strong dog. That is more than enough reaction for her and she will keep at it. So it has dawned on us that if she gets an opportunity to jump, she WILL get a reaction, one way or another. So the answer is to get her not to jump at all.So here are some tips to avoid the jump all together.

One way is to get very predictive and advice people around that as soon as the dog starts walking towards them, they turn away and not make eye contact with the dog or say her name. That way, she comes by and walks away. This works great if you are introducing your dog to one other person in an environment where she has other things to do. So if the person is giving her enough message of not being interested in her, Nishi leaves them alone.

In confined areas where there is too little to distract her and predictions get hard, put her on a leash till the first part of her excitement is out of her system, then let her go off the leash very unceremoniously and give her something to chew on so that she settles down.

For guests visiting home, it's a good idea to go meet the guests outside with the dog, walk about a bit and walk back in together.Again give a bone to chew on, scatter some treats for the dogs to search and find.

But there are two things to remember with these techniques.Firstly, dogs do not generalise easily. So if they learn it with one person, they don't know to offer the same behaviour with another person. So it's important to practice this with as many people as possible in the first few weeks till you start getting perfect behaviour from your dog.

Secondly, this cold shoulder treatment is not for life. So don't feel guilty. As soon as your dog learns to greet you and your visitors politely, then you can be nice to your dog, pet him and tell him you still love him so, so much. It's just a little tough love at the start to lay a strong foundation for your relationship. As tough as it might be at the start, it's all worth it in the end to build a warm loving canine family.

When dog meets dogs

Oct 28 2014 : Mirror (Bangalore)

The words we use to describe dog behaviour are often loaded with assumptions. One such term is “social“. Dogs are indeed hyper social animals. They like the company of their own species and ours and we love them for it. However, we need to understand how dogs interact with their own species and with us; and what socialisation, play and fight mean to dogs.

One of the best places to observe healthy dog-dog interaction is in villages that are not as crowded and fast paced as cities. Heading off to the hills with our dogs has taught a lot.

When dogs greet each other, it's not about full frontal hugs and air kisses; that's a human thing. Dogs are quite averse to it, though many dogs learn to tolerate it from humans over time. Dogs themselves view head-on encounters as confrontational. When dogs meet, often a lot of nonconfrontational signs exchanged between them. They are very subtle and easy to miss. Some are hard for us to understand. Dogs seem most interested in each other's rear ends.Some dogs flop down and go on their backs. Some dogs just decide that this is not a potential friendship for them and walk away. This is something we need to accept as natural meeting rituals of dogs.

The critical mistake we make at this stage is not to give dogs the calm environment and space they need. Often, in our eagerness to be social with other humans, we pollute the environment with a lot of talk, laughter and artificial camaraderie. We also tend to expect party behaviour in dogs, where a dog enters an environment with several other dogs and greet all cordially, just as we do at parties. But in the canine world, all that is noise and stress. It's too much for dogs and it can all fall apart at meet-and-greet itself.One-on-one meetings between dogs are better; in fact, completely avoid talking to the dogs when two dogs are meeting. Ideally, dogs should meet on leash, but it's important to keep the leash slack, so as not to interfere with their communication.

Dog-dog play is not always rambunctious as we see in movies. While it's fun to watch dogs burst into play, they immensely enjoy just spending time with their doggy friends and doing doggy activities together. Village doggy-friends often go exploring interesting smells or take walks together.Intense play happens in very short bursts, lasting just a few seconds. Play can easily turn into fight if there are too many dogs in too small a space or if dogs are tired. At the first sign of fatigue, break up the play session and allow your dog to rest, even if it seems like the play session was too short.

If the dogs do break into a fight, it's important not to yell and add to the commotion. Instead, react fast and walk away from the situation, calling your dog in a friendly tone. Your dog is most likely to walk behind you. But breaking up fights in dogs can be very dangerous to people. It's best to be vigilant when there are multiple dogs around and at the first sign of dogs tensing up or tiring out, separate them and let them rest. The tell-tale signs are stiffening of the muscles, intense staring, excessive yawning, growling or baring teeth.

While dog-socialisation is catching, a common error is crowding. Arrange play sessions between just two dogs and allow them to sniff around and explore a lot or take a walk together, instead of being in each other's faces. It's safer and more pleasant for dogs. The best of play sessions are short, sweet and safe.

Detox aftere Diwali for Dogs

Oct 21 2014 : Mirror (Bangalore)

It's the festive season. Everyone deserves a fun time. So do our dogs, which are perhaps far less eager than us when it comes to fire crackers. But there are a few things we can pamper them with, after the noise subsides.

There are several ways to calm dogs down.

The most fun way for a dog is to be mentally stimulated. So take him on some new walk routes. Keep the walks uber slow. Let the dog sniff as much as his cute little snout can smell. This has a tremendously calming effect. Do not talk to him at such a time. Do not give commands. Just let him smell till he is done and ready to leave. Cut your walk routes shorter to allow loads of sniffing.

Visit interesting places with your dog. It could be a sand pile, a site under construction or a parking lot. Sometimes, if you know you will be driving through a quiet neighbourhood, you can take your dog with you, give him a small walk there and finish up your work and bring him back.

If you have access to any place with a lawn, bring along some of your dog's favourite treats and scatter them in the lawn. Let him sniff it out. Five to nine minutes of this activity, and your dog will be exhausted.

Another classical way is massage. There are a few different ways to massage your dog. At all times, you have to keep a close eye on him to know that he is indeed enjoying it. If he is not, you have to stop immediately and try at another time and try something else.

How do you know your dog is enjoying what you are doing? He will tell you. If he is relaxed, he may let out a sigh of relief and plop on one side. But if what you are doing is stressing him out, he might start yawning, licking his lips and turning his head away from you. His breath might get quicker too.

So, here are a few massage techniques that I find work very well on dogs. When your dog is sitting, but not sleeping, start with the point right under the neck and with long slow strokes, stroke all the way to the tail. Repeat these several times till he relaxes fully or falls asleep.

Another method is what I call the “Mommy monkey“ method. Here, you make small circular movements with your fingers very close to the skin and gradually move to other parts. My younger dog Tigger prefers this type of massage.

For the more muscular dogs, you could massage them by slightly applying pressure on their muscles. It has to be a very light touch and if the dog shows discomfort at being touched in any place, stop immediately. Nishi, my older dog, loves this type of massage and falls into deep stupor, snoring and all! These massages are not just for calming. These repetitive tactile movements make the body release hormones that make both the person and dog happy and helps them bond. Of course, I speak out of experience: When I convert it into a full spa experience with soothing music and some incense, I too relax, talk about my day and we unwind so well. It's a great bonding exercise for us.

Kade - the Kannada Villain

Oct 14 2014 : Mirror (Bangalore)


I recently had a gentleman called Sanjay contact me and thank me for bringing Kade into his life. I asked him I who Kade was and he said that Kade was his recently adopted Labrador. I was intrigued and wanted to know his story. Obviously, I started out by asking if he had always loved animals. He revealed that while he loved pets, his partner hated them. This story had just gotten interesting.How does one go from hating animals to adopting one?
And what is that journey like?
I was convinced there was a heart warming story here.So I asked him to go right to the start and tell us how the conversation of “Let's get a dog“ came up in his home.

“I and my partner have been living together from almost two years now. We wanted to complete our family and enjoy parenting. Being a gay couple, it was difficult for us to think of adopting a child. I always loved pets but was scared of having one; my partner Sudhir hated animals.“

It was touching. Most of us pet parents can relate to that parental love we have for our dogs. But going from hating animals to adopting is indeed a long leap. So I needed to understand how that leap happened.

“The dining table conversation of “Let's have a dog at home“ initiated by me resulted in lots of argumentsproblems. But one day, he read an article about adopting a dog which ended with a sentence “I hope anyone reading this post will consider adopting an abandoned and suffering animal“.Sudhir was convinced about adopting a pet. I thought we should purchase a puppy and a fancy breed. Always thought that only puppies will adjust to a new house and new people etc. But this thought changed when I met this stranger who told me about animal shelters and CUPA. Then, a 30-minute conversation in the traffic signal with CUPA changed my mind. This girl from CUPA told me only one thing, visit the shelter, there are lots of dogs of all age groups getting thrown out on the road every day from houses and they are waiting for a home in the shelter.“

So that is how I knew this gentleman. That stranger that told them about CUPA was moi. I never miss out opportunities to talk about adoptions and Indian dogs. You never know on whose ears it may fall on and whose life could change. All we can do is carry our message out. This made me joyous.

Since Sanjay mentioned he wanted to buy a pup, I discussed with him the thought process that made him decide to go for adoption. “Initially, we were thinking of purchasing a Beagle. But we visited CUPA's animal shelter in Silk Board with a very open mind. I still remember the first day was more about climbing up on the chairs in CUPA and screaming at the sight of dogs in the rooms. But in all the confusion, we still got shocked to see plenty of dogs of different breeds. Most of them were thrown out of houses for silly reasons and from puppy-making factories after being used. Our heart melted hearing these stories and we made a decision. We may or may not adopt a dog. But we are not buying one for sure!“ So what happened between standing-on-chairs-screaming and now that allowed Kade to join the family. “In CUPA's visiting room, there was this Kade, he was the only dog which I touched there during my visit. Kade was found abandoned somewhere near Electronic City. He is a charmer. He gave us that look of `Can I come home with you guys?' And yes, he entered our heart instantly. We visited CUPA several time together and spent time with Kade.Finally, we became very friendly and picked a date to welcome him home.“

It was evident that Sanjay and Sudhir were first-time pet parents and had a lot to cope with. Words of wisdom from them to other pet parents: “If you are scared of dogs, like us, first visit an animal shelter and spend time with dogs.You will be all fine, trust me. Never purchase a dog, opt for adoption. Get an adult dog instead of a puppy. They are toilet trained, well behaved, they won't destroy your laptop charger or furniture.“

He clearly seemed happy with his decision. So I ask this standard question to most people if he had any regrets and he did not even bother replying to it. He spoke volumes with that silence.

Preparing dogs to cope

Oct 07 2014 : Mirror (Bangalore)

On one of our recent walks late at night, we were confronted by a pet that had gotten off leash and was straying towards us. We often encounter stray dogs and they are very easy to communicate with, as their communication system is well developed and sharp. But this dog was a dog that was kept in poor conditioning with very low socialisation and his levels of frustrations are very high.

So his communication had completely shut down. He completely failed to read the signals my dogs and we were giving him and kept advancing on Nishi and Tigger, my dogs. Since it was pitch dark I could not see, tripped and stepped on Nishi’s leg. She yelped. That aggravated the situation and he came after her further. I considered letting go of the leash. But we were on the main road and there were vehicles zipping by and scary speeds. I finally stepped in between and diffused the situation before it got worse. The dog finally turned around and left. But he left with Nishi, Tigger and me shaking.

I was initially overwhelmed with guilt at not having acted faster and more appropriately. I feel deeply responsible for these two souls who look up to me with love and trust. I questioned it I was cut out to be a good enough pet parent at all. But as I looked down at Nishi, she was shaking and looking at me for cues.

What were the cues I was sending her? That the situation was a big deal and one being shattered over? Nope! I had to send her a message that this was a small incident that she had the ability to overcome on her own. I had to show her that she had the tools for it. For that I had to pull myself together and tell myself that I too had the tools to handle this situation without passing on the stress to my dogs. As soon as I told myself that I saw Nishi sigh and she soon calmed down and we resumed with our walk.

All was forgotten within minutes.

Life happens. Part of life is it’s ups and downs. And it effect’s us all – us, others, all species. Life spares no one. We cannot prevent bad things from happening to our loved ones.

We cannot beat ourselves up either. Yes, we are responsible for them. But we cannot control the universe around us. We are just not that powerful.

But is there something we can do? Yes. We can prepare our dogs so that they find it easier to bounce back from such situations with minimal scars. We can create, what I read in one book as a “rubber-band-puppy” – dogs that very quickly bounce back from situations that are scary or troubling.

The foundation for this should ideally start early. But it’s never too late. The process is called environmental training.

Expose the dog to new things at very low stress levels, always staying within the dog’s threshold of tolerance. Expose the dog to traffic, but not by walking on the main road on the very first day. Slowly work up to that. In the mean time, walk during very late or early hours or drive up to a quiet road to walk on till your dog has been gradually desensitized to traffic. You can use the same process for crowds, closed spaces, children, lifts, stairs etc… The most important thing is to not force a dog to head towards it’s object of fear. Use the dog’s natural curiosity instead. Let your dog take his time. Just be there for him. And when he decides to take a step towards his object of fear, don’t say anything. Just smile and show your palm to him in a calming way, as if to say “It’s OK. I am here for you. Go ahead”. If he decides to walk back, respect that and revisit it another day.

It’s likely that while the start will be slow, he will make fast progress once he starts moving towards his object of fear. Be ready for that moment when things start moving forward and quickly start increasing the bar for him by having new challenges ready for him to face. He will soon believe in his own ability to cope with new situations. Make him believe! ing at me for cues.What were the cues I was sending her? That the situation was a big deal and one being shattered over?

Nope! I had to send her a message that this was a small incident that she had the ability to overcome on her own. I had to show her that she had the tools for it. For that I had to pull myself together and tell myself that I too had the tools to handle this situation without passing on the stress to my dogs. As soon as I told myself that I saw Nishi sigh and she soon calmed down and we resumed with our walk.All was forgotten within minutes.

Life happens. Part of life is it's ups and downs. And it effect's us all ­ us, others, all species. Life spares no one. We cannot prevent bad things from happening to our loved ones.We cannot beat ourselves up either. Yes, we are responsible for them. But we cannot control the universe around us. We are just not that powerful.

But is there something we can do? Yes. We can prepare our dogs so that they find it easier to bounce back from such situations with minimal scars. We can create, what I read in one book as a “rubber-band-puppy“ ­ dogs that very quickly bounce back from situations that are scary or troubling.

The foundation for this should ideally start early. But it's never too late. The process is called environmental training.Expose the dog to new things at very low stress levels, always staying within the dog's threshold of tolerance. Expose the dog to traffic, but not by walking on the main road on the very first day. Slowly work up to that. In the mean time, walk during very late or early hours or drive up to a quiet road to walk on till your dog has been gradually desensitized to traffic. You can use the same process for crowds, closed spaces, children, lifts, stairs etc... The most important thing is to not force a dog to head towards it's object of fear. Use the dog's natural curiosity instead. Let your dog take his time. Just be there for him. And when he decides to take a step towards his object of fear, don't say anything. Just smile and show your palm to him in a calming way, as if to say “It's OK. I am here for you. Go ahead“. If he decides to walk back, respect that and revisit it another day.It's likely that while the start will be slow, he will make fast progress once he starts moving towards his object of fear. Be ready for that moment when things start moving forward and quickly start increasing the bar for him by having new challenges ready for him to face. He will soon believe in his own ability to cope with new situations. Make him believe!