Dog Treats: Weekly Experimental Post!

So, this last week I made some cut out treats.  I'm completely behind on this plan to do different treats each week, but it's mostly because I've picked up so many extra hours at work the last couple of weeks!

I bought some basic cookie cutters off Amazon in a few cute shapes, then ordered some custom designed cutters from HomePrint3D on Etsy.  Their customer service is AMAZING and I absolutely adore the work they did.

Idgie was also highly impressed

The recipe I used to begin with is a really simple milk-bone type recipe:
3/4 cup hot water
1/3 cup margarine
1/2 cup powdered milk
1 teaspoon salt
1 egg, beaten
3 cups whole wheat flour
In large bowl pour hot water over the margarine. Stir in powdered milk, salt, and egg. Add flour, 1/2 cup at a time. Knead for a few minutes to form stiff dough. Pat or roll to 1/2 inch thickness. Cut into shapes. Bake at 325 degrees for ~50 minutes. Cool. They will dry out quite hard. Makes about 1 1/4 pounds of biscuits. ((Make sure you put these on the middle rack... I had some on the middle and some on the bottom and the ones on the bottom were too done when I pulled them out!! ))

All three of the pups liked these treats as is with no extra seasoning in them. They're nice and crunchy and apparently tasty. =) I attempted a few batches with slight recipe changes and everything I tried, they loved. Beef or chicken broth in place of the water really got them excited. =) 

This recipe is pretty basic and nothing too thrilling about the cooking process - the excitement here is in the cookie cutters!!!! My initial batch was done with the cutters off of Amazon, and I used the fire hydrant and dog bone cutters for those.

After the etsy cutters came in, I had a blast making them with the logos!!

Each batch of dough made 12-16 of these larger cookies.

She really, really, really didn't want to hold still for this pic!!

Success!!!

My First Bama Bully event

Saturday morning I dove in head first to my first Bama Bully booth: GBHS' Barking for Bucks telethon.  My friend Apasra sent me there with $20 so I could get a shirt (THANK YOU!), Nick is coming by sometime a little later in the morning with Elsa, and I've got a few dog treats baked to help raise a little.

My southern side took over during packaging...

I'm pretty tired from working the night before (and somehow knowing I have to be back at work Saturday evening is making it worse...), but I am really excited because one of the ladies at work saw me making up the baggies and bought two of them from me right then and there!  That was encouraging because I was doubting all the effort I put into the setup (as usual).

I am not able to bring Idgie because I have only had her for one week.  Instead, Nick is going to bring Elsa by a little later in the morning.  I'll have enough time to setup and get settled in before she arrives and then he can walk her around a bit before she has to be contained at the booth with me.

I get there around 8:30 (I got held up trying to make a few extra treats after work) and meet Laura to finish setting up.  By nine the event has started and people are slowly trickling in.  Overall, people were really nice and interested in our adoptable bullies.  Nick brought Elsa around 10:30 and I had to leave to get to bed by noon.

She was a total ham and everyone loved it!

Nick and I walked around to the different booths before I had to leave. Everyone was really nice and I was surprised at how awesome Hollywood Feed is... they actually charge less for Canidae Life Stages food than I am paying off of Amazon!!! They also have a buy 10 get the 11th free with Canidae.  They gave us tennis balls that are a huge hit at the house!!

IAADP Weekly Training Requirements Week of 7/21/14

Age: 5 months
Week of: July 21 - 27, 2014  Total Hours (5 hrs on Site) + (1.5 hrs Outings)

Last week I wasn't doing well at all.  I don't have any explanation for how I managed not to keep up with the training, but I don't have the log for 7/14-7/20

Health:
- Got ill from the Petsafe Indigo Chews that came in her barkbox. She was better a couple of days later. They're sending a toy to make up for the fact she got so sick. I love those people...
- Elsa had excessive eye boogers from Sunday til Wednesday... they are still there, but the vet says it is allergies so we are just treating with benadryl
- Wednesday we went to the vet for a checkup.  She's 5 months, 1 week, and 36 pounds!!

Problems:
- Recently Elsa isn't receptive to her poop command and it caused her to poop in Petco!! I had given her the command before we went in and she just refused to listen.
- Still some nipping, but this seems to be getting better

Outings:
- Petco - 45 minutes

Socialization: 
- Idgie our foster dog came.  The two of them seem happy enough with each other.  Elsa rarely is bothered by other dogs.
- We went to the Hoover dog park twice

Obedience: 
- Lots of time is being spent polishing recall.

Service Dog Tasks: 
- We worked putting her paws on my chest from several different angles.  I can have her to either side or front of me and I will put my hand on my chest in a fist and she puts her paws up!  This is going to be her fake potty signal since she has taken to it so easily.

Manners: 
- NIPPING!! AUGH!

BarkBox Review: July 2014 Box "Day at the Beach"

Another month has flown by and here we are opening up BarkBoxes again!! This month we got two of the same box, so this will be the only review. As I said before, I enjoyed getting two different boxes last month. However, it is kind of neat to be able to have the same things for both the girls.

For those of you who do not know, BarkBox is a monthly subscription service starting at $29 that has a few treats and 1-2 toys a month inside.  You can buy a 3,6, or 12 month subscription at a discounted rate.  I also encourage you to use my referral link and get 10% off!  You can also add on an extra toy for $9/month if your dog is really toy oriented.

BarkBox has the absolute best customer service of any group I've ever met.  Every question I have is quickly answered, every concern I have is thoroughly addressed, and I never feel like they're brushing me off.  They also make it really easy to unsubscribe if you just decide it isn't working out for you.

It was really rainy this week, so we opened it inside!

Our "unboxing":

9" Straight Pizzle - $4

Elsa really enjoyed the pizzle stick.

Bixbi Daily Chicken Breast Jerky Treats - $10

These were really, really, really, really yummy.

1.75oz Mr. Barksmith's Pina Colada Smoothie - $2

I saved these for a day that they had gone running at the dog park for awhile.  They love frozen treats and these were gone impressively quickly. 

11" Plush Shark - $12 

She hasn't figured out the shark has a squeaker in it yet, but she still prances around with it like it's the best thing EVER!!

Petsafe Indigo Triple Chew - $11

These chews didn't set well with our puppies' stomachs. They got pretty sick, and it made me very nervous. Elsa recovered pretty fast. Britta had a harder time. I emailed BarkBox and they are sent us both replacement toys and even a new toy for my foster pup who should be here Friday, Idgie!

In conclusion, we pay $19/month for the boxes (I strongly urge you to buy a subscription and save up to $11/mo), and the box's contents are valued around $37.

Puppy Photos Week of 7/13

Morning Dog Park Fun

Britta loves my tub faucet.

Meet Idgie!  She is going to be my first foster dog... hopefully she will be here Friday!

Buying Idgie and Elsa Silly Bums.  Britta already has one that came in her BarkBox and Elsa always loves to play with it, so I decded it was time for her to have one too.

Winding down after a long day.

IAADP Training Requirements: Weekly Training Overview

Age:
Week of:
July 7 - 13, 2014  Total Hours (5 hrs on Site) + (2 hrs Outings)

Health: 

- Her ears smelled really bad a few days ago.  I was afraid it was a yeast infection, but the smell has gone away.  I will continue to monitor for a repeat.

Problems: 

- Some anxiety is cropping back up.

Socialization: 
- We Talk Dog daycare all day Monday!  They work with her on not jumping and appropriate socialization.
- Wednesday evening Elsa went with daddy and Britta to his game night/puppy playdate.
- Saturday we went to Hoover Dog Park then after to Brusters for puppy sundaes!

Obedience: 
- Basic tasks covered while eating dinner each night

Service Dog Tasks: 
- Working on deep pressure this week.  Elsa doesn't like to sit too long, but she is doing better each time.

Manners: 
- Nipping is an issue again
- She got excited and tried to herd my face when we went walking the other day.  It was nervewracking, but supposedly a puppy thing.

Comments:
- There's some new anxiety that I think is cropping up because I'm not doing enough with Elsa away from Britta.  We've had them together way too much recently.  I will be working with Elsa more and not letting Britta stay with us as much.

Puppy photos! Week of 7/7

We just found out Brusters does puppy sundaes!!

Mommy, I think it's a little too tight...

Got a Kong wobbler this week to keep things varied and interesting at mealtime. 

New Kong! Donated the old one to the humane society. :)

I wanna pump gas too!!

Service Dog Tasks in Puppy Play

Recently, I've had comments about how I must be working Elsa too hard.  I must be teaching her too much and she will burn out before the training is over.  My precious little puppy is four and a half months old and I'm pushing too much onto her and making things serious too fast.
At first, the comments frustrated me.  Now, I just choose to appreciate the concern that people have for making sure my puppy's training stays humane.
Anyone who is around is aware that I spend more time playing with her than "training" in an official sense.  However, the playing is carefully constructed to teach her to be comfortable with things that she will encounter as part of her tasks.  Some days are more structured than others based on how much I've worked at my other job, weather, and other weird factors.

Below, I have listed several things that can be used to keep play going in a useful, yet fun, manner. I hope others will comment with their ideas to help me expand!!
- One meal a day is spent going over basic commands.  This way they work for the kibble, practice basic obedience consistently, and don't even notice it happening.
- We have puzzle toys that sometimes come out for different meals.  They help with staying entertained and I've noticed after we bought a couple that had Elsa using her paws, she's become more interested in utilizing them like little hands.
- Hide and Seek: this can be helpful if one has a fear of coming home to intruders.  It's possible to teach them to bark once they've found you.  You can upgrade to friends hiding when you're out for a walk and then you can come home and have them find the person and bark for a treat.  Eventually that becomes habit to check.
- Mini agility toys: certain things like a mini see saw plank or a hula hoop can be useful to teach agility basics without getting serious too fast.
- Fetch: this easily reinforces bring it and drop it.  Here there is also an opportunity for object recognition reinforcement.  Elsa has become really efficient with "bring it" without much formal training because of this game.
- Biking: Really, any activity can be a bonding exercise.  This one is really helpful to teach her to constantly be focused on me.
- Waking up: When the alarm clock goes off in the morning, immediately give your pup a treat.  They will begin to expect the treat at the sound of the alarm and this can be really helpful during a depressive phase if you're not wanting to get out of bed and your puppy is licking your face.  Eventually, we will refine this and it will become one of Elsa's tasks.

Dog Treats: Weekly Experimental Baking Post!

I want to start selling homemade dog treats and toys on Etsy, so I am going to be doing some experimental recipes that I will record on here and send out samples to a few loyal readers for feedback. I've got a few friends who will try the recipes out, but I also want some other people to try the products out.

This week, I am working on the beginnings of a trail mix for pups.  I'm testing a mix of dried chicken, dried blueberries, and cinnamon-honey-roasted peanuts.

The dried chicken is easy: take it out of a can, rinse off the extra fat, and put the small pieces of chicken in the oven for around four hours at 175 °F.

The blueberries are a bit more involved.  Begin by boiling the blueberries for around a minute to split the skins. 

Then put them in cold water to cool off quickly...

On the side, I added a bit of honey and boiled the juice down for a bit. Then, I stuck the concoction in an ice tray. The pups now have blueberry honey pops!

Take the blueberries out of the cold water and lay them out to dry off.

Then, into the oven at 200 degrees for four hours, stirring every half an hour to help them dry evenly.

Elsa and Britta are both just crazy about the chicken and blueberries.  I tasted one of the blueberries and it is really bitter.  I have NO IDEA why they're so crazy about it!!!  I'm not brave enough to try the chicken now, hahaha.

Onto the peanuts.  On a low temperature, put some cinnamon in the pan.  Then add honey and stir.  (I tried a recipe the first time that called for butter and they just burned in the oven.)

Once you've coated the peanuts, stick them in the oven at 200 degrees for 45 minutes, stirring every fifteen.  Elsa isn't as crazy about these as the blueberries and the chicken, but she will eat them anyway.  Britta seems to like them pretty well. Personally, I like them but am thinking about adding a bit of vanilla flavoring to the mix next time to see how that goes.

In conclusion, of COURSE my pups love these treats, hahaha.  They love EVERYTHING!  To help determine how the treats REALLY are, I'm going to make a big batch of these treats to send out to friends later next week.  Once they've sent their reviews in, I'll post them here!!!

Are you interested in reviewing my treats?  Comment below with an email!  I will be in touch with a few people to review  

DIY Budget Dog Toys

Someone was talking about trying to get toys on a budget for their dog.  I will always and forever recommend BarkBox to anyone who will listen, but I understand sometimes that $20/month may not be feasible, whether unexpected vet bills came into the picture or whatnot.

So here are some ideas for dog toys that can be useful:

1. Water Bottle (with no cap!) inside of a Sock.  I up the ante on this one and put a little kibble in the bottle.  The rattle and crinkle sounds are fantastic.

2. Rope Toys.  As long as you use the correct kind (no flame retardants!), paracord can be woven into fantastic rope toys for pups.  There are a lot of knot designs for rope toys.  Here is one that is a ball that is amazingly fun!

3. Tennis Balls.  There are a thousand things you can do with tennis balls.  I like to take old dishrags, cut holes in the ball, and push the rag through.  It makes a great tug toy!  You can also use them for makeshift puzzle toys.

4. UN-stuffed animals.  Go to goodwill.  Buy a stuffed animal and open it along a seam.  Pull out the stuffing (add a squeaker or some cellophane for crackle noises?) and sew up the toy.

5. Stuffed fabric scraps. Jeans are a good choice for this.  Sew edges together with a thick thread (like embroidery) and stuff it with other scraps or stuffing.

6. Mini see-saw. All it takes is a piece of PVC pipe nailed to a wooden board.  This can be fun if you do agility or want to get your puppy used to some basic agility equipment.

7. PVC pipe. A few pieces of this can make a puzzle toy or several different types of agility equipment.


Remember: always supervise your dog when playing with toys!  Especially if they are heavy chewers.

IAADP Training Requirements: Weekly Training Overview

Age: 4 Months
Week of: June 30 - July 6, 2014  Total Hours (3 hrs on Site) + (2 hrs Outings)

Health: 

- Brushed Thursday
- Trimmed nails Saturday 

- Elsa got a bath on Sunday afternoon

Problems: 

- There has been some improvement on the mouthing.  I think her teething is beginning to slow down!

Outings: 

- Tuesday evening daddy took Elsa and Britta to his game group and they got to play with those dogs

- The fireworks definitely didn't bother Elsa as much as I expected and now I have another idea for desensitization outings: taking the pups to the park next to the baseball field on nights they are going to have fireworks.  She wasn't bothered at all by the fireworks and I want to keep it that way!  As soon as I have earplugs (or whatever our vet recommends), we will start this tradition.

Socialization: 
- Hoover Dog Park Friday afternoon

Obedience: 
- As usual, we've spent once a day working on basic commands while eating
- We are slowly dragging out "stay"

Service Dog Tasks: 
- Beginner task games were practiced, as usual.  Not much will change until she is a bit older.

How to get (Play)Dates for Your Dog

Elsa and I have a variety of friends that she hangs out with.  We work to have play-dates with several different types of dogs and I have really had to overcome my social anxieties to make sure she continues to meet new pups.

Here is a list of ways you can expand your doggy social circle:

1. Dog Classes: whether it is obedience, agility, or any other specialty, you can meet dog owners who are striving toward the same thing with their dogs.  This can be nice because it will give you something specific to talk about with the other human while your dogs interact.
2. Dog Park: did your dog get along extremely well with one of the other pups?  Try to set up a time to meet at the park again!
3. Local Dog Events: here in Birmingham, we have Doo Dah Day.  We also have other dog-friendly events throughout the year.  These are awesome opportunities to find like-minded dogs for your baby.
4. Just Ask Friends: your friends probably have dogs and probably need playmates.  They may feel awkward about asking, they may not have ever taken the time to think about getting your pups together, or they may not realize you are open to the idea!
5. Volunteer with a Local Animal Group: do you have a local humane society or shelter, a local therapy dog group, or other dog-related group that you can volunteer with?  Get involved and find some like-minded doggy parents who want to get together!

ALWAYS REMEMBER: safety first!!  Make sure you are careful about your privacy and always respect someone else if they are uncomfortable giving out any private information.

What other items would you add to this list?  Let me know in the comments! I'm always looking for new ways to get my dog some playmates.

Practicing Grooming/First Aid Habits

I started working Elsa from day one to become used to me touching her face, legs, and tail.  Anything I thought she might be uncomfortable with later on, I eased her into.  Some things were easy, like leave it and roll over, but here is a list of things we do together weekly in an attempt to help her be ready for grooming and care that doesn't come from every day play.

- Brush her teeth once a week.  She is a big dog and is still young, but we practice this once a week because I don't want to hit a point down the road where she needs dental cleanings at home and she isn't comfortable.
- Have comfortable friends check her teeth. This was pointed out on reddit by user expibotou as an important skill for pups to have.  Elsa may be comfortable with me checking, but not the vet or another stranger checking her mouth.
- File her nails a couple of times a week.  Her nails are growing FAST!  Even with outdoor activities, we still need to trim a little bit.  She knows "shake" and "other" and that helps with the process as well.
- Pick her up in her "easy carry" position.  Usually, she will sit on one of my arms while the other helps her balance, but a few times a week I will pick her up with my arms wrapped around her so that her legs dangle down.  If she is injured, this position may be easier/safer to carry her in (depending on the injury).
- Learn to wear a muzzle even though she's not the least bit aggressive. In case of an injury, a muzzle may be useful to keep her from lashing out at caretakers.  Learning about the muzzle in a happy, comfortable environment allows her to not have added anxiety at the introduction of a muzzle if a high stress situation arises later.
- Wash her ears with witch hazel to help stave off ear infections and get her used to strange sensations in her ear in case she ever needs eardrops/cleaning for infection. (thanks to reddit user whitewhitewine for this one)

What other items would you add to this list?

IAADP Training Requirements: Weekly Training Overview

Age: 4 months

Week of: June 23-29, 2014 -  hrs Total Hours (? hrs on Site) + (? hrs Outings)

Health:
- Bath Sunday night was as uneventful as always.  So thrilled she behaves for this sort of thing!
- Vet visit on Monday went well. She loves our vet.  It's fantastic.  She got her last round of puppy shots and we discussed spaying.  He says we are six to eight weeks out from a spay based on her teeth development.
- Heart-worm preventative was given on Wednesday.

Problems:
- Talked with the vet about the peeing problem.  He stated this was very similar to how young dogs will sometimes just eat until they get sick.  Now I am rationing her water at home and the peeing has just about gone away.
- She is still mouthing a LOT!  Holding out hope that I am doing the right things and that she is just teething severely.

Outings:
- Oma and Opa took us to Joe Wheeler state park!  We stayed two nights.  Elsa is getting really good at traveling in the vehicle.  While we were there, we walked and played a lot.  She got used to being walked by Oma and Opa, which will be helpful for the CGC test.  She loves going with Opa because he walks a lot further than I care to and wants to run quite a bit.
- Friday India came!
- Saturday we packed up with India, Daddy, and Britta and headed to Huntsville.  There is a Dr. Who convention that we are attending!  They met Peppy and J.J. (daddy's family dogs).

- We got out at the Cullman dog park on the way to Huntsville and Elsa and Britta ran around for a bit.
- Nick's family has a pool.  Elsa and I worked on swimming.  She did well with the water, though it obviously bothered her to not be able to touch the bottom
- We also worked in South Huntsville's Petsmart for awhile.

Comments:
- I am in SO MUCH PAIN with this earache!  However, there isn't a lot I can do about it.  Didn't really keep up with anything.  Hopefully these eardrops will put me back right.

This Week in Pictures

(Courtesy of India Lott)

IAADP Training Requirements: Weekly Training Overview

Age: 4 Months

Week of: 06/16-06/22/2014

7 Total Hours (5 hrs on Site) + (2 hrs Outings)

Health:
There is a lot of random peeing going on.  We will be talking to the doctor next Monday about that.

Problems:
The biting is getting frustrating, but I also realize that as long as I continue correcting appropriately, that issue will go away in a few more months.

Outings:

- Tuesday we walked to Rushton Park and played with our new BarkBox items.  Daddy helped me get some shots of the items. =) 

- Tuesday evening while I worked, daddy took Elsa and Britta to a friend's house to play with their dogs.

- Thursday morning we walked to Rhodes Park to take photos of the OTHER BarkBox that came in.

Obedience: 
- Strengthening stay

- Focusing on me outside while dealing with distractions

Service Dog Tasks: 
- Worked on staying longer in my lap... she doesn't understand the lap up command yet, but hopefully that will come quickly.

- Worked on identifying the light-switch.  This is a laser game that every time she follows the laser to the lightswitch, she gets a treat.

Manners: 
- Working on nipping... especially when over excited

Comments:
- Going to buy a plank and PVC pipe.  Want to make a couple of teeters to work on the seesaw part of agility.  We aren't looking to train professionally, just keep things light and interesting.
- I'm not going to post these updates on reddit anymore.  I didn't get any real feedback, just being told to stop training my dog as hard as I am.  I think people are misreading what I'm doing as hardcore training.  Elsa is only four months old.  She has no business going through rigorous training.  However, once a day one of her meals is earned by her tricks.  She also plays games with me that will later turn into task-related skills.  Any agility we do is purely play and just getting used to the strange pieces of equipment.  Thanks to my 12-hour shift schedule, I can spend a lot of time play-training.  I think it comes off as a lot more rigorous in my blog posts than I ever mean.
- I haven't done much this week.  I've been feeling bad and have developed an earache nearer to the end of the week.

This week in pictures

We bought an antler and she loves it!

Niners all the way!! I want to get her a cheerleading outfit before the season starts as well...

The vet isn't so scary if there's out-the-window happiness ahead of time!

Digging holes at Joe Wheeler. The dam is in the background. 

Cheering daddy's team on at kickball!!

June BarkBox #2 is Here!

So, here we are, a few days later, with a whole new BarkBox to brag about!

For anyone who missed it, the first barkbox that came this month was a HUGE hit with the pups!  It was technically Elsa's box, even though we share the treats equally.

My referral link is: http://ruv.barkbox.com/x/s7oA7g... You get 10% off your subscription and I get a free box.  

We currently subscribe for two Medium boxes since Elsa and Britta are about 25-30 pounds each.  There are three sizes and once the pups are a bit bigger, we will be subscribing to the Large box!

Now, for the goodies in Britta's box!

R2P Silly Bums Monkey Butt (could not find direct link)
Valued at: $10

This toy has a squeaker and crinkle material. It's ridiculous and funny and who couldn't love it?! I get the feeling I may be buying one for Elsa as well.

Tree Frog
Valued at: $10

This toy is so cute!  It specifically has a warning on it that says "not meant as a chew toy". I'm not even sure what to do with it if they can't chew on it. Somehow, no one is really interested in this frog. So the warning doesn't really matter for us!  I'm not comfortable donating it, so I guess we will just leave it around for supervised playtime. 

Banana Chips
Valued at: $8

These banana chips are toasted in coconut oil. Britta wasn't sure about them at first, but now she really likes them. As usual, Elsa just about eats anything and loved these. 

Primal Freeze Dried Beef Pieces
Valued at: $9

These freeze dried liver beef pieces are a HIT!

Overall value: $37... DEFINITELY worth it. =)