Category Archives: Advice, Tips and Tricks

Dogs at Work – the Benefits vs the Complications

In honor of National Take Your Dog to Work Day tomorrow, I’ve decided to talk about the benefits and complications that come with bringing your dog to work. I’m one of the lucky people that can bring my dog to work with me every day and Sadie is definitely my favorite coworker. But there are also some difficulties with having Sadie in my office. I personally think the pros far outweigh the cons, but you can decide for yourself.

Some of the benefits of taking your dog to work:

Less anxiety, for both the dog and the human. Your dog won’t get separation anxiety staying home alone all day and you won’t have anxiety about your dog getting into trouble when home alone all day.
Boosts morale in the office and makes people smile.
Saves time and money – no running home from work to feed and walk the dog and no need to pay a dog walker
Forces you to get up and away from your desk every once in a while so your dog can take care of business
A new environment is stimulating for your dog and he or she will be excited to explore the new area with all its sights and smells.
An office can be a great place to refresh your dog’s training in a practical environment. Sadie learned her ‘leave it’ and ‘no barking’ commands very quickly in the office setting.

In my opinion, the biggest pro on the list is stress relief. When I’ve had a difficult phone call or a technical problem is making me mad, I can just pick up a toy and play with Sadie for a while and all those minor problems are forgotten. And it’s the same for my coworkers; when they need some cheering up, they come to my desk to see what cute thing Sadie is doing. Because even when she’s fast asleep, Sadie never fails to put a smile on your face.

Some of the complications of taking your dog to work:

Finding bathroom areas and dealing with possible accidents.
Making sure you have all the necessary supplies on hand, like bowls, a dog bed, dog food, doggie bags, toys, treats, etc.
Chewing up shoes or other items (Sadie likes to steal the occasional slipper from under a desk) and making sure coworkers dog proof the office. When you have a dog it becomes second nature to keep harmful items off the floor, but your coworkers may forget to keep things out of reach from a dog.
Your dog may dislike coworkers or think he or she needs to protect you. This could lead to barking, growling, or biting if not handled properly. Similarly, if your coworkers also have dogs, the dogs may not all get along.
Coworkers with allergies or fears can also be a problem. You must try to be respectful of their wishes and keep your dog from having contact with those people and their belongings.

Dog can be unpredictable, so you never truly know what complications you’ll face until you’ve actually brought your dog to work. If you’re like me and believe the pros are far greater than any cons, you just need to be prepared. Make a list of items your dog will need to spend eight hours in your office. Make sure your office is free of hazards that could harm your dog. Ask your coworkers in advance if they will enjoy a visit from your dog or if your dog needs to avoid certain people or areas. Scope out a good spot to be your doggie bathroom. As long as you’ve done your best to prepare yourself, your office, and your coworkers for the arrival of your pup, you should find life with your new furry coworker to be as heartwarming and fulfilling as I do.

This post is part of the Thoughtless Thursday blog hop hosted by Ruckus the Eskie, Love Is Being Owned By a Husky, and M.K. Clinton.

This post is also part of the Thursday Barks and Bytes blog hop hosted by 2 Brown Dawgs and Heart Like A Dog.

Walks Before Photos

Last holiday season I shared with you my favorite tips for taking a great photo of your pets. (Click here to see all of those tips.) Today I’d like to focus on one tip in particular: walk your dogs before taking your photos. As I mentioned before, walking your dog before a photo session has a number of benefits. You can work out your dog’s excess energy, making him or her more cooperative when sitting still for a photo. Also, your dog enjoys going for a walk, and your dog’s happy mood when you get home usually shows through in your photos. Sadie and I had a photo shoot last month that is a perfect example of the difference between taking photos before and after a walk.

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Before the walk…

… after the walk!

In the first photo, I took Sadie outside to use the bathroom and decided to pose her by some pretty flowers. Sadie grumbled the whole time, didn’t want to look at the camera, and was generally annoyed that I was trying to take pictures of her. Since it was a nice day, I decided to take Sadie for a walk immediately to see if it would put her in a better mood. The last two photos were taken when we got back from the walk. Sadie is posing in front of the same pretty flowers, but with a much happier smile.

This post is part of the Thursday Barks and Bytes blog hop hosted by 2 Brown Dawgs and Heart Like A Dog.

This post is also part of the Thoughtless Thursday blog hop hosted by Ruckus the Eskie, Love Is Being Owned By a Husky, and M.K. Clinton.

Dog-Friendly Nashville, Tennessee

Sadie and I recently spent some time in Nashville, Tennessee after the BlogPaws conference. I want to start this off by saying that it was raining like crazy for most of the two days we had to spend sightseeing in Nashville, so that seriously limited what we could do with a dog. Rain will cause that problem no matter what place you’re visiting. But Sadie and I still managed to have a great time and I feel like we saw quite a few interesting sites.

The first stop on my tour of Nashville was Centennial Park to see the Parthenon. I was an ancient history major in college, so I was really excited to see a complete recreation of the Ancient Greek temple, the Parthenon, in all its glory. Sadie was not allowed inside, but we walked all around the building, sat for a while among the giant columns, and took some great photos. Plus the Parthenon is in the middle of great park with a small lake, so it’s a beautiful place to visit.

Next we drove over to the heart of Nashville, the area called the District. This is the main tourist part of Nashville, with lots of cowboy and country music themed restaurants, bars, and shops. Here we found Riverfront Park with the historic Fort Nashborough. We walked in the park along the river, where you can look across and see the stadium of the Tennessee Titans. We looked around Fort Nashborough, a wooden recreation of the first settlement of Nashville in the 1700s.

A few of the stores in the area were dog friendly. One boot store in particular, Nashville Cowboy, actually asked us to bring Sadie inside so the staff could say hi to her. Obviously I didn’t mind the chance to do some cowboy boot shopping, and was glad the staff kept Sadie entertained while I shopped. That’s where we took the cowgirl Sadie photo at the top of this post.

We had dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe, where they had an outdoor patio that welcomed dogs. Thankfully the patio also featured umbrellas, because it started raining again during dinner.

The next day we made a quick visit to Fort Negley park. It’s a nice place to walk your dog around the remains of an historic fort, though there isn’t much to see there. But this park sits against the back of the Adventure Science Center, so it’s a good place to hang out with your four legged kids while your two legged kids check out the science museum.

We ended our time in Nashville at Belle Meade Plantation. For $10 you and your dogs can walk around the grounds of the estate and visit the out buildings. We saw horses, barns, stables, horse drawn carriages, a smokehouse, a dairy, slave quarters, Civil War bullet holes, a log cabin, and more. Sadie even souvenir shopped with me in the gift shop! There is also a small dog-friendly winery on the grounds, where the wine tasting is included in the admission price.

Nashville has quite a few other dog-friendly activities we just didn’t get the chance to try. The Nashville Ghost Tour, for example, is dog friendly. And Bicentennial Mall State Park, with its water spouts you can run through and it’s view of the State Capitol, would also be a great place to spend some time with your dog. I guess Sadie and I will just have to go back to Nashville some day to see the sights we missed and revisit some of our favorite dog-friendly places!

This post is part of the Thursday Barks and Bytes blog hop hosted by 2 Brown Dawgs and Heart Like A Dog.

This post is also part of the Thoughtless Thursday blog hop hosted by Ruckus the Eskie, Love is Being Owned By a Husky, and M.K. Clinton.

Wisdom Panel 3.0 – DNA Testing for Dogs

Have you ever wondered exactly which breed(s) of dog you have? Did you know that your dog’s DNA can give you important information about the health of your dog? Many dog breeds are prone to specific genetic conditions, and knowing what to look out for can help save your dog’s life. The Wisdom Panel 3.0 Canine DNA Test by Mars Veterinary can tell you all that information and more!

The newest Wisdom Panel 3.0 Canine DNA test recognizes over 250 dog breeds and varieties and can be used on purebred, mixed-breed, or designer dogs. Your dog’s DNA sample is compared to over 10,000 genetic profiles in the Wisdom Panel database! The test provides breed information for three prior generations, meaning you’ll find out which breeds were your dog’s great-grandparents! This information is particularly helpful when training your dog, as many breeds excel at specific types of activities. It can also help you understand some of your dog’s instinctive behaviors, which can be greatly influenced by a dog’s breed ancestry.

The DNA test results will also include a projected weight profile which will explain the typical weight for your breed of dog. This can be very useful in helping your dog maintain a healthy diet. You should share your DNA testing results with your dog’s veterinarian, who can use this information to provide better, more specific care for your furbaby.

Also included with this new DNA test is MDR1 Genetic Mutation screening. MDR1 stands for multi-drug resistance 1. This condition, which is especially common in herding and sighthound breeds, causes a problem with absorption of certain medications into a dog’s body. Dogs with this genetic condition can have severe reactions to some common drugs. By getting a Wisdom Panel DNA test, you can find out if your dog has this genetic mutation and can discuss the situation with your veterinarian to be prepared if your dogs needs medication. Click here to see a list of medications and dog breeds most affected by MDR1.

A Wisdom Panel 3.0 at home testing kit includes instructions, DNA cheek swabs, drying inserts for the swabs, and a prepaid return shipping box. You need one kit for each dog you want to test. The process is simple: you just swab along your dog’s gum line for 15 seconds, mail in the sample, and wait for the results. It typically takes two to three weeks to get your results once the lab receives your dog’s cheek swab.

To find out more about the Wisdom Panel 3.0 Canine DNA Test go to wisdompanel.com. Or visit Wisdom Panel on YouTube for testimonials about the Wisdom Panel DNA tests. You can purchase the at home kit online for $84.99. You can also follow Wisdom Panel and Mars Veterinary on social media for news, updates and special events.

Or you can speak to representatives from Wisdom Panel in person and get great discounts at the following events throughout 2015:

(In person DNA testing is offered at the discounted price of $39.99 and at home kits can be purchased at these events for $49.99.)

GoPRO Mountain Games in Vail, Colorado
Amazing Pet Expo in Austin, Texas
Mars Pet Adoption Fair in Franklin, Tennessee
Amazing Pet Expo Holiday in Los Angeles, California

Disclosure: This post was sponsored by Mars Veterinary Wisdom Panel 3.0.

Re-Learning the Stairs

Sadie is almost three years old now and has gone up and down countless flights of stairs. But there is one particular set of stairs she’s never traversed on her own – the main stairs up to the second floor apartment where we live. Sadie is fine with the stairs in the office because they’re carpeted. She’s comfortable with the brick steps up to the front door and even with the rugged wooden steps off of our back deck. But shiny, slippery, interior wooden stairs were out of the question. If she was a bigger dog I may have worked on convincing her to try those stairs. But since she’s small enough to carry and I knew we would be getting those stairs carpeted eventually, I decided to err on the safer side and just carry her up and down those slippery steps. But now the time has finally come. We just had carpet installed on ‘the’ stairs. All I need to do is convince Sadie that the stairs are now safe and she will no longer be carried up or down them anymore.

I started the process at the top of the stairs. Big mistake. I spent valuable time trying to convince Sadie to step off the landing, but she just wouldn’t go. Eventually I took her off the landing and placed her on the top step to get her moving downward, but she just stood on that top step and refused to move. After more negotiations, which Sadie won, I gave up and carried her down the stairs. We went outside for a potty break. When we came back in, Sadie stepped up to the bottom step, then looked back at me. All I said was “Go ahead” and she shot up those stairs like a bolt of lightening. I couldn’t have been more proud of her.

But going down the stairs was still a problem. Sadie did not want to step off the landing. I tried luring her down the stairs with food, but Sadie has never been very food motivated. I tried throwing a squeaky ball down the stairs, hoping she would chase after it, but she just stared sadly at me until I went and got it for her. Just when I was running out of ideas, the doorbell rang. Sadie raced down those steps without a second thought, wanting to know who was at that door. All it took was that one distraction for Sadie to finally stop thinking about how scary the steps were and start thinking about what’s exciting at the bottom of them. From then on, Sadie happily goes up and down the stairs with ease. I can’t believe I went so long having to carry her, because life is so much sweeter when I can have free hands on the stairs.

This post is part of the Thoughtless Thursday blog hop hosted by Ruckus the Eskie, Love Is Being Owned By a Husky, and M.K. Clinton.

This post is also part of the Thursday Barks and Bytes blog hop hosted by 2 Brown Dawgs and Heart Like A Dog.