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Best Food Grinders Used For Home-Prepared Dog Food Diets

By
Nancy Kerns
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5

People who are interested in feeding a home-prepared diet to their dogs often delay the transition as they grapple with various concerns. Frequently, they have come to believe the claims that a home-prepared diet offers dogs superior nutrition and can result in increased health and vigor…but they are still beset by fears that their dogs will suffer a broken tooth or perforated intestines caused by eating raw bone fragments. Others worry that their dogs won’t eat the vegetable matter in the diet, or will be put off by the addition of supplements. Still others cite their lack of time available for preparing the food.

Happily, all of these concerns (and more) can be put to rest with the purchase and use of a food grinder!

Just about every experienced feeder of a home-prepared diet owns and uses a food grinder. Many use grinders to reduce the raw meaty bones they include in their dogs’ diets to a smooth, pulpy consistency. Grinding the bones enables them to offer their dogs every advantage of consuming the nutrient-rich food, without any of the risks often dramatically cited by opponents of home-prepared diets. Ground to a smooth paste, the raw bones cannot break or crack a tooth, or block or perforate a dog’s intestines.

In addition, grinding all (or most) of the components of a dog’s diet together makes it impossible for a dog to “pick out” the ingredients he may not like. Dogs who fuss over the addition of any sort of herb or nutritional supplement to their usual meals generally can’t detect it when it has been thoroughly ground together with delicious meaty bones.

Finally, using a grinder to prepare and mix the dog’s food – often in batches that can be portioned and refrigerated or frozen for feedings later that week or so – saves a lot of time. Ask people who have fed a big dog (or several dogs) a home-prepared diet for more than a year, and they will just about always tell you that their investment in a food grinder has made the food-preparation job exponentially easier and less time-consuming.

Which grinder?
The variety of grinders available today allows interested dog owners to try out home-prepared canine diets on a small scale, or to fully commit to the “bones and raw food” (“BARF”) feeding plan. The size and cost of the model they settle on for the long term tends to reflect the size and/or number of dogs they have to feed. But whether they make food for one small dog or a whole pack of bigger canines, experienced dog “chefs” list the same desirable features they look for in a food grinder. Listed in no particular order, the criteria include:

• Durability: The cutting pieces of any food grinder will certainly be made of a high carbon steel, but the housing and the “worm” (the piece that moves the food material through the grinder) may be molded plastic, aluminum, tin coated cast iron, or stainless steel. The quality of the materials and manufacturing will certainly impact the grinder’s durability, but so will the ingredients you use in your dog’s diet. Whole grains, hard vegetables such as carrots, and mammal bones are the usual suspects involved in grinder breakage.

• Ease of cleaning: Any part of the grinder that comes into contact with food – especially raw meats and bones – must be cleaned after each use to avoid bacterial contamination. If a part isn’t easy to clean, chances are it won’t get cleaned properly, and can then harbor bacteria, causing illness.

• Power or capacity to suit your needs: Again, the power and capacity you need depends on your dogs and the ingredients you employ in their diet. But in general, the more food you make, the more power you’ll want. Hand grinders (the old-fashioned kind that clamp onto a countertop) may be sufficient for preparing small amounts of food, but out of the question for those who make food for a giant breed or several dogs.

• Ease of operation: The easier it is to operate, the more likely it is that you will be inspired to use the machine. If making your dog’s food turns out to be an hours-long project – to feed the machine slowly, manage drippings, and clean the working parts – you’ll tend not to use the grinder frequently or spontaneously.

• Good warranty or service agreement: These agreements should be explicit, easy to understand, and provide for returns or repair in case of equipment failure. Many equipment suppliers tend to have a specified period refund policy (frequently 30 – 90 days), perhaps minus re-stocking fees, but some suppliers do not allow returns on food service equipment at all. Before you invest in a grinding appliance, check to see whether or not it comes with a supplier’s or manufacturer’s warranty for parts and/or labor, and what conditions of use are not protected under the warranty.

While the purchase of a small household appliance needn’t break the bank, you don’t want to purchase a big-ticket item that will take up space sitting unused on a kitchen counter. On the other hand, you don’t want to hamstring your efforts; if you are dedicated to preparing food with the best ingredients for your dog’s health and well-being, a more powerful, higher capacity (and expensive) grinder may be more economical in the long run. Consider your time, storage space, and economic resources as part of a cost-benefit analysis before deciding which grinder to buy.

From least to greatest
We asked a number of long-time BARF feeders to describe their experience with food grinders. Their comments are arranged below according to the cost of the grinder they use, from the inexpensive but useful hand grinder, to the undisputed king of home-prepared dog diets: The Northern Tool & Equipment 70-pound food grinder.

Hand grinders
Upstate New York resident Alex Murphy began her grinding career with a hand grinder picked up at the Salvation Army for $3. “It worked pretty well, but it was a chore to clean up because it wasn’t sealed. If you were to grind something that contained moisture – which was just about everything I used – the liquid would drip from the grinder onto the floor! I used to spread a vinyl tablecloth on the floor and the table, and set a bowl beneath the grinder. I also remember that when washing the grinder, I had to dry it really well to avoid rust spots.

“Other than that, it was great, especially with my husband doing the heavy-duty grinding for me. It was a little harder to grind the thicker stuff, such as pumpkin, since I use seeds, skin, and all. It was messy, but worth it for the first couple of months when I was deciding what I was going to buy!”

Heavy tin-plated cast-iron hand meat grinders can be seen at Pierce Equipment’s Web site (pierceequipment.com or 877-354-1265). Prices range from $50 – $100, depending on size (20 – 30 pounds).

Northern Tool also makes a hand grinder, which is rated to grind 5 pounds of meat per minute. This grinder sports a 4″ x 5″ hopper for easy loading, and sells for $35 (see northerntool.com or 800-221-0516).

By the way, when searching these manufacturers’ Web sites for food grinders, use the word “meat” in your search. For some reason, the grinders did not come up when we searched on “grinder.”

Small kitchen appliances
Alex Murphy now uses a grinder attachment on her KitchenAid mixer to make food for her large dog (and one cat). “For a while I made a ‘veggie slop’ with my food processor, but that took a lot of time. The KitchenAid mixer has an attachment made of heavy plastic with metal parts. I don’t think it’s as durable as a cast metal product; that’s why I won’t grind anything harder than chicken necks.” Murphy chops the greens prior to grinding. This keeps them from wrapping around the “worm” that moves the food material through the grinder.

When asked whether she had plans to upgrade, Murphy responds, “I have no plans to buy a conventional grinder. This setup meets all my needs perfectly; it has good power, it’s easy to clean, the attachment takes up very little space, and as I already had the mixer – and the grinder attachment was only $50 – I’m really getting my money’s worth. So far, I am the only raw feeder I know who uses this attachment for BARF preparation, but I would recommend it for others who don’t make tons of food.”

KitchenAid mixers can be found in kitchen supply stores, in a range of models that range from the Classic ($200 for 250 watts) to the Artisan ($255 for 325 watts), to the Professional 6 ($365 for 525 watts). You can buy KitchenAid mixers in discount restaurant supply stores, or from kitchenaid.com, or by calling the manufacturer direct at (800) 541-6390.

Small motorized grinders
Several models generating a lot of buzz among BARF discussion groups are small in size (7 – 8 pounds), moderate in power (180 – 220 watts), easy to take apart and clean, and relatively inexpensive ($110 -$130). However, they may or may not be up to every dog owner’s food-grinding regimen. The longevity of the tools depends heavily on the amount and type of food put through the grinder.

Kristen Randall, a New Hampshire resident, started out by chopping vegetables in a food processor, and was thrilled to learn that her new grinder – the #5 food grinder made by Maverick – did a better job and was also much quicker. Elated, Randall reported her dazzling prowess with the grinder to a raw-feeding online discussion group one day, but posted dismal news the next; the grinder had hit a snag, melting down after a heavy session of chicken-neck and vegetable grinding.

“After my husband ground up about 10 pounds of necks and about an equal amount of vegetables, the grinder started making a loud squealing sound. He assumed it was a lubrication problem inside the grinding parts. But then I took that off and ran the motor alone, and it still makes that sound. It sounds just like an old fan I have whose bearings are shot.”

How could this happen? Confoundedly, the Pierce Food Service Equipment catalog urges buyers to “Grind up fresh bear, deer, duck, elk, meats, game, fruits and vegetables. Known to be good for grinding up pet food.” But it also states elsewhere, “If you are planning on returning this unit, it must be unused. It cannot be re-sold for new if you use it. You pay for return shipping to us. Pierce and Maverick do not state this grinder will grind bones, use at your own risk.”

Made in Poland, Maverick grinders (Maverick MM 1886 and Maverick MM 6386) are sold online by Pierce Equipment (www.pierceequipment.com or 877-354-1265) and many kitchen supply stores.

We found several other small motorized grinders in this category offered for sale online. S.D. Payton, who makes food for four Dobermans and two American Eskimo dogs, offered this review: “With the help of an experienced grinder friend, I chose the Moulinex DR7 from Small Appliance Service Company for around $117, a great grinder at the dollar amount I could afford. Moving up to the 440-watt (from my last grinder at 150), seemed to make a lot of difference in grinding chicken backs. I also like the reverse button just in case I need it.”

The Moulinex DR7 (440 watt) costs about $117 from Small Appliance Service Company Ltd. at www.edmart.com/SASCO or (780) 425-9550.

The Northern Tool & Equipment Co. offers a wide range of electric meat grinders. The smallest is rated at 250 watts and can grind two pounds of meat per minute. This four-pound machine comes with two grinding plates (coarse and fine), and is sold for $40. The 16-pound grinder is rated at 1000 watts, and comes with fine, medium, and coarse grinding plates. It is promoted as useful for grinding poultry, beef, vegetables, and more, and is priced at $100. The feed tube is 2 ½” at the top, large enough to feed in good-sized chunks. Northern Tool’s customer service representatives say that both grinders can safely grind chicken backs.

In our survey, we heard nothing bad about Northern Tool’s customer service or 90-day complete warranty. For an additional $6.99, you may purchase the manufacturer’s extended warranty, which offers to totally replace your grinder if it fails within one year. Northern Tool & Equipment Co., www.northerntool.com or (800) 221-0516.

Large motorized grinders
For 40 years and counting, Mary Stickney, of Cortland, Nebraska, has fed her pack of toy rescue dogs home-prepared diets. A huge advocate of the BARF diet, Stickney grinds an array of raw meaty bones (RMBs), including chicken wings, turkey necks, pork neck bones, turkey wings, lamb ribs, rabbit quarters, and organ meats such as beef heart, liver, and gizzards. She adds this ground RMB mix to ground vegetables and other foods in the following proportions: about 70 percent RMBs, 10 percent organ meat, and 20 percent vegetables, fruit, eggs, and ricotta cheese.

Stickney doesn’t add grains, explaining that several of her dogs are allergic to them. She presently prepares food for 10 small dogs and four cats. On grinding days, she fills a clean Coleman cooler with her mixture, which she then packages into one-gallon Ziplock bags and freezes for later use.

A frequent participant in online raw foods discussion lists, Stickney freely offers counsel to hesitant beginner and novice feeders. She feels that the one most important piece of advice for those just starting out is to “Get a good quality grinder to start with. I wasted $99 on a Maverick and broke it twice grinding lamb ribs. The larger Northern Tool Grinder is well worth the $269 purchase price. It eats chicken leg quarters whole like butter!”

Tori Muir, of Gilbertsville, Pennsylvania, concurs with the warm review. “The Northern Tool rules! When I was told that it would take a turkey neck with no problem, I had to get it. The machine is very sturdy, takes all but the hardest bones, and has no problems with fat, which clogs up other machines. It has lots of power, and a great customer service department if you have any questions. When the on/off switch failed, Northern Tool paid the shipping to return the machine, and sent me a new one!”

“I began feeding raw foods to my two 50-pound dogs about four months ago, starting off with whole RMBs. Upon finding large pieces of bone in Petey’s stools, I decided to go on a grinder hunt. I joined a bunch of BARF chat groups, and people guided me to the Northern Tool 1 horsepower/650 watt model. I started with chicken backs, wings, and necks. They all went through effortlessly. So I tried turkey; turkey necks went through easily if they fit through the feeding chute. Sometimes they needed to be cut or mashed first. Now I was having fun, so I tried pork and lamb necks. They needed to be split, but went through fine.”

Muir also reports that she has jammed the grinder with ox tails and beef ribs, and the large end of big turkey wings, so she quit using those RMBs. Those experiences did not darken her appreciation for the grinder. She describes how she recently ground 90 pounds of venison in an hour and a half, “Effortlessly,” she says delightedly.

With such glowing reports, could there be any downsides to the largest Northern Tool grinder? Well, considers Muir, “The unit is 70 lbs, and large to store. Mine has started rusting on the inside of the feed tube; I hadn’t thought about calling customer service about that. It can be difficult to clean, but I am one of the last people still without a dishwasher.” She adds, however, “Those negatives are negligible to me,” since the grinder performs so well.

Feeling grinder envy? I have to admit that I sure did after chatting with owners of the most productive and easy-to-use grinders. With volume production, reliability, and versatility in mind, you should now be armed with enough information to choose an appropriate model for you and your dogs. Good luck, and happy grinding!

-by Susan Eskew

Susan Eskew is a freelance writer (and wife of a veterinarian) currently living in North Carolina.

Dog Food Manufacturers and The Food Labeling Skepticisms

By
Nancy Kerns
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0

Frequently, we hear things about dog food companies that would curl your hair. And rarely, if ever, can we print anything we hear, because much of it is unverifiable and perhaps even untrue – lies made up or part-truths distorted by unhappy consumers or unscrupulous competitors. We take this stuff with a grain of salt.

But there is one troubling dog food industry rumor that we’ve heard numerous times, and from a couple of sources that we really trust. It’s troubling to us because it concerns a number of products that have appeared regularly in our “Top Dry Dog Food” reviews.

The rumor alleges that a number of the foods that we have promoted do not actually contain all of the fabulous ingredients listed on their labels. The scuttlebutt has it that some of the products are made in manufacturing plants that are physically unequipped to include ingredients that their labels claim they contain.

We’ll be more specific. We have repeatedly stated that containing at least one type of fresh, whole meat, fish, or poultry is a hallmark of a superior food. And in order to include fresh, whole meat or poultry in a food it manufactures, a plant must be outfitted with certain equipment, including refrigerated bins, “wet extruders,” and other apparatus not needed by manufacturers who use only dry ingredients. But some of the foods whose labels boast the inclusion of fresh meat were made at plants that – we’ve heard – lack the refrigeration and other units required to make such a food.

Hearing this sort of rumor about a number of foods, we were moved to call representatives for the food companies in question, in an attempt to confirm where the food is made. We then planned to call the manufacturing plant and find out whether, in fact, they are equipped to make a food that contains, for example, whole, fresh chicken. Investigative Journalism 101, right?

Unfortunately, this particular tack went nowhere, because to a man, the food company representatives said, “Gosh, sorry, I’d love to help, but we don’t disclose the location of our food manufacturing plant; that’s proprietary information.”

We don’t buy it
“Proprietary information” is a great excuse, one that most of us can understand. Corporations have to protect the things that make them unique and extraordinary, especially in a competitive market.

However, in this case, we have to press harder. Within the pet food industry, there really are not any secrets about the identity and location of pet food plants. Independent manufacturers advertise in trade magazines, for crying out loud! In our experience, every food company executive knows exactly where his competitors have their foods made.

No, manufacturing secrets are not being kept from competing food companies; they are being kept from us, the people who buy the pet food. Why would they want to do such a thing? Why aren’t companies who represent their foods as the “best of the best” proud and forthcoming about their products’ origins?

As it turns out, there are a few reasons why the companies don’t want us to know where their products are made. As whispered in the rumor mill, at least one of the reasons is dishonest and illegal: They don’t want us to know where the food is made because if we knew that, we’d also know that what they say is in the food is not in the food. And with pet food industry oversight and enforcement so incredibly lax, especially in some states, they run very little risk of getting caught.

Some of the other reasons why the origins of foods are often kept secret are more innocuous, but no more helpful to us, the consumers who buy them. To explore these reasons a little more, some background information is helpful.

Large and small companies
As a rule, the gigantic pet food conglomerates manufacture their own products in their own well-operated plants; they don’t make their manufacturing information a secret.

As with any sort of enormous-volume consumer goods producer, these huge pet food companies have made a science of churning out an incredibly consistent product. Open any bag of Purina Dog Chow, and the food inside will look and smell (and probably taste, although we wouldn’t test it) exactly like the contents of every other batch of Dog Chow – just the way a bowl of Kellogg’s Corn Flakes looks, smells, and tastes the same year after year after year.

Part of this is due to the fact that the manufacturing plants of the food industry giants are uniformly well-equipped, clean, and well-staffed. Part of it is due to the fact that these corporate giants don’t use the volatile, difficult-to-manufacture, fresh ingredients used by the “premium” companies.

Mostly, the giant companies, corporate cousins to the human food manufacturing industry, serve (partially) to spin figurative gold out of the “straw” leftovers from the human food side. The human food processors use the good parts, and the food fragments that would otherwise be wasted are put to good use in pet foods. The result is a consistent, inexpensive, not particularly healthy food that is readily available anywhere in the country.

In stark contrast stand the small pet food manufacturers, representing perhaps five percent of the total pet food industry. These companies have designated healthy pet foods as their mission, and they shun food fragment castoffs in favor of fresh, whole, and sometimes even organic grains, fruits, vegetables, meats, fish, oils, and expensive vitamin/mineral premixes. It should be noted that this is a much more difficult manufacturing problem, and far more can go wrong with the process.

Once a company grows to a certain size, it makes financial sense for it to own and operate its manufacturing plants. Only a few of the largest “small” food makers have accomplished this – companies like Eagle Pet Products of Indiana, Old Mother Hubbard of Massachusetts, and Breeder’s Choice of California. Most of them manufacture more than one “line” of pet foods, each of them aimed at a different quality/price strata of the market, but all of them enjoying the quality control and oversight resulting from in-house manufacture.

Lacking the resources to own and operate manufacturing plants, smaller companies have to contract with independent plants to make their food for them. There is nothing intrinsically wrong with this arrangement, although there are certain opportunities for bad things and good things to result.

Concerns and benefits of independent manufacturing
One big concern about independent food manufacturing is that the food company doesn’t have any control over the process. The owner of the food company can supply the plant manager with his list of ingredients and sources, and discuss the quality control techniques that will be used in his food’s manufacture, but the actual job is out of his hands.

Also, if the plant operators are unscrupulous, and substitute low-quality ingredients for the expensive ingredients the food company has asked for, the food company may be none the wiser.

On the other hand, there are some benefits to having an independent plant make the food for a small food company.

For one, it’s easier for a small food company to pay someone else to run a plant than it is to buy, staff, equip, manage, maintain, and run it themselves – especially when it takes only a couple of days a month to manufacture their entire month’s order of food. And if the plant fails to do a good job, the food company can always walk away and find a better-run plant somewhere else.

Another benefit is that the food company’s owner can shop for plants that are located close to the sources of the ingredients he wants, and/or the markets he wants to ship to post-manufacture. Since the focus of the “premium” food companies is high-quality ingredients, hiring a manufacturer close to the source of the expensive and volatile fresh food ingredients makes more sense than shipping them long distance.

Other reasons for prejudice
We discussed this topic with a number of pet food company representatives at the trade show accompanying the 2002 American Holistic Veterinary Medical Association conference. Some of the reps were salespeople; others were company owners and CEOs. We told each that we were planning an article about “where foods are made,” and asked, by the way, where are your foods made?

At one booth, a food company president and vice president told us they didn’t think it was fair to bring attention to the fact that not all companies make their own foods. Companies that use independent manufacturers, they said, experience considerable consumer prejudice against their products.

Russell Armstrong, president and cofounder of VeRus Pet Foods, of Abingdon, Maryland, agreed that there is some amount of prejudice against companies who don’t manufacture their own products. He thinks this is fallout from marketing pitches made by companies who do have their own manufacturing plants. “I’ve seen companies try to sell consumers on that very concept by asking rhetorically, ‘If a company doesn’t make its own products, how can they possibly have any quality control?’”

However, Armstrong feels that the prejudice can easily be overcome when consumers hear the flip side, and learn about the advantages enjoyed by companies who don’t make their own products.

“From the perspective of a small food company, especially one that is new to the market like I am, owning your own plant would be an expensive distraction,” says Armstrong. “Instead, we’ve been able to focus on finding and selecting a plant that has the capability and history of making good quality foods, and access to the sources of the top-quality raw materials that we wanted to use in our pet food.”

Armstrong’s opinions were seconded by another food company owner and CEO, Steve Brown, of Steve’s Real Food for Dogs, located in Eugene, Oregon. Steve’s Real Food for Dogs is a raw, frozen, meat-based diet, but Brown has years of experience in many aspects of the pet food industry.

According to Brown, “Extremely big companies have three or four manufacturing plants across the nation; you don’t want to have to ship either the ingredients or the finished product very far. Small companies can achieve the same effect by contracting out the manufacturing to one or more select plants,” he says.

In Brown’s view, small companies like his that are focused on quality actually enjoy an advantage by using independent manufacturers. “I can find great quality meat processors throughout the nation and use their expertise; I know that, properly supervised, they can do a better job than I can. I choose my plants carefully and specify everything. I confirm that they are using the ingredients that I asked for, inspect the plants frequently, and make surprise visits. And so I feel great about the job they do.”

Suspicion by association?
Some food company executives fear that if consumers learn that a food originates from the same plant as a low-quality food, they will conclude that the foods are equally poor. There may be legitimate reasons for this concern; in this case, birds of a feather may well flock together.

“Smaller plants have only so many bins for storing so many ingredients,” warns Armstrong. “I’d worry that one allegedly ‘premium’ food originating from a plant that doesn’t make any other top-quality foods does not really contain the ingredients it says it does.”

Another reason that similar-quality products might tend to originate from the same manufacturing plants – even if they were formulated by different food companies with different ingredients – has to do with the abilities of the manufacturing plant itself.

“There are probably 1000 dog food plants in the country right now. And of those 1000 plants, I’d say only about 15 or 20 are capable of make what I would consider to be decent food, and make it consistently,” says Armstrong. “I think every plant can probably make a good batch of food, but the inconsistencies get them down. I see lots of plants that don’t have the quality equipment, reliable sources of ingredients, and/or personnel to do the job right every time.”

When an independent manufacturer has made the investments needed to do a top-notch, consistent job for its food company customers, its prices will necessarily be much higher. Food company executives who are not appreciative of this quality are unlikely to be willing to pay more for their foods to be made there. In fact, only food companies whose owners are fully committed to producing the best possible food – and who are willing and able to pay more for its work, are likely to be found doing business at such a plant.

And, unless the ingredients of the food are of the very best quality, the food buyers – remember us? dog owners? – won’t be willing to pay the top prices that the product will necessarily cost. The food companies who do business with an expensive, top-notch manufacturer must have an amazing formula, marketing plan, or both, to be able to command the prices that such a food will cost.

For his part, Armstrong has made full disclosure an integral part of his sales pitch for his VeRus dog and cat foods. “We’re proud of our products, which are being made by people we trust in a place that we feel good about,” he says. “I can only imagine that those things are not true when someone won’t tell me anything about the origin of their products.”

-by Nancy Kerns

Nancy Kerns is Editor of WDJ.

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Always Learning

By
Nancy Kerns
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0

Each fall, I have the pleasure of attending two dog-related conventions, one for the Association of Pet Dog Trainers (APDT), and one for the American Holistic Veterinary Medical Association (AHVMA). This year, the meetings overlapped on a weekend, forcing me to miss one day of one and another day of the other, but I wasn’t complaining; they were held in the same state, only a few hours apart, so it didn’t take long to drive my rental car from one to the other.

These meetings serve several purposes for me. First, I have the opportunity to meet in person many individuals (dog trainers and veterinarians) with whom I generally speak only through e-mail and on the telephone. I generally schedule interviews with experts who live far from me. I attend lots of lectures, looking for ideas for articles and expert sources for information on dog training and healthcare. I browse through the exhibit halls, looking for products and foods to review. And I get to meet a lot of you, WDJ’s readers, and hear your feedback about the magazine. It’s great. I come home filled to bursting with ideas, news, and inspiration.

Of course, there are challenging moments. Every so often I bump into someone who has a real bone to pick with WDJ. Getting cornered by a sales representative who is promoting a dog food that I have criticized harshly is probably my least favorite experience ever. And, for me, getting chewed out by someone about something I consider to be unimportant – such as our interchangeable use of the phrase “dog guardian” with “dog owner” – is not unlike a Chihuahua scratching on a sliding glass door. I’m sympathetic, but I can’t take it for very long.

There are some difficult moments, however, that I really do learn from. For example, I had a veterinarian dress me down for WDJ’s lack of articles on kinesiology. This is a diagnostic tool used by some holistic practitioners that I’ve always considered to be far too “woo-woo” for us to talk about. Somewhat flippantly I told the veterinarian, “Oh come on. I just don’t buy that it works!” He proceeded to demonstrate how the method works, on me. What could I say? Uh, well. Okay! I guess I’ll be assigning an article about this to one of my writers real soon. (And thanks for opening my eyes and mind!)

I also had a reader tell me that she loves WDJ, but is sometimes uncomfortable with what she perceives as an anti-veterinarian bias in our articles. Wow. That’s certainly not anything we feel. We rely on and appreciate the contributions of committed, creative veterinarians so much that I feel I should apologize, whether or not that reader is right. And I’ll certainly look out for any traces of this in the future.


-Nancy Kerns

Take the Titer Test before Administering Vaccinations

By
Lorie Long
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Few issues in veterinary medicine are as controversial as the debate about administering annual vaccinations to our dogs. Long considered part of the standard of baseline, responsible veterinary healthcare, and credited with conquering some of the fiercest canine viral and other infectious diseases, vaccinations now are also suspected of creating vulnerability to illnesses and chronic conditions such as anemia, arthritis, seizures, allergies, gastrointestinal and thyroid disorders, and cancer.

As we’ve previously discussed in numerous articles, few people advocate refraining from the use of vaccinations altogether, but increasing numbers of veterinary experts recommend administering fewer vaccines to our dogs than was suggested in recent years. The current wisdom is to vaccinate our animal companions enough, but not too much.

Does this seem a little arbitrary? It could, especially since the veterinary profession lacks complete information about exactly how long the effects of canine vaccines last. (We bet you thought that most vaccines “last” about a year, which is why you are supposed to bring your dog to the vet for more shots every year, right? Well, you’re wrong, and we’ll explain why below.)

Fortunately, there is a tool that veterinarians and dog owners can use to determine whether or not a dog really needs further vaccination at any given time. It’s called a “titer test,” and it’s readily available, not terribly expensive, and offers multiple advantages over the practices (intentional or not) of over-vaccination and under-vaccination.

To understand what a titer test is and what it can do for you and your dog, you need a little background information about vaccinations and their use in this country.

History of “recommended vaccine schedules”
As lifesaving vaccines for various canine diseases have been developed over the last 50 years, veterinarians and dog owners gladly embraced them. Many diseases were prevented, and a new industry was born. Like any industry, it soon set about making itself indispensable. Increasingly, veterinarians were sold on the concept that if some vaccines are good, more are better – for their patients and their bottom line. So it came to pass that for decades, vets followed the label recommendations directing that canine vaccines be administered annually.

In the late 1970s, a deadly parvovirus epidemic killed thousands of dogs and wiped out whole litters of puppies, eventually halted by the mass administration of the parvovirus vaccine. This episode emphasized the important role of vaccinations in canine healthcare and labeled veterinarians who challenged the annual administration of vaccines as mutinous.

And there was, in fact, a small population of insurgent veterinarians who had doubts about the necessity of frequent vaccination. Many holistic practitioners – who often see patients with complex, mystifying symptoms of poor health, patients who have not been helped or even diagnosed by conventionally trained veterinarians – suspected a link between vaccines and immune disorders. In their minds, it was easy to surmise that there might be a connection between agents that are designed to provoke an immune response and their patients’ poor or inappropriate immune responses.

But while drug companies are motivated to fund studies that can develop more vaccines they can sell for a profit, they are understandably disinclined to spend money on studies that may discover their products’ potential for harm, or how few vaccines our companion animals really need for disease protection. As a result, only anecdotal evidence provided by “vaccine rebels” – owners and veterinarians who either do not vaccinate or vaccinate on a reduced schedule – seemed to suggest that dogs and cats might be better off receiving fewer vaccines. But until recently there was little scientific evidence that supported this idea, perhaps none that was accepted in the conventional university veterinarian research community.

Then, in the early 1990s, laboratory researchers at the University of Pennsylvania noticed a connection between the marked increase in the number of sarcomas, or cancerous tumors, under the skin at the site of rabies vaccine administration in cats. Later, researchers at the University of California at Davis noted that feline leukemia vaccines seemed to cause the same results. Taken aback by the inflammatory nature of the animals’ reaction to the vaccines, veterinary researchers began to suspect that immediate reactions to vaccinations, delayed reactions to vaccinations, or the combined effects of multiple vaccinations, could be risk factors for other ailments and chronic diseases in cats and dogs.

As vaccines and their long-term effects became a (at least minor) topic of mainstream veterinary interest, one small but important fact came to light: there is no universally accepted “standard vaccination protocol” that has the approval of say, the American Veterinary Medical Association and/or the FDA’s Center for Veterinary Medicine. The prevailing vaccination recommendations and schedules that most veterinarians and veterinary colleges recommend have been based on the research and suggestions of the manufacturers – not on independent scientific research. This point had long been recognized by the vaccine rebels, but disregarded by most conventional veterinarians.

Why more is not better
Jean Dodds, DVM, a highly respected veterinary hematologist, and founder and president of the nonprofit Hemopet, a California-based animal blood bank, pioneered the vaccine debate decades ago and is now considered one of the leading authorities on canine vaccine protocols. According to Dr. Dodds, many recent studies confirm that the vast majority of dogs, in most cases at least 95 percent of the subjects, retain immunity after vaccination for many years after the administration of a vaccine. She states that the “evidence implicating vaccines in triggering immune-mediated and other chronic disorders (vaccinosis) is compelling.”

Adverse reactions to conventional vaccines can be the same as reactions to any chemicals, drugs, or infectious agents. Immediate (or anaphylactic) reactions can occur in the 24-48 hours following exposure to the vaccine. Delayed reactions can occur 10-45 days after receiving vaccines. Symptoms include fever, stiffness, sore joints, abdominal tenderness, nervous sys-tem disorders, susceptibility to infections, and hemorrhages or bruising. Transient seizures can appear in puppies and adults.

More long-term harmful effects can result in permanent damage to the dog’s immune system, which increases the dog’s susceptibility to chronic, debilitating diseases affecting the blood, endocrine organs, joints, skin, central nervous system, liver, kidneys, and bowel.

In addition, vaccines can overwhelm a chronically ill dog, or a dog that has a genetic predisposition to react adversely to viral exposure, even from the modified live viral agents or killed virus in vaccines.

So, given the possible health risks of administering too many vaccines, especially when a dog likely retains the immunologic protection supplied by previous vaccinations, how can a responsible dog owner decide on a safe and effective vaccine schedule for the life of their dog? As we suggested earlier, the answer is titer tests.

Understanding titer tests
The term “titer” refers to the strength or concentration of a substance in a solution. When testing vaccine titers in dogs, a veterinarian takes a blood sample from a dog and has the blood tested for the presence and strength of the dog’s immunological response to a viral disease. If the dog demonstrates satisfactory levels of vaccine titers, the dog is considered sufficiently immune to the disease, or possessing good “immunologic memory,” and not in need of further vaccination against the disease at that time.

Titer tests do not distinguish between the immunity generated by vaccination and that generated by natural exposure to disease agents. A dog may have developed immunity to a viral disease by receiving a vaccine against the disease, by being exposed to the disease in the natural environment and conquering it, sometimes without having demonstrated any symptoms of exposure to the disease, or by a combination of the two.

Therefore, titer tests really measure both the “priming of the pump” that comes from vaccines, and the immunity resulting from natural exposure to disease during a dog’s lifetime. Only an indoor dog that has been totally sequestered from the natural environment is likely to have developed all of its immunity from vaccinations.

Although the magnitude of immunity protection received by vaccination only is usually lower than by vaccination plus exposure, it doesn’t matter how your dog developed its strong immunity to specific viral diseases, as long as the immunity is present. By “titering” annually, a dog owner can assess whether her dog’s immune response has fallen below adequate levels. In that event, an appropriate vaccine booster can be administered.

Which titers tests?
Some dog owners, aware that there are dozens of vaccines available, are concerned that they would need to order titer tests for each vaccine. Actually, measuring the titers for just two vaccines, according to Dr. Dodds, can offer the dog owner a reliable “picture” of the dog’s immunological status. Good immunity to canine parvovirus (CPV) and canine distemper virus (CDV), she says, indicates proper “markers for the competence of the dog’s immune system.”

Although the laboratories will also perform vaccine titer tests for other canine diseases, such as coronavirus and Lyme, Dr. Dodds deems these tests a waste of money. Protection from coronavirus, Dr. Dodds explains, depends on the current state of health of the dog’s gastrointestinal tract, not on what’s in the dog’s blood, so serum tests are not conclusive. Lyme is regionally based and not a significant threat to the general canine population, so only dogs in a high-risk environment need titer testing for Lyme.

Dr. Dodds emphasizes that titer testing is not a “guess” at immunological response in a dog; when dealing with CDV and CDP, there is absolute correlation between certain high titer values and what is frequently referred to as “protection” from the diseases in question. In this case, the animal’s owner and veterinarian can feel quite confident that the animal possesses sufficient resources for fighting off a disease challenge.

When the tests reveal that the animal has borderline or low titer values, the owner and veterinarian should consider revaccinating and then testing the titers again. It may turn out that the animal simply needed a booster to stimulate a stronger immune response. Or, maybe the people involved learn that the animal lacks the ability to respond normally to vaccines, that is, by mounting a proper immune response. In this case, the owner and veterinarian have gained very valuable information about the dog’s compromised immune status – information they never would have gained by simply vaccinating and assuming the dog was “protected” as is usually the case with healthy dogs.

As you can see, in reality, simply administering vaccines to dogs every year is more of a guessing game than using titer tests to learn about the dog’s immune competence. Studies worldwide support titer test results as comprehensive information about a dog’s immunological response capabilities.

Now more affordable
Because the more widely recognized benefits of titer testing have caused an increase in the number of titer tests performed at veterinary laboratories, the price is coming down and the tests are available from a wide range of providers.

Veterinary laboratories offer traditional vaccine titer testing by looking at a blood sample from a dog and identifying a specific level of actual immunity in the dog. Reputable laboratories use commonly accepted immunological techniques that have been validated against original test techniques and found to be accurate. Be certain your veterinarian sends blood samples to a major professional veterinary laboratory such as Antech Diagnostics (www.antechdiagnostics.com), Idexx Laboratories (www.idexx.com), Vita-Tech Laboratories (www.vita-tech.com), or one of the major university veterinary laboratories, including Cornell, Colorado State, Michigan State, Tufts, and Texas A&M.

In early spring 2002, Synbiotics Corporation, a San Diego-based manufacturer of diagnostic materials and instrumentation for the veterinary market, rolled out an innovative tool that should make titer testing even more readily available and affordable. TiterCHEKTM is the first in-office titer test licensed by the USDA for use in veterinary clinics. TiterCHEKTM tests titers for canine parvovirus and canine distemper virus, registering the degree of strength of the immune response in varying color shades. If the test results denote a weak immune response level, blood samples can be sent to a veterinary laboratory for more comprehensive testing. Dr. Dodds estimates that more than 95 percent of in-office tests will indicate a satisfactory immune response present in a dog that has received its puppy vaccinations and one-year boosters, so follow-up is rarely required.

Expect to pay your veterinarian from $40 to $100 for CDV and CPV titer testing from a laboratory, and slightly less for an in-office test, for which your veterinarian must purchase the TiterCHEKTM test kit.

Resisting vaccine titer testing
As practicing clinicians, veterinarians are hesitant to adjust any clinical regimen they have adopted until they see research study data that they judge to be functional and applicable in the real world. Many veterinarians resisted rethinking the annual canine vaccine regimen based upon the early findings of researchers.

However, the increased evidence linking over-vaccination to acute and chronic diseases in dogs has finally caused a mainstream conviction that vaccination protocols are not a one-size-fits-all healthcare decision. Indeed, Dr. Dodds, once considered a rebel by the veterinary profession, now speaks to standing-room-only audiences at the most prestigious professional conferences in the country.

The perceived need for annual vaccinations used to motivate many dog owners to make appointments with their veterinarians for their dog’s annual wellness checkup. Veterinarians now hope that annual titer tests will perform a similar function. Having your dog examined by a veterinarian at least once a year is critically important for detecting, preventing, and treating any diseases or other ailments as early as possible. Adding the ability to check your dog’s immunological health and custom-tailor his vaccine schedule to his actual needs will impressively augment this important task.

It has been estimated that only about 60 percent of pet dogs receive the minimum disease prevention vaccination protocol. Ironically, in an attempt to provide their beloved animal companions with the best possible care, many highly motivated owners arrange for their dogs to receive several times the necessary dose of vaccinations, to the point of risking the adverse effects of over-vaccination on the health of the dog’s immune system.

Consumers who do care about managing the effectiveness of their dog’s immune system against the most dangerous canine viral diseases now have the means to do so without risking their dog’s health in the process. When you and your dog visit your veterinarian for an annual checkup, take the titer test.

Also With This Article
Click here to view “Vaccine Titler Tests for Dogs”
Click here to view “Titler Tests and Preventing Overvaccination”
Click here to view “Beware of Over-Vaccinating Your Dog”

Lorie Long is a frequent contributor to WDJ. She lives in North Carolina with two Border Terriers, Dash (a three-year-old female and agility queen) and Chase (a five-month-old male with an agility future).

How to Conduct a Home Health Exam for Your Dog

By
Nancy Kerns
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0

Everybody knows that early detection and treatment of disease is vital for a quick and successful recovery. That’s why humans and their canine companions are supposed to see their doctors at least annually for a complete physical examination.

Of course, if a human happens to notice a strange lump or other abnormality on his own body, he can (and should) get on the phone and make an appointment to see his doctor right away. The doc could check out the abnormality, and either put the person’s mind to rest that it is nothing to worry about, or order tests and/or treatment.

In contrast, if a dog happens to develop a lump or other abnormality, it might take quite a bit of time before anyone notices it – least of all, the dog! And, unfortunately, there are numerous health conditions that can develop and present a real danger to your dog in between annual veterinary examinations.

The good news is that you can detect many early signs of disease if you know how. By performing a quick but methodical monthly physical on your dog, you can monitor ongoing problems (or things that may become problems) and be alerted to any new issues. This examination can take as little as 10 minutes, helps you and your dog bond, prepares him for veterinary attention – and, if he is developing a dangerous health condition, it just may help save his life.

Do the same thing
It’s best to follow a consistent routine, so your dog becomes comfortable and relaxed with the procedure, and to increase your familiarity with his body, lumps, bumps, and all. Write out and follow a short outline, to remind yourself about each part of the dog’s body you want to check.

It would be ideal to devote a small notebook to chronicling the results of your examinations, as well as your veterinarian’s findings. Dated notes about any abnormalities can help your vet diagnose or monitor ongoing problems.

While the monthly examination should take only about 10 minutes, allow for half an hour or so for the first exam, so you can write a brief descriptive note about the location and appearance of each abnormality you find. This will serve as a baseline from which you can compare any new developments. Try to describe each finding in terms you will immediately understand the next time you undertake the exam. For example, if your dog has a growth on her eyelid, try to think of something that is the same size, and note the comparison: “Growth on left side of right eyelid, about the size of the head of a pin but oval-shaped. Same color as her skin.”

Sit in a well-lighted area for optimum viewing. Make sure both you and your dog are comfortable and relaxed. Gather all the materials you need so you don’t have to get up several times. A good supply of treats for rewarding cooperation and a notebook and pen are the bare minimum. You can add some ear cleaner, cotton balls, a thermometer, and a watch with a second hand and a stethoscope, if you want your exam to be as complete as possible.

We recommend starting your examination at the front of the dog and working your way back.

Mouth
To check your dog’s mouth, start by rolling her upper lip back. You want to see clean, white, whole teeth and nice pink gums, and the dog’s breath should be tolerable. If you see a dark or brown tooth, rub it with your finger to determine whether it is simply discolored or whether it is caked with calculus. A buildup of tartar will result in inflammation of the gums, called gingivitis, which will make the gumline appear a darker red color along the teeth.

A buildup of tartar, especially if the dog is already showing signs of gingivitis, should prompt you to make an appointment with your veterinarian for a teeth-cleaning, because the periodontal disease that can result from tartar buildup and gingivitis can profoundly affect a dog’s health.

According to Frank Verstraete, DVM, and a Diplomate of the American Veterinary Dental College, periodontal disease can cause bacteria and toxins to enter the bloodstream with potentially destructive effects on the dog’s internal organs. Conversely, overall poor health may exacerbate periodontal disease.

In addition to tartar accumulation and gingivitis, you should also look for any broken or cracked teeth. Like humans, dogs have highly sensitive tissue (pulp) inside their teeth, and if a tooth cracks or breaks, exposing the pulp, the dog can suffer excruciating pain and distress. If you find any broken or cracked teeth, you should have your dog seen by his veterinarian as soon as possible for treatment.

Any unusual tissue growth in the mouth should also trigger a call to your veterinarian. Oral cancer is fairly common in dogs, but can be treated successfully if caught in its early stages. Oral tumors may appear as a prominent mass, or as an ulcerated sore that just won’t heal.

Old dogs may have teeth that are worn right down to the gumline. Generally, this condition does not cause a dog any pain or sensitivity or result in infection. Unless the dog’s breath is very bad, the gums around the worn teeth are very red, or he exhibits sensitivity when you press on the teeth, this is not cause for alarm. Ask your veterinarian what he thinks about the teeth at your dog’s next annual examination.

Nose
The saying that a dog’s nose should always be wet and cold is just an old wives’ tale. In the course of a normal day, a dog’s nose will vary quite a bit, from warm and dry, to wet and cold, and other possible combination. Seasonal temperature and humidity changes may affect your dog’s nose as they do yours; you just want to check your dog’s nose for discharge that’s more than transient, again noting any changes from the usual.

That said, if your dog’s nose is always dry and cracked, scabbed, crusty, or raw, he should be seen by your veterinarian. There are numerous dermatological conditions that can cause the nose to appear this way, and most of them will worsen without treatment. A thick or greenish discharge could indicate your dog has a respiratory infection or a foreign body in his nose or sinus.

Eyes
Bright, clear eyes are a sign of good health in any species. There are several conditions that can cause dogs to develop cloudy eyes as they age; ask your veterinarian what condition is causing your dog’s eyes to cloud at your dog’s next annual exam. Then, just monitor the progress of the clouding.

Check for growths on your dog’s eyelids. Briefly lift the dog’s upper eyelid to look at the sclera, the white part of the eye. While some blood vessels may be visible, the sclera should be nice and white. Scleral injection, or colored sclera, could indicate metabolic changes. Yellow sclera may indicate jaundice, an indicator of liver dysfunction. These signs, or blood vessels that suddenly appear larger than normal, are things you should ask your vet about at your dog’s annual exam.

Many dogs – especially breeds with bulgy eyes – have more or less constant “tearing” or eye secretions. This is not a cause for concern, but any sudden change in the amount or quality of the tears should be investigated. If your dog suddenly begins to rub at her eyes, if the lids become red and inflamed, or if the discharge becomes thick or green, your vet will need to examine her. These signs may indicate something as trivial as seasonal allergies or blocked tear ducts, something that requires a quick surgical procedure (such as inward-growing eyelashes or turned-in eyelids), or something that may require ongoing treatment, such as glaucoma or keratoconjunctivitis sicca (KCS, or “dry eye”).

Ears
Dogs with upright or sparsely furred ears seldom seem to have “hidden” problems with their ears, but breeds with ears that hang down or have lots of hair on, in, and/or around them seem to suffer lots of ear infections. You want to lift the ear and find pink, clean, non-smelly ears. In contrast, discharge, lots of waxy dirt, and strong smells could indicate foreign bodies or infection, changes that need further veterinary attention.

If your dog frequently has goopy ears, you should clean the outer parts of the ear with some soft cotton balls and a commercial ear cleaner to prevent a buildup that can cause infection. For routine ear care, we especially like gentle cleaners such as Halo’s “Natural Herbal Ear Wash” (www.halopets.com) and Ark Naturals’ “Ears All Right Gentle Ear Cleaning Lotion” (www.arknaturals.com). Both of these products may be found in or ordered from better pet supply stores or health food stores. They contain herbs that soothe irritated, inflamed skin and seem to promote a healthy ear environment.

Dogs with long or thick hair can sometimes develop mats behind their ears, which can interfere with the normal movement of their ears or cause a sore on the skin. Check the hair around the back of the ears carefully, and clip away any mats you find.

Body
Checking the body of a dog with a short coat is a lot easier than a thick- or long-haired one. Thin-coated dogs such as Weimaraners or German Shorthaired Pointers are easy to stroke, feeling with the fingers for any bumps, changes in the normal musculature, and sensitive spots.

On dogs with long or thick coats, you will have to proceed more slowly, deliberately feeling every inch of the dog’s neck, shoulders, back, ribs, abdomen, and back legs. Pay special attention to places that are difficult to see, such as the armpits, under the tail, and under the dog’s collar. As you progress, look and feel for bumps, swellings, lumps, or hardenings.

Lumps and bumps can be any number of things, including benign, slow-growing fatty tumors or fast-growing malignant tumors. By making a note of the location, size, and growth rate of the lump, you’ll be able to give your veterinarian good information so he can decide whether or not urgent removal of the lump might be necessary.

As you palpate your dog’s body, remove any plant materials, such as burrs, sandspurs, foxtails, or other stickers that may be lodged in your pet’s coat. All of these stickers can cause matting or migrate through the dog’s coat, irritating ears, noses, toes, and “armpits.” If not removed, these plant materials may cause local, then systemic infection.

Little bumps may be revealed to be ticks, biting parasites that can transmit Lyme disease, ehrlichiosis, or Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever. Fortunately for us, the insects take their time finding attachment sites, and even then, take a while to inject the disease vector. Comb through your dog’s hair to spot and remove loose ticks as soon as possible after a hike or walk.

Attached ticks can be removed with a pair of tweezers or a special tick-removing tool, by grasping it firmly as close as possible to the dog’s skin. Look carefully at the tick after you’ve removed it; if it appears to be missing its head, keep an eye on the site of attachment on the dog for a week or two, using dilute Betadine solution or other antiseptic scrub to ward off infection.

Feet
Examine each one of your dog’s paws individually. Hold each paw in both of your hands, spreading the toes to look and feel in between them. This is a common location for sores caused by stickers or aggravated by excessive licking. Turn her foot to see the pads, feeling for invasive stickers or unusual roughness.

If your dog has long hair on her feet, make sure you pull it back and take a good look at her nails. Many long-haired dogs develop excessively long nails, because no one looks closely enough to realize they need to be clipped. If your dog has dewclaws – the little vestigial “toes” high on the inside of his ankles – be sure to check the nails on them to ensure they are not too long. Because these nails don’t come in contact with the ground, they will sometimes grow inward and irritate the dog’s skin.

If you don’t regularly trim your dog’s nails, you should at least take him to a groomer every month or so to have someone else trim them. But it’s not that difficult to do yourself. See our review of various nail clipping tools in “You Nailed It!” WDJ February 1999, and directions on how to train your dog to tolerate nail trimming on page 22 of this issue.

Under the tail
Last, but not least, run your hands over and around the rump area, and down the tail. This is a private area, and some dogs don’t relish having their anal area examined. Lift the tail and look for redness, irritation, swelling, or other signs that your dog is paying unusual attention or licking a reddened area on or near the genitals or anus.

If you see little white things that resemble grains of cooked white rice, remove them with a paper towel (or wearing rubber gloves) and dispose of them. Then, go ask your veterinarian for a dewormer. The little white things are tapeworm eggs. Dogs acquire tapeworms by ingesting fleas, usually in the act of biting themselves in an effort relieve itching fleabites. To thoroughly control tapeworms, you must control fleas. (See “Eliminate Fleas Without Poisons: Integrated Pest Management,” WDJ March 2002.)

Methodical approach is best
Many of us are shocked when we take our dogs to the veterinarian and she points out troubling signs of disease or illness. “My gosh,” we are embarrassed to admit, “I never noticed that!” We feel even worse to learn that the dog’s condition could have been prevented or treated much more easily had it been discovered earlier.

By looking closely at your whole animal on a regular basis, singular physical, attitudinal, or behavioral changes should be more noticeable to you, which can help you and your vet narrow down potential sources of problems. By consistently and routinely examining their pet, establishing a health baseline of normal for that individual, guardians may be able to further narrow down the timing and physical origin of problems.

-by Susan Eskew

Susan Eskew is a freelance writer (and wife of a veterinarian) currently living in North Carolina. She wishes to thank Kristen Chaney, a senior veterinary student at Colorado State University, Ft. Collins, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences and a community practice help-line volunteer, and Kim Hombs, DVM, a holistic veterinarian from Charlotte, NC, for their help in preparing this article.

How to Safely Break Up a Dog Fight

By
Pat Miller, CBCC-KA, CPDT-KA
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3

Hang around with dogs long enough, and sooner or later you’re likely to encounter a dogfight.

It might be a battle over resources – food, toys, territory, or your attention – or one dog taking offense at another’s physical communication style. It could be a struggle for position within the social status hierarchy, or simply a matter of a dog being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Perhaps it’s a case of redirected aggression – Fido really wanted to attack the stray dog on the other side of the fence but couldn’t get to him, so he turned on Snoopy instead. Or you may have the misfortune of experiencing one of the most frightening dogfight scenarios – when an aggressive stray dog attacks yours while the two of you are taking a simple walk on leash around the block.

strange dog attacks
It pays to think about what you would do if a strange dog attacked your dog when you were out walking together – before an attack actually happens. If you are mentally prepared and equipped with some kind of tool that can help, the odds are good that you will be able to get you and your dog away from trouble without injury.

Dogs fight. Despite the genetic programming that generally allows dogs to live harmoniously in groups, from time to time the harmony is shattered and a real fight occurs. When it does, it can be terrifying and dangerous – to the humans as well as the canines who get involved in the fracas.

Your first instinctive response may be to yell at the top of your lungs to try to break up the battle. Your second is often to reach in and attempt to bodily rescue your canine pal – especially if it appears he is getting the worst of it. Neither of these actions is likely to be effective. Yelling often adds fuel to the stress and arousal that led to the fight in the first place, and only intensifies the battle. Reaching into the fray more often than not results in your receiving multiple lacerations – sometimes inflicted by your own dog, who is too engaged in the battle to recognize or respect his own person’s hand, arm, or face.

Of course, you can’t just stand back and watch when a ferocious dogfight is in progress, especially if your tiny teacup Poodle is getting mauled by a Mastiff. So, what should you do?

Dog Fight Prevention: Manage and Train Your Dog

I’ve lost track of how many times we’ve said this, but as always, prevention beats cure. It is imperative that you manage and train your own canine family to minimize the risk of serious dogfights. Identify situations that are likely to light the dogfight fuse, such as fence-fighting or resource guarding, and figure out how to avoid them and/or modify the behavior that causes them.

In addition, you must establish a calm home atmosphere. Dogs who live in a structured environment – where it is clear which behaviors are allowed and which are not – are much more likely to live in harmony than those who live in homes where chaos reigns. Something as simple as requiring all dogs to sit politely before the door is opened to the backyard can help instill order in the pack and respect for you as the benevolent leader of the family.

It’s fine to allow your dog to play in groups at places like dog parks, daycare, and neighborhood dog romps, as long as you make sure that members of the social groups are appropriate playmates in terms of size, personality, and play style. Play group opportunities help to keep dogs well-socialized, which helps prevent dogfights.

Most dog parks have rules that require their canine park users to “be nice.” Politely ask human guardians of inappropriate members to remove their dogs from the group. If they refuse, remove your own dog(s), and report the offender to the users’ group or other authority responsible for monitoring dog park use. If your dog has trouble being “nice” around other dogs, then you will need to take a pass on these social outlets.

If you live in an area where aggressive stray dogs are common, request that your local animal services agency step up their patrol efforts so that you can safely walk your dog. If Animal Services is reluctant to step in, speak with your elected officials about what needs to be done to make the agency more responsive to community needs. If you can identify owners of the errant dogs and feel comfortable approaching them, explain that their dogs are causing problems, and politely ask them to keep the dogs at home where they belong.

Protecting Your Dog Against Other Dogs’ Aggression

You can’t always predict and prevent incidents of serious dog-dog aggression. You can, however, be prepared to intervene safely to protect your dog – and yourself – should the necessity arise. Familiarize yourself with various tools and techniques that have the greatest chance of successfully quelling doggie disputes with the least injury to all parties. Then determine which are most appealing to you, and be sure to have them on hand (and in your head) should the time come when you need them.

These tools and techniques range from small and simple to big and bold. It is important to remember that none of them are foolproof; they all involve some inherent risk to the dogs who are fighting and to the humans who are trying to intervene, and they all can be applied with varying degrees of success. You will need to weigh the odds and decide, in each case, if the risk outweighs the potential for injury from the fight itself.

The topic of breaking up dogfights came up recently during a discussion between Association of Professional Dog Trainers (APDT) members, and generated an interesting list of suggestions. Let’s look at some of them and see how useful they might be (or not!) for the average dog on the street.

Avoiding Dog Fights Altogether

Prevention means making wise decisions about dog husbandry that will keep you in the best position to avoid dangerous conflict.

Beverly Hebert, of Sugar Land, Texas, no longer walks both of her German Shepherds at the same time, so she can better manage a situation if it does arise. She realized that having more than one dog on leash puts her at an impossible disadvantage if she and her canine friends are approached by an unfriendly dog – or pack. She feels much more confident about her ability to use appropriate tools and techniques to protect one dog than two.

umbrella for blocking dog
While shopping for a plain umbrella that we could paint big eyes on (to make a scary or surprising aversive), we found this umbrella in a children’s clothes shop.

She also tries to use good sense about when and where to walk her dogs. She says, “When we were on vacation with our dogs in Taos, New Mexico, my husband wanted to go for walks with the dogs down a mountainside road in an area filled with dogs. He thought I was a ‘Nervous Nellie’ because I wouldn’t do that, but every time we passed a home with no fence and a loose dog I heaved a sigh of relief that our dogs weren’t with us.”

Using Aversives to Stop Dog Fights

Aversives are tools that a dog finds offensive to the senses – smells, sounds, and other stimuli that are strong enough to stop a behavior. In general, aversives can be most effective if used to interrupt fighting dogs prior to full arousal in an altercation; their effectiveness decreases as arousal levels increase, although they may still succeed in stopping many full-scale fights. Aversives should also be considered primarily a tool for crisis intervention – I don’t recommend using them as basic training tools.

Marni Fowler, of Gainesville, Florida, reminds us that blasting dogs with water from a nearby hose is a tried and true method of separating fighting dogs. She’s right – and it often works – assuming a hose happens to be nearby with a powerful enough spray to do the job. A good tool to keep in your arsenal for the right time and place – like your own yard. Not particularly useful, however, when there’s no hose handy!

One of the easily-portable aversive sprays, such as Direct Stop™ (citronella) or Halt!™ (pepper spray) might be an effective alternative to the hose. Of the two, Direct Stop, available from Premier, is the safer choice, since pepper spray products are more corrosive, and the spray can drift and affect innocent bystanders – humans as well as dogs. There are laws in some jurisdictions requiring that users of pepper spray products complete a training course and carry a permit. In a pinch, even a fire extinguisher, while not easily portable, might just happen to be a handy and effective aversive tool.

Debi Davis, of Tucson, Arizona, trains service dogs from her wheelchair, and is always accompanied by one or more of her own service-trained Papillions. The dogfight topic is of great interest to her, both because her dogs are small and more vulnerable than many others, and because her own mobility and ability to protect them is limited.

Davis has an air horn attached to her chair that makes 10 different sounds, including sirens, horns, barnyard animals, etc., and she can crank the sound up to a deafening level. Air horns (available at boating supply stores) can be effective at warding off attacking dogs, but your own dog has to be desensitized to the cacophony, or you are likely to lose him as well! You can also risk damage to eardrums, both canine and human, and you do take a chance of frightening your own dog beyond repair.

Nicole Wilde, of Gentle Guidance in Santa Clarita, California, says that she had good success most of the time with air horns when she worked at a doggie daycare center several years ago. Wilde says they were quite effective in breaking up fights in a majority of the cases.

Using Physical Objects to Stop Dog Fights

A number of trainers suggested intervention with a physical object of some kind. If fights are a regular problem in your household you might attach a handle to a sheet of plywood so you can lower it between two sparring dogs and force them apart.

Dogfighters – and some pitbull owners who don’t fight their dogs but know the breed’s potential – carry a “parting stick” or “break stick” with them wherever they go with their dogs. This is usually a carved or whittled hammer handle, tapered to a rounded point at one end. When two dogs are locked in combat, the parting stick can be forced between a dog’s teeth and turned sideways, to pry open the jaws. Parting sticks can break a dog’s teeth, and a dog whose jaws have just been “parted” may turn on the person doing the parting. Like many other techniques offered here, this method should only be considered for dire emergencies.

A blanket can also be a useful tool. Tossed over the fighters (one over each works best), it muffles outside stimuli, thereby reducing arousal. This also allows the humans to reach in and physically separate the combatants by picking up the wrapped pooches with less risk of a serious bite – the blanket will also cushion the effect of teeth on skin if the dog does whirl and bite.

Laura Van Dyne, CPDT, of The Canine Consultant, LLC in Carbondale, Colorado, suggests a defensive technique she saw demonstrated at a conference by Trish King, Director of the Behavior and Training Department at the Marin Humane Society in Novato, California. King paints big eyes and teeth in bright paint on an umbrella – the kind that explodes open at the touch of a button – them carries it, folded up, when walking in places where stray dogs are a threat. When an aggressive dog approaches, whoosh!, the “Defend-A-Brella” leaps into action and wards off the threat. You would, of course, need to desensitize your own dogs to the umbrella action prior to using it in real life. This is not as likely to stop a fight in progress, but may well forestall an attack from an approaching dog.

Keep in mind that your goal is to avoid getting bitten, at all costs. Dog bites can cause pain and deep bruising (as seen above in the picture of a week-old bite on the forearm) as well as nerve damage and other long-term effects.

Janet Smith, Behavior Program Manager for the Capital Area Humane Society in Lansing, Michigan, offers a somewhat drastic technique, reminding us that when a dog’s life and limb are at stake, drastic measures may be called for. Smith says, “You can wrap a leash around the aggressor’s neck or get hold of a collar and twist to cut off the dog’s airflow, until he lets go to try to get a breath of air, then pull the dogs apart.”

Of course, this could be more difficult than it sounds. It might be a challenge to get a leash around the neck of a dog who is “attached” by the mouth to another dog without getting your hands in harm’s way, and grabbing a collar to twist also puts hands in close proximity to teeth.

Using Your Body to Intervene a Dog Fight

Jackie McGowan, of Click Start Dog Training in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, attended a seminar given by Turid Rugaas, and reports that the highly respected Norwegian trainer had few suggestions for magic techniques for breaking up fights. According to McGowan, Rugaas said that she usually gives dogs a chance to work it out, but if it is apparent that this is not going to happen, she will try and walk between and/or gently pull one dog away by his collar. Rugaas also cautioned seminar attendees that she would not recommend this to others handling a fight because the risk of injury to the human is high.

Carla Baker of A to Z Training in Olympia, Washington, recalls a rather drastic technique she observed in action at a dog show some 20 years ago. “Two dogs got into it and were going to cause some major damage,” Baker says. “The elderly judge was a very tiny woman, and she had the handlers both grab their dogs and hold on tight. Then she went up and took the dog on top by the tail and jammed her thumb up his rectum. He let go in an instant and whirled around to see what the heck was happening. The judge excused the two dogs, calmly washed her hands, and then continued her classes without a hitch – just as if it happened every day.

“Don’t know that I’d try this myself,” Baker concluded, “but it sure did work!”

Valerie Poulton, of Val’s Good Dogs in Omaha, Nebraska, offers one more approach to physical intervention; one that could be a little difficult if the aggressor is a 150-pound St. Bernard, but sounds worth trying with a smaller dog. This method was demonstrated at Poulton’s training club last year by author and trainer, Suzanne Clothier. Poulton has since tried it herself and reports that it worked for her on two separate occasions with her own dog – but only in a one-on-one dog brawl; she would not recommend it in a multi-dog fight situation.

“Lift the rear of the clearly-identified aggressor so that he is suspended with his forefeet barely touching the ground,” Poulton explains. “The dog lets go, and the target can scoot free. ”

Poulton cautions that her dog is dog-aggressive only, and will not turn on a human. “Supposedly, in this position the dog is not able to turn on the human suspending him, although I cannot say I have used it with a dog who might try.”

Equipment for Dog Fight Break-Ups

Now, all you need to do is stuff a canister of Direct Stop in your pocket, hang an umbrella over your arm, attach a parting stick to your belt, carry a blanket over your other arm, balance a sheet of plywood on your head, wear an air horn around your neck, and be sure you have at least two friends with you to hold dogs while you put your thumb in private places, and you are ready for anything.

Seriously, if and when that next fight happens, take a deep breath, resist your instincts to yell or leap in the middle of the fray, quickly review your available options, and choose the one – or ones – that are most likely to work in that place and time. When the fight is over and no one is being rushed to the hospital in an ambulance, remember to take a moment to relax and breathe, and then congratulate yourself for your quick thinking.

Fight-Stopping Resources

Air horns

Parting sticks

PetSafe Shield (citronella)

Halt! Dog Repellent (pepper spray)

An umbrella with a face

BREAKING UP A FIGHT: OVERVIEW

1. Train your own dogs to respond to your cues, even in the face of a chaotic melee.

2. When walking your dog, or when playing with him at leash-free parks, carry some tool (umbrella, etc.) that you feel comfortable with and capable of using in case of an emergency. The tool you choose should be suited to the environment; pepper spray is not appropriate for use in dog parks, but perfect for defending yourself from the stray fighting dogs that wander in some urban neighborhoods.

TTouch Practitioners Explain Canine “Body Wrapping”

By
CJ Puotinen
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[Updated August 10, 2017]

BODY WRAPPING FOR DOGS OVERVIEW

– Give it a try! We know it looks kooky – but we’ve seen it work again and again.

– Start with the least restrictive wrap. Use treats, whatever sort of touch your dog enjoys, and a reassuring tone of voice to reassure your dog.

– Find a TTouch practitioner near you for guidance and hands-on instruction.

Does anything feel better than a perfect hug?

Temple Grandin, Ph.D., is an expert on the therapeutic benefits of hugs. As an autistic child, she felt overwhelmed by most of the hugs she received from people, but crawling under sofa cushions soothed her. The pressure felt even better if her sister sat on the cushions.

Grandin visited a relative’s ranch and noticed how the pressure of a squeeze chute into which cattle were herded for branding quickly calmed them. Realizing that similar deep pressure might help her own over-stimulated nerves, she designed a padded box into which she could climb and press a lever to bring its side boards together. Now known as the Hug Box or Squeeze Machine, Grandin’s invention has calmed autistic children and adults around the world.

While developing her famous Tellington TTouch (pronounced “tee-touch”) therapy, Linda Tellington-Jones explored the calming effects of gentle pressure on animals, especially dogs and horses. Most TTouch work is performed with the hands by making large and small circles all over the body, but to provide consistent pressure for longer periods, she wrapped the animals in elastic bandages.

Karen Doyle, a TTouch practitioner for companion animals in Chester, New York, appreciates the behavior changes that wraps produce because her first TTouch clients were aggressive dogs.

“They all had tight muscles in the legs and rear,” Doyle says. “Not enough blood in the brain and too much in their ready-to-launch hind ends prevented these dogs from thinking or learning. They were on automatic pilot, reacting on instinct alone. Gentle TTouch and body wraps interrupted this energy flow and reconnected the front and hind ends, which helped bring their minds and bodies into balance.”

In addition, Doyle worked with dogs that were timid, afraid of being left alone, afraid of loud noises, sore from injuries or arthritis, or uncoordinated. The most dramatic improvements occurred when the dogs’ owners made the wraps part of their regular routine in combination with TTouch circles, lifts, and slides. “At first they did it daily,” she says. “Even 10 minutes at a time made a difference, and for dogs who were afraid of thunder or had separation anxiety, the wraps could be worn for longer periods. As the dogs gained confidence, became more relaxed, or showed increased coordination or flexibility, the wraps were used for maintenance once a week or whenever it seemed appropriate.”

Like all of the TTouch patterns and exercises, body wraps have a cumulative effect. “It’s a gradual process,” says Doyle. “The neurological system receives information and stores it like a computer, so even small doses are effective. Be sure to use a reassuring tone of voice and be generous with praise or treats to help the dog relax and adjust. Even those who aren’t familiar with TTouch can massage the dog’s ears to help make the wrap more effective.”

Start at home or wherever you and your dog are most comfortable, she suggests, and when you feel ready, move to other areas and activities, including outdoor walks and training classes. Even wearing the wrap for short periods, like 5 or 10 minutes, can produce positive results. For more information, see Linda Tellington-Jones’s new book, Getting in TTouch with Your Dog, which describes several exercises that incorporate body wraps.

The T-Shirt Wrap and Half-Body Wrap are recommended for dogs who have never worn a wrap, as well as dogs who have painful hips or knees, which might be difficult to wrap on the first try. Full-Body Wraps connect front and back ends, which can improve coordination as well as behavior. Full-Body Wraps that hug the hind end stay in place on dogs who have short coats, sloping hips, or no tail.

“Before you start,” says Doyle, “write down all of your dog’s noticeable symptoms, habits, and behaviors. Check the list after a few days, then in a few weeks. You may be surprised at the changes that take place. Continue using a wrap as long as it keeps producing improvements. When you reach a plateau, switch to a new configuration and see if it makes a difference. When you’re satisfied with your dog’s condition or behavior, discontinue the wraps or use them occasionally for maintenance.”

There is no official “right way” to do a body wrap as long as the bandage is kept flat and comfortably snug and as long as the dog is safe. Never leave a body wrap on a dog who is unattended. “Check to be sure that the bandage doesn’t interfere with blood circulation or body movement,” says Doyle, “without being loose or baggy. The whole point of wrapping is to provide snug support. Be careful with the male anatomy and be sure the wrap doesn’t obstruct elimination in either gender. With these guidelines in mind, you can create any kind of wrap and it will be good for something.”

Benefits of Wrapping Your Dog

Wearing a body wrap can improve or increase:

– Body awareness and coordination
– Athletic performance
– Self-confidence
– Focus and concentration in training classes and life
– Recovery from illness, injury, or surgery
– Friendliness and sociability
– Mobility and range of motion despite arthritis, old age, or injury

Wearing a body wrap can reduce or decrease:

– Effects of physical or emotional trauma
– Fear of thunder and loud noises
– Motion sickness
– Hyperactivity
– Behavioral problems like chewing, barking, and jumping
– Anxiety, including separation anxiety
– Touch-sensitivity
– Fear of nail trimming, ear cleaning, or grooming
– Antisocial behavior
– Aggressive behavior and fear biting

Dog Body Wrapping Methods

T-Shirt Wrap

This is the simplest body wrap. Use an appropriate size, such as a child’s T-shirt for small dogs, an adult medium or large for mid-size dogs, and extra large for large dogs.

Place the T-shirt over the dog’s head backward, with the front of the shirt facing up. Guide the dog’s front paws through the arm holes. Gather fabric at the hem and tie the ends in a knot at the waist.

Variation: Cut an X in a plastic can lid, thread the hem through, and pull it comfortably tight. The lid will hold the fabric in place.

Elastic Bandage Wraps

Most TTouch instructors use Ace bandages, which are very stretchy and beige in color. They come in 2-, 3-, 4-, and 6-inch widths and 4.5-yard lengths. The 4- and 6-inch-wide bandages also come in 10-yard lengths. Bandages are held in place with diaper safety pins. When fastening wraps on the back, do not pin directly on the spine.

Use a 2-inch bandage for small dogs, a 3- or 4-inch bandage for large dogs, and a 4- or 6-inch bandage for giant breeds. Small dogs need only one 4.5-yard length, large dogs need two, and giant breeds may need three. Trim excess elastic as needed.

Half-Body Wrap

Place the center of the wrap at the center of the dog’s upper chest. Bring the ends up on either side to cross over the shoulders, then down behind the front legs, crossing under the belly, and up to the center of the back. Fasten the ends with a safety pin.

Variation: As the dog adjusts, pull the pinned portion back to the lower spine. Later, pull it back around the hips at the top of the tail. These adjustments provide some of the benefits of a Full-Body Wrap and help the dog accept that configuration.

Variation: Place the Half-Body Wrap over a T-shirt.

Full-Body Wrap

Leaving the Half-Body Wrap in place, fold a second bandage in half to find its center. Slip one end under the pinned part of the Half-Body Wrap and pull it through until its center is under the pin. Fold it over so it is two layers thick and moving from the waist straight back toward the tail. Remove the pin and use it to secure all four layers at this intersection, or use a second pin to do this, avoiding the top of the spine.

Separate the two ends and pull them under the abdomen on either side in front of the hind legs, back between the legs, then up on either side of the tail. Secure the ends on the lower back with another safety pin.

Alternative Method: Use a single length of elastic or two bandages pinned together. Place the center of the wrap over the center of the dog’s chest. Pull the ends back and up to cross over the shoulders, down to cross under the belly, up to cross over the small of the back, then through the inner thighs from front to back and up on either side of the tail to the cross at the small of the back. Secure the ends at this intersection with a safety pin.

Variation (either method): Instead of pulling the ends up on either side of the tail, wrap the left end around the left hind leg and pin it in place at the top of the thigh; wrap the right leg the same way. This variation engages the hind legs. The wrap should be snug but not tight enough to interfere with walking.

Variation: Use a single length of elastic or two bandages pinned together. Holding one short end, tie a loose overhand knot around the dog’s neck Pull the rest of the bandage straight down the spine to the base of the tail. At the right side of the tail, bring the bandage down inside the right rear leg and toward the front of the leg, then up and across the small of the back to the left side. This creates a flank-to-flank cross-piece.

Thread the wrap through the inner thigh of the left hind leg, front to back, and up the rear on the left side of the tail. Tuck the wrap under the flank-to-flank cross-piece and bring it up to the neck. Untie the temporary knot. Pull the ends to the front on either side of the neck, cross them in front of the chest and continue around the shoulders on each side. Pull the ends to the middle or lower back, just in front of the flank-to-flank cross-piece. Pin the ends of the wrap to the elastic that runs under the flank-to-flank portion. The final wrap resembles a figure 8 with the safety pin at the center of the 8.

Variation: As above, but leave the knot in place and fasten the second end at the shoulder with a safety pin.

The Anxiety Wrap

When Indiana dog trainer Susan Sharpe discovered correction-free training methods, she studied clicker training, TTouch, behavior modification, acupressure, and massage. She was already familiar with Temple Grandin’s Hug Box and had recently read Molecules of Emotion, in which Candace Pert, Ph.D., explains that neuropeptides and their receptors are the biochemicals of emotion, carrying information in a vast network that links the material world of molecules with the nonmaterial world of the psyche.

“All of these things converged for me when I looked for ways to help my German Shepherd, who became aggressive during a serious illness,” says Sharpe. “I also wanted to help the dogs I train and those that vacation at my doggie resort.”

Sharpe tried T-shirts, then added duct tape to see if a snugger, more secure fit would make a difference. “The dogs became much more relaxed,” she says. “I continued using this method until one day a man thought his dog had been in an accident because of the way he was wrapped.”

Sharpe decided to design a garment that would work like the duct-taped T-shirt but would look more attractive. “I wanted to engage the dog’s hindquarters, too,” she says, “which the T-shirt didn’t do.”

For help she turned to Joyce Walker, a friend who rescues Greyhounds and sews coats for them. Together, they tested more than 80 prototypes before perfecting the Anxiety Wrap, a sturdy, stretchy vest that hugs the torso like a body stocking. An adjustable panel under the belly enhances the fit, as do strategically placed draw-strings, and elastic threaded through the vest at the back can be attached to the hind legs or crossed over the tail for a snug fit at the rear. It comes in black in nine sizes, from toy breeds at $65 to XXL at $75, with wholesale discounts for shops, trainers, dog clubs, shelters, and rescue organizations. Custom fitting is available as well.

How can wrapping a dog cause lasting behavior changes? According to Indianapolis neurobiologist Shereen D. Farber, Ph.D., any type of trauma can damage nerve receptors, leading to exaggerated responses to stimuli. “Applying constantly maintained pressure provides an unchanging, quieting stimulus that causes the receptors to adapt and modify their thresholds in a cumulative manner,” she explains.

For more than four years, thunder, gunshots, construction equipment, and acorns landing on the roof triggered panic attacks in Caroline Farr’s eight-year-old Pharoah Hound, Kody, who lives with her in Pennsylvania. Kody was also extremely touch-sensitive and did not enjoy petting or massage. Then the Anxiety Wrap arrived. “Kody loved it from the moment it went on,” says Farr. “On the 4th of July, just after it arrived, he wore it at a large open house, and everyone noticed his transformation. All the mothers said, ‘Swaddling, of course!’, referring to the ancient custom of calming unhappy babies by wrapping them closely. He stayed relaxed during the fireworks, and thunder no longer sends him running.”

In Michigan, seven-year-old Chase, a Golden Retriever, suffered from severe thunder phobia and separation anxiety. After he injured his mouth demolishing a camper door, Chase’s vet prescribed Valium and offered euthanasia as the only option. As a last resort, owners David and Kay Snell tried the Anxiety Wrap. “Within the first five minutes of wearing it,” says Kay, “he laid down, totally relaxed. He no longer pants and paces during storms or climbs into bed with us.” After a month of use, Chase still has separation anxiety during camping trips, but as long as he’s wearing the wrap, he stays calm. “Once we went on a 20-minute bike ride and forgot to put it on,” she says, “and when we returned, the screen door was ripped out. We learned our lesson and will always use his Anxiety Wrap when he’s left alone.” Unlike elastic bandages, the Anxiety Wrap can safely stay on dogs that are left unattended.

Lyda Long, MD, of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, bought an Anxiety Wrap for her Siberian Husky, Karma, whose traumatic experience at a dog show left the six-month-old puppy fearful, shy, and anxious around strangers. For the next eight months, Dr. Long used desensitization techniques, counter-conditioning, herbal remedies, and other natural treatments with slow and limited success. “The Anxiety Wrap gave us amazing and almost immediate excellent results,” she says, “and Karma continues to improve each time she wears it.”

Susan Sharpe encourages people to introduce the Anxiety Wrap before anxiety-causing conditions are present. “You don’t want the dog to associate wearing the Anxiety Wrap with something that causes distress,” she explains. “For thunderstorms, put it on when the animal begins to show signs of bad weather approaching, then remove it after the dog no longer shows these symptoms. If a storm has been forecast and you have to leave for the day, put the Anxiety Wrap on your dog before you go and take it off when you get back or after the storm has ended. Some dogs will calm down immediately, while others may go through three or more storms before they respond.”

For improved training, she recommends putting the Anxiety Wrap on before class, using lots of positive reinforcement during the class, and removing the wrap after. For hyperactivity, reward the dog with treats, calm praise, or petting as soon as he or she begins to show signs of calmness.

A regular contributor to WDJ, CJ Puotinen is also the author of The Encyclopedia of Natural Pet Care, Natural Remedies for Dogs and Cats, and several books about human health including, Natural Relief from Aches and Pains, published in summer 2001. She lives in New York.

Trim Training

By
Nancy Kerns
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My question has to do with nail trims. My pup is deathly afraid of them. I have tried pairing the nail trim with something really good (yummy food, lots of verbal praise etc.) but he is really stressed. My veterinarian says once you start a nail trim you must finish or he will know he has won and put up the same fight next time.

-Steph
McHenry, Illinois

———-

We asked our Training Editor, Pat Miller, to answer this question. Miller is a Certified Pet Dog Trainer in Chattanooga, Tennessee. She is also the President of the Board of Directors of the Association of Pet Dog Trainers, and recently published her first book, The Power of Positive Dog Training.

———-

Your veterinarian’s advice is a great example of old-style force-based thinking. We aren’t in a war with our dogs and we don’t have to win battles. As the supposedly more intelligent species, and as positive trainers, it is our job to get our dogs to voluntarily give us the behaviors we want without having to use force. Stop and ask yourself, “What’s the rush? Why do I have to trim all of his nails, all in one sitting?”

When we first found our Scottish Terrier, he was about seven months old and hated being brushed or having his feet touched (much less getting his nails trimmed). We worked very slowly to desensitize him to those necessary grooming procedures. Now he loves being brushed and tolerates nail trimming.

The key is to do it a tiny bit at a time, never pushing to the point that the dog struggles, panics, or fights. I first showed my Scottie the grooming brush, clicked and treated, then let him sniff it, clicked and treated again. Repeating each step numerous times, over several days I worked up to just touching him with the brush, then brushing once or twice on those areas that he was least sensitive about (the top of his head and back of his neck).

Over the next few weeks I worked up to brushing his back, his hindquarters, shoulders, and chest, clicking and treating all the while. (NOTE: I also use the verbal marker, “Yes!” with grooming procedures when I don’t have a partner to click for me, so my hands are free to wield grooming tools and dispense treats.)

Finally I convinced him, still using clicks and treats, that having me brush his legs, feet, tail, and tummy is a really good thing.

During the same period, without the brush in hand, I desensitized him to being touched all over, including his legs and feet. If he started getting uneasy when a hand touched his knee, I would run my hand down his leg and stop just above the knee, then click and treat. After countless repetitions he began to look forward to having his leg touched rather than avoiding or fearing it.

Then, by tiny fraction-of-an-inch increments, I moved lower and lower on the leg, with numerous repetitions at each increment, still clicking and treating, until he was comfortable with me touching and holding his feet. Then I added the nail clippers to the program, still not trying to clip, just touching him with the clippers as we handled his feet, clicked and treated.

When he was comfortable with the clippers touching his paws, I clipped one nail, clicked, treated, and STOPPED clipping but continued to touch and hold his paws, click and treat, with the clippers in my hand. The next day I did another nail in the midst of the paw-handling program. On day three, I did two nails, interspersed within the touching exercise.

In this manner, I got all of his nails trimmed over a two-week period, with no struggle or mental trauma. I always made it incidental to the rest of the desensitization program, and never forced the issue. If he started to resist at any point, it was my fault for pushing too fast, and I backed off to where he was comfortable again. Two weeks ago, I clipped all his nails on all four paws in one session for the very first time.

When you do this, err way overboard on the side of caution. Only nip off the tips of the nails; don’t try to accomplish a short, show-ring-style trim. There is nothing like quicking a nail and making it bleed to convince your dog that he is justified in resisting your attentions to his feet.

Sure, you can overpower some dogs and win the nail trimming battle. Some dogs will even submit and learn to accept having their nails trimmed by force. And some won’t. You can get bitten in the process, make your dog hate nail trimming even more, create a dog who will not tolerate having his feet handled. Worst of all, in the long run, you can do permanent and serious damage to your relationship with your dog. No thanks!

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Dogs Living with Humans 101

By
Nancy Kerns
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0

There are certain basic behaviors that all dogs need to know if they are going to survive in human society. Generally, the only ones who are likely to live happily ever after in their original homes are those dogs who are regarded as “good” by their owners.

The definition of a “good dog” depends on the defining party. If you could ask a dog, he may say something like, “Oh that Jake! He’s a darned good dog! He can knock over any garbage can or jump on any counter for food, he trees cats with ease, he can chase most cars until they stop, and he can hear strangers coming from miles away and bark until they are gone! What a great dog!”

But if you asked a human to describe a “good dog,” chances are they would not mention any of the life skills that a real dog’s dog might display, such as an ability to scavenge for food or hunt and kill small animals. Rather, most people tend to regard good dogs as those who have learned to trade (or at least modify) many of their natural canine behaviors in favor of those that are acceptable to the human members of their families.

While some (or all!) of the Top 10 Things we describe below might seem overly elementary to an experienced and responsible dog owner, many dogs I meet in training classes – and animal shelters – lack several or many of the following skills. Certainly, a committed canine caretaker should be willing to manage or overlook her dog’s shortcomings; we are not perfect, nor should we expect our dogs to be. However, the less you have to manage or overlook, the more pleasant life will be for the both of you in the long run.

Put a check mark next to each of the 10 life skills that your dog has already successfully mastered. If you can check all 10, congratulations! You and your canine pal are well on your way to a lifetime of happiness and good times together. If you have to skip some, you might want to get to work and help your dog become an even better companion for you.

1: How To Live and Play Well With Humans
This may seem like a pretty broad topic. It is, in fact, the root of many of the ones that follow. Specifically, however, this means that your dog needs to accept that many human rules simply make no sense from a canine perspective. For example, humans have this incredibly bizarre habit of leaving food around uneaten. Really good food! Large chunks of prey animal – right out in plain view, on the kitchen counter, on the coffee table . . . what creature in his right mind would not eat high-value food when the opportunity presents itself?

Yet humans do just that, and expect their dogs to do the same. Although this exceptional example of canine self-control is often taken for granted, the dog who leaves the roast beef sandwich unmolested on the coffee table when his human takes a potty break in the middle of the Rose Bowl Parade deserves to be held in high esteem by his human caretaker.

Other examples of bizarre human rules include a taboo on drinking water from the freshest water source in the house (a thing humans call a toilet), and an expectation that their dogs not perceive an open door as an open invitation to dash through.

Our dogs also must adapt to what probably seems to them to be very odd human play behavior. Dogs play with tooth and claw – jumping up, biting, body-slamming – while most humans want their canine playmates to keep their teeth to themselves, and to refrain from jumping up and body-slamming, even in play, unless expressly invited.

Dogs are capable of learning these eccentric human rules, and they learn best when their humans understand that it is a dog’s nature to eat available food, drink fresh water, go through openings at will, and roughhouse in play. In each of these cases, proper management – not allowing the dog to be rewarded by the natural but undesirable behavior – and consistent reinforcement for alternative, preferable behaviors can get the job done.

For more information, see “Upper Level Management,” WDJ October 2001.

2: How To Accept Intimate Contact From Family, Friends, and Relative Strangers
Throughout your dog’s life, you will expect him to happily accept being touched and handled by all sorts of people: family, friends, strangers on the street, children in the schoolyard, veterinarians, groomers, and more. Dogs, however, do not come already programmed to love attention and touch. While some seem more naturally inclined to like human contact than others, all dogs must be socialized – ideally from a very early age – and taught to accept, even enjoy intimate touch. Even something as apparently innocuous as a pat on the head is foreign to a dog’s natural instincts and nonverbal communication style.

The best puppy raisers begin an intensive socialization program starting when pups are four weeks (or even younger), by exposing them to gentle handling and touch from an increasing number and variety of humans as the days and weeks pass. Handling ears, touching paws, examining teeth and private parts should all be accompanied by rewards – treats, toys, praise – so the pup comes to believe that humans and human touch make very good things happen. This concept should be instilled in his little dog brain well before he reaches the advanced age of four months.

Dogs who are stressed by human contact are far more likely to bite, and bite seriously, at some point in their lives. If your dog missed that all-important socialization period between four weeks and four months, you will need to work hard to make up for lost time. At this late stage, you can probably improve his willingness to accept contact, but he’s not likely to be as social as he could have been. A strong commitment to a program of counter-conditioning and desensitization is in order, and you may need the assistance of a behavior and training professional to maximize your success.

For more information, see “Canine Social Misfits,” WDJ February 2000.

3: How to Share
In the dog world, possession is generally nine-tenths of ownership, and even a small, lower-ranking pack member can often successfully fend off other dogs’ threats to her food and other valuable objects. Dogs will share with each other – when they choose to. You probably expect your canine family members to share happily and willingly, each and every time you decide that what’s hers is yours. Resource guarding is, in fact, a relatively common behavior with dogs, ranging from mild tension when folks are playing in the dog’s food bowl, to serious aggression with potential to maim.

You can start early in a puppy’s life to insure against food guarding by teaching her that your approach is not a threat to her possessions, but actually brings more good stuff. When she’s eating, approach her bowl and drop several high-value treats, one at a time, into her bowl. When she has something she shouldn’t, trade her for something better, instead of chasing her around in anger, scaring her and putting her on the defensive. If she consistently gets something wonderful when you approach, and rarely loses the good thing she has, she will not resort to resource guarding – she won’t need to!

If your dog is already a resource-guarder, seek the help of a qualified positive professional to help you work with it. This is a dangerous behavior, and one that should be addressed by someone who is confident and capable.

For more information, see “Thanks for Sharing,” WDJ September 2001.

4: When and Where To Go Potty (and where and when not to)
Dogs do come genetically programmed not to soil their own dens, so this is one human rule that makes pretty good sense to them. They may wonder why we insist on living in such large dens when small ones are so much cozier, but once they realize that the whole house is a den, housetraining usually comes along with relative ease.

The trick is to manage the dog’s behavior through crates, pens, tethers, leashes, and direct supervision, so he doesn’t have the opportunity to get in the habit of using any part of your house/den as his bathroom. Meanwhile, take him outside frequently and consistently enough so that he gets in the habit of relieving himself outdoors.

Remember, it’s a much simpler training challenge to teach him to go in one right spot than it is to teach him not to go in an almost infinite number of wrong spots.

For more information, see “Minding Your Pees and Cues,” WDJ December 2001.

5: How To Be Alone
To a wild dog, “alone” is synonymous with “danger.” A puppy, especially, is at high risk for being eaten if he is left without the protection of the pack. Although they are thousands of years from their wild ancestors, many of our domestic dogs still experience a residual anxiety when they are left alone. In extreme cases, dogs can develop a condition known as separation anxiety – the equivalent of a panic attack when left alone – and can cause great damage to their environment and injury to themselves. While crates can be used with some destructive dogs to safely contain them while unattended, crating is rarely a solution for unfortunate dogs with separation anxiety, as close confinement can send them into a panic frenzy.

To prevent separation anxiety, accustom your new puppy or dog to being left alone gradually during the first few days he is with you, perhaps crated or tethered while you move around the room, occasionally returning to him when he is calm and quiet. Calm departures and returns will also help him learn to be matter-of-fact about your comings and goings.

When this procedure causes him no discernible stress, begin stepping out of the room – for just a few seconds at a time, then longer and longer as he shows that he can handle it. Avoid returning to him when he is fussing – if he learns that fussing makes you return, you will teach him to fuss harder and harder, until he develops a full-blown anxiety attack when you are out of sight.

If your dog has signs of mild separation anxiety, the above program can also work, although it may take longer than a few days. If your dog has a serious anxiety condition, you will probably need the assistance of a professional, and perhaps anxiety relieving drugs, to see improvement.

For more information, see “Learning to Be Alone,” WDJ July 2001, and “Relieving Anxiety,” WDJ August 2001.

6: When, Where, and How to Use Teeth
There are lots of uses for a dog’s teeth, and all of them are acceptable, if properly directed. Dogs eat the meals you give them with their teeth; obviously, that’s okay. The best way to keep dogs from eating what they shouldn’t is to manage their behavior to prevent access and reward for counter-surfing, and to train a positive “Leave it” exercise.

Dogs also chew with their teeth. This, too, is normal behavior, and it behooves you to provide your pup with plenty of appropriate chew objects (a stuffed Kong being our favorite) while he is developing his chewing preferences. Once he zeroes in on suitable chew objects and matures past the experimental puppy stage, your own personal possessions should be reasonably safe. For this reason, I keep all new dogs crated when I can’t supervise them until they are at least a year old, gradually giving them increased house freedom as long as they show me they can handle it.

Dogs play with their teeth. Since canine teeth on human skin is generally an unacceptable behavior, I redirect that play-bite urge to tug-of-war toys, complete with rules designed to make it a safe and rewarding game for both tug partners. Dogs should be free to engage in tooth-play with other dogs, as long as both dogs are willing participants.

And finally, dogs bite aggressively with their teeth. There are rare circumstances when this is acceptable behavior – for trained protection and police dogs, and for the untrained family dog who wisely bites a criminal intruder – but most companion dogs need to not bite humans if they want to live happily ever after. The best way to accomplish this is to go back to the socialization work of Top Thing #2 (Accepting Intimate Contact).

Most aggression is caused by stress. A good socialization and positive training program reduces the number of things that might cause a dog to be stressed, thereby decreasing the likelihood that he will ever bite. All dogs are capable of biting, however, no matter how well socialized, if the situation is stressful enough – which is why the extreme stress generated by a stranger’s attack on his human companion can cause even a very well-socialized and well-mannered dog to bite – as well he should!

For more information, see “Upper Level Management,” WDJ October 2001; “Pin Sharp Puppy Teeth,” November 2000; “Play (and Train) By Tugging,” March 1999.

7: How To Come When Called
A very reliable recall is the key to a dog’s supervised freedom outdoors. While I would never counsel you to just open the door and turn your dog loose, if your dog has a solid “come when called” you can have him with you off-leash in many suitable outdoor environments – gardening in your yard, hiking on dog-legal trails, playing in dog parks – without worrying that an errant deer will entice your dog into the woods and beyond your control. Very reliable recalls don’t happen all by themselves. It takes a lot of training to end up with a dog who will turn his back on Bambi bounding across the meadow and return to you at a happy gallop instead.

One of the keys to achieving this milestone in dog training is to manage your dog so he doesn’t have the opportunity to take off and romp in the woods with you screaming at him to come back. This means keeping him on a long line – and training him in the face of ever-increasingly-enticing distractions – until you know his recall is rock-solid.

It takes an average of three years to train a dog to come to you in the face of extreme distractions. This means some dogs will get it sooner, and some will take longer, but plan on three years. Remember, that’s three years of committed training, not just three years of sitting around waiting for the dog to get older!

For more information, see “Total Recall,” WDJ December 2000 and “Long Distance Information,” WDJ February 2001.

8: How To Do An Emergency WHOA!
No matter how well-trained, no dog is perfect. Even the most rock-solid recall may someday fail, and when it does, you’ll be glad to have an emergency brake.

I like to train a long-distance down for emergency stops. Many dogs, while unwilling to turn their backs on a chase object and return to you, will happily drop to a down position, as long as they can keep their eyes glued to their prey. Once the prey is out of sight, the dog’s arousal decreases, and she is willing to return to me when I call her.

I also teach a “Wait” cue, which can stop a dog in her tracks, but she’s still standing, which makes it more likely that she will pick up the chase again before I can get her to return to me.

Some trainers use “NO!” or a “STOP!” in a loud roar to stop a dog from whatever behavior she is engaged in. This can work, but my preference is to tell the dog to do something rather than nothing.

9: How To Walk Politely On A Leash
Walking on leash, along with other important good manners behaviors such as “sit to greet people,” can greatly enhance your enjoyment of your canine companion’s presence. If he walks happily on a leash by your side instead of dragging you down the street, and politely greets people he meets on his outings, you are far more likely to take him places with you. The more places you take him the more socialization and exercise he gets, the better behaved he is likely to be. The better behaved he is, the more likely you are to take him places, proudly, as a well-loved and full-fledged member of your family.

For more information, see “Loosen Up!,” WDJ November 2000.

10: How To Play And Live With Other Dogs
You may have only one dog, so what’s the difference if he gets along with others? For one thing, dogs are naturally social animals, and you can enhance the quality of your dog’s life if you socialize him with other dogs and provide him with opportunities to play with his dog pals, at dog parks, doggie day care, or arranged play-dates in his own backyard. A day of dog-play will eat up his excess canine energy and leave you begging for more play outlets. A tired dog is a well-behaved dog.

In addition, when you take your four-legged family member out in public, he will inevitably encounter other canines. If he is well-socialized to dogs, he can handle these encounters with equanimity. Dogs who don’t know how to act around other dogs may become fearful or overly excited – both of which can lead to aggression. Either way, if your dog acts out around other dogs you are likely to limit his exercise and socialization, which can give rise to other behavior problems, including destructive behavior and aggression. (For more information, see “Plays Well with Others,” WDJ March 2000.)

Time to tally
So, how’d you and your dog do? If you checked 9 or 10 of the items, you should be proud of the work you have done with your dog, and the relationship you share.

If you have a lot of unchecked ones, you’d better get a move on! Even if you are comfortable working around the gaps in your dog’s knowledge, his lack of social or behavioral graces may be a source of friction between you and your roommates, spouse, or neighbors. Why not improve relations between the species, and teach him a few more vital skills? He’ll be far more safe and welcome in human society if you do.

-by Pat Miller

Pat Miller, WDJ’s Training Editor, is also a freelance author and Certified Pet Dog Trainer in Chattanooga, Tennessee. She is the president of the Board of Directors of the Association of Pet Dog Trainers, and recently published her first book, The Power of Positive Dog Training.

Dog-Safe House Cleaning Products

By
Sue Bozinovski and Valerie Robson
-
2

[Updated December 10, 2018]

Editor’s note: We mentioned several issues ago that we were preparing an article about nontoxic household cleaning products. Shortly afterward, we received a message from Sue Bozinovski and Valerie Robson, who described themselves as fans of WDJ, raw feeding proponents, and concerned mothers, who educated themselves about the dangers of household chemicals – and mastered the art of making effective nontoxic alternatives! They enthusiastically volunteered for the job of writing the article, and we were more than happy to turn it over to these competent “reader experts.”

SAFE CLEANING PRODUCTS FOR DOGS: OVERVIEW

1. Start shopping for ingredients listed on the next page. Many nontoxic cleaning components are available in any large supermarket. Others may be found only in health food or specialty stores.

2. Mix up a safe replacement for your most toxic household cleaning products first. Or focus initially on areas that can affect your dog the most, such as floors and carpets.

3. Use essential oils sparingly if you have a cat or toy dog; these animals are more sensitive.

Most people, even those who do not like to clean, enjoy the feeling of a sparkling fresh home. We take pride in the way our home looks and smells after we have spritzed, scrubbed, wiped, polished, vacuumed, and mopped. But for many of us, we have simply exchanged the dirt and grime for a coating of some of the most dangerous chemicals on the planet. And these chemicals are undoubtedly harmful to ourselves, our families, and our pets.

Take a look at those household cleaners under your sink and in your laundry room. Many of them list a plethora of toxic ingredients including petroleum distillates, mineral spirits, formaldehyde, and others that have been proven carcinogenic and mutagenetic (see below).

As concerned consumers we can try to purchase safe and healthy products, but it is not always easy. Many products on the market today are considered proprietary and closely guard their formulas as trade secrets, making it impossible for us to judge their contents. Did you know the words “nontoxic” and “biodegradable” have no standard definition under the law? Often, they are used simply as advertising gimmicks! (For more information about product labeling, see “How To Select Safe Dog Care Products and Cleaners for Your Home“.)

About 18 months ago, after reading a number of studies and articles about the dangers of cleaning products, we decided to practice “Natural Home Cleaning” – not only for our families, but also for the benefit of our pets. After all, our dogs and cats spend most of their time on the carpets, on their laundered beds, or eating food we’ve prepared on kitchen counters.

We have learned it is possible to clean our homes naturally, making a much safer place for our children, our pets, ourselves, and the environment. We have also learned that making our own cleaning products does not have to be time-intensive. Both of us have homes, management-level jobs, families, pets, and numerous outside activities. We discovered that with a few simple and cost-effective ingredients, we could make a diverse group of cleaning products. And, by adding essential oils chosen because we like their aromas or other properties, we can personalize our cleaning products.

Believe it – natural home cleaning is healthier, less expensive, and much more fun than doing it the way most of us were taught. In fact, natural home products can even extend the life of our expensive home investments (such as the wall-to-wall carpeting, ceramic tile floors, etc.), in addition to being healthier for our loved ones.

Natural Cleaning Supplies – Safe for Dogs

As we experimented and learned about the cleaning qualities of natural products, we developed a list of supplies that are most useful to have on hand. These items include:

White vinegar – Used in many formulations to clean and disinfect.

Baking soda – We recommend buying the largest box available.

Washing soda – This product is often found near the laundry detergents in supermarkets and health food stores.

Borax – Great for strengthening cleaning power!

Mild soap – Available in flakes and liquid – NOT detergent! Many products today are detergents made from petroleum distillates, which are both toxic and nonrenewable. Vegetable-based soap made from coconut or olive oil is known as castile soap and may be found in health food stores and some supermarkets. It is sometimes difficult to find unscented, but if you want to use your own favorite essential oils this is critical.

Essential oils – These differ from fragrance or perfume oils. Essential oils, found in health food stores, some specialty shops, and on the Internet, are volatile oils of plants.

(Note: If you have cats or toy dog breeds, skip the essential oils in any of our recipes until you have checked with your holistic veterinarian; these animals are particularly sensitive to essential oils. Also, the use of essential oils may interfere with the action of homeopathic medicines. If you use homeopathy, check with your homeopath before using any essential oil in your home.)

Containers – Spray bottles and other storage containers come in plastic and glass (we prefer the latter) in a variety of sizes. They can be found in supermarkets, health food stores, and container stores at very low cost.

Carpet and Floors

Our dogs spend much of their day on our carpets. Having no carpet to collect all the day-to-day gunk is probably the healthiest option, however, many homes have wall-to-wall carpeting or large room-sized rugs. So our job is to clean our carpets in the healthiest, but also in the least destructive, manner. You can deodorize, disinfect, or clean carpets depending on your current need.

If you just need to freshen your carpet, a simple mixture of baking soda and borax (equal parts) sprinkled on the carpet and vacuumed up will do the trick. To make this even more effective you can add several drops of your favorite essential oil to the powdered mix. Lemongrass and citronella oils are excellent choices if you are concerned about fleas. To make a safe carpet shampoo, the following recipe (from The Naturally Clean Home by Karyn Siegel-Maier) will cover a 10′ x 13′ room.

Rosemary-Lavender Dog-Safe Carpet Shampoo

2 cups baking soda
½ cup soap flakes (you can substitute with Borax)
20 drops lavender essential oil
8 drops rosemary essential oil
½ cup white vinegar
2 cups warm water

Loosen dirt by vacuuming or sweeping carpet. Combine baking soda, soap flakes, and essential oils in a large glass or stainless steel bowl, breaking up clumps. Sprinkle this mixture on the carpet. In a bucket, mix the vinegar and warm water. Dip a clean sponge mop into the bucket, squeezing out the excess liquid. Go over the carpet with the sponge mop working in sections. Wait one hour and vacuum.

For wood floors, the best cleaner is a mixture of equal parts warm water and white vinegar. Combine in a spray bottle; spritz a small section and dry mop. To three cups of this mixture you can add 15 – 20 drops of an essential oil of your choice. We like peppermint since it smells great, will kill germs and keeps mice away!

For cleaning tile or vinyl floors, mix a gallon of hot water and 2 – 3 tablespoons of a liquid Castile soap. To this mix you can add either lemon (great in the kitchen), or pine essential oil. Use 10-20 drops of oil and feel free to mix oils.

Dip your mop into the mixture, squeeze out the excess water and mop in small sections. The best part of this mix is there is no rinsing involved and the residue won’t hurt your dog if she happens to lick the floor when you are done.

Cleaning Kitchen Counters

Especially important are the areas where we prepare our own, and our dogs’ food. About a year ago, Valerie switched Samson and Carmel, both rescue Golden Retrievers, over to a raw food diet. For a time she went into disinfectant overdrive, cleaning the kitchen countertops with all sorts of commercial preparations. She was extremely excited on the day she discovered lavender and lemon essential oils. These oils are antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral, and antibiotic.

To clean counters, all you need is hot water, white vinegar, borax, and the essential oil(s) of your choice. For each cup of hot water use one tablespoon of vinegar and a scant teaspoon of borax. Add about 10 – 12 drops of essential oil. Remember, essential oils are potent; use sparingly.

To scour and disinfect wood chopping blocks, mix a couple of tablespoons of salt (any salt will do, but sea salt is grittier) and a like amount of fresh lemon juice and vigorously rub the mixture into the wood (it helps to wear gloves). Let this soak for 10-15 minutes, then rinse while scrubbing under hot water. Allow the wood to dry thoroughly.

Safe Bathroom Cleaning Supplies

Who among us has a dog that has never taken a drink out of the toilet? Given the ingredients in most toilet bowl cleaners, you invite long-term health problems for your dog with even the occasional lapper.

Instead, make your own germproof toilet bowl cleaner by combining the following in one of your spray bottles: one cup water, three tablespoons of liquid Castile soap, 20 drops of tea tree oil, and 7-10 drops of eucalyptus oil. If you have a hard water ring in the bowl, combine borax and vinegar with lemon essential oil, mix in a container and pour into the bowl. Let it sit undisturbed for about 12 hours and the stains should be gone.

Laundering Dog Bedding

Keeping our dogs’ beds clean whether we live in the city or the country is an ongoing chore. Since our dogs spend a lot of time lounging or snoozing in their dog beds, any cleaning agent is easily transmitted to the dog’s skin and coat. We recommend the use of natural laundry soap easily made at home. For example, the recipe for basic laundry soap powder is quite easy and smells wonderful when essential oils are added: Mix equal parts washing soda, baking soda, and real soap flakes (grated pure Castile soap). For top loading washers, use ½ cup of the mix; for a front loader use ¼ cup.

To deodorize and soften the fabric, use ¼ cup white vinegar scented with a few drops of your favorite essential oil. See the essential oils chart for properties and scents of the various oils. Experiment with different oils! When extra whitening power is needed, for instance, to remove a urine or food stain, mix up some chlorine-free bleach. Mix one part hydrogen peroxide to 8 parts water. Soak the item for 5-30 minutes. Rinse and wash if needed.

Cleaning Product Conclusions

In case you haven’t sensed it by now, we are very excited about the possibilities that natural products offer in the way of home cleaning. We can still get our homes spic and span, while keeping our families, our pets, and the environment safe.

It’s easy to switch gradually to natural cleaning products. As you run out of existing supplies, start buying natural products such as borax, hydrogen peroxide, vinegar, and baking soda. The quantities needed for home cleaning will be somewhat greater than normal use, but purchasing larger quantities costs less per unit.

We suggest you pick one or two areas that you want to focus on, for example, your dog’s bedding and the kitchen countertops, and get the items needed for making natural cleaning products. Start by purchasing two or three essential oils that have the cleaning and disinfecting power or the scents you like.

And if you don’t feel you have the time to create your own home cleaning products, there are several companies now offering environmentally friendly cleaning products. It is better, we feel, to purchase nontoxic pre-made cleaning products, than to continue to buy the usual toxic cleaning products we have used for decades. Check the shelves of your local health food store for products made by companies such as Seventh Generation, Ecover, Life Tree, and Naturally Yours.

Anybody can do this. We owe it to ourselves, our families, and our pets to make our homes as toxin-free as possible. We want to spend as many years with our loved ones as we can. A naturally cleaned home will help us toward that end.

Need some tips on cleaning up the messes dogs make? Click here!

Sue Bozinovski and Valerie Robson are Whole Dog Journal subscribers who live in Conifer, Colorado.

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