Search Results for: blog the barkathon

The Pets Blog Week in Review for Jul 30 – Aug 5

Goodbye July, hello the hot, hot heat of August. Things were not too hot last week in the Pets Blog. Aimee and I tried to keep things cool. Although we did sort of get off on a morbid tangent at one point during the week. (I should say I did, in respect to the matter of pet’s dying.) Happily we also covered plenty of other, less sad, topics too. Monday, July 30 Sharks fascinate me so I was pretty excited about Discovery Channel’s Shark Week. But when I watched their inaugural program, Oceans of Fear, I couldn’t help but wonder … Continue reading →

The Barkathon

Last night was a baaaaaaaad night. The dogs barked me awake at 12:10. Again at 12:30. At 1:00. At that point, I got up to let them out, thinking they really had to go. But alas, the barkathon began anew at 4:50. And 6:00. And 6:20. And so on. Why all the barking? As far as I could tell, someone in the complex was having a party. Unusual noises, music, and louder voices that usual had Moose and Lally in a bit of a frenzy! At least for the first part of the night. What they heard in the very … Continue reading →

The Debarking Debate

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Debarking is a controversial subject. The practice of removing vocal cord tissue to lower a dog’s bark volume is outlawed in some parts of the world — and raises a lot of debate among pet owners. One misconception about debarking: the surgery does not take away the dog’s bark entirely. The dog can still bark and make noise! Debarking reduces the volume of the sound produced. Some arguments against debarking: Why subject a pet to unnecessary surgery? Just like any other surgery, debarking comes with risks and complications. Is volume control worth a possible reaction to anesthesia, post-surgical infection, and … Continue reading →

Dogs and Cats Living Together: Not What We Expected

Before my dogs met my roommates’ cats, we had lots of talks about how we thought it would go. We discussed the best ways to introduce them, what to do if things went wrong, and our dreams of animal harmony. I thought Lally, my boxer/shar-pei mix, would be the problem child. When we’re out walking, she can be quite a cat chaser. If she saw cats inside the apartment, I figured she’d be trying to run them down. (I’m not sure what she’d do with a cat if she ever caught one, but that doesn’t stop her from trying.) My … Continue reading →

Dachshund to the Rescue (Right in my Backyard!)

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I heard it on the radio this morning: a heroic little dachshund named Annie brought help to her elderly owner. And it happened just a few miles from the Portland, Oregon suburb where I live. It was around one o’clock in the morning this past Tuesday. Residents in the Lake Grove neighborhood of Lake Oswego, Oregon called police to complain about a barking dog. The head of the Lake Oswego police canine unit responded to the calls, expecting to find a huge, menacing dog on the loose. Instead, Sergeant John Brent found a nine and a half pound dachshund. The … Continue reading →

Why the Dogs and I Hate Tuesdays

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Over the last year, Tuesday has become my least favorite day of the week. You can try to guess why, but I don’t think you’ll get it. It’s not because of what’s on TV or what my schedule is like. It’s because Tuesday is landscaping day at the apartment complex where I live. Tuesdays are a day off from the cats only boarding facility, but I have to get up early anyway on Tuesday. I have to take Moose and Lally out for a nice long walk before the lawnmowers and weedwackers start up at 8:30. Then it’s a barkathon … Continue reading →

Decoding Different Barks

Researchers at Eotvos Lorand University in Hungary are using computers to help decode and translate different dog barks. The study began with recording the barks from fourteen different Hungarian sheepdogs. Barking was recorded in six different situations: When a stranger approached the house when the owner was away and the dog was home alone. When a trainer encouraged the dog to bite on protective gear and bark aggressively (think of police dog training). When an owner was preparing to take the dog for a walk. When an owner was holding a ball in front of the dog. When an owner … Continue reading →

Bed Wars

I’ve written about dominance before — alpha dogs and omega dogs especially. And a few weeks ago, I mentioned how the balance of power in my four-legged family was shifting. For a long time now, we’ve had Bed Wars. Let me set the scene. (A black sky, white stars sparkling. Text scrolls upwards, a la Star Wars.) A long time ago, in a bedroom far, far away, two dogs were at war over a very important piece of territory: the bed. He (or she) who ruled the bed ruled the universe. The bed was a land of great prosperity and … Continue reading →

My Separation Anxiety

I haven’t been home to see my family in five months. Back in May, I took my dogs on a cross-country drive and relocated from New Jersey to Oregon. Now I’m going home. Some friends of mine are getting married, and I figured that was a good excuse to fly home for a long weekend. As my trip approaches, I find myself getting more and more nervous about leaving the dogs behind. This is the first time since I moved that Moose and Lally will be staying behind while I travel. When I still lived in New Jersey, I had … Continue reading →

Chaotic Cat Chronicles: The Spooky Shriek That Pierced the Night

I never know what I’m going to get around here when it comes time to turn in for the night. Sometimes I get a peaceful, uninterrupted slumber. Sometimes I don’t. A Good Night’s Sleep Most nights I have company –Murphy. He can almost always be found sleeping at the foot of the bed. But some nights Mr. Meow comes to snuggle for a bit, other nights Tabby does, and on the rare and lucky night all three of them will join me. These are usually good nights when sleep’s plentiful. A Not So Good Night’s Sleep But then some nights … Continue reading →