Heartwarming Story

Here's a good news story that made my day!

Be sure to get your hot dog a cool coat this summer! Everybody loves these. We're hoping to keep the canine population of Arizona comfortable, one dog at a time.

You know this already

Our customers are the smart ones. They already know about

 this 

What a great reminder of why we love our pets!

Crossing the road...

We're clucking around here lately, with lots of lively chickens!

 Gotta love these hens and their eggs, all strutting around a farm red collar and leash, 

as home-style country as a county fair.

Top quality, fun for all your outings. Red looks great on every dog.

Made with care and fine craftsmanship here in the USA, these are from Up Country.

 Black webbing back, sturdy and solid.

Brass-tone hardware, such a good look.

Shop today when we have our best selection of sizes.

Oh, and if you'd like something fun to go with this, here's your dog's new

best friend, with a chirpy sound and crinkly wings that will add lots of interest to

 a slow summer day.

I'm a good dog, right Mom?

As dog parents we heap lots of praise on our fur kids, hoping that they will have confidence and know they are loved. We also use praise like a spatula frosting a cake, for shaping. In operant conditioning lingo, shaping is moving a behavior closer and closer to its goal.

We just added these leashes to the store for all your good dogs out there.
Made in the USA by our friends at Yellow Dog Design, these are soft and sturdy, and
 the process they use to dye these makes the colors amazingly durable.

Collars, too, with a range of sizes right now. I love this comic book style, and you know your dog would go for the halo and angel wings, and that underline and exclamation point.

Subtlety is not a virtue that dogs strive for, unlike cats, who practice it with the concentration of a martial arts discipline. The bright red goes right along with the enthusiastic message.

Gotta love the body language of dogs when we praise them. That aw shucks turn of the head and softening of the ears is so endearing. It's probably another reason that dog training is so rewarding.

Not only do you shape your dog's behavior with praise and treat rewards, but you get to see
that suppressed smile of pride when they know they've done well.

My childhood ambition was always to be a great dog trainer, however I ended up as a school teacher instead. I still have the greatest admiration and fascination for those gifted individuals who seem to speak a separate language to dogs and get such phenomenal results. Barbara Woodhouse, Brian Kilcommons, Cesar Milan, and so many others are people to admire.

We now stock dog training books in our store and always pick up copies of books by the great hunting dog trainers and behaviorists who have insights that you can use. These are used, but clean, and priced to keep your budget intact. Some of the best of them are the older greats of dog training.

Today we added this training book with a focus on the lively breeds.

Who doesn't love Border Collies, Jack Russell Terriers, Poodles, and all the crazy busy, high IQ
dogs that fall into the category of hyper dogs? Like intelligent kids, they are a challenge to keep 

busy, and can get into big trouble when they get bored.

 It's not all about hard exercise, although that's a given requirement for all dogs. Amy Ammen really addresses the needs of a lively dog in this book and shares many fun ideas.

Which reminds me, it's about time to do a little enrichment training with Arlo. Lately he's been exploring the play possibilities of a blown-up balloon, ever so carefully picking it up by the end and batting it around like a soccer ball. So before I lapse into bragging mom tales, I'll sign off with a reminder today to give your dog a reason to be reminded of what a Good Dog he or she really is!

American Dogs

I hope you'll enjoy these videos as much as I did -
American dogs welcoming home their soldiers.

 Happy 4th of July

 to all our wonderful customers and friends!

Too Early for Back to School

That's what they always say. School just ended here a week or so ago, so it's definitely too early to even whisper those scary words that start with the letters B, T, and S. So we'll just call this post

A is for Apple

I just love these leashes and collars! So cheerful and upbeat, like a trip to the farm market for bags of fresh produce.

This design is as eye-catching in the tiny sizes as it is in the Small. What little growler wouldn't look adorable in these happy apple collars.

The soft peachy-beige and cream background kinda suggests a basket to me, but perhaps that's because I'm in the farmer's market frame of mind. Nothing like the fresh strawberries, cherries, and all the other goodies.

Of course here in Washington state we love to try all the new and interesting apple varieties that come out every year, as well as our old favorites. Last year it was the Liberty Apple from Oregon that was my favorite, with the Honey Crisp a close second.

In another month or so we'll be heading to Eastern Washington for our annual apple buying venture.

Arlo's first road trip was traveling to the "other side of the mountains" as we call it here. Wheat and open spaces all the way make a very scenic drive.

Had to get out of the car and hold Arlo up to view that big shaggy beast in the distance. He didn't seem particularly impressed that it was a buffalo.



There are so many wonderful farm markets located in the apple growing region, it's difficult to choose just one.

I decided to go with the fruit stand that had the best selection of apples. Of course we had to bring home a few extra boxes for the neighbors and friends at home. The whole car had that great fresh apple smell on the ride home.

There's nothing like the first of the fresh crop, and with careful cool storage they keep for some time.

You don't have to wait until September to pick up some fresh apples, though. Find these collars and leashes in our store today!

Shopping for Halloween

I must confess, I have been on a shopping binge recently. All for you, friends. Actually that would be for your dogs. It's the time of year to select our inventory of Halloween costumes, and I must admit, this year I went a little overboard.

 

That picture up there is when Arlo was a rowdy puppy. Although his monkey costume came with a nice, plush banana, he was more interested in attacking the eyebrows of our porch pumpkins.

His second year he got dressed up as an ear of corn. The little guy was finally beginning to mature a bit, and wore the kernels with dignity. (I think he liked the extra height that costume gave him.)

No pumpkin chewing this year, just one very impressive dog in disguise, like a harvest druid.

The thing about Halloween costumes is that they need to be hilarious, well-made, and suit the wearer. I thought of all of you while buying up so many of these. We'll have Extra Large to Extra Small, cute, creepy, and just so much really fun and amazing costumery.

Here is our customer Tucker, the most swashbuckling pirate

that ever sailed the seas.

We stock a few of our costumes throughout the year for special events and holidays, but come early Fall we'll be getting the entire selection online.

 At summer's end this little scarecrow might be fun to help you celebrate the harvest season.

If my pumpkin plants deliver on the 75-pound promise, maybe I can get Arlo to be my scarecrow for some pictures. (He does love to run after crows and see them fly up to get away from him.)

Because lots of people like to dress their dogs up for party invitation pictures and promotional flyers for special events, we'll be listing Halloween as soon as it arrives from the manufacturer. I'll post the date right here so you can select something perfect for your pet.