In addition, Ben and I are certainly grateful for you, a very kind and generous reader of this email newsletter. The feedback that we have been getting in response to some of our recent emails has been great, read on:

Johnda:

Hello Emily--great piece on doggy allergies. Here is a doggy specific one. Dalmations have special food needs. It seems that red meat causes them to be hyper and to break out and have skin problems. So, our Dals actually do better on dog foods that have a higher grain content and use chicken instead of red meat! Just wanted to pass that along to you in case you know folks with Dals. I kept using so-called "better" (and more expensive) dog foods without relieving the problem. I finally found out about the Dals special food needs. Now, I can spend a reasonable price on doggy chow--and no more rashes!

Thanks,

Johnda

Emily Replies: Johnda, thanks for your tip on trouble-shooting dog food allergies. It's amazing how so many different ingredients in dog foods can give our puppies trouble.

If you love Dalmations, be careful when acquiring new dogs. After the popularization of the breed by the "101 Dalmations" movies, over-breeding by irresponsible breeders developed a lot of puppies with health problems. This can happen with sudden surges of popularity in any breed. Dalmations are also prone to deafness - so be sure to test the hearing on any dog you do decide to buy. (Drop your keys, or a book, or clap, etc. and see if they look round at the noise.)

Speaking of different breeds, here was one response that came in reply to the article on the popularity wave of "Puggles!"

Wendy:

Hi Emily! We too have a "trendy" dog! In addition to our 2 purebred German Shepherds (1 we purchased & 1 we rescued) we have a "Border-weiler"!! If she doesn't come when called she becomes a "Rott-n-collie" ...Jessie is truly a representative of both breeds. She is colored like a Rottie with the Border Collie feathery coat--BEAUTIFUL!!! She has the Rottie watch dog qualities with the Border Collie "I-LOVE-YOU-PET-ME" cling. What a great friend--and to believe she was less than 12 hrs from being euthanized at the Humane Society!! There's no friend like a dog-friend, no matter what "package" they come in!!

Take care!---Wendy

Emily Replies: "Rott-n-collie" - I love it! Thanks for your wonderful description of a beautiful, smart, loyal dog. Sounds like both you and she turned out lucky that day at the Humane Society. Give her a biscuit from me!

Mae:

PLEASE DO NOT Take Me off your mailing list. Love your articles, gifts, suggestions and thank you for your service. Make sure I'm still on...ok?

Mae

Emily Replies: Mae - No problem. I checked and you are still on the list! :) Thanks for your kind words and we'll keep the articles coming.

Kind regards, Emily

Another Emily writes:

My in-laws have a seven-year-old Shih Tzu. He is very territorial, and urinates on furniture all the time. My little boy and I dog sit him during the day, and let him out often - he will let you know when he needs to go out. He urinates on things for fun - its like, his favorite thing to do! Needless to say, its very irritating, you have to watch him nonstop. When he was a puppy, they didn't potty train him, but simply mopped up after him and spanked him. Seven years later, he is still being spanked, and I'm afraid the spanking is getting worse. I need to find a solution, so that this dog can be happy and so that his owners can enjoy him, but mostly because I feel he is being inappropriately disciplined and I want it to stop. Is there hope for a dog of such an age? Help!

Emily Cressey Replies: Don't give up! It is never to late to train a dog and correct problem behavior. It sounds like this dog is exhibiting territorial marking/urination and is peeing inside to mark the house rather than because he "has to go."

You (and your son if he's old enough) need to establish yourself as pack leader with this dog. In a pack, only the dominant dogs get to mark the territory, the other dogs learn to display limited aggression and territoriality or else they get put down by the alpha dogs.

You can establish this type of dominance by engaging in simple obedience training. Funny as it may sound, this simple step of obedience training the dog will correct MANY problem behaviors because it helps the dog recognize you as "She who must be obeyed." Start with simple behaviors like "sit," "down" and "stay." You can also establish dominance by making sure that the dog is fed AFTER you eat your meals if he is at your house during a meal period.

Regarding the house training problem, you need to start over from square one as if this dog were an 8-week old puppy who never learned a thing about house training. What does that mean

1) Keep him in a crate or confined space where he will not urinate at any time that you are not watching him directly.

2) Take him outside to do his business on a regular basis. Since he is an adult dog, this could be every 4-8 hours. Try to stick with a schedule. Reward him with happy, upbeat verbal praise any time that he urinates/defecates in the correct location.

3) Give him a firm correction any time he urinates in the house and take him outside to "finish." Praise him if he goes outside. A proper correction in this regard is a jerk on the training collar coupled with a stern "No".

I want you and your in-laws to promise never to hit your dog again. Instead, put a chain link "choke collar" on him that is the right size for his tiny little neck and get a "tab leash" which is a short 1-ft leash that you can jerk on to give the appropriate correction when he misbehaves indoors. You only have a few seconds after the misdeed to administer the correction or the dog won't realize why you're mad at him.

Fortunately, even if you can't get to the leash to jerk it in time, you can say "no" from anywhere.

4) Clean up any indoor accidents with an appropriate cleanser (like "nature's miracle" that will eliminate the odor and keep from tempting him to return to the same spot over and over.

Once he has gone for a week with no accidents in the house, expand his area of confinement. Instead of keeping him in a crate, keep him in the kitchen or bathroom, penned in with a baby gate.

He will earn his freedom over time by using good behavior in the house.

Also, when he is free in the house, be sure to keep an eye on him. It is your golden opportunity to correct him quickly if he makes a mistake (or you know he is about to...). These mistakes are teaching opportunities. Take advantage of every one.

If you need more help with potty training, I recommend this book: Potty Train Your Puppy

Keep the letters coming!

Emily Cressey