Providing a Fulfilled Life for your Canine this Summer!

With the economy in such a mess, we all seem to be feeling the tightening of the purse straps. When before if your dogs needed about anything, they got it no questions asked.

Now it seems these days one must consider "if" it is really necessary. Before, if the rescue dogs need a new dog bed for their crate...no problem. Now I find myself skimming garage sales, going to Good Will or thrift stores looking for either these or padded blankets to fold. Do the dogs care? Absolutely not!

Seeking out a butcher with fresh meaty bones not only has saved me some cash for the rescue dogs.....but they enjoy them better than the bully sticks, teeth are cleaner, and they now all LOVE their crates.

So, one has to ask if the commercial products we so enjoy purchasing for our canine friends are really practical or even needed. Or is there a alternative that is even more natural, and less expensive?

I believe my need to provide quality in my own mind....clouded my creativity? As we improve our play yard here at our shelter home, providing a stimulating environment for the rescue dogs to interact while they wait for their forever homes....I have asked myself this many times.

As we put the dogs into more environments for socialization, events such as agility...dock diving....trips to the lake for training....doggie daycare, do I realize the environments are dependent on ones own creativity to enhance that environment.

Doing some research online and networking with others sharing ideas lately, do i realize the importance of networking for our canine friends.

Digging-
the turtle sandbox is usually always at a garage sale, usually with no lid...which is great! Or a kiddie pool filled with sand. Bury the toys under the sand and take the dogs out to the box. Encourage them to focus their excavating skills and perfect them in the designated area of the sandbox. Finding the toys under the same is very exciting for them and the focus is turned to finding the toy...not the digging.

Agility-
Our rescue dogs being a working breed love agility. For the shy dogs, it builds confidence...the praise they begin to crave, and as with any living being....we all want to succeed and please.
I ordered a very inexpensive set of equipment for my yard from DrsFosterandSmith.com
We had a gift certificate, and hey...why not> Agility set

However, pvc pipe with rebar put into the ground works well for weave poles. Jumps can be lawn chairs with a pvc pipe, tunnels can be found very inexpensive at the toddler dept online, or at thrift stores and garage sales. Nothing fancy...again, the dogs don't care...and it is more mentally stimulating. A variety of games are great for the dog.

Dock Diving-
We are relatively new to DD...we belong to MoKan Dock Dogs and have started our pup into the sport. This is a very inexpensive sport that is family oriented. Get together with friends and families for practice at our lake get us out into the fresh air, enjoying each others company....and watching the kids with their dogs, and the dogs with extreme talents is so much fun. Go to DockDogs.com to find a chapter near you.

Daily Walks/runs on leash-
Daily walks and runs on leash are the mainstay of our rescue rehabilitation. The backyard is just a large kennel with walls, so don't think this will suffice for most dogs. Most of our dogs come into rescue from either backyard hobby breeders that don't know when to quit until authorities tell them...or high kill shelters in rural areas. Most of these adults have never seen a collar or leash, so the challenge is to get it on them in the first place. We use a device called an Easy Walker harness.
"I've tried harnesses in the past, and they don't work", you say? Well...this is not a harness in the traditional sense. It is made by the company that represents the Gentle Leader. What I have found to be true with all of the tools in my training box, that this and the Ilusion Collar work very well. The Ilusion collar needs to be adjusted and my hint is to start the straps through the buckles before slipping it over the dogs head, then adjust. The Easy walker you do adjust, as it comes in a variety of sizes...but once it is adjusted, the dogs learn to put their feet in, and go.
The Easy walker has a clasp on the chest. So logically the dog really cannot get ahead of you.

The photo above is from one of my adopters Dr. Gaylene Geisler, DVM and her new puppy Kiera. The exercise ball sitting in the corner of the room is getting a workout from Kiera and the horses. Hey! Do I have one of those sitting around here? This looks like tremendous fun.

The whole idea of this post is to encourage us all to be creative with what we have in a tough economy. To know the dogs don't care...games are fun, it can be a noodle from the pool to create a jump between lawn chairs....hey! That is another idea.
So please share some of your ideas. This could be a subject so many owners and their special canine friends can benefit from!


As I put on my thinking hat for more ideas, I ask you to please comment and share your ideas. The networking and brainstorming for ideas outside to make your dog's day would be most welcome.

Mary Murray
Executive Director-GWP Rescue, Inc
GwpRescue.com
Edie and Baldwin with the Flirt pole