Looking Up

Material nesting is in regression; not over, but not desperate.

I am perusing different sites' articles about training, doggie behavior models and methods instead of ebay, and it is far more pleasant!  This one is by far my MOST favorite!!!  I will physically relax reading its articles and reading the comments.  "Wow, what a relief not buying anything is!"

As a matter of fact, it was my "activity nesting", if you will, that got me looking at materials again.  Very, very long leads, and bungee cord attachments to prevent serious whip-lash or other injury.  (Then treat bags.  Ugh.  Can't I just use my purse?  Someone mentioned the word "greasy", and that's a good point!  A Good Will purse then?  Haha.  As I write this blog I have not decided on one.)

My thoughts on the 50 foot lead: right now, Jorah is spending the greater part of his day free outside.  Transition to apartment living is gonna be rough, I think that a long lead to take him out to the world with is a great idea.  (Yes, I'll be taking him out in a 6' lead too, but it's not conducive to fetch.)  His wanderlust and my throw-lust are satisfied, as well as assuaging my fear that he'd make a homeward bound for Arizona and end up splattered on the road.  (I have seen two dead dogs on the roadside in the last two weeks, very sobering.)

Natural Dog man (explained later) also claims that a huge lead is the best way to train for the kind of activities that you want a dog to do 'off-leash'.  makes sense.

The suspicion: I'm getting over-excited about something unproven, why spend the money?  Then I go back to the "fetch" idea.  Seems like a good plan of action anyway!

Back to thinky-things.
There are people who think that for you to provide your dog with an outlet for energy through pushing, and tug-of-war (winning) that (with proper timing from you) dog will divert its attention your way when it gets antsy, and through repeated exposure and positive energy-expression and all that, its peace muscle will become strong, and it can stay serene even in high-charged situations.  They say "be like a moose".  It reminds me of this amazing book, 'The Instinct to Heal' by david servan-schreiber, M.D., Ph.D. that was a big part of my lifestyle change back in 2010.  If that did good things for me, maybe this whole Natural Dog thought is good, too.


Then there is the Cesar Milan stuff, that I don't think I need to explain.  The moose man's blog said he thought that ceasar was giving off a "moose" energy more than an alpha one.  That many people mis-interpret what he is saying.

A link to another man's blog said that he thought many people were teaching obedience so early that it is messing up puppies' natural and necessary physiological development that occurs during play.  He isn't saying not to train, but expecting them to always be still is going to turn into problems later in life.  That training never has to happen "still", either.  Making it part of a game is ideal.

So do I sign up for Puppy Kindergarten and take it serious, or just plan on taking my 4 month old (versus 7 to 9, like he says) to a room full of other doggies with shot-certification, and not try to hard?  Seems like that would be counter-productive, to give a command not expecting obedience.  Maybe there is a way to 'make it a game.'  I've never seen these classes.  Guess I had better watch one, or find some youtube videos.


Dog training is officially as convoluted as religion or parenting.

Somehow this lady's blog made me feel hopeful by showing a community of trainers, and even more aware of the dutiful responsibility I am taking on.

phew!  :(  So intimidating.

I think that as long as I stick with a style of positive reinforcement, have the qualities of a good leader regardless of species, and keep boundaries and expectations consistent, that Jorah will turn out alright.  (And socialize socialize socialize!)

There is an agility trial Saturday, August 2nd.  I'm really hoping that I can take Jorah to watch and meet doggies.  Beth said any type of human gathering such as the celtic festival I will meet her at, or farmer's markets, etc, will be wonderful for him.  So I have emailed the people in charge about it.

I thought that the dog park would be a solid place to meet dogs, but now I'm thinking that I should go with a suspicious attitude towards stranger dogs, and a can of pepper spray to protect me and my pup should someone get out of hand.  *I was wandering around SHOPKO a couple of days ago, and found they had pepper spray tubes by the automotive stuff.  weird.  Figured that a spray can in Spices would be cheaper.  I also found a perfectly long roll of the shelving grippy stuff for the back seat of my car!  It looks sharp.  Already I'm happy I got it, because my bags are staying put so much better!!!

PS, I got my nesco dehydrator, and am very excited to cut up chicken or a steak and make jerky!  I will bring it down to West Jordan with me to keep that an option over the week.  I was so exhausted when I opened it last night, that I sort of forgot about it.  Or, no, it was the lead thing.

PPS.  I did some physics to ensure that a lead I'm considering could withstand the impact of a running dog!  It is very hard to find the top speed of any dog besides greyhounds, but I found a cyclist forum, and went with 25 mph.  1) what a difference in force even a half of a second can make!!!  I am SO glad that I am getting this bungee leash to spread out the impulse of his deceleration!

My numbers of the total force on a 60 lb dog's contact point going from 25 miles per hour to ZERO within
0.5  ;    1    ;  and 2 seconds are these:

136.4 lbf  ;  68.2 lbf    ;  and 34.1 lbf   respectively.  SCIENCE!!!

*lbf is lb in the sense of force, versus mass.  The pounds that your scale tells you are lbf, because it would read different on the moon.  F = m*a

2)The Polypropelene webbed rope can totally take the strain. (and if floats)
3) nylon might be nicer on my hands, but gets heavy, weaker, and stretches when wet.  Also, at my internship I just researched a ton about polypropelene, so now I'm really excited to buy it!  It is one of the most recyclable plastics we use!  And I'll know who I can send it to for that if it is ever toast.
5) And even people with nylon should wear gloves with they wanna grab these ropes (vs step on them).
6) If a giant mining shovel uses polypropelene and not nylon in its steel ropes... hey, I'm just sayin'.

PPSS I need to print and fill out my application for Beth!  It will be for Picardi-specific community!