What’s in Your Dog’s Bed?
Since my dogs now have MOLLY MUTT beds, what is in them can be a filling of torn clothing, tattered towels and blankets or even a blouse now too small! A Molly Mutt bed has two parts. One part is a mesh zippered sack you fill with old clothing, blankets, sheets, towels etc. The second part is the sack, which is like a strong, attractive duvet–yours or theirs– also zippered! The whole bed is wonderfully washable (as a whole or in parts) of course. With MOLLY MUTT you and your dogs can give a whole new meaning to “sharing a bed”!! Comes in three sizes–small medium and large. I chose medium for the girls. My 12-year-old has now decided she is staying in bed all day! I think she would eat her meals there if she could. Her daughters share the other bed and seem in awe of the splendor and smells, especially since they are used to piles of old sheets and rugs and towels scattered about the floor. MOLLY MUTT beds have been advertised in the AKC Gazette and are also sold in Pennsylvania. Contact Bone Appetite, 8505 Germantown Ave. Philadelphia, PA 19118 . I am waiting for some clever owner to make duvets with the Penn State and/or Pittsburgh Steelers logos or club logos for fund raisers!
POOCH PERSONALITY–DO THEY REALLY HAVE ONE AND WHAT DOES THAT MEAN FOR DOG TRAINERS AND OWNERS?
Long ago when the Guiding Eye Foundation decided to raise puppies for its program it developed a puppy aptitude test (PAT) which was devised to determine which puppies had a genetic predisposition for service dog work. To date, millions of puppies have had PAT testing to determine genetic traits. Aptitude, however, is not personality. Personality is part of each breed’s standard and is taken into account when a dog is judged. It can be influenced and developed through environment and experience. Aptitude, on the other hand, cannot be changed–there is some evidence that the genes in the brain could be still evolving when the dog is 7 days old, determining aptitude. We do not know if it can be influenced in utero.
It is popular to give owners personality tests to determine if they will and would be responsible dog owners and what breeds would fit with their lifestyle. Now we owners are being asked to take tests to determine our dog’s personality–as we see it! THE TESTED HAVE BECOME THOSE DOING THE TESTING! What is more, we are asked to use something called EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE as a training help. These pay-for-attendance-seminars promise us a view on how the brain learns, how memories are made, how to use stress and how to improve attention with movement. Since I have a master’s degree in psychology, which stressed learning theory as well as physiological psychology, I question the veracity of the subject matter–is this PAT tied to a human limbic system? It would seem so.
Aug 03, 2009 | | Uncategorized