Off-leash by the water

We treated the dogs to a fun-filled, off-leash romp by the water today. We took them to the woods behind our townhouse community. We went off the main path towards the water, where we weren't likely to encounter other people or pets. Whenever we let Loki and Jujube off-leash, we always try to find a secluded area, because like most shibas, they do not have a reliable recall. More specifically, they like to explore and wander, but they don't actually want to leave their pack. So they run around, but always stay somewhat close. Well, "somewhat close" is rather subjective. I'd say the most they'd wander away would be maybe a third of a mile, not too bad for our comfort level. We love seeing the happy smiling faces of our off-leash dogs in nature, so we try to give them these opportunities every once in awhile.

Anyways, today, Loki got himself stuck on the other side of the riverbank. Stupid dog! He jumped into a deep pool of water, hopped out onto the other side, and then couldn't get back to us. Well, he could if he would just jump back into the deep pool, but he refused to jump back into it.

Here he is crossing to the other side.

 Here he is enjoying the other side of the river.

Then, he attempted once to jump back to our side of the river, but failed.

After that one attempt, he wouldn't try again, as much as he wanted to get back to us. He barked and whined when we called the dogs back and only Jujube got treats. Then we leashed up Jujube and pretended like we were all leaving without him, hoping that would provide enough motivation for him to return. He desperately whined and barked in protest. But he still refused to cross back to us.

So finally, with his leash and some treats in hand, I walked all the way across the bridge and through the thick foliage to rescue him. There was absolutely no foot path. I fought through a tremendous amount of thick vegetation to get to Loki. I leashed him up, and carefully navigated him out. That was most definitely not fun. Stupid dog! Grumble, grumble....getting himself stuck on the other side of the river.

Here's a video clip of today, including Loki's travels to the other side of the riverbank.

A new dog bed!

This is what happens when you leave dirty laundry on the dining room floor. It becomes the property of Jujube! Look, a new dog bed!

Are shibas good guard dogs?

Depends on the dog! Haha!

Loki is our resident guard dog. He barks when people come to our house. He barks at children, dogs, and people outside our front window. And he barks at people on the other side of the fence in the backyard. We get lots of false alarms everyday!

Jujube, on the other hand, is a terrible guard dog. She almost never barks. The only time she barks is when she's playing with Loki. Yesterday, someone was walking behind our house on the other side of the fence. What does our girl do? She picks up a stick in her mouth, trots over to the edge of the fence, peeks out, and wags her tail. Very cute! But a terrible guard dog.

Jujube, our fly catcher

Who needs a fly swatter when you have a Jujube! She's our fly catcher. I've mentioned this about her in a previous post, but here I got a video of her. I actually can't see the fly and have no clue whether she ultimately killed it or not.

Loki in black and white

Photo credit: Phoebe Lee

A Happy Smile

Believe it or not, but that is actually a happy smile. Loki's getting his belly rubbed and he's enjoying every minute of it. A show of teeth doesn't always indicate aggression. You have to take everything into account. The eyes, the ears, the stance, and even muscle tension. Reading dogs' body language is very subtle. And I think that while you can learn some of it through pictures and videos, the best way is simply experience.

"Pet Safety" in my Inbox

What a coincidence! Just a day after I blogged about how our son has become aware of the dogs' existence, I received a pet safety article in my inbox. I'm subscribed to my hospital's weekly newsletters. When I was pregnant, it offered information based upon the week of gestation; and now that we have a baby, it offers information based upon the age of the baby. So for week 15, I got information on pets. I suppose that it must be "normal" for babies to now become aware of pets and perhaps this is why I received this information now.

Here's a clip from the newsletter:

Babies and pets

Your baby becomes more able to interact with his surroundings every day. If you have dogs, cats, or other pets at home, take steps now to keep your baby safe and your pet adjusted to having a baby in the house. Keep a close eye on your baby and pet when they interact; even pets that seemed to have accepted the baby may change their tune when the baby begins to crawl and grab. Curious babies and toddlers can annoy the most patient pet to the point that the animal bites or scratches. Teach your baby how to be gentle right from the start, and never leave your pet and baby alone together.

Keep your pet’s vaccinations up to date; unvaccinated pets can pose a health risk to the entire family. Do not keep reptiles, including turtles, as pets; many carry salmonella, which can be fatal for infants. Even those favorite pets of childhood, guinea pigs and hamsters, can carry harmful bacteria. If you have one in the house, be sure that everyone washes their hands after playing with it and before holding the baby.

Pets, dust, and allergies
Recent research suggests that daily exposure to cats in the first year of life may protect a child from developing allergies. In one study, babies whose families owned a cat that was allowed in the baby’s bedroom were 67% less likely than others to develop asthma and 45% less likely to develop hay fever. Another study looked at children whose parents had a history of asthma or allergies. Children exposed to higher levels of house dust had less eczema in the first year of life. Exposure to a dog in the home at 2 to 3 months of age was also linked to less eczema in the first year of life. Other studies suggest that some level of exposure to common germs and dust may protect children from developing allergies, eczema, and asthma. So try not to worry too much about keeping a healthy baby’s environment sterile and germ-free. A little exposure to the world—cats, dogs, dust, and all—seems to play a role in building a strong immune system.