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Second in a series Izzy, Willa, and Rosie could have been allowed to fight it out until the last dog was standing. Wouldn’t the thumping the smaller dogs endured teach them to mind their place in the pecking order? Really? Some people actually believe that. The more common mistake is to punish the perpetrator. Izzy had been severely reprimanded but not for a long time; it had been over a year since she’d been busted for bullying. Back in the day, though, Jerry had gotten really upset when seeing her push the small fry around. He’d yelled and contorted himself until he risked a hernia. Each time, Izzy appeared duly chastened. It seemed to work; nobody had witnessed her odious behavior in quite a while. They’d moved on. Our dogs share a lot with us “higher” mammals but there are differences. Canine hierarchies, whether free-living or domestic, are about survival.…

First in a series Behavioral research shows that 75% of dogs are anxious in veterinary clinics. We’re ethically bound not to make it any harder for them.  I quietly opened the door into reception and spied my clients. Jerry Cline was seated next to his wife Charlene. Izzy, parked between them, was a 48# spotted mix of some kind but rather a pretty girl dog. She sat evenly on both hips, head up but a little back. Her ears were also back but not pinned to the sides of her head. Her tail was tucked around her rear end, its tip not visible. Her mouth was closed, her pupils mildly dilated. I pegged her anxiety as moderate. Izzy’s two housemates, Willa and Rosie, were much smaller dogs. They looked as bored as a couple of school kids missing their smart phones. I invited this crowd into my exam room. Jerry,…

Question: We have a yellow Lab, “Tootsie”. She eats leaves, sticks, and other detritus including rocks, gravel, concrete chips, Hot Wheels and Legos. She minds the command to “Drop” but chews until it goes down the hatch and is seen in her droppings. She’s had diarrhea a few times. She has passed 6″ of nylon leash! Do these habits diminish over time? Dr. Nichol: Everything about Tootsie’s behavior is unhealthy. I’ve retrieved a variety of interesting objects from the GI tracts of dogs who’ve made it to my operating table. We see fewer of these cases now; the science has advanced. Tootsie needs basic obedience training and a dog sport like Agility or Rally to keep her mentally and physically occupied. But even with full time employment she would still find opportunities to bite and swallow whatever she could get into her mouth. Chewing is expected with teething puppies. It’s…