My wife and I are truly animal lovers and we have the most wonderful pets in the world. Although most animal lovers would say the same about their pets, we try to make the most of the love and acceptance our extended 'family' provides us with! We have spent years observing and learning from our babies. We make sure that they are all healthy and well fed, up to date on their vaccinations and spayed and neutered, and most of all, loved by each of us. We also have some rules we follow when it comes to caring for our animals.

Fresh water inside the house and outside
Not just filling the dish back up when it's empty, but rinsing it out often to wash away the slime and debris left by drinking from the dish and to help avoid the build up of bacteria and filth (after all, none of us likes to drink out of a dirty glass)
Regular feeding times
Scheduled feedings help eliminate accidents in the house and allow for a routine that give the animals and us some sense of security
Regular trips to the Vet
We feel that because they depend on us to take care of them, we have a responsibility to be sure they are healthy

I have to admit that I had really missed out on the wealth of love and comfort our beloved animals were providing when I was on the road for years earning a living as a automation technician in the building environmental controls field. It wasn't until I stayed home and really spent some time with our pets that I began to grasp the richness they brought into each of our lives. I have been able to observe how each and every one of them, in their own unique way, provide love and attention to my wife and me. I will be writing about each of them over the course of the next few weeks to share the love we have found and hopefully create some awareness of the happiness a pet can bring into a person's life if they will only open their eyes and see it!
I will begin by talking about our dog Fizz. Fizz is a mixed breed that many people mistake for a dalmatian because of his numerous black spots, but he is a spaniel mix and his personality and temperament are second to none. He has long hair and he is quite animated, yet the first thing you notice about Fizz is he doesn't just make eye contact, he peers into your eyes as if to communicate his thoughts directly to your brain. It is his normal behavior to observe events around him and to communicate his needs whether it is going outside for whatever reason, or he is hungry or thirsty (or perhaps he just doesn't want to get off the chair you want to sit in, or off the bed when you want to lay down!) In addition, he will intentionally avoid making eye contact with you when he just wants to be left alone! You will notice however that he will move his eyes toward you to assess the situation while keeping his head fixed straight ahead. He established this behavior over the years (as he has trained us) to be able to secure what he wants. He is steadfastly house broken and will make it known to you that he needs to go outside by coming to wherever you are and sitting with a patient upright posture while seeking to make eye contact with you. If you don't acknowledge him within a 'reasonable' amount of time he will begin at first with a short, anxious whine and then remain silent waiting for the eye contact. If that fails, he increases the duration and volume of the whine and again becomes silent waiting for you to look at him. If this fails, he begins to move closer and closer to you, assuming his upright seated position with each approach and repeating his louder and longer whine, until at last he is right at your feet. By the way, if you make eye contact with him at any point during the process he immediately jumps up on his feet and barks loudly while wagging his tail wildly back and forth and then moves directly towards the door to go out. What fun to observe!
As a puppy, Fizz was 'potty trained' using a reward system. Each time he was outside, and he would do his business, we would praise him, pet him, and give him a small 'doggy bone' (the small inexpensive puppy biscuits you can obtain at your local pet store or grocery). In short order, he not only learned to connect the reward with the behavior, but at some point along the way, he would actually make sure that you were watching him do his business and then run straight for the door for his reward while barking and wagging his tail! (I believe he picked up the voyeur tendencies when he was accidentally overlooked and other dogs got rewarded after they had done their business) At any rate, he also learned to listen for the specific words 'doggy bone' as just the mere mention of these two words lights him up like a Christmas tree! All of our dogs have learned the same scrumptious lesson! We have found it to be a handy way to reinforce any good behavior we wish to encourage.

There are some important rules that pet owners would do well to observe. It seems to be universally true and we have adopted the following list of 'Animal Property Rules' from observation, research and various lists we have read:

If I like it....it's mine
If it is in my mouth....it's mine
If I had it a little while ago....it's mine
If I can take it from you....it's mine
If it looks like mine....it's mine
If I saw it first....it's mine
If you put it down....it's mine
If I chew something up.... ALL THE PIECES are mine
If it is edible...it's mine
If it was yours....get over it....it's mine

In my next blog I will be talking about out shar-pei mix, Botox!