Category: Top Dog

Miss. Elektra and her BMF, Mr. Leonard, NOT patiently waiting for breakfast at 7:02 AM…

This may be a long shot but I have been trying to find a specific dog ball with no luck and I am wondering if anyone knows where I can find it. It was my dogs favorite toy so I have been searching everywhere.

It is rubber, blue and looks like an octopus.

If anyone knows what ball I am talking about and knows where I can get it I am desperate 🥲

My partner and I have had a 4.5 month old Beagle/Border Collie mix for about 3 weeks, and while she's a very sweet and rambunctious girl, certain things have started wearing me down.

I'll preface by saying I've read a lot of the resources here, understand what to expect, and don't think any of her behavior is outside of normal high-energy breed stuff. When we first brought her home, I approached training and activities with a lot of patience, calm, and diligence. As we've settled into our new reality, though, she's gotten more comfortable and has definitely started testing our boundaries with things such as repeatedly jumping on the couch (where she knows she's not allowed) to farm treats when she jumps down to the "off" command; or barking when the crate door is closed despite happily going in there on her own accord. I've noticed myself becoming shorter and less tolerant, and I want to get ahead of that because I know the best thing for training is patience and consistency.

So my question is, how do you get that patience back once it's been worn down? It's not like there's days where I don't have to deal with her behavior to allow it to recharge, but I also know I need to be fair to her. Tips or commiseration appreciated.

Hi everyone,

I’m writing this with a heavy heart. Due to an unexpected emergency, I have to relocate to another country, and sadly, it’s not viable to take my dog Pluto with me. He’s a 4-year-old Siberian Laika–German Shepherd mix — loyal, intelligent, and deeply loved. Unfortunately, the climate in the new country just isn’t suitable for him.

One of his sibling’s owners has kindly agreed to adopt him, and while I’m incredibly grateful, I’m also devastated. Pluto has grown up with my daughter, my wife, and me. He’s very attached to us, and the thought of leaving him behind is breaking us apart.

For anyone who’s had to rehome a dog they love — how can I make this transition as gentle as possible for him?

• How early should we start taking him to visit his new home?
• Would it help if I spent time with him there for a few days before we move?
• How long does it usually take for dogs to settle emotionally in a new environment?

I just want to do what’s best for him, even though my heart feels shattered.

Thank you all for reading — I really needed to share this somewhere people would understand. ❤️

Life will never be the same again without Pluto

Thank you ❤️

We adopted a 10 month old Standard Poodle. We are working on kennel training, and getting her used to our schedule of being home alone for 3-4 hours at a time. We havent seen her totally shred any toys, but to be safe I am avoiding frabric and plastic (Puzzles, lickmats, stuffed animals) We have a kong, but I am hoping to find more than 1 option. She does try to eat socks, so snufflemats are out. Any suggestions appreciated. TIA! 😊

I have a 6 month old lab x puppy that we adopted at just under 3 months old. His mom came into care pregnant and so he was born in foster care and then neutered and placed up for adoption. He has come a long way since first getting him (was easily aroused, mouthy, extremely confident and reactive). I’ve trained and worked with many dogs however he has definitely tested my ability. He has been in puppy classes / puppy socialization since we brought him home and has come a long way in his impulse control. I am aware he’s in his adolescence stage however this was an issue before but has now increased. He has very little ability to mange his frustration. When we are training and he becomes frustrated we reward a sit or down and calm behaviour. He’s desensitized to walking by dogs and is excellent at wait and leave it, sitting at doors and loose leash walking however he is still easily set off by frustration. A lot of the suggestions online are regarding impulse control which he is quite good at yet it doesn’t seem to be helping with his ability to manage his emotions/frustration. He is still going to training however I’m wondering if anyone has any suggestions of additional things I can start working on to increase his capacity to manage excitement and allow him to learn to settle. He knows place and go to bed as well as kennel. An example of the behaviour is he sits at the door and waits to be released and we continue down the stairs to go outside – then out of nowhere he starts biting ankles and immediately escalates. Asking him to sit he will and I give treats and reward the calm – often waiting for 5 + mins but then the minute we attempt to move again he immediately escalates and jumps to bite arms. Another example is he loves to play and will read other dogs body language but is a bit delayed in his reading – we’ve been helping him by supervising and using high reward treats to pull him out give everybody a break and then let them play again. Often he can engage and disengage however there’s also times where he gets frustrated and escalates to where he is unable to calm down enough to play appropriately. I’m feeling lost as I’m having trouble figuring out why his ability to tolerate things change despite little to no change in the scenario and I’m looking to help him increase his ability to tolerate being frustrated. Thanks in advance

Sometimes I know my dog wants to play fetch but I just don’t have the energy to go get the toy if he doesn’t bring it back.

Is there any toy you know of that I can throw and get it back without moving?

Like a ball attached to a wire so you can pull it back if needed

We have a 5-month old Pembroke Corgi who has been with us for just over 2 months. We've been trying to train her recall, but she's pretty hit or miss. We've been using boiled chicken—should we stick to just that every time to help her remember it better?

And my other question is: what high-value treats would you recommend that can be cooked at home? Thank you very much! ☺️