A Stroll Around the Block...With Your Cat!

It's not a surprise that a lot of the ARF Behavior Department's time is spent working with the shelter dogs. But what may be news to some people is that we also spend a good chunk of time enriching cats and modifying cat behavior.

This is especially important for cats who have a longer-than-average stay at ARF until they get adopted. The longer residence means that some cats can get stuck in a routine and are more likely to get bored and frustrated. At ARF we have several systems in place to try to add variety to all our cat's days. We have a great volunteer program that trains both adult and teen volunteers to socialize with cats. We have an enrichment program that is constantly brainstorming and implementing new fun activities for the cats. The Behavior Department is on the look out for those special cats who may need a specific plan to better meet their mental and physical needs.

And what lots of people don't understand or choose to overlook, is that their own cats can often benefit from some of the same services that we provide to ARF cats. Could your cat use some extra enrichment? You could make meal time a little more invigorating by feeding your cat out of an egg carton or a toilet paper roll. Do you have an indoor cat that is constantly gazing out the window and day dreaming of exploring the outdoors? You could train them to wear a specially designed cat harness, and then walk them on a leash around your backyard - much like a dog. Not all cats would find this fun. Some cats might be overwhelmed by all the new sights and smells of the outdoors, but if your cat is typically curious and tolerant in nature, a walk on a leash may be the thing to brighten up their day.

Here is a video of ARF cat, Holdsworth, enjoying a walk around the building:

"all changed, changed utterly....."

Ok, so I've gone all literary on you with the title of this post - it's a line from a poem by the great Irish writer/poet William Butler Yeats (1865-1939), and it has particular meaning to me right now because things around my house have "changed utterly" - why? Because I took the plunge and added a third dog to my household - in other words: I adopted ARF dog Wilson two weeks ago! I guess I just couldn't resist his charm and that underbite any longer! I certainly wasn't planning on bringing home another critter, but I do think there's some truth to that saying "you don't choose your dog, your dog chooses you..." None of my Facebook friends were surprised though, as I'd been spamming them all with photos and videos of him for weeks on end!

A third dog really does add the "multi" into multi-dog household! Adding a new critter to your crew - feline or canine, changes the dynamic period full stop. Patricia McConnell, writer and well known Certified Applied Animal Behaviorist, has written a little booklet called "Feeling Outnumbered" that has all kinds of tips on how to maintain harmony in a multi dog household. Making sure that all your dogs will reliably respond to cues such as "stay", "wait", "leave it", as well as good solid recall will go a long way towards staving off multi dog anarchy! I also advocate for ALWAYS separating to feed - that way no one has to guzzle their grub down and no one learns to guard or gets opportunities to rehearse guarding from the other critters.

As for myself and my house full of dogs, at the moment it's a balancing act of doing my best to adhere as much as possible to my other two dog's routines while at the same time introducing Wilson into the mix. I make sure all three get daily one on one time with me, and also some "down time" away from each other (baby gates and crates are invaluable for that) so that they can enjoy a Kong/Nylabone in peace. One thing I'm really enjoying is getting to know Wilson in a different context - he's no longer Wilson, shelter dog, he's Wilson, my dog! Here's some stuff I've discovered so far: he's all terrier, all the time, except when it's cold out, or rainy - then his chihuahua side emerges and he suddenly loses the ability to walk. He's bold and curious, and you've never seen anyone, man or beast, have as much fun with an old Snickers wrapper as he did on his walk yesterday - forget about all the toys waiting for him back at my apartment, as far as he was concerned that candy bar wrapper rocked! One thing I always say about my dogs is that they make me laugh on a daily basis, and Wilson is no exception - I reckon he's going to fit in around here just fine!

While we're on the subject of change, there'll be a new face around the Behavior office soon - we'll be hiring a new shelter trainer because Ana and Dara are returning to Brazil. We wish the both of them all the best in whatever life holds for them next!

Finally, the holiday season is upon us once again. As festive as things are, it can also be hectic and at times stressful. Not surprisingly it can also be hectic and stressful for our critters. So bear that in mind and think about giving them a nice quiet spot in the house to hang out in while yourself and your human family and friends get your festive on in another part of the house. Trust me, your pets won't feel "left out" - instead they'll be safe, with no opportunities to wriggle out your open front door as you great arriving guests, and no opportunities to ingest all the tempting food on offer. And because mishaps can occur, even when we think we've orchestrated everything beautifully, please make sure your critters have current id on them/register their microchip info/have current photos of them - Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

p.s. the photo at the beginning of this post shows Wilson in a rare moment of "stillness" - here's one that more accurately captures his demeanor: perpetual motion!

playgroups + fieldtrips = happy shelter dogs!!

That's wee Wilson posing for a glamour shot at a recent small dog playgroup here at Tony La Russa's Animal Rescue Foundation. We've been having daily playgroups for the dogs at the shelter for a while now - we're lucky to have our awesome agility field at our disposal and every morning when 11 am rolls round it's play group time! Aside from being a fun way for the dogs to burn off energy, it also allows them to keep their play skills well oiled, so to speak. Play skills are kind of like a muscle - if you don't work out regularly, you muscles won't be strong, and similarly, if social, playful dogs don't get regular opportunities to play with other dogs, their play skills can get weak. Depending on the make up of the shelter population we'll design the playgroups based on the sizes, play styles and energy levels of the dogs, "big dog group", "busy small dog group" and "quiet small dog group" - that way the dogs that aren't into rampaging around can socialize with other low key wee ones, communally smelling stuff, sun bathing and hanging out with the staff and volunteers on play group duty for that day. We even had "productive small dog group" one morning when all of the dogs in that group just wanted to have a go on all the agility equipment! The best part was that some of the unlikeliest of candidates that day ended up being veritable agility addicts! Playgroup gives us an opportunity to learn more about the dogs, which means we have more information that we can pass onto adopters - we'll discover the dogs who are crazy about playing fetch, dogs who are potential agility prospects, dogs who like to wrestle in play and dogs who prefer "chase and be chased". It's also a great way for staff and volunteers to see dog body language in action, so playgroup serves an educational purpose as well!



We're also lucky to be less than 10 minutes drive from some lovely open spaces and we've been getting some of the dogs out for well deserved "field trips" during the week when we can. It's not just a physical workout for the dogs (and staff!) but also a mental one for them, as they take in all the new sights and smells. It's kind of like when you go on holiday to a different city - a long day sight-seeing can be pretty exhausting! Just like playgroups, field trips allow us to learn more about the dogs - for a start it let's us know what they're like traveling in a car! Here's a photo of shelter dog Kyle, enjoying an Indian Summer trail walk!



And finally, before we go, just have to give a shout out to some of the members of our awesome Animal Care team who make time in their busy days to take some of our extra active dogs jogging!!