The problem with breeder puppy cams is that we all know that with dogs dying in shelters we don't really want to give the breeders any more attention and business. Those puppies are so cute but they remind us of the other puppies that are not so fortunate.

So why not have puppy cams? Then people would recommend cute puppies and even older dogs that need to be adopted to their friends to watch. Some of those people would want to actually adopt the dogs. It would also bring awareness to the fact that if someone doesn't adopt these cute dogs they may not make it.

The problem with Kody is that he's an intense chewer, too intense. When he gets a chew he starts working on it and won't stop. But that's not all, he gets better and better at chewing them faster. In the case of the rawhide chews he finally learned he could just chew off gigantic pieces and swallow them.

This morning, he got one stuck in his throat. He started making the scariest noises. He coughed that piece up again, but then re-swallowed it. Just a few minutes ago, he threw up his lunch and in it was a big piece of rawhide. He did the same thing last night. That's why this is the end of chew toys.

It's so unfortunate, because he loves them so much. I hope I can find some good alternatives to chew toys that give him at least some chewing satisfaction. I mentioned there might be one exception which is that if I can find a chew toy that turns to mush in a bowl of water in a half hour, I might give that to Kody.

The truth is, I'm probably very lucky that Kody threw up those pieces of rawhide. Since he hasn't yet fully passed any food I'm not in the clear yet, either. But we'll just stop the chews altogether and hope things go well. He seems pretty happy, so I he's not clogged up.

In addition, once Kody has had enough of the sun, he finds a shady spot to lay in. He stretches way out in the middle of the floor and has the most peaceful look on his face.

It's funny how that look has an emotional effect on me. It makes me feel relaxed and calm and sleepy happy.

Kody has always been a fan of staying in his crate when I leave the house. I'm a good crate trainer. He gets a special treat every time I leave and he needs to go in the crate so when he senses I'm about to leave he runs into the crate without even being asked. These are crate only treats, I wouldn't call them "high value" treats, but he's used to them when it's crate time. He didn't spend much time in the crate if I was home, which is fine with me. But then one day things changed, and that's what this post is about.

In the past I had one of those typical crate liners in Kody's crate. The problem is it would sit for months before I would clean it because it had to be specially cleaned with something else in the washer so it wouldn't throw things off balance. The other washed item had to be something that was okay to wash with a dog bed, that is, not my fine white linens, or probably my clothes, or towels. It doesn't sound like a lot of work, but it was enough to keep me from washing it very often.

One day I finally I decided something had to be done. I use dog blankets to indicate whether Kody is allowed on the couch or not. I just folded up one of the blankets and put that in the crate. It was fluffier that the crate liner and I didn't know if Kody would like that it took up more vertical space. He didn't seem to mind so we threw away the crate liner. The dog blanket can be washed easily by itself without throwing the washer out of balance, so problem solved.

But then something interesting happened. Kody started spending time in the crate even when I was home. More impressively, he figured out how to burrow into the folded blanket like he likes to do with blankets on the floor. I don't know how he does this, just one more way in which he amazes me.

Currently, I think the crate is his favorite resting place. He used to split his time between the couch and burrowing under the covers of the bed. Now he spends time in all three places, but the crate is the most popular.

The fact that Kody likes his crate is something I never take for granted. It's so nice to be able to leave him at the house and not worry that he might get into something. In return I try not to leave him in it for over four hours at a time.

Today I saw the most awesome episode of The Twilight Zone. I'll warn you now, this post has spoilers. However I doubt many of you are hiding from spoilers about old black and white TV shows.

The episode was about a hunter who loves his dog. One day they went out hunting together and were tricked into a pond by a raccoon. They woke up on the side of the pond a little while later.

As they headed back home they ran across two men burying a dog in the hunter's pasture. The hunter was upset that they were ignoring him but then left them alone when he found out they were burying a dog. He figured they were too distraught to talk.

You can see where this is going. You may get it, but the hunter didn't and was confused as to who's casket they were carrying out of his house.

As the hunter wandered his property he ran into a fence he didn't recognize. He followed it until he approached a man who greeted him. The man said he was Saint Peter and welcomed the hunter to heaven. But the dog was not comfortable. Saint Peter said dogs weren't allowed in this section of heaven and couldn't come in. He said there was a dog heaven down the road and he would take the hunter's dog there for him.

The hunter argued for a while and decided not to enter heaven without his dog. A decision all dog lovers totally get.

The hunter wandered down the road and ran into another man. This man knew his and his dog's name and welcomed them both to heaven. The hunter asked if this new man was Saint Peter and the man said he was just a regular angel.

The hunter asked the angel about the other guy and the angel said that guy was always trying to trick people even up to the last minute. The angel said the other guy wouldn't allow dogs because dogs can't be fooled like people and can smell the brimstone. They'll always guide their humans to safety.

The angel confirmed that the hunter's wife would be safe when she arrived and led him and his dog into heaven.

It was such a touching episode. I want Kody with me when my time comes. I had another dog named Mozart when I was young and I hope he's there too. I'm not a very religious person, but when it comes to dogs, I'm a believer!

I was just getting back into bed and like many crazy dog owners I was sliding my legs back on either side of the dog. As I pulled the covers up I saw that he was laying on his back with his feet sticking up as comfortable as he could be.

There's something so wonderful about seeing that much comfort. It makes me so happy. I always say it, but there's a secret to a happy life in appreciating a dog. I wish I could share it with everyone.

It used to be mainly the TV cart and the fireplace screen. Now we've moved his mat and it's the couch. But it's hard to get food out from under the couch. He's been concerned for days about the food under the couch so today I finally moved the couch and got the food for him.

It's not easy, so I'll be moving his starting point back to where it was before and the relatively easy obstacles to the strewn food.

First, he's super forgiving. Not just forgiving, but he still loves me and shows that love whenever he can even when I show my own imperfections. I realized religions never portray God this way, maybe they think it would make him look weak. But I realized how strong Kody is to love like that.

I thought about what a heavenly happiness Kody brought into my life. I realized it was a happiness that fell right in line with C. S. Lewis' book The Great Divorce. Dogs provide a happiness you have to choose. Many people have dogs but don't choose to see the happiness they bring. It's a shame, because it's right there waiting.

The scientific truth is that dogs were selected by our ancestors based on their ability to show signs we interpret as love and be nice. So by this time, that's all we know. But, I will say that even if it isn't truly spiritual, it is truly inspirational.

One thing I can do is just get on my hands and knees with him real quick and he really enjoys that. His play sessions don't need to be very long. When we have more time, we get out the hide-a-squirrel made cube shaped toy where he's learned to pull out the different pieces. We also do dinner from a canine genius every night, that was the best suggestion, he loves it!

He doesn't want just a toy though, he wants interactivity. He wants to play *with* me. Even with the canine genius he will sometimes wait for me to be present before playing with it.

It's the same dilemma every parent has. It's also a blessing we often miss that we have someone who wants to play with so often.

Learning to play with a dog is hard. They have real needs and they don't always work with how we think our schedule is supposed to go. At the same time, when I give in to play I realize I was an idiot for resisting. Kody makes me laugh and have fun in way that's pure goodness.

So my Christmas wish for all of us is that instead of ignoring those commercials or feeling helpless, take a few minutes to really think about what can be done so that we can kill less animals next year. Changes in attitude really will work with this one, because if you change your attitude, you'll change how you talk to others and then they'll change, and so on.

That's all I'm asking for, just take some time to think about it.

He gets concerned if either one of us is not with the group. It makes sense, I guess. Dogs hang out together and one only leaves if searching for food or scaring off intruders.

When we were going to bed, Kody asked to go see his grandma, so we went in and I put him on the bed. He was so excited and gave her lots of kisses and we all laughed as he subjected her to a kisses attack. It’s amazing to watch Kody literally create joy.

I feel sad that Kody will probably notice the change in activity tomorrow. But luckily I’ve got some renewed energy to make sure he has good activities every day. I’ve also been pretty successful at distracting him from the painful tail chewing.

I do know that it’s not a constant annoyance to him and he does it at very specific times, like right after we get in bed.

Lately I’ve been working more and also I’ve been working on the computer with my visiting mom. While we pay a lot of attention to Kody, I’ve noticed him feeling exasperated more often. He makes that pitiful sound of exasperation, and I’ve been surprised by it. Could it be that having another person in the house is making him feel more let down or ignored when we don’t pay attention to him?

I also noticed tonight that he isn’t licking his butt when he’s squealing, he’s chewing his tail. I also noticed his tail looking a little red. Since this behavior, at least the way Kody is doing it, doesn’t match up with pests, it’s probably some sort of mental reaction.

So, I’ve pinpointed a number of times that Kody seems to need more attention and I’m going to give it to him.

Also, I’m going to look for new opportunities for activities for him.

I love Kody and I’m a stay at home dad so I thought there was no way Kody wouldn’t be getting enough attention. That may not be the problem. But the exasperated whining leads me to believe some need of his isn’t being met, and I’m going to figure out what it is.

He had two small handfuls of kibble and one large handful. He also had a few hot dog pieces today when our guest came over. Tomorrow I think I’ll try some beef and rice again and keep a close eye on him.

One thing he misses is rawhide and other treats. He’s not shy about standing next to the cupboard door to make it clear to me what he wants. We just have to take it slow.

I doubt I’ll ever know for sure what it was, but I’m assuming it was too much raw cabbage. We won’t do cabbage again, so if it was that, I’ll never find out. But he can do lettuce just fine, and even broccoli. I’ll just be sure to take it easy on the raw vegetables from now on.

First I gave him about eight pieces of kibble. I just wanted to see if that little amount would allow him to keep it down. A few hours later he threw up again, but it was just “stomach juices”, not kibble. This is good for two reasons. First he digested the kibble. Second, I know about this pattern where a dog has an upset stomach and throws up when their stomach becomes empty. This is something Kody has experienced and recovered from before.

I gave him two more batches of kibble both less than 20 pieces and he’s doing pretty well. Kody has been in good spirits the whole time so that’s helped me to worry a little less.

I’ve said it before, nothing is as stressful to me as when Kody gets sick. Especially when it’s idiopathic and I have no idea what to expect.

But the barfing continues. His stomach is clearly tender right now so were keeping him on brown rice and beef until he can have a better track record keeping it down.

But he’s in great spirits, so I’m not too worried right now.

It’s nice to be able to relax a little.

Then he came in and I decided to call the vet at 7:00am when they opened. They could see Kody at 8:00am so I set the appointment.

Well, in true Kody fashion, by 7:45am he was almost looking normal. After days of stress, he starts getting better right before we go see the vet.

I’d rather have him better, and I guess it’s good that calling the vet has such a curative effect. He still had plenty of small symptoms though, but unfortunately the vet said exactly what I thought she’d say. Basically I already had a full understanding of what was going on and how to track the source of the allergy.

One good thing is that I got a prescription for prednisolone for Kody. Steroids are sort of a giant hammer of a treatment with plenty of negative side effects, so they should only be used when necessary. I’m not going to use them unless he is feeling much worse again, but at least I have something.

He also threw up his kibble dinner tonight, although he was very active and happy to have a guest over for Thanksgiving dinner. You know what’s not fun? Having to clean dog barf out of closet door slider tracks. It takes a lot of q-tips.

The truth is, I’m very worried. I don’t like it when my dog is sick and I don’t know what’s happening. I cuddled him tonight and told him how much I love him.

I knew if things got bad I could give him half a benedryl.

I gave him a bath and changed the sheets on the bed. I also moved him down to the basics of food so I can add things back one at a time to see if I can figure out what’s causing this. I’m suspicious of the cabbage, but organic cabbage doesn’t seem like a likely allergen.

We’ll see. I’m just glad he’s doing better.

Cesar Millan is suffering quite a lot of very scientific criticism and probably will either change or fade away. Positive trainers are more vocal and there are a lot more of them since accredited schools actually teach positive training based on behavioral research done at universities around the country. Positive training has moved from theory to fact, and dog owners are reaping the benefits of less stress and better relationships with better behaved dogs.

But what about me?

Kody and I now have a little strip of back yard and all of our journeys outside are off leash. We only go about 50 feet but one thing I’ve learned about Kody is he doesn’t like walks, he’s more than happy to go back inside and usually has grabbed a pine cone to trade for a treat once we get in.

Occaisionally when it’s warm he wants to stay outside. This means me sitting in a patio chair and him laying on the patio calmly watching the kids laugh and scream and play in the pool. He loves to watch them. This is the dog that used to bark at everything.

We “brush” Kody’s tooth with the crown every night. Right now I just rub it with my finger but it’s getting easier every time. This is not just Kody learning but I’m learning the best way to reach in. We’ve been making progress for months but its not the kind of thing you can rush into. Eventually we’ll use a toothbrush, but no rush. By the way, Kody loves this. As soon as he’s had his dinner he’s gesturing that he’s ready to have his teeth brushed. When he knows it’s going to happen he runs around like a puppy. So I know I’m doing it right. It’s a bonding time.

Life is pretty smooth. I never thought I would appreciate a dog so much. Every day I have at least one moment of complete awe at how awesome he is.