A Day in University

Oops, looks like this entry is way overdue!

Photo courtesy of Pedigree Philippines

On November 24, 2013, my siblings and I brought Odie to his second Pedigree event: Pedigree University. The event was originally scheduled on November 10, but was postponed due to the wrath of Typhoon Haiyan. I woke up early on the 24th to make sure we're ready for a long (but fun) day out. I gave him a bath, packed his going out things (collapsible bowl, water bottle, waste bags, toilet paper, two meals' worth of kibble, and DentaStix) then made some freshly baked liver treats to last us the whole day. Registration was at 10am but he might get too tired so we decided to go after lunch.

Lessons to Learn and Lessons Learned

We have been given the privilege to join Pet Centrics' Basic Obedience (Intermediate) Class and are now halfway through with the course. The six-session class is currently offered exclusively to graduates of the Basic Obedience (Beginners) Class for humans and their dogs to keep the ball rolling. See, the beginners class tackles the most important things such as recall, polishing sits and downs, durations, and minor distractions. The intermediate class is scheduled almost immediately after graduation so that humans and dogs don't experience an abrupt shop just when they are gaining momentum.

Odie already graduated from the intermediate level in April of this year. He even placed first in the homework submissions "competition" (well, we took it upon ourselves to be tiger parents and submit all the videos that we could) and breezed through his final exam. Yes, I'm a proud parent. I actually am just amazed that although Odie is a very rowdy boy, his focus when training is impeccable. This time around, however, Odie goes from demo dog to being a regular student because there are so many changes in this batch's syllabi! Their beginners class involved recall drills with agility equipment, and they haven't discussed distance yet. The intermediate class now makes use of the crate and the place bed. We never discussed nor practiced crate exercises before.

I'm actually pretty excited to get an introduction to crate games because Odie has a love-hate relationship with his travel crate. I taught him to get inside the crate overnight when we went to the Circulo Verde Trick or Treat event last year and he got it in a snap! Later on though, he developed the habit of going inside and then just turning to go out. He also had the habit of going out without being told to do so.

We went to Pet Centrics this weekend and did some recall games before proceeding to the crate lessons. Odie absolutely enjoys recall exercises so we didn't have a problem with that. When the humans were given a lecture on crate games, I was surprised that Odie kept quiet for about 95% of the lecture. He kept looking at me because I was about five meters away and I tried my best to give a reassuring smile whenever I checked on him.

The first exercises involved opening and closing the crate door while keeping the dog inside the crate. Whenever a dog attempted to get out (well, in my case, SUCCEEDED. TWICE), we had to close the door. It was hard to get by because my hands are small, so frequently opening the crate door made my hand hurt. I mean, I could barely reach an octave on the piano. That slowed me down so Doc Marose did a demo with Odie to give everyone an idea of how quick we should be with opening and closing the door. It was heartbreaking to see how fast she closed the door on Odie whenever he made an error. I teared up a bit when I saw it  -- Odie taking a step forward while wearing his sweet smile, only to have the door closed on him and with no treats to boot. It took a lot of effort for me to control my emotions because I felt really sorry for him. But then I had to buck up because feelings would hinder us from having him learn the lesson.

We got our much awaited break to run and play because the lesson was quite stressful. We were playing push-back-and-run while Doc attended to another student. Horror of horrors, Odie suddenly ran in a different direction and headed toward a beagle with aggression issues. See, that beagle used to take private lessons because of his aggression and is being introduced to group classes so that he could get used to being around other dogs and people. He's sensitive about hyper dogs and prefers that he would be the one to approach and make friends. That is the exact opposite of Odie, being a very hyper and playful dog who gets a good sniff and launches into puppy wrestling. Odie approached Beagle and started to sniff and play, and I did see him on the verge of humping. Beagle panicked and started growling so I was about to try to break them apart. Beagle's owner told me to step back as he also gets sensitive around other people. So yeah, I just watched the whole thing unfold and couldn't do anything about it.

They showered treats in the area in hopes that Odie would decide to go after the food, which he thankfully did. I guess it turns out that Odie chooses food over getting a new playmate. Doc intervened and suggested that Beagle step outside first so that he could recover. When he got back inside, he was responding to verbal cues and accepting treats. He was okay, but we were told that Odie should maintain a safe distance because Beagle remembers such incidents.

I seriously couldn't believe what happened and went home still in shock. I apologized to Doc Marose, and she told me that she was more worried for Odie because he could have been hurt. I also can't hold anything against Beagle because he needs the socialization to get over his aggression issues. He's not going to learn that it's okay unless he joins a group class. He's been making a lot of progress and I'm happy that he's no longer as timid as when we first met him.

At the end of it all, I was reminded that Odie is FAST so I really have to be able to read his every move to avoid potentially dangerous incidents. I had to learn it the hard way, but hey, at least I'm sure it's gonna stick. I'm also thankful for our classmates and for Doc Marose for handling the situation really well. The best part? Nobody got hurt, and we all went home feeling relieved and ready to do homework.

Food Heaven!

As part of Dental Care Month in May, Odie and I (well, mostly I) joined the Pedigree Philippines' Doggy DentaDash game on their Facebook Page. It's an app wherein we had to answer two questions each week, and were given corresponding points for each correct answer. The promo ran for eight weeks with new questions every Wednesday.

Odie was able to get a perfect score of 32000 points because I'm a tiger parent. I wasn't sure how the winners were selected (and I'm guessing lots of dogs got perfect scores as well), but a few days later, I got a call from a Pedigree Philippines representative saying that Odie and I were among the 20 winners of the game! We were notified mid-July and were told that we would receive the prize in 6-8 weeks.

While waiting for the real prize, those who got 12000 points and above were given 15 pieces of DentaStix to munch on. Yum! Well, yum for Odie, I guess! The last time we were given a free sample of DentaStix, it was literally just a free sample. As in, ONE piece which came with a cover letter, which their delivery guys struggled to achieve. We received it on August 19, and Odie's trying to finish what's left of it. I don't know any dog who doesn't like DentaStix. From what I know, its X-shaped structure guarantees to prevent plaque, and that it tastes really good. I'm usually on the receiving end of jumps (leading to bruises) when I open a pack. Some say this is crack for dogs. I'm gonna have to agree.

Yesterday morning, a truck arrived at our house. The house help called me and said that there was a package for me. Unfortunately for me, it was for my dog. But hey, I gotta admit I waited for it, too! The delivery man unloaded a huge bin from the truck, which had my name on it!

Storage bin with all the goodies!

I thought we were just gonna unload the bin so I was happy to know that we get to keep it, too! Odie's belongings used to be in two containers that were already deteriorating so now they're all here, neatly arranged. I was told to sign some paperwork and had my photo taken as proof that the package was delivered to my home. Sadly, the delivery guy also asked me for Php100 because our village has a toll fee when trucks enter. Ugh.


There was an envelope taped to the bin containing a cover letter from Pedigree Philippines. It was a thank you letter of sorts for joining their contest, and an instruction to take a photo of Odie and the prizes, upload it, and tag Pedigree Philippines on Facebook. Craziest minutes of the day.

Little sniffer performing an inspection. Wannabe police dog!

April and I arranged the products neatly for the photo. It was Php5000 worth of Pedigree products! The package contains seven 3kg bags of Pedigree Adult Complete Nutrition, six 400ml cans of Pedigree Home Style in chicken flavor, two 80g packs of Pedigree Meat Jerky, two 175g packs of Pedigree Tasty Bone, and one box containing 36 individually wrapped Pedigree DentaStix. 

Upon letting Odie out of his crate, I had a treat with me in hopes of having him keep his attention on me. I failed miserably as he took his time sniffing through the goodies that he received, and even knocked the cans down, grabbed a Tasty Bone pack and took it to the far end of the yard, and he just kept stuffing his face in between the bags of food! The photo below was the best we could do.

We didn't have time to rearrange the cans because I know he would start inspecting his new treats if I didn't stop taking photos. But yay! We finally got him to "look at the camera" and strike his signature poster-boy pose!

I haven't really tried feeding Odie Pedigree dry food (I usually buy pouches of wet food) so I sought the opinion of our veterinarian about switching to Pedigree. I learned that the most obvious manifestation of the dog's reaction to the food is through his skin and coat. Obviously, good food results in good skin. I opened one bag and am trying to transition him to it, hoping the results would be favorable. We filled 1/4 of his dish with Pedigree and 3/4 Holistic Recipe. He sniffed the foreign-infused food for a few seconds before devouring it like he does with all the food we give (and all the objects he manages to eat). We're also going to donate some of the food to a local shelter because it's pretty overwhelming to have so much, we might as well share.

All in all, the 8-week wait was worth it. We have food and treats to last us quite a while and the best part is that it was given to us for free! Thank you, Pedigree! I'm a happy parent with a really happy dog!

Commencement Exercises

Odie and I spent the last month sitting in at Pet Centrics' Basic Obedience for Beginners class. All the alumni of the class are given the privilege to attend the same class over and over, as a refresher course of sorts, to do demonstrations of the skills being taught, and for me and my dog to learn even more. See, just like in human school, learning never stops. As we meet different sets of dogs, I get to learn different training techniques, common behaviors of humans attending training class for the first time, and the importance of timing when marking new behaviors. Pretty amazing stuff!

Odie poses for the camera as he presents the
tunnel, chute, and adjustable bar jump.

This module of Basic Obedience is quite fast-paced. I was surprised that what our batch did in six sessions, they achieved in three. We learned the place exercise in the intermediate class, but it was introduced to this class on their fifth session. Even more exciting is the use of different agility equipment like the tunnel with and without the chute, an adjustable bar jump, a tire jump, and a six-pole weave. We didn't have those, not even in intermediate class!

As usual, Odie is doing all sorts of demonstrations prior to having the other students try the activities. There are times when we'd take a while before he performs (he's been marking a lot in school lately, and sometimes he's really busy sniffing). When I do have his full attention though, he just struts like a complete show-off. He consistently impresses the other humans who keep complimenting him for his "unbelievable intelligence" when they, too, can achieve the same results if they consistently train. I mean, they should see Odie's batchmates!

The Saturday class is graduating in a few hours. I hope that they're getting the hang of training, and that they would sit in and also do demos when they officially become alumni. Oh, and I hope they submitted homework videos so they could get nice toys!!!

Fauxcolate cookies on the kitchen scale

I went on a baking spree this week and decided to let the graduating class be the judge of the fauxcolate cookies I made. I like calling it fauxcolate because I'm really sad that dogs can't have chocolate and I can't have a photo of me and Odie happily sharing a tub of Nutella. I love Nutella. I love chocolate. I mean, we can share peanut butter, but it's just not the same. Is cookie butter safe for dogs? Maybe we can work with that!

Anyway, yeah, I'm using carob which is like chocolate for vegans and is safe for dogs. It doesn't contain theobromine, a caffeine-like molecule found in chocolate that makes it dog poison. I still have a lot of carob powder from Singapore (it expires in 2014) and it's taking up space in the fridge. I didn't know what to bring to training so I whipped up a batch of cookies. The batch I did after the one in the photo has a nice marble effect because I split the dough in two, one part plain, one part with carob. Today I finished baking and put the cookies in little packs I found at home, and made sure that each one weighed 25 grams. The scent of cinnamon filled our humble home while I baked and packed. It was amazing.

I hope that the graduates like it so I can develop the product more and maybe start legit baking for dogs. No cakes because I have a loooong way to go in terms of frosting, but maybe little muffins could work!  I'm really getting into cooking and baking for dogs (maybe because my taste tester is too kind). Plus my cousin has an industrial kitchen that he hasn't been using recently, and it has complete equipment, and my aunt said I could whip something up in there if I want to! Exciting times.

Pet Centrics is holding a FREE orientation on September 14 for Puppy Class! Wow, time flies. Odie's puppy class orientation was on October 6 of last year. This means he's been training for nearly a year! I don't know if any human would aspire for his/her dog to be as crazy as Odie, but to get you started, sign up for orientation here! Gotta admit, I never imagined myself training a dog, but here we are.

Odie Birthday Boy

My little boy is no longer a little boy. This puppy is now officially a dog.

Full-grown Odie at one year old

Odie turned one-year old on July 12 and it's just beyond belief! Time flies, really. He's been living in our home for ten months now and I've seen him grow from a wee little puppy to an adult dog. A few days prior to his big day, I can't help but look at photos and videos from months past. He sure looked like a rat and his howl sounded like a cat. Now his looks really tell he's a beagle, and his bay, bark, and howl all sound so rich and deep and beautiful (he's a baritone). Well, he's actually pretty small for his breed, but I have no problems with that. Honestly, I find it good because our front yard is just the right size for his play area. Plus his little trick that involves him jumping and me catching him? I don't think we can manage if he grows any bigger.

We had a simple celebration at home. I got back in Manila three days prior to his birthday so I sourced for ingredients the 10th, baked his cake on the 11th, and spent a happy, chill day on the 12th. I didn't make any adventurous going out plans because I figured that quality time with Odie would be most effective when nobody got stressed. We just did our usual walk around the village, had a candle-blowing ceremony, gave some cake to neighbor dogs, and fed Odie periodically which I think was enough for him to figure out that it was his special day.

Candle-blowing ceremony

ALL IN MY BELLY!

I asked my sister to take photos of him blowing the birthday candle. I was careful to not let him have full access to the whole cake for fear that he would finish it in one sitting because god knows his mouth and tummy know no limits. Just like the parent of any one-year old birthday celebrant (be it human or dog), I carried Odie to blow his birthday candle which of course, he was totally clueless about, so I blew it on his behalf. By the look on his face, he seemed weirded out by a gigantic treat with fire on top, so I brought the cake back to the kitchen to slice him a manageable piece. I also brought out some frozen yogurt treats to pair with the cake and arranged it on his dish. Right after giving him the signal to eat, the cake just VANISHED. And one by one, the yogurt treats also disappeared. He ended up having a goofy smile on his face, played for a bit, and happily took a long nap.

We also sent some cupcakes to Ollie and Tramp who live 10 minutes away. I know they're also always hungry, but I wasn't sure if they appreciated fruit-based treats (because Doc always brings chicken liver or liver bits to share with students). I received a photo response from them that same day.

Ollie and Tramp's birthday greeting! Photo by Doc Marose

The feedback I received from Odie, Ollie, Tramp, and our neighbors' dogs were more than enough to make my heart swell. As you can see, the cupcakes and the cake both look rustic (aka messy) because like I said in the previous entry, I'm a first-time baker and I had no idea what I was doing. Whatever. The dogs love it and that's what matters.

For dinner, Odie had chunks of beef alternating with a beef leg bone that I bought from the supermarket. I consulted our vet before prepping the bone after reading horror stories about dogs swallowing shattered bones and damaging their bodies. I didn't want to serve it raw either because I've never fed Odie raw food out of fear (e-coli, salmonella, whatever else he could get). Doc instructed me to dunk the bone in boiling water for 20 seconds to get rid of surface bacteria without making the bone brittle.

Give a dog a bone!

Odie zoomed in excitement when he saw his first ever bone! I took advantage by letting him do a run-down of his tricks and finally gave my go signal to dig in. Dig in, he did! He chewed on the bone for a little over an hour, although I did have him trade the bone for beef on certain occasions, because the bone is a very high value treat which he might guard if not taught to release early. He growled a couple of times when he saw me getting near the bone. He even growled then barked which bothered me a bit. Thankfully, he figured a slice of beef was a good thing and tolerated having me take the bone away from him. I let him work in peace after a while. I just watched him have the best day ever.

Celebrating Odie's birthday made me feel very grateful that I'm not raising him alone. Sure, I do provide for most of his needs (ie. food, medical expenses, toys, cleaning supplies), but I'm very thankful for the help that other people are giving me. It's very rewarding for Arkei, the breeder from whom I got Odie, to tell me that I'm raising Odie well. I'm also thankful that although she was away for around a month, April takes Odie on walks when I can't, and gives his meals when I'm still asleep, and bathes him when he stinks or is dirty. She even reads the handouts from classes and shares with me what she's gathered from said handouts. She also told our nearby neighbors to keep their dogs on a leash when letting them out so that everyone can walk in our street peacefully. It's such a big help, especially for me, and for those who have been bitten (I once saw a woman walking fast, covering a wound on her arm).

I'm very grateful for getting to know such good classmates and humans in Pet Centrics. The PTA (Parent-Teacher Association) of the PCAA (Pet Centrics Alumni Association) are the pioneers of tiger parenting and healthy competition for dogs. Funny how I saw the recent handouts for Basic Obedience class and the guidelines say there's no need for fancy editing of homework videos. That may have been my fault because my sister and I are maarte like that. We also still share recipes, videos, and behavior matters with one another and I'm thankful that I'm really learning a lot from them, seeing that I'm pretty new at being a hands-on human.

I'm also so happy to have found Pendragon Animal Health Group for microchipping Odie, and for giving me assistance when Odie needed medical attention past midnight. They're also a good source for Frontline (!!!), and they have all these promos and product auctions from time to time. I hear they're now a legit animal hospital, renovations and expansion and all.

Of course, Odie and I are thankful for the gem that is Doc Marose, for giving Odie the best care and training, for answering all my questions, for alleviating my fears, and for going the extra mile. From teaching us tricks not found in the handouts, to letting Odie meet Ollie and Tramp, to letting us sit in and enjoy her training classes, among other things. Although Odie is crazy enough to show off all his tricks and make all these noises when you're discussing, thank you for not banishing us to the park :D

Although my sister no longer makes Odie's videos and no longer goes to training with us, I really appreciate how she is also trying to raise Odie by trying her hand at the new things we're learning, and by going to the drama prince beagle when she gets home (and before he starts crying). I couldn't imagine life if I were the lone absorber of the dog's craziness because it's just too much!

And to you, who visit our little corner in the world wide web, thank you for taking the time to read our entries. I sure hope people are learning from our experiences and are giving their own dogs the best possible lives they can provide. I've learned so many things and have gone through so much since we had Odie. I'm totally looking forward to more play dates, more adventures, and more good times with this baby beagle who is no longer a baby.

The Birthday Cake!

I mentioned in earlier posts that I'm determined to bake a cake for Odie. At the back of my mind though, I was already allotting budget for the cake I would be ordering because I was so sure my cake wouldn't turn out well. I was sooooo thankful things worked out!

I chose a banana-carob-oat doggie cake recipe and was looking for carob which isn't available in grocery stores! I sent a message to Healthy Options to ask if they sold it and they do carry both carob chips and carob powder. I just wasn't told how much it was, but was also informed that it wasn't available in their SM North and Trinoma stores at the time.

Fortunately for me, our family went to Singapore for the weekend and I read somewhere that there was carob powder being sold at Jason's Market Place in Raffles City. Lo and behold, Raffles City was right across our hotel! The entire basement was food heaven. It also houses the best macaron place. Ugh, I miss it already. The actual market wasn't very big, probably the same size as Rustan's in Katipunan, but they had lots of organic stuff.

Bob's Red Mill Toasted Carob Powder
(S$7.70, Jason's Market Place)

I found carob powder and looked for other things I could get for Odie. Unfortunately, there weren't a lot of products for pets, and the few that were there were pricey and are being sold here. I ditched the idea of getting him treats and settled for the bag of carob powder. I got back in Manila by afternoon on the 9th, spent the rest of that day resting, and went to the supermarket the following day.

Ingredients haul (sweet potatoes not in photo)

I went to Shopwise the following day to look for whatever else I was missing. I got a dozen eggs at P65, a small packet of baking powder at P11, cream cheese at P109, rolled oats at P70, a banana at P15, and sweet potatoes at P60. My mom was lucky enough to have spotted a baking supplies store in the Don Antonio area so she got a kilogram of whole wheat flour for P68. I spent roughly P650 on cake ingredients, the same price as a cake from a barkery. BUT I still have loads of raw ingredients left so the actual cost of the cake is... much less (don't trust me with Math, really).

Cake batter ready to be baked

I just measured and mixed all the ingredients as instructed in the recipe. Still no KitchenAid mixer, but our stand mixer did the job pretty well. I don't know where we got the aluminum pan but I'm just happy it exists at home (in three different sizes!). I planned to make more cupcakes for neighbors and friends but the cake pan already used much of the batter so I managed to make just 6 cupcakes. The silicon muffin cups are the only ones we have at home, my sister bought them at Ikea in Hong Kong for roughly HK$40 for 6 pieces. I only filled the pan and cups halfway because I thought the batter would rise. It did, but not as much as I expected it to. Oh and I lined the pan and cups with virgin coconut oil instead of butter. For serious, Odie is a much healthier eater than humans!

BAKED (HEAVY) CAKE!

Frosting

The peanut butter I give Odie isn't like the American peanut butter that holds up well. Plus, those things have so many complex ingredients that scare me, so I opted to mix sweet potatoes and cream cheese to make a faux fondant (fauxndant?) and may have gone overboard with the ratio, but I'm not so sure. It was very easy to mould though so I didn't have problems frosting the cake and cupcakes.

Newly-frosted cake and cupcakes. Ready for icing!

I originally wanted at least two colors for the icing but I didn't know what else to color the potato with. Later on I found out we have moringa in the empty lot across the street where our driver plants veggies. Oh well. So I got the leftover frosting and mixed some carob powder to give it color and a faux chocolate (fauxcolate?) flavor. The carob powder I used was roughly 2 tablespoons and believe me, a little carob goes a long way. I don't have a piping bag so I went on YouTube and learned that a resealable bag can be a good piping bag substitute. I used around 3 bags because they kept breaking (the icing was too dense, apparently) and wrote the dedication.

There are brown smears because I could no longer erase my failed letters without leaving a brown mark. I thought of them as the dirt and soil that Odie loves to eat from the front yard. Lame excuse, I know.

The pupcakes were easier to ice because I watered it down a bit for easier icing flow and to keep the bags from breaking. This was supposed to be a pack of 6 but the container couldn't handle so I settled for five. It kind of looks like a bone so it makes sense somehow. I gave one cupcake to Toby and Max who live next door.

All in all, the cake turned out pretty okay in terms of taste. Took me around 6 hours to get it done because it was my first time ever to bake a cake, my first time ever to frost a cake, and my first time ever to draw on a cake using icing. The icing looks so bad though! Gotta work on that. For now, we have to live with ugly icing. Let's call it "rustic" so it doesn't sound as bad. The cake itself turned out really heavy. I took a bite and it was DENSE! It tasted like a really dense but really bland banana bread.

But we all know that Odie is forever hungry. Maybe that's why I love cooking and baking for him - he just excitedly eats everything he's given and doesn't tell me what tastes right or wrong!

Odie's Kitchen

Sometimes I just pretend that I know what I'm doing, so I get in the kitchen and make treats for Odie. I already mentioned in one entry that I'm trying to stay away from store-bought treats because going through the ingredients list in dog treat packages can get overwhelming. I do rely on kibble for his regular meals though because I have a life somehow, and I'd rather give him away than feed him leftovers.

I went to the supermarket last week to get some ingredients for the liver bits that I usually make (recipe from teacher). However, I also looked up some sweet treat recipes online and found a really easy one, so I bought a few other things to help me get started.

SUPPLIES!!! Baking sheet, flour, crushed grahams,
peanut butter, and quick oats (around Php250, Rustans Fresh)

The peanut butter treats are really simple! I just mixed 2 cups of flour, 1 cup oats, 1/3 cup peanut butter and 1 1/4 cups hot water to make the dough. When it was cool enough to handle, I rolled it on a baking sheet and put it in the oven at 175ºC until it turned brown. I let it cool and broke them into training-sized pieces.

Peanut butter goodness to last us quite a while!

The photo above is just half the dough, so I kept the uncooked dough in the freezer for when this batch runs out. I tasted it out of curiosity and it was baked cardboard, but Odie loves it like he loves every morsel of food he encounters. I'm thinking of adding a bit more peanut butter to the next batch for my own satisfaction.

After class last Saturday, Doc let the dogs try some treats from Petz Woofery, a barkery (is that what they're called) that her friend is setting up.

Banana biscuits (Php46, Petz Woofery).
For inquiries, contact 932-3078, 0915-8795253,
or send an email to petzwoofery@gmail.com

I was given a choice between squash and banana. Odie hasn't tried squash yet, but I know he doesn't like bananas that aren't frozen so I got the banana in hopes of putting the product to the test. Oh, and because the label says it contains all-natural ingredients, I sliced a little piece for myself and tasted it. Just like my peanut butter crisps, this one also tasted like cardboard! Are dogs' taste buds THAT sensitive?

I gave Odie an entire piece that same afternoon, his prize for behaving in class and because we both just woke up from our after-training nap. He devoured it like the forever hungry puppy that he is. And since it's a big piece, he had fun with it first like he has fun with his Dentastix. With large treats that can't be consumed in one go, he would usually pick it up, spit it out, pick it up again and run around with it, toss it in the air, get really intense zoomies, and he does so until the treat softens to a more chewable state. Needless to say, he liked the treat even if it had bananas in it! I do intend to give it to him during training though and not after, so I hope it also comes in training-sized pieces so I won't have to keep slicing.

Our other classmates have been very creative in bringing treats during training, that sometimes, baking chicken liver and peanut butter crisps just wouldn't cut it. I'm definitely on the lookout for other easy peasy recipes for class on Saturday. Hopefully, I find some with like five ingredients max. I don't plan to put up a barkery of my own, I just really want to bake/cook for Odie because he's very appreciative of whatever kind of food I give him. I mean, humans eat what you cook for them but they pick on the details of the taste, the presentation, and all other factors. With dogs, you give them food and they either eat it or ditch it. That's enough to know if it's good or bad. Luckily for me, Odie appreciates every morsel of food he's given. Well, except for room temperature bananas.

Record Breaker

I'm so gonna make up for us in the coming submissions.

Personally, this is unacceptable. I have no one to blame but myself. I didn't train Odie on Monday and Tuesday so that his injured leg could fully recover. One of the exercises required a ball which we lost (I haven't gone to the mall to look for a replacement yet!), so that's an entire activity I'm gonna have to make up for this week even without a video. I was planning to shoot this morning just like I did last week, only to find out that my sister was going to use the car and I'm too scared to drive the alternative car. I settled for shooting at the nearby houses then. Odie and I went out at 7:15 to find a way through covering outdoor locations. Unfortunately, our neighbors are really very consistent about letting their dogs roam freely so we weren't able to accomplish much. I decided to just halt all shooting and begin the editing.

It's the least homework we're turning in for this entire course and I'm gonna have to complete the succeeding ones if I intend to "run for honors" HAHA. Putting it that way sounds less shallow than saying "if I want to win a toy". I've been a bad human this week. Gotta be tiger mom ASAP!

Odie seems really easily distracted lately. In class yesterday, he was able to do all the exercises, but not without having me feel like I'm Dora the Explorer in terms of getting his attention and convincing him to follow the verbal cues. He kept sniffing the floor, perhaps hoping to steal a treat (he has this nasty habit of eating loose treats when his classmates' humans spill some). He kept sniffing the floor especially when we were heeling. The first time was really bad, I sort of cheated in the second round. I got one piece of the Tasty T-Bonz treat and held on to it through the course. I kept giving him the peanut butter treats and only gave the special one at the end. Sorry, Doc! We're not worthy of your "much better" remark after that!

Here's our record-breaking submission for this week:

Vimeo is taking quite a while uploading the rest of my videos, so I'm using YouTube for now, and will edit as soon as the Vimeo uploads are available.
-Edit: as of March 25, 10:30 PM, all videos are now in Vimeo!-

Sit/Down Step Run: At Home from Pauline Gaerlan on Vimeo.

Step Run Outdoors from Pauline Gaerlan on Vimeo.

I refrain from using a long line (aka connected leashes. What is wrong with me?) because I'm scared of   Odie being too far from me in a place where cars pass by all the time. I just run a bit slower and hope he's running with me.

I was a bit annoyed yesterday afternoon because when I decided to shoot, a bunch of little boys suddenly went outside and played running games. I feared for my camera!!! They kept asking me what Odie and I were doing, if the camera was working (WHY WOULD I SET UP A TRIPOD AND CAMERA IF IT'S FAKE?), among other things. I just did a quick set and went back home. I mean, good job, kids, for actually playing outside instead of playing with your iPads or something, but please do not disturb us.

Durations: At Home from Pauline Gaerlan on Vimeo.

I felt so bad for Odie when I started editing this durations video! When we were shooting, I remember slowly counting to 30 (30 seconds was the longest duration indicated in the handout), so I was so shocked to see that there were some that lasted for almost a minute, and one past the one minute mark! I didn't know I counted way too slow! We weren't able to do durations outside because every time we tried going out, there was so much going on outside. Very high distractions didn't allow us to pass five seconds. Nyarrr...

Sit/Down/Stand with Distraction: Front Yard from Pauline Gaerlan on Vimeo.

Sit/Down/Stand with Distraction: Garage from Pauline Gaerlan on Vimeo.

Sit/Down/Stand with Distraction: Patio from Pauline Gaerlan on Vimeo.

Sit/Down with Distraction: Outdoors from Pauline Gaerlan on Vimeo.

Odie was pretty okay with having me go around him. I'm just a bit iffy about some of his "down" videos because he kept shifting his weight to one side in an attempt to keep an eye on me. In the garage, he even took it a step further and did a roll over! I was so surprised when yesterday, he did the same thing in class! I'm happy that he's rolling over again (he stopped for a while when he got injured), but he's back to rolling way too much!

I haven't received session 4 homework yet so I can't plot my shot list and plan my week. Are we resting tomorrow? I'm not so sure. I just know that we're gonna have to do a lot more than this week's submission. Also gotta work on getting his attention, which means I have to be interesting enough for a dog to not wander off. This is definitely harder than dealing with children.

Goodbye, Homework Megaposts!

There's been an amendment with regard to homework submission at Pet Centrics. Instead of submitting collated homework the night before graduation, we now have weekly DEADLINES!!! It's quite a challenge, based on the first set of homework, but challenge can be fun :) It's also good that way because I can now get rid of homework megaposts. I think entries like that can be boring. The exercises also require both hands, so I was forced to bring out the tripod, and couldn't be more thankful that I found it in the attic! Doing training videos are much easier now that the camera is away from me.

The first homework given was the targeting exercise. It's an exercise for shaping behavior, and from what I read, it's the basic foundation for learning more complex things in the future. Doc Marose is teaching us bits of Susan Garrett's method so naturally, I read about her. 

I like how she aims to make training look like fun and games because it helps the dogs look forward to being trained. I got even more excited when I found out that subscribing to her Facebook Page gives access to a video that teaches the "stand" cue. Odie's been having a difficult time with that (he has a tendency to walk forward) so I tried following the video and having Odie target my hand when I tell him to stand. It's working for me so far. I also went to her official site to see her webinars. Unfortunately, they're not accessible right now to make way for Recallers 4.0, a module to work on recall. Much as I would love to enroll, my bank account isn't ready!

Here's what we've accomplished over the week:

Targeting: At Home from Pauline Gaerlan on Vimeo.

We would have covered more rooms, but for some reason, Odie was afraid to go to the shower area of the bathrooms. I'm going to work on reacquainting him with those rooms so we could do the exercises there in the future. But maybe nine locations is enough for now.

It was a riot to get him away from the beds in the bedrooms. My family will kill me if they see the raw videos! I did all that I could to get the fur away from my parents' and my brother's beds. When they got home and started sneezing, I quickly ran to my room.

Targeting - Outdoors from Pauline Gaerlan on Vimeo.

Sadly, we weren't able to go to the mall or any other outside location this weekend, save for the training venue which is just in the next village. What I did was shoot in two places by the training venue, and the eight other videos around our village. Because I had to do it, I walked around the village with Odie, the tripod, and his treat container. I actually bought a tumbler holder as a makeshift treat container like May did with Boo and Bon, and we got a utility belt from the Doggy Day Camp loot bag, but having a treat dispenser seems like I'm looking for trouble. Odie always goes for his teacher's treat container ever since he discovered that that's where the treats come from. When I tried to attach treat bags to my waist, he did the same thing. What I get for having a smart puppy.

Yesterday at training, I had zero sleep from the night before (something happened involving a work deadline and an article that I passionately wrote about and magically disappeared) so before going to school, I had no choice but to be powered by coffee. 

WRONG MOVE.

I was fine during the first exercises. However, when teacher told us to play tug, that's when I knew I can no longer fake being hyper, and Odie threw me under a bus by being so bored whenever I invited him to play tug! It was so weird! His tug toy is his favorite toy at home (which explains how dirty it is). When we got home that day, I tried pulling out the tug toy to invite him to play, and he was so excited about it! Also at school, when teacher was the one playing tug with Odie, he seemed really happy, even doing play growls and all. Let's face it - even if she claims to have no magical powers, seeing Doc Marose playing with the dogs makes me not believe that.

I stayed home instead of joining the family for lunch so I could get some sleep and maybe do some of Odie's homework. I set my alarm for late afternoon so we could at least take a walk and review the things we learned. It was one of the most relaxing, most peaceful walks we've ever done! See, we learned "heel" yesterday so that's what I made sure to work on during our walk. I was so happy with the result that I found it hard to go home because apart from keeping a loose leash, Odie was proving to be a good walking companion! I could get used to that. It's only been the first session of Basic Obedience-Intermediate, but it made such a big difference. I guess change really couldn't happen overnight, because it happens during the day, and in a matter of just a few hours!

Back to School!

We had our orientation on Saturday for Odie's next class at Pet Centrics, Basic Obedience - Intermediate. Basic Obedience graduates usually continue formal training through private lessons. This time around, however, Doc Marose asked us if we wanted to continue as a group so we could all still train together, which of course, I couldn't say no to. Like I mentioned in a previous entry, part of the reason I look forward to going to class is the chance for Odie to have real play time with other puppies (and dog, in Bernard's case), off leash, in a big space, and with supervision. It's the perfect set up for a paranoid human!

Over the break, Doc gave us a list of things to work on, and told us to take videos so she can more or less track our progress. As a human who loves rewards as much as the next dog, I made a video to show off how Odie has NOT mastered the sit-down-sit-stand-down-stand sequence, to get a discount on the class rate, and most of all, for some treats. Treats for Odie is always a welcome thing.

Here's what we got, and I know, we still need lots of work!

Food! Glorious Food!

I've gotten the hang of cooking food for Odie. It's quite a pity that I hardly cook for myself and for my family, actually. Odie has forced me to go to the supermarket, get in the kitchen, and basically prevent him from uprooting (!!!) the plants in our front yard by luring his nose towards what I have on hand.

Of course, that doesn't mean I stopped buying dog food from groceries, pet supplies stores, and hardware stores. I still keep my eye out for things he might like. A few weeks ago, National Geographic Philippines announced that they will be distributing loot bags to those who weren't able to claim theirs during the Doggy Day Camp event. I went to their office at the Active Fun building at BGC to claim the loot bags for Odie and Theo, went to Hobbes and Landes to check out if they had the Lupines I wanted, and waited for the driver at Jamba Juice. I unpacked the loot bag upon getting home and was not disappointed with the contents.

The loot bag was a large drawstring bag (the one where all the goods are resting on). In it were two packs of Pedigree wet dog food, a feeding guide, a small spray bottle of Green Cross hand sanitizer, Piattos Multigrain Chips, and the most random one of all, Nissin Cup Noodles. It also came with a utility bag (upper right) which looks suitable for training. However, Doc Marose is emphasizing that we should be fading lures and rewards by now. Maybe I'll use it when we're in a high distraction environment. Again, thank you to Natgeo Philippines, and of course to Pedigree! Pedigree Philippines is giving away Dentastix sample packs via their Facebook page! I just filled out this little form and a representative already contacted me to ask for directions. Hope it arrives soon!

I haven't been too keen on getting lots of commercial treats lately. It's cool though how I found a fruit-flavored treat the other day, thanks to JerHigh.

JerHigh Fruity Snack, banana flavor
(P135, True Value)

I was choosing to buy just one pack of treats because Odie still has a lot of Tiny T-Bonz filet mignon treats. I give them sparingly because there are a bunch of ingredients I don't understand. It's interesting to come across a pack of banana-flavored treats with real chicken meat. Moreover, I know that Odie only eats bananas when they're frozen (maybe he finds the warm ones too mushy?) so I wanted to know if he'll take this one quite well.

Let's just say that I can cradle him again these days using these banana treats so I guess that's a good sign! When I cradle him with a treat in my hand, he sometimes just lays still like a stuffed animal! I hope he does the same if Doc Marose makes us do a cradle this Saturday. Gotta redeem ourselves after being crazy when we sat in at Puppy Class. I would love to see more puppies this Saturday! It's not too late to enroll!!!

We have an orientation for Basic Obedience - Intermediate Class on Saturday after the puppies have their fun, so I went to Shopwise last night in hopes of buying chicken liver for the liver bits that I usually make. Doc Marose shared the recipe with us and honestly, it's the only recipe I've come to know by heart because it's so easy to make! Sadly, the store ran out of liver and I didn't want to look anywhere else, so I bought chicken breast fillet instead.

I wanted a no-frills training treat that Odie would appreciate so I decided to just cut them up to bite-sized pieces and boiled them til they were thoroughly cooked. I also kept the chicken broth (the water I used to boil the chicken) to mix with his kibble for a tasty meal. I know dogs like to eat raw chicken but I'm really afraid of salmonella so I've yet to overcome that paranoia. I gave Odie a little piece of cooked chicken just before dinner. He kept sniffing it and got very excited, and started crying when I left to finish cooking. I'm so glad Odie loves almost everything that I feed him (except warm bananas). Some of his classmates are quite picky with food, and I can only imagine the frustration when dogs won't take the treats their humans bought and/or prepared.

I've also been called out for cooking for Odie. Friends tell me he's so spoiled to be getting home-cooked food instead of just commercial treats. Honestly, I think it's wiser to just cook dog treats instead of relying on store-bought ones. Really, there's nothing so "spoiled/sosyal" about it because I end up spending less. Odie is allowed 1/4kg of chicken liver in a week, so that's around a kilo a month, which is Php 120. A kilo would need two packs of graham crackers which would be around Php 60, there's parsley being sold for less than Php 5, and 3/4 cup of honey is around 30 bucks. That's around Php 200 for a month's worth of liver bits, as opposed to packed treats being sold for Php 150 which would last us less than a week. Moreover, there's a sense of comfort in knowing that I know what Odie is eating. The commercial treats I buy are dried, which means they have preservatives and other ingredients I can't pronounce. On top of it all, the expression on Odie's face when I give him freshly-cooked treats is priceless, which makes me very happy. I mean, I can't cook to save my life, but Odie seems to love it. That will do for now :)

Not-so-Essential Essentials

Another supplies post, but with newer things that I've acquired since the time we went on vacation.

When we were in Hong Kong, I wasn't able to come across a pet supplies store. I looked all over for a place where I could buy something for Odie. I originally wanted to get a bowl from Disneyland, but it was made of plastic, and I swore to only let Odie use stainless steel or ceramic bowls for his food and water. I settled to just get him treats that I couldn't find here in Manila.

Schmackos Strapz (23 HKD, Taste) are beef-flavored straps that do tear like real beef. Like the other strap treats, I cut these up to little pieces to use for training.  

 Purina Tiny TBonz (30 HKD, Taste) (seriously, what's with the Z's in the end?) are little steak-shaped treats that claim to be filet mignon flavored. I mean, I wouldn't want to see for myself if it's true. However, Odie drops absolutely EVERYTHING when he sees this treat! I guess it tastes good. I wonder why I haven't seen it here though.

Here are the things I got for Odie over the past week: 

 Rope tug toy (125 PHP, Dogs and the City). This is what we use to play fetch! Oh, and it doesn't look as clean as this anymore. It's Odie's current favorite toy, perhaps because we use it to play fetch and he gets treats when we play fetch.

Jerhigh Hotdog Bar, chicken flavor (100 PHP, Dogs and the City). I usually get chicken with jasmine rice, but I went for just chicken for a change. Odie LOVES these hotdog bars! For training, I cut them up to little pieces and it lasts me up to a week. Remember to freeze/refrigerate when storing though. 

Crazy Dog Train-Me!, beef flavor (200 PHP, Dogs and the City). Remind me to not buy this particular treat from Dogs and the City because it's cheaper in Pet Express. I really like this treat because it's already cut up. I usually cut it in half though because a whole piece is too big for Odie.

 Pedigree Home Style chicken chunks in sauce (40 PHP, Dogs and the City). I don't know how Odie enjoys eating kibble every single day, and I don't want him to eat just one kind of food, so I get him some wet dog food sometimes. I think wet dog food is his version of Epic Meal Time. 

Water bottle (150 PHP, Ace Hardware). I was just going around SM in Pasig while waiting for my renewed driver's license. I saw this and thought of replacing Odie's water bottle because that water bottle still required bringing a separate dish. With this drinker, I could save space in my bag because I can just bring the portable bowl for his food. 

BowJerky spinach and mint treats (180 PHP, Hobbes and Landes). We haven't tried this out yet, but it's essentially chicken jerky with spinach and mint flavors. I hope Odie likes it as much as he likes all the other treats. I got this from Hobbes and Landes in Bonifacio High Street because I wanted to find out how much the Lupine leads and collars are. In fairness, they're cheaper than I thought, but they don't have the print that I want in the size that I want. I guess that means I'm buying from the US, although Hobbes and Landes should honor the lifetime guarantee here in Manila.

And yes, my shopping trips almost always revolve around Odie. Is this parenthood?

Back in Business

So our family got back to Manila on Tuesday at the stroke of midnight, and finally home on Wednesday morning at 2AM. Just seeing Odie breathing gave me a huge sigh of relief. When the gate was opened, he got restless in his crate and cried loudly when I chose to put my things down first. After getting settled, I let him out of the crate and was given the BEST welcome home gift ever!

I received a huge pounce, a few humps, and a bazillion hugs and kisses. As I mentioned in the previous entry, it's the longest time I've ever been away from Odie. The days that led up to our departure were filled with a panicking me and the horror stories I suddenly recalled. A friend's dog passed away when he went on vacation (I don't know how it happened exactly though). My uncle's dog looked stick thin and was very depressed when they took a two-week vacation, in spite of entrusting the dog to a friend (according to the one who cared for her, Windy refused all her meals and just kept moping around). So even if I was away, I kept Odie in my thoughts the entire time. I really don't know what to do without him, and he's the reason I looked forward to going home.

Day after my return, Odie and I went to Pet Centrics to catch up on the class that he missed last Saturday. I'm panicking internally because of ALL the things he has to learn, and all the videos we have to shoot. It was our first ever makeup class so I was pretty excited to go in spite of having only two hours of sleep and a slight hangover. It was just me, Odie, and Doc Marose using quite a big venue. Odie hasn't had such a big space all to himself ever! We booked a 10AM class which lasted for only an hour, but we learned quite a lot.

Doc Marose mentioned that Odie has grown (he really has, and I still can't deal with it), and asked about the present state of his allergies before proceeding with the lesson proper. Odie may have been excited to be with teacher and aimed straight for her treat container, shoving his face in it even if it was empty. We did well when we reviewed the things from last session. I also admitted to having a bit of difficulty doing impulse control on the floor and blamed it on my reflexes. Odie has stolen treats from the floor more times that I've been able to cover the treat with my hand. Doc Marose tried it out for herself a couple of times before admitting defeat. Odie is officially faster than human reflexes. Frustrating! She thought of a way to modify the exercise to suit human limitations, so now, Odie's floor impulse control (the one that lasts more than 2 seconds) is done with a treat on the floor, and another treat on my hand. I make him look at the treat on the floor without removing my hand entirely, just enough for him to take a peek. Then I deliver the other treat straight to him using my other hand. Well, that's gonna be hard to get on video.

We also reviewed transitions. Odie literally springs up when we do down-sit, which Doc Marose found quite amusing, she had to pause for a bit so she could laugh it all out. I guess Odie really is a bouncy puppy! Check out our Transitions video to know what it's all about.

While doing durations, Odie stopped for a while, tilted his head from side to side, and was looking at the gate with his tail straight up, looking very alert. A garbage truck was collecting... well... garbage. The truck had a pretty loud engine, and an equally loud horn. Worst part was the way it was there for what seemed like five entire minutes! Of course, being a beagle, the truck upstaged both humans in the court and kept looking at the truck until it left.

I'm very happy that we're doing quite well with durations in spite of Odie's breed being susceptible to distractions. We still haven't done 10-second durations successfully, but I'm confident that we'll get there. Before calling it a day, we let Odie run around freely in the court. He enjoyed it so much except he would come back to either teacher or me, perhaps wanting to get some treats. When he was off leash, teacher taught me how to be all excited so that Odie would run back to me on command. I really get to learn a lot from Doc Marose just from observing how she interacts with Odie. They seem to be very sweet to each other and I do admit to getting jealous sometimes, but I keep looking at it as an opportunity to learn how to just happily be with my puppy. I also like observing how people respond to Odie's presence - when I see him interact with people, I really see how their stress goes away through the changes in their faces. Seeing Odie making people happy is also my source of happiness.

Today, we're enjoying the day just reviewing the things from yesterday, because we have regular class again tomorrow! I'll make sure to get LOTS of homework done by tomorrow afternoon. CRUNCH TIME!

Video Megapost!

Spent the past weeks training and taking videos, and the past two nights staying up until the wee hours of the morning to edit. Well, editing has become pretty simple for me (thank you, iMovie!), but waiting for it to render is crappily long, I feel like I'm wasting time waiting when I could very well move on to the next one!

I will be going on a little vacation from Saturday til Tuesday. It's gonna take a plane ride so sadly, I won't make it to Odie's training session on Saturday. I will, however, go for a makeup class on Thursday next week! It will be our first legit makeup class (suddenly reminded that I should write about our review session) and I can't wait!

It's going to be my first time to be away from Odie for four entire days, the longest I'll ever be away from him. I trust that April will take care of my little boy though. I'm already drafting instructions for her because Odie's Heartgard should be given on Saturday, he still has his daily doses of Megaderm to treat his skin, and he also needs his Canisep applications. Gosh, I take better care of Odie's skin than I do my own!

Anyway, here's a couple of homework videos!

Impulse Control - Living Room from Pauline Gaerlan on Vimeo.

Watch out for take 3 on the first half of the dining room video! His response was so funny, I keep going back to it!

Impulse Control - Dining Room from Pauline Gaerlan on Vimeo.

Impulse Control - Patio from Pauline Gaerlan on Vimeo.

I also particularly like this video. Odie is BEST IN KUNOT-NOO (furrowed brows), especially when the treats were on the floor!

Impulse Control - Bedroom 1 from Pauline Gaerlan on Vimeo.

Here's our first set of videos for session 2 homework. I combined Sit, Down, Stand because it makes sense, and so that I won't have to keep thinking of transitions and title cards. And really, it's better to see it in one long video than three short separate videos.

Sit, Down, Stand - Front Yard from Pauline Gaerlan on Vimeo.

I'm sorry if there are times I don't get to include Odie's face in the videos HAHA! It's really hard to shoot and train all by myself, okay? Darn it, I hope he behaves when we shoot in my room!

Transitions - Front Yard from Pauline Gaerlan on Vimeo.

I'd most likely be editing tonight as well, because I'm shooting this afternoon and we still have a long way to go. Happy to have started on sessions 2 homework though. I hope that it would be easier to shoot as we train more and cover more locations!

-EDIT- I took out "sit with impulse control" upon consultation with Doc Marose. What we did was actually "sit with 3-second duration," which will be tackled in a forthcoming session. Still looking if I can revise just the title card so I could use that video for a future submission. That said, we will be busy tomorrow as soon as I wake up!

Thank You, Pendragon!

Pendragon Veterinary Clinic was recommended to me by my sister, Bea. That's where she takes Moxie and Theo for their regular check-ups, and like I mentioned in one of my comments, it's a legit animal hospital that offers laboratory work, confinement, surgeries, among other things. The vets there are very nice, and the place, although on the second floor, is very well kept. They have lots of promos on their Facebook page, too! This is my latest loot from them:

BAM! Treats!

I got three sets of Sleeky treats in different flavors, for a total of only P301. That's a pretty good deal as they sell one pack for P65, so this would normally cost P390 in their clinic, and close to P80/pack in malls. This would be a great addition to the homemade liver treats I usually make, and the Jerhigh Hotdog Bar that Odie loves. Well, he seems to love anything and everything, from treats to Christmas bulbs to tissue paper, but I always hope that he prioritizes food.

Breaking news, I also won a large pet tag! I already have one from them when I got Odie microchipped at Doggy Day Camp, but it's a small, ready-made tag that only contained the microchip number and the contact number of VetAID, the maker of the microchip. This time, I get to choose a shape, color, and the information I'm going to put, all for only P205 instead of P550!

It's really a big help that I'm finding so many essentials at bargain prices, just so I could stretch my paychecks and provide as much as I can for Odie, and maybe a little for myself as well. Hopefully, in a month or two, we could get our hands on our very own Lupine lead and collar!