To Snip or not to snip

To Snip or not to snip....

Well it is almost that time, we are considering having Denali neutered, or not. I never dreamed that this would be such a difficult decision to make. My previous dog was no problem, just a simple decision - snip - that was the only choice (mind you I was a young teenager when it came around to having this done, and my parents probably made the choice ultimately).

I guess the question that I like to ask is rather, is the procedure required? Do the pro's out weight the cons? For my wife and I we used to enjoy taking Denali to the off leash dog park, which has a mandatory neuter law in place. Unfortunately we have not been able to attend this park for months now. There are still plenty of other parks in the city which we frequent though. On the other hand Denali's training has come along very well and he does not have any problem with "humping" around the house or other dogs. Is it necessary to cause him unneeded harm?

Another factor that plays into effect is the age of the dog. From my research most breeds of dogs can be neutered around the age of 6 months when doggy puberty hits. Some vets may suggest to have it done before this age. However when consulting our vet, it was suggested that we wait till he is well past 1 year to fully ensure his proper development as is typical in larger breeds.

The other issue which we hear most about is aggression. This would be enough to sway my vote for the decision if he had any type of aggression towards humans or other dogs. Fortunately he doesn't, which makes the decision that much more difficult. However with some more research with the ridgeback breed I found several cases in which the dogs became MORE aggressive after the procedure! That is a scary thought, I can't imagine what I would do if we had a 90lbs aggressive dominant dog around the house.

With all these things to consider, we are at a bit of cross roads and still have not made the decision. I will keep posted how we work this out.

Cheers.

-Aaron

Port Burwell Park Beach.

Port Burwell has a great beach, also located on Lake Erie. There is a special section just for dogs and dog owners, which is very nice to see (although not leash free). It is a provincial park complete with camping and day use. One down side is you will have to pay the $14 park entrance fee to spend the day and access the dog beach.

(Denali demostrating the beach dead-man anchor).

For more info check it out here: http://www.ontarioparks.com/english/portb.html

At Lake Erie Again.

The lovely Patty with Denali at the beach once again.

At the Farm II

More action from the farm.

Visiting the farm.

Hershey and Denali after a swim at the farm.

It is great to have access to nice open areas to let dogs be dogs. The dogs had a blast together. Hershey gave Denali a clinic on swimming though, it was very interesting to watch how natural of a swimmer a Lab is compared to a Ridgeback.

Anyway more pics to come...

Denali in The Surf Again.

He is still working on his swimming skills and is a bit afraid of the waves.

Playing in the surf at Lake Erie

Denali visits the beach again, this time Lake Erie, where he has equal ammount of fun. This time he was free to run up and down the beach and play in the surf.

Bruce Trail Hiking

One of our favorite trails to hike in Ontario is the Bruce trail system. This trail stretches all the way across the Niagara escarpment. It includes stunning view, excellent rock climbing opportunities, hundreds of waterfalls and chance to see ancient trees growing from the side of the cliff face. Patty and I enjoy spending our weekends with Denali on various legs of this trail.

Last week we visited the Dundas section for some more than spectacular views of waterfalls and vistas!. Denali as usual had a blast and was pooped by the end of this trip.

Have a look for your self!

Anchors away at the beach!

A few weeks ago we thought we would get out and enjoy the amazing weather we were having, so we took Denali out to Ipperwash Beach for the day and met up with some old friends of ours.

The water was beautiful (until you got off the sandbar, then it was freezing), and Denali had a blast. Although still not too graceful on his feet.

One of the problems being at the beach on a busy weekend with a 90lbs muscle head ridgeback, is that if he decides to check out another dog, or go steal a Frisbee while we are taking a nap enjoying the sun, he is going to find away to do it! Sure there are products you could purchase from the pet store, but lets face it, most of these are weak and would probably pull out if he gave it a good run.

Here is my solution: Build a Deadman Anchor!

I took this technique from both my work as an engineer and my rock climbing experience. It is fast, easy to make (especially on the beach) and is no cost at all.

Total build time = 5 mins.

Step 1) Find a solid piece of drift wood on beach, approximately 2 - 4 feet long and 3" in diameter.

Step 2) Using the drift wood dig a trench slightly larger than the driftwood - long and narrow to follow the shape, approximately 1 - 2 ft into the ground (depending on the type of sand/ soil you are using you may need to go lower).

Step 3). Next decide the mostly likely direction of pull. In our case we were situated towards the back of the beach which meant that the must likely direction he would run would be towards the water. Make a second trench to the same depth, perpendicular to the previous on in Step 3. You want to try to centre this,

Step 4) Place the leashes hand loop around the piece of driftwood you have used as your shovel and centre it. Then place it in the bottom of the trench with the leash running through the perpendicular trench.

Step 5) Using the sand you have just removed, fill in your trench and step on it (maybe even jump) to back fill it. Ensure that the ground is stable.

Essentially, the large drift wood gives the leash more surface area and holding power while compacted by the sand. When Denali pulls on it, he is really pulling on all the weight of the soil on the deadman, good luck moving that! (Note that this technique could be used in the snow as well)

Till next time!