October 15, 2019 • 37 mins
Cathy Reisfeld joins Kim and Michelle to discuss how to plan a safe holiday season with your kids and dog. She discusses safety plans and dog management during Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, Hanukkah, and New Year's. Get great tips and tricks for how to manage your pups during the holiday season.
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Announcer (00:00):
Welcome to good dog nation, the weekly video podcast
that's all about having a gooddog hosted by Michelle McCarthy,
CDBC CTAC, leading therapy, dogauthority and owner of canine
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(00:22):
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(00:44):
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Now let's join good dog nation.
Kim (01:01):
Hi everyone and welcome to good dog nation.
I am Kim co, founder of good dogand a box and good Doug pro and
I'm here with my cohost MichelleMcCarthy of canine
homeschooling.com helloMichelle.
Hi and our very special guesttoday for holiday safety with
kids and dogs.
I have extremely important topicwith Halloween and Thanksgiving
(01:25):
and Christmas and Hanukkah andnew year's all coming up is
Kathy rice.
Riceville and Kathy has 30 plusyears of clinical experience, 18
years of service dog trainingexperience.
And she is the owner ofdependable dogs, a reward based
dog training in Ann Arbor,Michigan.
And Cathy is a long time friendand supporter of good dog and a
(01:48):
box.
And we have had her on severalother webinars and she's a
fabulous resource or informationwhen it comes to dog safety
where kids are concerned.
And that's really a lot of thefocus of what we're going to
talk about today becauseunfortunately, as Kathy's going
to tell us, a lot of dog biteshappen during the holidays.
Cathy (02:08):
So Cathy, you know, why, why are the holidays so
stressful for our family dog?
Well, the, well, it's one reasonthere's things change and
starting with Halloween, um, Iwas actually walking through
target the other day, justlooking at the sheer number of
(02:29):
decorations there and thingsthat wiggle and make noise and
light up.
Um, and I know actually a lot ofvery large children, um, older
adults who love Halloween.
I mean it just dressing up.
Um, we were talking aboutactually a neighborhood we lived
in in Colorado years ago where I, I the de Corps was just drawn
(02:52):
jaw-dropping, but you'd walkinto their central foyer and the
Dale dad of the house would opena coffin, a real coffin, none of
this big and deliver treats fromthere.
Which scent was scary aboutnumber as small children
screaming, you know, from thefront door.
(03:12):
Um, but you know, then peopleare out with or without dogs,
dogs are in home where, youknow, imagine having a door
reactive dog and living in aneighborhood where there are
lots and lots of kids onHalloween.
And so if their doorbell bill isringing constantly, there's just
(03:33):
all of this excitement andactivity around the front door,
which is way beyond, um, youknow, what normal guests coming
and going, um, involve and thenholiday to get togethers.
Um, I know that we tend to havebig Thanksgivings, but we've had
(03:54):
to think through how we handleour own dogs with those, with
guests arriving who may not becomfortable with dogs or have
very different ideas about howdogs should be managed.
Um, you know, and living with adog who is a totally unrepentant
counter surfer, um, in Michellehas met Keats and I'm a trainer,
(04:16):
so it's clearly a failure on mypart, but so we have strong
management in place, but there'sa lot to think about.
Um, and as I had mentionedbefore, we started here last
December, I was going to take alot of time off in between
Thanksgiving and the super bowl.
Michelle (04:34):
I had a few dozen family cases where there had
been a bite or a lunge snarlsnap at a grandchild visiting
child.
Um, so it just reinforced for mewhy I keep talking to my clients
about being proactive, talkingabout management strategies and
(04:57):
then also talking about firmingup training if they're able to
do that.
Long answer, short question.
So maybe, so let's talk abouteach of the different holidays
and what some of the challengeswith those may be.
So, well, Halloween, let's startwith Halloween first.
Um, do we go trick or treatingwith our dog or do we leave the
(05:18):
dog at home?
I'm a big fan of leaving the dogat home.
I've met very few dogs who canhandle being out in a busy
neighborhood in the dark.
I mean, here in Michigan, it'sstarts to get dark right now
around seven by the time howWayne arrives end of October, it
(05:41):
feels like it's dark at fouro'clock.
Cathy (05:43):
Yeah.
So it's very dark.
I live in a neighborhood that isnot well lit and there are dogs
in my current neighborhood whoare a little and reactive to
other dogs and kids on theirbest, normal middle of the day
(06:05):
scenarios.
So now at costumes and a lot ofkids consuming a fair amount of
sugar.
Um, and then all of the floatythings that had come with a lot
of costumes and I think itreally adds a lot of stress for
dogs.
Um, and what, what is, um, Iknow part of, part of the fun
(06:27):
for trick or treating for somefamilies is dressing up the dog.
Yes.
So what are both of you areprofessional dog trainers?
What are your boat, both of youropinions on dressing up your dog
for Halloween?
I'll let you go first, Michelle,because wow.
You know, I'm personally, whenmy, when my kids were younger,
(06:51):
you know, they thought it wasfun to do something and I'd
always say you can do somethingvery simple, but you obviously
cannot cover their face.
You cannot put it on their head.
You can't make it so restrictivethat they feel uncomfortable or
worried.
So they would do things likethey had a costume, it was a
Jersey and it said golden re oruh, I don't know, something re
(07:12):
retriever, um, instead ofreceiver.
And so, you know, we would dosome silly basic, I think the
funniest costume they ever hadwas they put their dad's boxer
shorts on the dog and put themout on the front lawn.
I mean, that, you know.
Okay.
That was kind of funny.
Um, but I'm just not personallya big fan of dressing my dogs up
(07:33):
in costumes because if I putsomething on them and I really
truly watch my dog, they're notreally that comfortable.
Sometimes it's sort of thefreeze and stand there.
Like, what is this?
Why am I, why is this on me?
Or they're just reallyinsistently trying to get it
off.
Um, I've had of course over theyears, the very easygoing
(07:56):
Labrador who a, I didn't reallycare and they'd walk around with
something on the, but truthfullythat's not the norm.
And so I personally just, Ihaven't done it because I
haven't met many dogs whoreally, truly love it as much as
their human loves seeing it onthem.
That's just my own opinion.
(08:17):
And I would share that.
Um, I've had dogs that I workedwith, personal dogs in therapy
work who have after a long timewith desensitization and
training to wear a cute littlecollar or a hat or a bow tie or
a big shirt.
But they very clear that not alldogs like or tolerate wearing
(08:42):
this gear.
And I think what happens with alot of, um, family dog owners,
pet owners is they don't reallythink about it until Halloween.
And they pull out the costume,slap it on the dog, and the dog
has no idea why they're suddenlywearing all of these bodysuits
(09:03):
got body suit and a hat andthings that may make noise or
ring.
Um, and, and so much of it'sdone for the photo opportunity.
Um, and, and if you look veryclosely at the dog, the dogs
just not having a very goodtime.
Um, and then if we're takingthat dog who was uncomfortable
(09:24):
in costume out into theneighborhood, right?
You just compound the stress.
Right.
Um, you know, that said thereare, again, I spent way too much
time in target the other day,these adorable little costumes
and, and I will see clients whosaid, I just bought this, is
that, you know, it's a banana,it's a hot dog.
(09:44):
It's whatever.
And we talk about justintroducing it to the dog to
see, you know, we have a month.
Maybe they like it, maybe likeparts of it, maybe they don't.
But I think we need to listen tothe dog and look at their
comfort level before we force acostume on them.
(10:05):
And a lot of the main reasonbeing, because we don't want the
dog to bite somebody.
One of the kids have a negativeexperience during the course of
them being dressed up.
Right.
That and also, um, even if thedog isn't dressed up, um, long
(10:25):
conversation with a fairly wellknown trainers several years ago
whose children had acquired thispretty fantastic werewolf mask.
And so everyone in the familytook turns wearing the mask and
growling and snarling at the dogwho was terrified.
And this went on for a few hoursuntil it finally dawned on the
(10:48):
trainer, who shall remainnameless?
What am I doing?
Why?
Because w, you know, there'sthis video phenomena in the
media that, that you get viewsby scaring animals for ratings
and YouTube views that it'sreally unfortunate.
(11:10):
Um, and if you then, as exactlyas as you said, um, pull out the
masks the next time and the dogdecides to take their own
proactive position to bite youbefore you terrify them again.
Right?
You've actually created this,right?
Right.
So, so how about we, we weretalking about the trick or
(11:32):
treating and kids going to theneighbor's house and you know,
all this craziness going oninside to get their candy.
How do we manage our dogs withthe doorbell ringing nonstop?
Someone, and I'm trying toremember who came up with the
phrase said no trick or treatergreeters.
Um, so that if you're answeringthe, your dog should probably be
(11:55):
somewhere else just because youdon't know if your dog may be
frightened by whoever is comingto the door.
And even if they're lovelychildren from next door that
your dog sees all the time, theylook different when they're in
costume and there's often alevel of excitement and the
(12:17):
pitch of the kids' voices is upon dark FUM dogs.
Take it as an opportunity tograb what is ever in your hand
to steal.
And if you're handing outchocolate, you've got a problem
with your dog, possiblyingesting candy.
Um, but also if your dog isfrightened and decides to bolt,
(12:37):
you don't want a loose and lostdog on Halloween.
So I'm a big favor fan of ourdogs pretty much if it's just
during the day.
FedEx, ups, um, the doorbellrings and they come to us or
they go to their crate.
But with Halloween night wherethe doorbell may ring 20 plus
(13:01):
times, that's too much.
So my personal dogs are in acrate or behind a gate or in
another room at the other end ofthe house with music playing
with the Kong, um, which we'veworked, that they're comfortable
being there, that I only havethe door to manage and not two
(13:23):
to three large dogs at the doorat the same time.
Well, and I as a suggestion, uh,when my children were little and
we did this not so much for ourdog, we had a Newfoundland when
the kids were growing up who wasnot luckily, thank goodness at
her size.
She was not bothered by thedoorbell bringing, but our house
was, you had to go up about 10,probably about 10 steps from the
(13:47):
sidewalk to get to our frontdoor.
So we would always, uh, be onthe porch or actually down on
the sidewalk because of all thesteps to greet everybody in to
hand out the candy.
So the doorbell was never rung.
So that may be an option forfamilies as well, that you can
actually stand outside and greetthe trick or treaters and get
out candy so that they neverhave to ring your doorbell,
(14:09):
thereby not causing a lot ofthat doorbell problem for
reactive docks.
And I had shared with you, I canhold this up because I'm, I
don't even remember where I'dfound this, but I share this
with some, um, no trick ortreaters.
It says the dog is a Halloweennightmare every time the door
bell rings.
(14:30):
Whoop.
There you go.
Yup.
There we go.
And with clients that we knowhave very doorbell reactive
dogs, we sometimes will laminatethis hanging up over the
doorbell, and then someone iseither sitting just inside the
door or they're on the porch, orconversely, the BA, the bowl of
(14:53):
candy is just outside of theboard porch.
And the human interaction isjust skipped.
But if you have a trickyentrance, I mean, I'm just
thinking small stoop, multiplesteps down to the street or
sidewalk.
We also don't need anyonetumbling down those steps.
Right.
It just, it eliminated a wholelot of grief for everybody to
(15:16):
just have all of the, thegreeting and the candy giving
away at the, at the sidewalk asa PA.
and then nobody, nobody was onour steps.
Our porch doorbell wasn't wrong.
That was just really easy.
Yes.
So, so Cathy, you know, Irecently had a client share with
me that this housing is going tobe just the best opportunity to
(15:39):
socialize their new puppy.
And I know I can, I can hear youcringing through my headphones.
Um, because can you see my face?
You know, fortunately, you know,I had a heads up with what they
were planning to do and I hadthe opportunity to explain to
them, you know, why that'sreally not a good idea.
(16:01):
Um, but why don't you elaborateon why that would be a very, um,
poor decision to make with, uh,with a young puppy of all the
ages of dogs, especially a youngpuppy.
I just had a conversation with anew client who has an eight week
old puppy about just this thismorning actually.
And it's the concept of justwhat are we gradually
(16:24):
introducing a young puppy tooover time, paying very careful
attention to how they respond toit, whether they approach it,
whether they're retreating,looking at the puppies body
language compared to justcompletely overwhelming the
puppy, frightening them.
And particularly if they'refrightened by young, excitable
(16:49):
children.
And if you have a puppy who is astrong one event learner, yeah.
Um, that there is a squealingfour or five, six year old
wearing a Cape or somethingaround their neck.
Um, what happens to the puppythen with approaching a child
(17:10):
who looks similarly to that oris moving quickly a radically
every other time?
Um, I think what happens iseverybody gets very excited.
There was a period of time threeyears ago where it seems that
everybody I knew had a goldenretriever puppy, so everyone was
going to dress the dog up asDoug from up.
(17:31):
And I'm talking about justtaking it slow and we're trying
to build the puppy's trust andcomfort level in the world that
this probably wouldn't becontributing to any of that.
Um, I tend to, I, I give myclients a lot of information,
(17:52):
handouts, checklists, booklet onhow to safely and appropriately
socialize.
But we talk about not floodingan overwhelming, because
sometimes these same puppyowners will have children that
find just the whole trick ortreating party phenomena too
(18:14):
much.
Yeah.
That 20 to 30 minutes into it,the child is overwhelmed, has
eaten too much candy and it'sjust too much day, too much
event, and they're ready to gohome.
Right.
And they have a broader fund ofknowledge set of experiences and
frame of reference than a youngpuppy does with all of this.
So we tend to do, we, you know,as the parents here, we tend to
(18:39):
get excited and they're so cuteand we want those photo
opportunities and we want all ofour friends and neighbors to see
this adorable puppy that wehave.
But you know, we have thiscritical window of time when
there were puppies to do a lotof wonderful socialization or to
do some significant damage thatsomething yes can be repaired.
(19:00):
Um, and so it is very important.
Yeah, it's, it's a big deal yetone of my golden puppies from a
few years ago, um, because theyreally, really wanted the puppy
to meet trick or treaters.
We identified which neighborchildren would take great
direction coming to the door.
They called and texted ahead oftime that they were coming up
(19:23):
the driveway into the door.
The puppy was held in arms, Oh,here, you know, costumes, masks,
et cetera.
Came off.
Puppy was given a co and it wasnot quite one and done, but just
like, Oh, here's an exposure toa nice, calm, safe interaction
with unknown child who, you know, wasn't jumping up and down on
(19:46):
the front porch and, and it, andI think the difficulty is often
working with parents who really,really want this.
They want the picture, you know,how do we handle that to make it
less stressful for the puppy andstill meet their needs too,
right?
Sometimes tricky.
Yeah.
Sometimes it's just a familyphoto, right?
(20:09):
A very calm family photo.
When I socialize my own puppies,I have a closet full of hats and
wigs and beards and all kinds ofgoofy stuff.
But those puppies are seeing mein it and they know me and it's
done very calmly as opposed torunning them out into the street
and having a meal to a strangerwho looks different.
(20:29):
So, yeah.
And I think it's being aware ofthat, that, you know, winter in
Michigan it gets very coldpretty quickly.
And then everybody comes outwith some parka thing with big
fur and puppies.
It's as if they're human hasbeen devoured.
Buy a fur lined parka.
Yeah.
And people call me often veryupset.
(20:52):
It's like what did they do?
It's like what?
You look very different.
Right.
Bigger and Hey, you're allcovered up.
Yeah.
How about Halloween decorations?
What do we need to keep in mindabout?
Cause I, I know and I'm a hugeoffender of this.
My house will look likeHalloween exploded inside,
outside, all around.
(21:12):
But what do people, what do ourfamilies with dogs really need
to keep in mind when they put upHalloween decorations?
Well, a lot of the decorativegourds, um, can be toxic.
They're adorable.
Um, I've been using the paintedfilm covered.
You can see the little purpleand in the back, but my dog
would chew this if he had accessto it because it looks like a
(21:36):
funny ball with a STEM.
Um, where are you puttingthings?
Are they down and accessible tothe dog?
I become a real fan of treatbuckets recently that I don't
have to put the bowl on a lowtable or on the floor for
Halloween with trick ortreaters.
I can hang it on a coat hooknear the door.
(21:57):
So that's out of the dog'sreach.
Um, a number of families withyoung children, when I was
growing up, you carve thepumpkin, you put the candle in
the middle of it, you set itout.
And after, um, particular welived in Colorado during a
drought when things were very,very dry, people having issues
with just fire if the pumpkinrolled off the front porch, um,
(22:20):
through these great little ledcandles reflectors we can take
some of the fire risks away ifwe're into just carving, um, the
pumpkin.
But what can your dog get to andif they end up picking it up and
walking away and ingesting it,is it safe?
(22:42):
Um, bits of costumes forchildren that are dangly that
every now and then I thinkparents can be surprised at just
how quickly those bits rip offand can be swallowed.
Exactly.
I just want to share a couple offacts that, that Kathy, you sent
us ahead of time, just kind ofcapping our discussion of
(23:04):
Halloween.
So half of all children bittenby dogs or under the age of 12
most dogs bite.
Most dog bites are by the familydog or a dog that is known to
the person.
Most dog bites are preventable.
And from the national canineresearch council, if we can see
(23:26):
ourselves from our dog'sperspective, we can prevent more
dog bites, which is all veryrelevant to the discussion about
Halloween.
So shall we move it to the nextholiday?
How about Thanksgiving?
What do we need to keep in mindwith our dogs and Thanksgiving
coming up?
Cause that's a different type ofholiday.
(23:47):
Well it, a couple of things isjust, I mean I personally love
Thanksgiving at a certain point,you know, it's just, it's just
food and dinner and, andgratitude.
No cards, no gifts, you know,just, but, and, and we um, get
very involved with dinnerpreparations and the whole food
items list with Thanksgiving,running through the December
(24:09):
holidays tend to be very rich.
They tend to be things that weoften don't eat.
And we are often putting outthis spread to reflect abundance
and forgetting what the dog canget into maybe what the dog
shouldn't be eating.
Um, there may be more alcoholinvolved that the dog could get
(24:32):
into or that our dinner guestsmay be ingesting that we don't,
that changes their behavior interms of how they're interacting
with our dogs.
Um, so I think it presents awhole set of challenges.
Um, you know, just people notthinking going well the dog
really likes Turkey skin says,Oh, what's one drumstick?
(24:55):
Uh, without thinking exactlywhat GI damage we could be doing
to our dogs, uh, people who wereinto baking.
There are a lot more yeastedbreads and pastries and just an
array of foods that aren'tcommonly in most of our homes.
Um, so when I'm thinking aboutThanksgiving, because often the
(25:18):
big get together is at my house.
I have to really think aboutwho's coming and whether they've
spent some time with my dogs,know them, also know what our
household routines and rulesare.
And if the dogs can be part ofthe group or if they have to be
crated in a back bedroom for,you know, significant portion of
(25:41):
the get together.
Um, and, and we've hadThanksgivings that have run both
ways and we've also had, um,guests who have come, who have
been friends of our adultchildren that I've had to ask
very directly.
Are you comfortable with dogs,you know, or how do you feel
(26:01):
about being, have you ever beenbitten by a dog?
Um, or if they say they're justfine.
Um, kind of explaining how ourhouse works and how we handle
our dogs.
Um, so that people are not doinginappropriate things with the
dog if they feel that the dog ismisbehaving.
(26:22):
Um, I don't need anybody jabbingmy dog in the neck or rolling
them or, you know, so that wecan be more consistent for them
so that the dogs are comfortableand safe, but also so that all
the guests are safe.
Um, do you suggest the dogparticipant, your family dog
participating in Thanksgivingand it being allowed to be out
(26:45):
in room around during dinnerwhen everybody's there or do you
suggest the dog has created, putin another room?
I'm going to give you the dogtrainers responds to that, which
is, it depends.
Um, it depends upon the dog.
Um, the dogs who share my homefull time right now, one of them
just find at large gatherings,the other removes the napkins
(27:08):
from every dinner.
Guests lap is just sort of Ninjathing.
And while it is crazy, um, it'sinappropriate and it's a pain
and so he is always crated.
Michelle (27:22):
Um, but there are dogs who, and I have a lot of
conversations with clients aboutthis, that if they're hosting
and people are then staying attheir home for a few days and
they kind of know in advancethat maybe their house guests
aren't the easiest house guestleaving the dog out of it.
(27:44):
Is there a friend that the dogcan go spend time at their house
because they're having a smallergathering?
Can the dog be boarded?
Is, you know, if the dog iscomfortable being created in a
way, in another room already,that's great, but you probably
shouldn't plunk them in thereThursday mornings, say, see
(28:06):
after dinner and just hope itworks out.
You know?
Um, there are dogs that I havehad and my clients have who make
really nice choices about, okay,this is enough for me.
I'm removing myself to anotherroom where I have a bed and a
space to be and know thateveryone will leave them alone.
Cathy (28:30):
Um, and there are other dogs who need more assistance to
be a part or just not be in thehome at all.
Um, not every family gettogether or set of guests.
It's always easy and often, um,people are, who were hosting an
event like Thanksgiving.
(28:50):
There could be a lot ofpressure, particularly if they
haven't done it before.
Um, and, and sometimes the dogis almost like this afterthought
of like, Oh, what are we goingto wait now?
What are we going to do withyou?
Right.
Um, right.
And the JD door's usually alittle too late to go looking
for boarding.
(29:11):
Right.
Right, right.
Yeah, that's it.
You know, the one thing over theyears that I had seen
consistently over the holidaysis if you have a dog who is a
resource garter, yeah.
Holidays can be one of the mostdangerous times in your home
because what is worse thanhaving all of these extremely
(29:32):
high value foods at yourdisposal and your guests may not
know your dog struggles with?
Well, if that drumstick falls onthe ground, you know Fido's
going to have a real problemgiven that up.
And so there's a, there's asignificant danger for dogs who
already struggle with guardingbehavior when you throw in all
(29:53):
of these high value foods,strangers who don't know your
dog, the stress of a party.
So you know, those are the kindsof things that unfortunately
people don't realize until theright in the middle of it.
Well, and particularly withyoung children though, your dog
may not necessarily resourceguard from adult humans.
(30:16):
When we have young children whoare already moving and your kid
has, your dog hasn't spent a lotof time with children who were
moving in erratic, quick,impulsive ways.
Who may be chasing a jog.
I mean I get a lot of holidaycalls where it's either been the
family has visited thegrandparents and the
(30:38):
grandparents dog has bittenlunch, snarled snapped, they've
taken their dog and it's justtoo much.
And often what's happened is thedog has attempted to get away,
gone under the dining roomtable, kitchen table, coffee
table, and there's um, kind of afull tilt toddler or preschooler
behind them.
Ducky, ducky, don't you don'teat okay and getting right up in
(31:02):
their face.
And that's when the bite occurs.
So it's a combination.
Sometimes it's the perfect stormof triggers that have stacked.
So I tend to ask retroactivelygoing, so tell me how many
people were at your house.
Was any one person I suggest infamily parties like this,
(31:23):
whether it is Halloween party,Thanksgiving, Christmas, super
bowl party, you're havingchildren come and dogs there.
There is one person assigned towatch each dog.
That's their only job for theday when the dog, if the dog is
away and comes out to be walkedthrough the event and out, that
(31:44):
person is responsible for thedog.
And how they interact witheveryone else, but also for
kids, that there is one personif possible, assigned to each
baby, toddler, preschooler,where are they?
What are they doing, what arethey into, what are they
climbing on, what are theypotentially eating?
Um, and then that those peopleare actually that excused from
(32:08):
prep and cleanup work, butthey're able to provide more
one-to-one monitoringsupervision.
And it sounds like it's agreater level of vigilance than
may be needed.
But what we all know is thatbites don't come out of the
blue.
(32:28):
There are things that happenedthat pre-seed different bites
and people just aren't seeing itbecause they're not knowing what
to look for.
And they're also distracted.
They're the game, they'regetting more pie.
They're, you know, they're busyarguing politics with whoever,
you know, it's there at thetable, which they shouldn't do,
(32:49):
but they kind of lose the dogsand the kids in the middle of
all this.
Michelle (32:54):
So is there anything different we wanna think about
with the Christmas Hanukkah, newyear's end of the year parties
over and about Thanksgiving.
I mean the food and the fan.
And the gatherings that allapplies, decorations like we put
out for Halloween would apply toChristmas.
But is there anything differentabout Christmas and Hanukkah
(33:15):
that, that we should keep inmind?
Christmas, Hanukkah, new year'sare inevitably involve more
candles.
I mean, so you're looking atwhat a dog or child can get to
and possibly knock over.
And then there is always thedilemma of the Christmas tree.
And we talked about a photo thatI had sent to each of you.
(33:36):
Um, we had a friend who used todecorate and host parties that
we used to jokingly suggest thatshe was hosting the Martha
Stewart invitational every year.
Um, and then she had childrenand then added a cat and then at
a dogs.
Cathy (33:52):
And this is the photo below what life looked like
because everybody was pullingthings off of the tree.
Um, you know, the Katz amemorable story, just watch
themselves from the, landingdown, a set of steps onto the
tree and knock the whole thingdown.
Um, that happens in everythingthat's generally on a tree like
(34:13):
this can really harm a pet or achild if they're ingesting.
And tinsel, uh, these beautifulold glass ornaments.
Um, it's just not safe and itmay not be the most attractive
thing in the world to put yourChristmas tree inside an X pen.
(34:35):
But I've done that more than oneyear.
Um, we've gated the dog out ofthe room that the tree is been
in because the prevailing, um,agenda is to keep everyone safe.
Um, so yeah, the, the wholedecor just presents a lot of
different challenges, uh, jogs.
Michelle (34:57):
But I think we have to factor cats into, there's just
more yes.
Stuff.
Yes.
So any final, uh, summary of topcouple of things that are dog
owners, families with dogs andkids want to keep in mind with
the holidays coming up?
I think that the biggest thing,um, I tell people is be
(35:20):
proactive.
Think about the dog who lives inyour house, um, and where you
think the holiday may presentsome challenges for them so that
you're not in the middle of itand going, Oh, you know, my joke
to parents is that we do a, weexpect we often get our, or the
number 47, so we need a coupleof plans of if the dog can't
(35:45):
tolerate being, say crated inthe back room, can they be gated
off where they can still seewhat's going on?
Be part of it, but not activelyengaged in the activity.
Cathy (35:58):
Um, but I think also knowing that a number of dog
owners struggle with these sameissues, what I hear a lot from
my parents is they feel likethey're the only one who has a
dog was a problem and pointingout where the resources are for
them in the form of trainers.
Um, I know you've got a lot ofgreat stuff available available
(36:21):
through good dog in a box dog.
Crazy has really nice checklistsand resources.
Um, family paws has different,um, blogs.
So there's information that'sreally good information out
there to help families getthrough this and that.
(36:42):
If you need to do somethingdifferent that wasn't quite in
your vision of how it wassupposed to be, the dog really
should maybe go bored for acouple of days where you need to
bring in someone else to helpjust with Rover for a day or
two.
It's okay.
I mean, it's better that thanhaving something else happen.
(37:05):
Right.
Exactly, and wonderful,wonderful advice.
Kathy, thank you so much forjoining us and thank you for
being on.
Thank you everybody forwatching.
We'll see you next week.
Bye bye.
I
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Now let's join good dog nation.
Kim (01:01):
Hi everyone and welcome to good dog nation.
I am Kim co, founder of good dogand a box and good Doug pro and
I'm here with my cohost MichelleMcCarthy of canine
homeschooling.com helloMichelle.
Hi and our very special guesttoday for holiday safety with
kids and dogs.
I have extremely important topicwith Halloween and Thanksgiving
(01:25):
and Christmas and Hanukkah andnew year's all coming up is
Kathy rice.
Riceville and Kathy has 30 plusyears of clinical experience, 18
years of service dog trainingexperience.
And she is the owner ofdependable dogs, a reward based
dog training in Ann Arbor,Michigan.
And Cathy is a long time friendand supporter of good dog and a
(01:48):
box.
And we have had her on severalother webinars and she's a
fabulous resource or informationwhen it comes to dog safety
where kids are concerned.
And that's really a lot of thefocus of what we're going to
talk about today becauseunfortunately, as Kathy's going
to tell us, a lot of dog biteshappen during the holidays.
Cathy (02:08):
So Cathy, you know, why, why are the holidays so
stressful for our family dog?
Well, the, well, it's one reasonthere's things change and
starting with Halloween, um, Iwas actually walking through
target the other day, justlooking at the sheer number of
(02:29):
decorations there and thingsthat wiggle and make noise and
light up.
Um, and I know actually a lot ofvery large children, um, older
adults who love Halloween.
I mean it just dressing up.
Um, we were talking aboutactually a neighborhood we lived
in in Colorado years ago where I, I the de Corps was just drawn
(02:52):
jaw-dropping, but you'd walkinto their central foyer and the
Dale dad of the house would opena coffin, a real coffin, none of
this big and deliver treats fromthere.
Which scent was scary aboutnumber as small children
screaming, you know, from thefront door.
(03:12):
Um, but you know, then peopleare out with or without dogs,
dogs are in home where, youknow, imagine having a door
reactive dog and living in aneighborhood where there are
lots and lots of kids onHalloween.
And so if their doorbell bill isringing constantly, there's just
(03:33):
all of this excitement andactivity around the front door,
which is way beyond, um, youknow, what normal guests coming
and going, um, involve and thenholiday to get togethers.
Um, I know that we tend to havebig Thanksgivings, but we've had
(03:54):
to think through how we handleour own dogs with those, with
guests arriving who may not becomfortable with dogs or have
very different ideas about howdogs should be managed.
Um, you know, and living with adog who is a totally unrepentant
counter surfer, um, in Michellehas met Keats and I'm a trainer,
(04:16):
so it's clearly a failure on mypart, but so we have strong
management in place, but there'sa lot to think about.
Um, and as I had mentionedbefore, we started here last
December, I was going to take alot of time off in between
Thanksgiving and the super bowl.
Michelle (04:34):
I had a few dozen family cases where there had
been a bite or a lunge snarlsnap at a grandchild visiting
child.
Um, so it just reinforced for mewhy I keep talking to my clients
about being proactive, talkingabout management strategies and
(04:57):
then also talking about firmingup training if they're able to
do that.
Long answer, short question.
So maybe, so let's talk abouteach of the different holidays
and what some of the challengeswith those may be.
So, well, Halloween, let's startwith Halloween first.
Um, do we go trick or treatingwith our dog or do we leave the
(05:18):
dog at home?
I'm a big fan of leaving the dogat home.
I've met very few dogs who canhandle being out in a busy
neighborhood in the dark.
I mean, here in Michigan, it'sstarts to get dark right now
around seven by the time howWayne arrives end of October, it
(05:41):
feels like it's dark at fouro'clock.
Cathy (05:43):
Yeah.
So it's very dark.
I live in a neighborhood that isnot well lit and there are dogs
in my current neighborhood whoare a little and reactive to
other dogs and kids on theirbest, normal middle of the day
(06:05):
scenarios.
So now at costumes and a lot ofkids consuming a fair amount of
sugar.
Um, and then all of the floatythings that had come with a lot
of costumes and I think itreally adds a lot of stress for
dogs.
Um, and what, what is, um, Iknow part of, part of the fun
(06:27):
for trick or treating for somefamilies is dressing up the dog.
Yes.
So what are both of you areprofessional dog trainers?
What are your boat, both of youropinions on dressing up your dog
for Halloween?
I'll let you go first, Michelle,because wow.
You know, I'm personally, whenmy, when my kids were younger,
(06:51):
you know, they thought it wasfun to do something and I'd
always say you can do somethingvery simple, but you obviously
cannot cover their face.
You cannot put it on their head.
You can't make it so restrictivethat they feel uncomfortable or
worried.
So they would do things likethey had a costume, it was a
Jersey and it said golden re oruh, I don't know, something re
(07:12):
retriever, um, instead ofreceiver.
And so, you know, we would dosome silly basic, I think the
funniest costume they ever hadwas they put their dad's boxer
shorts on the dog and put themout on the front lawn.
I mean, that, you know.
Okay.
That was kind of funny.
Um, but I'm just not personallya big fan of dressing my dogs up
(07:33):
in costumes because if I putsomething on them and I really
truly watch my dog, they're notreally that comfortable.
Sometimes it's sort of thefreeze and stand there.
Like, what is this?
Why am I, why is this on me?
Or they're just reallyinsistently trying to get it
off.
Um, I've had of course over theyears, the very easygoing
(07:56):
Labrador who a, I didn't reallycare and they'd walk around with
something on the, but truthfullythat's not the norm.
And so I personally just, Ihaven't done it because I
haven't met many dogs whoreally, truly love it as much as
their human loves seeing it onthem.
That's just my own opinion.
(08:17):
And I would share that.
Um, I've had dogs that I workedwith, personal dogs in therapy
work who have after a long timewith desensitization and
training to wear a cute littlecollar or a hat or a bow tie or
a big shirt.
But they very clear that not alldogs like or tolerate wearing
(08:42):
this gear.
And I think what happens with alot of, um, family dog owners,
pet owners is they don't reallythink about it until Halloween.
And they pull out the costume,slap it on the dog, and the dog
has no idea why they're suddenlywearing all of these bodysuits
(09:03):
got body suit and a hat andthings that may make noise or
ring.
Um, and, and so much of it'sdone for the photo opportunity.
Um, and, and if you look veryclosely at the dog, the dogs
just not having a very goodtime.
Um, and then if we're takingthat dog who was uncomfortable
(09:24):
in costume out into theneighborhood, right?
You just compound the stress.
Right.
Um, you know, that said thereare, again, I spent way too much
time in target the other day,these adorable little costumes
and, and I will see clients whosaid, I just bought this, is
that, you know, it's a banana,it's a hot dog.
(09:44):
It's whatever.
And we talk about justintroducing it to the dog to
see, you know, we have a month.
Maybe they like it, maybe likeparts of it, maybe they don't.
But I think we need to listen tothe dog and look at their
comfort level before we force acostume on them.
(10:05):
And a lot of the main reasonbeing, because we don't want the
dog to bite somebody.
One of the kids have a negativeexperience during the course of
them being dressed up.
Right.
That and also, um, even if thedog isn't dressed up, um, long
(10:25):
conversation with a fairly wellknown trainers several years ago
whose children had acquired thispretty fantastic werewolf mask.
And so everyone in the familytook turns wearing the mask and
growling and snarling at the dogwho was terrified.
And this went on for a few hoursuntil it finally dawned on the
(10:48):
trainer, who shall remainnameless?
What am I doing?
Why?
Because w, you know, there'sthis video phenomena in the
media that, that you get viewsby scaring animals for ratings
and YouTube views that it'sreally unfortunate.
(11:10):
Um, and if you then, as exactlyas as you said, um, pull out the
masks the next time and the dogdecides to take their own
proactive position to bite youbefore you terrify them again.
Right?
You've actually created this,right?
Right.
So, so how about we, we weretalking about the trick or
(11:32):
treating and kids going to theneighbor's house and you know,
all this craziness going oninside to get their candy.
How do we manage our dogs withthe doorbell ringing nonstop?
Someone, and I'm trying toremember who came up with the
phrase said no trick or treatergreeters.
Um, so that if you're answeringthe, your dog should probably be
(11:55):
somewhere else just because youdon't know if your dog may be
frightened by whoever is comingto the door.
And even if they're lovelychildren from next door that
your dog sees all the time, theylook different when they're in
costume and there's often alevel of excitement and the
(12:17):
pitch of the kids' voices is upon dark FUM dogs.
Take it as an opportunity tograb what is ever in your hand
to steal.
And if you're handing outchocolate, you've got a problem
with your dog, possiblyingesting candy.
Um, but also if your dog isfrightened and decides to bolt,
(12:37):
you don't want a loose and lostdog on Halloween.
So I'm a big favor fan of ourdogs pretty much if it's just
during the day.
FedEx, ups, um, the doorbellrings and they come to us or
they go to their crate.
But with Halloween night wherethe doorbell may ring 20 plus
(13:01):
times, that's too much.
So my personal dogs are in acrate or behind a gate or in
another room at the other end ofthe house with music playing
with the Kong, um, which we'veworked, that they're comfortable
being there, that I only havethe door to manage and not two
(13:23):
to three large dogs at the doorat the same time.
Well, and I as a suggestion, uh,when my children were little and
we did this not so much for ourdog, we had a Newfoundland when
the kids were growing up who wasnot luckily, thank goodness at
her size.
She was not bothered by thedoorbell bringing, but our house
was, you had to go up about 10,probably about 10 steps from the
(13:47):
sidewalk to get to our frontdoor.
So we would always, uh, be onthe porch or actually down on
the sidewalk because of all thesteps to greet everybody in to
hand out the candy.
So the doorbell was never rung.
So that may be an option forfamilies as well, that you can
actually stand outside and greetthe trick or treaters and get
out candy so that they neverhave to ring your doorbell,
(14:09):
thereby not causing a lot ofthat doorbell problem for
reactive docks.
And I had shared with you, I canhold this up because I'm, I
don't even remember where I'dfound this, but I share this
with some, um, no trick ortreaters.
It says the dog is a Halloweennightmare every time the door
bell rings.
(14:30):
Whoop.
There you go.
Yup.
There we go.
And with clients that we knowhave very doorbell reactive
dogs, we sometimes will laminatethis hanging up over the
doorbell, and then someone iseither sitting just inside the
door or they're on the porch, orconversely, the BA, the bowl of
(14:53):
candy is just outside of theboard porch.
And the human interaction isjust skipped.
But if you have a trickyentrance, I mean, I'm just
thinking small stoop, multiplesteps down to the street or
sidewalk.
We also don't need anyonetumbling down those steps.
Right.
It just, it eliminated a wholelot of grief for everybody to
(15:16):
just have all of the, thegreeting and the candy giving
away at the, at the sidewalk asa PA.
and then nobody, nobody was onour steps.
Our porch doorbell wasn't wrong.
That was just really easy.
Yes.
So, so Cathy, you know, Irecently had a client share with
me that this housing is going tobe just the best opportunity to
(15:39):
socialize their new puppy.
And I know I can, I can hear youcringing through my headphones.
Um, because can you see my face?
You know, fortunately, you know,I had a heads up with what they
were planning to do and I hadthe opportunity to explain to
them, you know, why that'sreally not a good idea.
(16:01):
Um, but why don't you elaborateon why that would be a very, um,
poor decision to make with, uh,with a young puppy of all the
ages of dogs, especially a youngpuppy.
I just had a conversation with anew client who has an eight week
old puppy about just this thismorning actually.
And it's the concept of justwhat are we gradually
(16:24):
introducing a young puppy tooover time, paying very careful
attention to how they respond toit, whether they approach it,
whether they're retreating,looking at the puppies body
language compared to justcompletely overwhelming the
puppy, frightening them.
And particularly if they'refrightened by young, excitable
(16:49):
children.
And if you have a puppy who is astrong one event learner, yeah.
Um, that there is a squealingfour or five, six year old
wearing a Cape or somethingaround their neck.
Um, what happens to the puppythen with approaching a child
(17:10):
who looks similarly to that oris moving quickly a radically
every other time?
Um, I think what happens iseverybody gets very excited.
There was a period of time threeyears ago where it seems that
everybody I knew had a goldenretriever puppy, so everyone was
going to dress the dog up asDoug from up.
(17:31):
And I'm talking about justtaking it slow and we're trying
to build the puppy's trust andcomfort level in the world that
this probably wouldn't becontributing to any of that.
Um, I tend to, I, I give myclients a lot of information,
(17:52):
handouts, checklists, booklet onhow to safely and appropriately
socialize.
But we talk about not floodingan overwhelming, because
sometimes these same puppyowners will have children that
find just the whole trick ortreating party phenomena too
(18:14):
much.
Yeah.
That 20 to 30 minutes into it,the child is overwhelmed, has
eaten too much candy and it'sjust too much day, too much
event, and they're ready to gohome.
Right.
And they have a broader fund ofknowledge set of experiences and
frame of reference than a youngpuppy does with all of this.
So we tend to do, we, you know,as the parents here, we tend to
(18:39):
get excited and they're so cuteand we want those photo
opportunities and we want all ofour friends and neighbors to see
this adorable puppy that wehave.
But you know, we have thiscritical window of time when
there were puppies to do a lotof wonderful socialization or to
do some significant damage thatsomething yes can be repaired.
(19:00):
Um, and so it is very important.
Yeah, it's, it's a big deal yetone of my golden puppies from a
few years ago, um, because theyreally, really wanted the puppy
to meet trick or treaters.
We identified which neighborchildren would take great
direction coming to the door.
They called and texted ahead oftime that they were coming up
(19:23):
the driveway into the door.
The puppy was held in arms, Oh,here, you know, costumes, masks,
et cetera.
Came off.
Puppy was given a co and it wasnot quite one and done, but just
like, Oh, here's an exposure toa nice, calm, safe interaction
with unknown child who, you know, wasn't jumping up and down on
(19:46):
the front porch and, and it, andI think the difficulty is often
working with parents who really,really want this.
They want the picture, you know,how do we handle that to make it
less stressful for the puppy andstill meet their needs too,
right?
Sometimes tricky.
Yeah.
Sometimes it's just a familyphoto, right?
(20:09):
A very calm family photo.
When I socialize my own puppies,I have a closet full of hats and
wigs and beards and all kinds ofgoofy stuff.
But those puppies are seeing mein it and they know me and it's
done very calmly as opposed torunning them out into the street
and having a meal to a strangerwho looks different.
(20:29):
So, yeah.
And I think it's being aware ofthat, that, you know, winter in
Michigan it gets very coldpretty quickly.
And then everybody comes outwith some parka thing with big
fur and puppies.
It's as if they're human hasbeen devoured.
Buy a fur lined parka.
Yeah.
And people call me often veryupset.
(20:52):
It's like what did they do?
It's like what?
You look very different.
Right.
Bigger and Hey, you're allcovered up.
Yeah.
How about Halloween decorations?
What do we need to keep in mindabout?
Cause I, I know and I'm a hugeoffender of this.
My house will look likeHalloween exploded inside,
outside, all around.
(21:12):
But what do people, what do ourfamilies with dogs really need
to keep in mind when they put upHalloween decorations?
Well, a lot of the decorativegourds, um, can be toxic.
They're adorable.
Um, I've been using the paintedfilm covered.
You can see the little purpleand in the back, but my dog
would chew this if he had accessto it because it looks like a
(21:36):
funny ball with a STEM.
Um, where are you puttingthings?
Are they down and accessible tothe dog?
I become a real fan of treatbuckets recently that I don't
have to put the bowl on a lowtable or on the floor for
Halloween with trick ortreaters.
I can hang it on a coat hooknear the door.
(21:57):
So that's out of the dog'sreach.
Um, a number of families withyoung children, when I was
growing up, you carve thepumpkin, you put the candle in
the middle of it, you set itout.
And after, um, particular welived in Colorado during a
drought when things were very,very dry, people having issues
with just fire if the pumpkinrolled off the front porch, um,
(22:20):
through these great little ledcandles reflectors we can take
some of the fire risks away ifwe're into just carving, um, the
pumpkin.
But what can your dog get to andif they end up picking it up and
walking away and ingesting it,is it safe?
(22:42):
Um, bits of costumes forchildren that are dangly that
every now and then I thinkparents can be surprised at just
how quickly those bits rip offand can be swallowed.
Exactly.
I just want to share a couple offacts that, that Kathy, you sent
us ahead of time, just kind ofcapping our discussion of
(23:04):
Halloween.
So half of all children bittenby dogs or under the age of 12
most dogs bite.
Most dog bites are by the familydog or a dog that is known to
the person.
Most dog bites are preventable.
And from the national canineresearch council, if we can see
(23:26):
ourselves from our dog'sperspective, we can prevent more
dog bites, which is all veryrelevant to the discussion about
Halloween.
So shall we move it to the nextholiday?
How about Thanksgiving?
What do we need to keep in mindwith our dogs and Thanksgiving
coming up?
Cause that's a different type ofholiday.
(23:47):
Well it, a couple of things isjust, I mean I personally love
Thanksgiving at a certain point,you know, it's just, it's just
food and dinner and, andgratitude.
No cards, no gifts, you know,just, but, and, and we um, get
very involved with dinnerpreparations and the whole food
items list with Thanksgiving,running through the December
(24:09):
holidays tend to be very rich.
They tend to be things that weoften don't eat.
And we are often putting outthis spread to reflect abundance
and forgetting what the dog canget into maybe what the dog
shouldn't be eating.
Um, there may be more alcoholinvolved that the dog could get
(24:32):
into or that our dinner guestsmay be ingesting that we don't,
that changes their behavior interms of how they're interacting
with our dogs.
Um, so I think it presents awhole set of challenges.
Um, you know, just people notthinking going well the dog
really likes Turkey skin says,Oh, what's one drumstick?
(24:55):
Uh, without thinking exactlywhat GI damage we could be doing
to our dogs, uh, people who wereinto baking.
There are a lot more yeastedbreads and pastries and just an
array of foods that aren'tcommonly in most of our homes.
Um, so when I'm thinking aboutThanksgiving, because often the
(25:18):
big get together is at my house.
I have to really think aboutwho's coming and whether they've
spent some time with my dogs,know them, also know what our
household routines and rulesare.
And if the dogs can be part ofthe group or if they have to be
crated in a back bedroom for,you know, significant portion of
(25:41):
the get together.
Um, and, and we've hadThanksgivings that have run both
ways and we've also had, um,guests who have come, who have
been friends of our adultchildren that I've had to ask
very directly.
Are you comfortable with dogs,you know, or how do you feel
(26:01):
about being, have you ever beenbitten by a dog?
Um, or if they say they're justfine.
Um, kind of explaining how ourhouse works and how we handle
our dogs.
Um, so that people are not doinginappropriate things with the
dog if they feel that the dog ismisbehaving.
(26:22):
Um, I don't need anybody jabbingmy dog in the neck or rolling
them or, you know, so that wecan be more consistent for them
so that the dogs are comfortableand safe, but also so that all
the guests are safe.
Um, do you suggest the dogparticipant, your family dog
participating in Thanksgivingand it being allowed to be out
(26:45):
in room around during dinnerwhen everybody's there or do you
suggest the dog has created, putin another room?
I'm going to give you the dogtrainers responds to that, which
is, it depends.
Um, it depends upon the dog.
Um, the dogs who share my homefull time right now, one of them
just find at large gatherings,the other removes the napkins
(27:08):
from every dinner.
Guests lap is just sort of Ninjathing.
And while it is crazy, um, it'sinappropriate and it's a pain
and so he is always crated.
Michelle (27:22):
Um, but there are dogs who, and I have a lot of
conversations with clients aboutthis, that if they're hosting
and people are then staying attheir home for a few days and
they kind of know in advancethat maybe their house guests
aren't the easiest house guestleaving the dog out of it.
(27:44):
Is there a friend that the dogcan go spend time at their house
because they're having a smallergathering?
Can the dog be boarded?
Is, you know, if the dog iscomfortable being created in a
way, in another room already,that's great, but you probably
shouldn't plunk them in thereThursday mornings, say, see
(28:06):
after dinner and just hope itworks out.
You know?
Um, there are dogs that I havehad and my clients have who make
really nice choices about, okay,this is enough for me.
I'm removing myself to anotherroom where I have a bed and a
space to be and know thateveryone will leave them alone.
Cathy (28:30):
Um, and there are other dogs who need more assistance to
be a part or just not be in thehome at all.
Um, not every family gettogether or set of guests.
It's always easy and often, um,people are, who were hosting an
event like Thanksgiving.
(28:50):
There could be a lot ofpressure, particularly if they
haven't done it before.
Um, and, and sometimes the dogis almost like this afterthought
of like, Oh, what are we goingto wait now?
What are we going to do withyou?
Right.
Um, right.
And the JD door's usually alittle too late to go looking
for boarding.
(29:11):
Right.
Right, right.
Yeah, that's it.
You know, the one thing over theyears that I had seen
consistently over the holidaysis if you have a dog who is a
resource garter, yeah.
Holidays can be one of the mostdangerous times in your home
because what is worse thanhaving all of these extremely
(29:32):
high value foods at yourdisposal and your guests may not
know your dog struggles with?
Well, if that drumstick falls onthe ground, you know Fido's
going to have a real problemgiven that up.
And so there's a, there's asignificant danger for dogs who
already struggle with guardingbehavior when you throw in all
(29:53):
of these high value foods,strangers who don't know your
dog, the stress of a party.
So you know, those are the kindsof things that unfortunately
people don't realize until theright in the middle of it.
Well, and particularly withyoung children though, your dog
may not necessarily resourceguard from adult humans.
(30:16):
When we have young children whoare already moving and your kid
has, your dog hasn't spent a lotof time with children who were
moving in erratic, quick,impulsive ways.
Who may be chasing a jog.
I mean I get a lot of holidaycalls where it's either been the
family has visited thegrandparents and the
(30:38):
grandparents dog has bittenlunch, snarled snapped, they've
taken their dog and it's justtoo much.
And often what's happened is thedog has attempted to get away,
gone under the dining roomtable, kitchen table, coffee
table, and there's um, kind of afull tilt toddler or preschooler
behind them.
Ducky, ducky, don't you don'teat okay and getting right up in
(31:02):
their face.
And that's when the bite occurs.
So it's a combination.
Sometimes it's the perfect stormof triggers that have stacked.
So I tend to ask retroactivelygoing, so tell me how many
people were at your house.
Was any one person I suggest infamily parties like this,
(31:23):
whether it is Halloween party,Thanksgiving, Christmas, super
bowl party, you're havingchildren come and dogs there.
There is one person assigned towatch each dog.
That's their only job for theday when the dog, if the dog is
away and comes out to be walkedthrough the event and out, that
(31:44):
person is responsible for thedog.
And how they interact witheveryone else, but also for
kids, that there is one personif possible, assigned to each
baby, toddler, preschooler,where are they?
What are they doing, what arethey into, what are they
climbing on, what are theypotentially eating?
Um, and then that those peopleare actually that excused from
(32:08):
prep and cleanup work, butthey're able to provide more
one-to-one monitoringsupervision.
And it sounds like it's agreater level of vigilance than
may be needed.
But what we all know is thatbites don't come out of the
blue.
(32:28):
There are things that happenedthat pre-seed different bites
and people just aren't seeing itbecause they're not knowing what
to look for.
And they're also distracted.
They're the game, they'regetting more pie.
They're, you know, they're busyarguing politics with whoever,
you know, it's there at thetable, which they shouldn't do,
(32:49):
but they kind of lose the dogsand the kids in the middle of
all this.
Michelle (32:54):
So is there anything different we wanna think about
with the Christmas Hanukkah, newyear's end of the year parties
over and about Thanksgiving.
I mean the food and the fan.
And the gatherings that allapplies, decorations like we put
out for Halloween would apply toChristmas.
But is there anything differentabout Christmas and Hanukkah
(33:15):
that, that we should keep inmind?
Christmas, Hanukkah, new year'sare inevitably involve more
candles.
I mean, so you're looking atwhat a dog or child can get to
and possibly knock over.
And then there is always thedilemma of the Christmas tree.
And we talked about a photo thatI had sent to each of you.
(33:36):
Um, we had a friend who used todecorate and host parties that
we used to jokingly suggest thatshe was hosting the Martha
Stewart invitational every year.
Um, and then she had childrenand then added a cat and then at
a dogs.
Cathy (33:52):
And this is the photo below what life looked like
because everybody was pullingthings off of the tree.
Um, you know, the Katz amemorable story, just watch
themselves from the, landingdown, a set of steps onto the
tree and knock the whole thingdown.
Um, that happens in everythingthat's generally on a tree like
(34:13):
this can really harm a pet or achild if they're ingesting.
And tinsel, uh, these beautifulold glass ornaments.
Um, it's just not safe and itmay not be the most attractive
thing in the world to put yourChristmas tree inside an X pen.
(34:35):
But I've done that more than oneyear.
Um, we've gated the dog out ofthe room that the tree is been
in because the prevailing, um,agenda is to keep everyone safe.
Um, so yeah, the, the wholedecor just presents a lot of
different challenges, uh, jogs.
Michelle (34:57):
But I think we have to factor cats into, there's just
more yes.
Stuff.
Yes.
So any final, uh, summary of topcouple of things that are dog
owners, families with dogs andkids want to keep in mind with
the holidays coming up?
I think that the biggest thing,um, I tell people is be
(35:20):
proactive.
Think about the dog who lives inyour house, um, and where you
think the holiday may presentsome challenges for them so that
you're not in the middle of itand going, Oh, you know, my joke
to parents is that we do a, weexpect we often get our, or the
number 47, so we need a coupleof plans of if the dog can't
(35:45):
tolerate being, say crated inthe back room, can they be gated
off where they can still seewhat's going on?
Be part of it, but not activelyengaged in the activity.
Cathy (35:58):
Um, but I think also knowing that a number of dog
owners struggle with these sameissues, what I hear a lot from
my parents is they feel likethey're the only one who has a
dog was a problem and pointingout where the resources are for
them in the form of trainers.
Um, I know you've got a lot ofgreat stuff available available
(36:21):
through good dog in a box dog.
Crazy has really nice checklistsand resources.
Um, family paws has different,um, blogs.
So there's information that'sreally good information out
there to help families getthrough this and that.
(36:42):
If you need to do somethingdifferent that wasn't quite in
your vision of how it wassupposed to be, the dog really
should maybe go bored for acouple of days where you need to
bring in someone else to helpjust with Rover for a day or
two.
It's okay.
I mean, it's better that thanhaving something else happen.
(37:05):
Right.
Exactly, and wonderful,wonderful advice.
Kathy, thank you so much forjoining us and thank you for
being on.
Thank you everybody forwatching.
We'll see you next week.
Bye bye.
I
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