Happy Halloween!

Senior Dogs

"Here’s the bottom line. If you have a happy, lively, interactive, and agile senior dog or cat on your hands, throw those age-related numbers and averages out the window.  Rather, I encourage you to observe your pet’s overall quality of life, share some nose-to-nose time with your best buddy, look deep into those beautiful eyes, and make important medical decisions based on what’s truly important rather than simply a number." 

-Dr Nancy Kay, author of Speaking for Spot, from her blog post Age is Just a Number

 
My family's beloved dog Riley is 9 years old and thus, by definition, a senior.  But he has no problem keeping up with my young dogs and they love to play, play, play.  Also, Riley earned his APDT Rally Level 1 title this year just a month shy of his 9th birthday.  He placed 3rd and got an award for Highest Scoring First Qualifying Run.  The only formal class Riley ever took was beginning puppy...around 8 years before earning his first rally title.  Rally is a great activity for senior dogs, for more information visit APDT Rally Obedience.  


I highly encourage owners of senior dogs to find an activity that their senior dog can do and enjoys.  There are more and more opportunities for ways to have fun with your aging dog, the following events in the SF Bay Area are especially for senior dogs:

• The SF SPCA is offering a 4 week long training class especially for seniors called Senior Scholars that starts this Saturday, October 29th.  Enter Muttville's Facebook Photo Contest to WIN A FREE PASS--contest runs until Thursday, October 27th.

• The Rex Center is hosting drop-in senior socials on Saturdays 1 pm to 2 pm through November 12. Dogs friendly with other dogs are welcome and tea and dog cookies will be provided.  They have some great guest speakers coming up:
• Oct 29 - Natalie Bayless presents clicker training for maintaining cognitive ability
• Nov-5 - Heather Sanders talks about Acupressure for Arthitis
• Nov-12 - Dr Ilana Strubel, DVM visits and talks about Chiropractic & Holistic health

Another great activity for senior dogs (and all dogs) is Nose Work.  Hayley and Walker's nose work instructor is Michele Garlick, CNW1 of Whole K9, who teaches classes in various locations in the San Francisco Bay Area.  

Other Resources for Senior Dogs:

SF SPCA's Senior Dog Seminar "How to Care for Your Aging Pet" 

Good Old Dog by Dr. Nicolas Dodman
Speaking for Spot by Dr Nancy Kay (purchase online and select American Cavalier King Charles Spaniel Rescue Trust as the donation recipient to help Cavaliers in need)

Happy Birthday Hayley!

Hayley turned 4 on Friday...

Birthday trip to the beach

Gifts from one of Hayley's "co-workers"

Birthday cake from LeMarcel Specialty Bakery for Dogs--
(their goods were mostly Halloween themed)

Bean Bolognese

For dinner tonight I made bean bolognese and it was delicious!  Here's the recipe:

Bean Bolognese (from Eating Well)

Fiber-rich beans stand in for the beef and pork in this surprisingly rich-tasting vegetarian take on pasta Bolognese. Without the meat, the dish has only a third of the fat and 80 percent less saturated fat. To make the perfect meal, serve with a peppery arugula salad and warm, crusty Italian bread.

4 servings, about 3/4 cup sauce each | Active Time: 40 minutes | Total Time: 40 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 14-ounce can salad beans, (see Shopping Tip) or other beans, rinsed, divided
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1/2 cup chopped carrot
• 1/4 cup chopped celery
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 4 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/2 cup white wine
• 1 14-ounce can diced tomatoes
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley, divided
• 8 ounces whole-wheat fettuccine
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Preparation

1. Put a large pot of water on to boil. Mash 1/2 cup beans in a small bowl with a fork.
2. Heat oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add onion, carrot, celery and salt; cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 10 minutes. Add garlic and bay leaf; cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 15 seconds. Add wine; increase heat to high and boil until most of the liquid evaporates, 3 to 4 minutes. Add tomatoes and their juices, 2 tablespoons parsley and the mashed beans. Bring to a lively simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, until thickened, about 6 minutes. Add the remaining whole beans; cook, stirring occasionally, until heated through, 1 to 2 minutes more.
3. Meanwhile, cook pasta in the boiling water until just tender, about 9 minutes or according to package directions. Drain.
4. Divide the pasta among 4 bowls. Discard the bay leaf and top the pasta with the sauce; sprinkle with Parmesan and the remaining parsley.

Nutrition

Per serving : 443 Calories; 11 g Fat; 3 g Sat; 6 g Mono; 9 mg Cholesterol; 67 g Carbohydrates; 19 g Protein; 14 g Fiber; 707 mg Sodium; 281 mg Potassium

3 1/2 Carbohydrate Serving

Exchanges: 3 1/2 starch, 1 1/2 vegetable, 1 lean meat, 1 1/2 fat

Tips & Notes

• Shopping tip: A can of salad beans, a mixture of chickpeas, kidney and pinto beans, adds depth and variety to this recipe. Look for it in the natural-foods section of larger supermarkets or natural-foods stores. If you can't find it, substitute a can of your favorite beans.

Just keep swimming

Hayley LOVES to swim.  If we're anywhere near water, it's hard to keep her out.  One time she was with her dog walker and jumped into a lake in an urban park to swim after geese...  Naturally I jumped at the opportunity when The Rex Center asked if I'd be interested in Hayley helping new swim coach students learn how to work with new dogs in their warm-water indoor pool. 


When we first arrived Hayley seemed a bit unsure...the pool is inside, it smells different, looks different, and is just overall very different than the beach, which is what Hayley is used to. The students carried her around the pool, praising her and letting her take it all in. Then they played with her water toys that I brought and something seemed to click and she was playful and enjoying herself. She would fetch her toy then bring it all the way back to the step. She seemed very insistent that after she fetched her toy she had to swim back to the step. The students also did some handling exercises in the water, holding her while she swam, redirecting her, etc. At the end Hayley didn't want to leave.


Here are some short videos of Hayley's swim from The Rex Center:

Benefits of swimming:

• improves body condition & physical performance
• improves strength and stamina
• improves muscle tone
• cardiovascular fitness
• weight loss and maintenance 
• increased body awareness
• low impact; decreased joint stress
• Stronger, toned muscles help to protect dogs against injuries sustained during normal exercise, such as running or chasing a ball, or during more demanding exercise such as agility.
• For a dog, a 5 minute swim is equivalent to about a 5 mile run

Physical conditions that can benefit from swimming are:

• Hip and elbow dysplasia
• Arthritis
• Stroke or paralysis
• Cruciate ligament sprains and strains
• Degenerative myelopathy

Hayley's favorite water toys:


Chuckit! Amphibious Bumper

Kong Wet Wubba

Must have collar for any water loving dog:  Dublin Dog Collars


For canine water safety tips, click on the links below:


Swimming Pool Safety Tips


Near drowning in dogs

Running on sand

Still getting the hang of this blog thing, I realize my posts aren't always that focused one one particular topic, rather an eclectic mix of recipes, dog training, exercise, random happenings since the last post, etc but bear with me while I sort it out...  

So anyways...on Sunday, I made DELICIOUS pumpkin pancakes for breakfast...thanks to my friend Stephanie (The Brunette Foodie) for the idea, check out the recipe on her blog.  Hayley and Walker got to try a little bit of the pancakes too and give them four paws way up!!!  

Sunday evening, I saw Mariana Bell at Brainwash Cafe and I must say she was amazing, she has the most beautiful voice and is incredibly talented.  Can't wait to listen to her new CD.

This week is Week 5 of Couch-to-5K, right on target for my 5K run next month!  The pups and I went for a jog at the beach after work...  I do most of my jogging at the beach on sand, which has its benefits:

• You burn between 1.2 and 1.8 times more calories per mile on each run which is between 20 and 80 extra calories per mile because running on sand consumes more energy.  (European Journal of Applied Physiology and Occupational Physiology).
• It's lower impact/easier on your joints.
• Even just a few beach runs strengthens your ankles, arches, and all other below-the-knee muscles more than running on hard surfaces.

I actually chose to run barefoot this evening (it helped that it was unusually warm), which helps strengthen your feet and ankles even more.  I noticed it was a harder workout and we'll see if my legs hurt tomorrow morning.  Running on sand is also great for dogs, it's strenuous exercise, kinder on paws and joints and an excellent way to build healthy muscle.  

Skateboarding training is going great, both pups are able to push the skateboard but we're still polishing technique and still working indoors.  Will try to post pics and videos soon!

Dog health clinics

Today I took the dogs to the CKCSC, USA Specialty for heart/eye clinics and was very relieved to hear all is well.  Walker is not yet two years old so this was his first health clinic and he just had his eyes checked.  Hayley will be four this month and this was her second heart/eye clinic.  

The number one health concern in Cavaliers is a form of degenerative valve disease called Mitral Valve Disease (MVD).  As such, it is strongly recommended that ALL Cavaliers 2 1/2 years of age or older be screened annually by a Board Certified Veterinary Cardiologist for evidence of heart murmurs.  Cavalier clubs and other breed and kennel clubs periodically offer health-testing clinics with veterinary cardiologists and/or veterinary ophthalmologist, board certified, who will examine a dog for a discounted fee.  Here is a list of health clinics.

While at the Specialty we met a very mellow, sweet, easygoing 5 year old Cavalier named Lily Belle who is currently seeking her forever home and available through Cavalier Rescue, USA.  Lily is housetrained and would be happiest in a quiet low key home, preferably as an only dog.  She needs to lose weight and enjoys slow leash walks so her new family needs to keep her on a diet and exercise regime to continue the weight loss and maintain it.

Here are the pups on the drive back from the Specialty.  Walker likes to be REALLY, REALLY close to Hayley.  They enjoyed a few In-N-Out fries as well.

The pups' Lucky Star Dog Snoods arrived from Terri (a fellow Cavalier owner) of Day Dog Designs today and are just lovely!  Terri is very generously donating 100% of the proceeds from this snood to Lucky Star Cavalier Rescue.  She also makes beautiful European ribbon dog collars, leashes, fabric snoods and more!  Check out her Etsy store and Facebook page!     

And yes I realize that snoods are completely and utterly ridiculous BUT they are a total necessity if you have a long-eared dog, especially if you feed a raw diet.  They are a gentle way to hold back ears during meals to prevent the ears from falling into the food dish.  Trust me there's nothing more disgusting than raw meat stuck in your dog's ear fur!  Snoods make life so much easier and the ridiculousness is worth the convenience!

I'm finally feeling better after my awful cold so back to meal planning, cooking and running this week...stay tuned for more recipes, skateboard training updates and photos of my adorable, kick-ass dogs!

Thank Dog It's Friday

I take my dogs for at least a 1 hour off-leash run almost daily in addition to their shorter leash walks, rain or shine (though we did stay indoors during the tsunami warning last Spring)...   On the rare occasions that we skip a day, I feel horribly guilty and I assume my dogs are sad that they did not get to go for their daily adventure.  I realize it's not exactly the end of the world if they don't get that much exercise but they LOVE to be outdoors and run around and it helps me stay grounded to have this time to reflect, breathe the fresh air, be outdoors and get exercise.

Unfortunately this week was incredibly busy at work and I was sick most of the week so we had to skip quite a few days...

BUT this evening we made it to the beach right before sunset and everything was perfect.

Skateboardin' bluegrass lovin' dogs

Last weekend was Hardly Strictly Bluegrass, which is basically my favorite annual free concert in SF...  Hayley and Walker obviously LOVE Bluegrass and making lots of "interesting" new friends.  Walker especially loved the random girls who played endless fetch with him.   

Last week I finished Week 4 of C25K and finally faced the reality that I probably need new running shoes, especially since I'm running more.  I went to On the Run since I heard they are the best at helping people select the right running shoe for their feet.  I got the Brooks Adrenaline.

Oh and I'm teaching my dogs to skateboard...

Dr. Sophia Yin, DVM, MS has a great post on teaching your dog to skateboard and here's a video.  Most of our work is on Step 6 since Hayley and Walker already had a good foundation of the other steps.  Will try to post more detail and videos soon.

Unfortunately I came down with a dreaded cold this week so Week 5 of C25K is on hold and the week hasn't been too exciting much to my dogs' chagrin.