Question: “My dog is great with people most of the time but sometimes when strangers rush up to him when we’re on our walks, he backs off and growls. The behavior seems to be getting worse. Why does he do this?” Answer: The problem here is that people don’t know how to politely greet your dog. All would be well if humans heeded the two golden rules—never pet a dog without owner permission, and always let the dog make first contact.  Instead, well-wishers approach too quickly, crowd too closely, or loom over like a thunderstorm ready to dump its load.

Question: I have two one-year old male cats Sergeant and Figaro. Sergeant had been waking me up every night …due to his noisy midnight explorations. Sergeant’s latest discovery has been the spiral door stopper which makes a lovely Boinng sound. I have had to remove all of them in my apartment. I have tried keeping them up all day by playing games with toys, hoping they will sleep through the night. However, that is impossible when I have to be away in the daytime and it is time consuming. I now close them both in the bathroom where the litter

These dogs are displaying appropriate, well-mannered greeting behavior.    You’ve owned dogs for ages, you have pets galore.   You know all the stories, they’re now just a bore.   But have you heard the one about Dennis? Dennis, the Dog Park Menace?    Rumor has it he’s at every park. He comes in many disguises making him easy to miss.     Here’s how he might appear.     The dogs are playing, each a brown or black blur   When off in the distance appears a mass of white fur.  The ball of white bounces, looming larger and clear  Then Splat! A squashed Scottie dog yelps out

Local news reports, “A Mountain Ranch man was mauled to death by two pit bulls late Sunday afternoon. The dogs belonged to a friend of the victim who was staying on his property. According to one newscast, the dogs were known to be territorial. They barked, growled and lunged at people from within their confined area. However the person interviewed stated that no one expected this. On the other hand, the opinion of some readers is that the outcome was obvious and the clear consequence is that pit bulls should be banned. Whether you love pit bulls or wish they

Question: I’ve taken in a stray cat that’s about one year old and has been spayed. She’s very affectionate; however, sometimes when I pet her she either bites or scratches me. How can I stop her from doing this? Answer: Have you heard the joke about the patient who visits the doctor? The patient comes in and asks, “Hey Doc. My arm hurts when I lift it like this. What should I do?” The doctor replies, “Don’t do that.” Sounds silly, but the same advice goes here. If your cat bites and scratches when you pet her, don’t pet her.

It’s kitty season – meaning, as usual, there are tons of pregnant female cats and young kittens being relinquished to shelters. Most will ultimately be euthanized but some will be fostered and find good homes. While most foster kitten raisers focus on keeping the kittens medically healthy, the most important factor for keeping kittens in their new home is training and socializing them well. We want them to be outgoing, friendly, and social with many different people and in many different environments. We also want them to learn how to play with toys and learn basic exercises such as “sit” and “come when called.” Here