Why I Stay Away From Dog Forums

There was a time in my life when I trolled dog forums. As someone who loves dog, who works with dogs, and who really, really wanted a working dog I wanted to get connected to the community. But when it became evident that it would be years before I could have my working dog, I started trolling dog forums of the breeds I did have. One thing I learned from all that trolling is that dog people are always right - even if they disagree with each other, they are both right. There is an old saying in the dog community that the only thing two dog trainers can agree on is that the third one is doing it wrong. That has been a motto of mine for years as I've slipped in and out of various dog communities and have heard many different opinions about dogs and dog training.

Recently on a breed specific forum there was a some talk about Malinois and how they are "special" dogs and how they are impossible to live with. Once some Mal owners posted proof that you can live with these dogs, people then started saying that the Mal owners who responded were "good owners" and they "got lucky" with a good dog - but that MOST Mals were crazy and reactive and "has a screw loose". The really sad thing is that what they are saying about Mals is exactly what most people are saying about the breed that they choose to live with - the Pill Bull.

In some cities pit bulls are euthanized simply because of the breed. I work in rescue and more often than not, I hear stories about pit bulls "going crazy" and "killing their owners". I hear people say "you just can't trust them" and "those dogs will turn on you". Is any of that true? Sure, some times it is true. But sometimes it is media hype and lack of education. It really frustrates me when people who live with those kinds of reactions can propagate them with another breed.

I've lived with a Mal for 4 months. Sure, he is a well trained dog, but he is also a recently neutered male and just over 2 years old. There are plenty of times when I have to correct him for naughty behavior. There are times when he gets frustrated and makes bad decisions. I've had to correct him for growling at a dog, for barking at strangers and for chasing cats. Does this make him a bad dog? No. I live with 2 chihuahuas that I have had to correct for the exact same behavior. Malinois are dogs - they make the same decisions that all dogs make - both good and bad. The one thing about Mals that I think makes them better than many breeds is their respect for their owners. They have an overwhelming desire to please and will do whatever you ask simply because you ask. This is why they are used as police/military dogs. They will run at a perpetrator that is actively shooting at them and will bite and hold until the owner releases them. You won't catch many other breeds doing that.

Sure there are bad Mals. Sure that are some good Mals that live with bad owners. Sure there are bad mals that live with great owners. But I don't think that there is an overwhelming number of any of those situations. Mals are dogs - they are high energy, drivey, dogs that need a lot of exercise, a lot of training, and a lot of structure. They are not dogs that the general public should own - but I think that is true of most breeds (including pit bulls and chihuahuas). Dogs have been bred for thousands of years to do very specific jobs. But it has only been more recently that we have asked these dogs to do something other than what they have been bred to do - and it has only been more recently that we have gotten into such trouble and have needed to re-home our dogs because that border collie pup just won't stop herding the children.  Grow up people!

Best Post Ever

If you aren't a regular follower of Phoenix and Jaime then you should be. A silly Mal and Beautiful Terv. . .what more could anyone hope for? How about the BEST POST EVER!!!!!

Those of us with dogs can relate completely. Those without dogs. . .I'm not even gonna go there. . .

My favorite part:

Time passes.
The puppy grows into a dog and takes our dreams with him.
Some dreams become reality, others not.
Goals are set, pursued, achieved,revised or abandoned.
We laugh and love and cry and learn.
We go places and discover things along the journey we never could have imagined.

This post says what I wish I could have said so eloquently. I often look around at my little pack and wonder how I got here with these dogs. But then I think about all that I have been able to do because of them, and I wouldn't have it any other way. If I wasn't "stuck" with a crazy Iggy, I never would have started agility or rally or met any of the wonderful people that I have met this past year. I'm not sure that it was worth all the pee and vomit I have had to clean up. . .ask me again in a few years. . .

Reading Deliberately

I was just getting ready to start a new book but I couldn't seem to get motivated. Part of it could be the size of the book itself - the top three books on my TBR pile are 1000 pages long, but I think that part of it is that I am just not ready to have new characters enter my life. That may seem weird to some non-readers, but people who fall in love with books know exactly what I am talking about.

Yesterday evening, during the hunt for ice cream, I came upon the decision that I am going to take this year and re-read a lot of my favorite books that I haven't had the chance to re-read because there are so many other great reads out there. I love to read old books and perhaps find something I missed the first time.

Later last night I was reading The Book Lady's blog and saw that she and some friends were going to spend the year reading deliberately. They were going to read books that they wanted to read, not just read books because they had to for some arbitrary purpose. They are each choosing which books to read for different reasons, but all of the reasons are good reasons to them.

I think that this is a great idea. Often times we start reading a book because someone tells us "you have to read this book" or "this book will change your life" or "this is a great author, you have to read her" etc, etc. And while some of those books may be great reads, and some may change our lives, there are so many other great books out there that we have been wanting to read but keep getting pushed aside for someone else's idea of a great book.


After thinking it over, I think that my decision about my reading falls under the category of reading deliberately. I am sure that I will read lots of books that I haven't read before, and that is ok. The main goal is to read what YOU want to read. And looking at my books shelf, I can easily spot 10 books that I love and have wanted to re-read, but never quite found the time...