One Fine Evening of Homeschooling

Spooky likes to watch TV too!

Today, even though it is Saturday, we had a great day in the world of homeschooling. Gabby had a basketball game this morning, where she made her first basket (YAY!) and played super well. She is quickly grasping the various rules and the overall feel of how a game goes. I think that we made a great choice with basketball for her because she isn't a very aggressive kid and basketball is a game where you have to go after the ball, have some physical contact, and be aggressive.

Then this afternoon she learned about place value in mathematics as well as the greater than/less than signs. I remember learning these signs by thinking of the mark as a shark mouth so that is how I explained it to Gabby. (Actually, that is how I still think of those signs, lol!) She got the concept right away and finished the whole sheet with minimal help.

Gabby also read a letter from a penpal, wrote in her journal, and finally watched a documentary with me from PBS about dogs and how they have evolved to be "Man's Best Friend". It was really cool to watch her watching this film and seeing all the different experiments that the scientists did with the dogs to show how domestication took place as well as how the dogs and humans work so well together. Gabby asked a lot of really insightful questions and seemed fascinated with how the scientific process works so we decided to do a little experimenting on our own since we have a dog.

One part of the film pointed out that in some ways dogs are smarter than chimps, our closest relative. The scientist showed that it you put a treat under a cup and present to cups to the chimp, even pointing out the correct cup, the chimp will not follow your finger to get the treat. A dog, however, will not only follow your finger, but will also use your eyes as a clue to where the treat is!! Gabby thought that this was really neat and wanted to see if Spooky was smart enough to do what the science dogs did. (I asked her what she thought would happen first and then let her prove her theory.)  After Spooky proved that she would listen and follow a pointed finger we talked about how Spooky communicates with us and seems to know how we are feeling.... all in all it was a great conversation starter and I have a feeling a lot more experiments are going to come from this film!!

So that folks was a typical day in our "homeschool"!

Simply Waiting

I often acknowledge my cats, since they are awesome and all that,

but I have to mention how cool Spooky is.

She seriously is a Great Dane in a slightly smaller body,

never barks at passing people and dogs,

sleeps on the couches,

and is a dream to take in the car. 

I love this photo of her because this is what she does a lot of the day, 

simply waits....

Wordless Wednesday

So Very Yappy Happy!

I love getting packages in the mail, especially from Etsy! Today was no different and I got a package that I just had to share with everyone: Spooky's new dog tag from http://www.yappyhappy.com/. I actually found the seller on Etsy, where I find all my best items.

The tag is not only as crisp and clear as the picture but looks just like an OH state driver's license. It has all of the info too that a standard license would have which is sooo important in case your dog gets away from you. Luckily, although Spooky does have a tendency to follow her nose, she always comes back quickly. It is light and seems incredibly durable. I am pleased beyond belief!

This tag is a MUST for any dog lover, especially those who have dogs that are much faster than we are! The seller and creator of this great product is a fabulous lady to work with, I loved everything about this experience!!

Dog Gone Happy

We have had Spooky for about 5 days now and she is really coming out of her shell! She is still behaving really well which leads me to believe that she was someone's pet and was cared for before ending up in the pound. She is starting to get it that the cats do not enjoy being pawed or chased and always lets us know that she has to go out. My favorite things about her is that she knows basic commands plus a few extras like "spin" and that she isn't a barker. When you adopt a dog that belonged to someone else you have no clue what happened before, but we definitely lucked out and found ourself a fabulous dog! Here are some new pics (notice that she has already gained a little bit of weight!)

A Walk in the Park

After naptime and the festival fun I decided to take the girls and Spooky to the Metroparks for some nature fun and exercise. It was great to see Spooky get excited over all the smells and when we went down by the river everyone had fun playing with the rocks (or chewing them if you are AJ)... it was a very beautiful serene setting! What a great end to my perfect day!

Not the Dog's Day

I just heard last night that the city of Lakewood passed a ban against owning pit bulls. I am deeply ashamed that such a progressive city would pass such an ignorant ban. Pit Bull is not even a specific breed but a term used to describe several breeds, one even recognized by the AKC!

I understand that there are qualities about the breed that scare people, even pit bull rescues admit that there has been an urge to fight other dogs bred into them over the years. But as a devoted fan of the Doberman Pincher I can totally sympathize with what every responsible pit bull owner is feeling.

What scares me is the reprecussions of this legislation. Not only are you going to send the "bad guys" looking for another status breed to turn mean, but you are going to scare the people that presently own the dogs into just letting them onto the streets to avoid getting fined. You cannot turn them into a shelter, no shelter will take them. And who has the heart to turn their family member into the dog warden when they know that the dog is going to be put to sleep?

Ignorance is what passed this ban, bottom line. People who don't understand dogs, love dogs, and who let fear rule over their own common sense. What next, ban Chihuahuas? What about Chows- who have a bite rate 7 times higher than a Pit Bull? How about America's favorite dog, the Golden Retriever, another breed with a higher bite rate. But the media doesn't report on dog bites from those breeds...

Breed specific ordinances are quick fixes and not a sufficient long term solution for the following reasons:
1. Dog problems are generally problems with owner responsibility and are not limited to breeds. When breeds are singled out as dangerous or vicious, responsibility is removed from the dog owner which is where it belongs. Irresponsible people are also less likely to follow the law - and as a result, everyone has to suffer.
2. By limiting the ability of citizens to own certain breeds, responsible law abiding citizens will shy away from those breeds. These are the types of owners that communities need to encourage, not drive away.
3. Communities that have instituted such bans often find that the irresponsible owners and the criminals who use dogs for illegal purposes simply switch to another breed.
4. Breeds and mixes are hard to identify and often dogs are mis labeled and destroyed based on paranioa and prejudice and also punishes those that are good canine citizens. Many breeds function as assistance dogs for handicapped owners, search and rescue dogs, drug-sniffing dogs, police dogs, etc. and drives them out of the community.
The American Veterinary Medical Association and several state veterinary medical associations oppose breed-specific legislation for just this reason.
5. The dog most restricted is the "pit bull." A pit bull is a type of dog, not a recognized breed.
6. Passage of laws that are only enforced through complaints cause two problems: 1) they create disrespect for the law if authorities require compliance only upon complaint, and 2) they provide ammunition for neighborhood feuds.

~Pit Bull Rescue Central