Please welcome Lisa Perrault to our blog team!  Lisa is a professional certified dog trainer and behavorist.  She will be providing us regular posts with training best practices!  Lisa's website is MyWellManneredMutt.

As our fall schedules become packed with soccer games, back-to-school nights and work deadlines, our dogs often find themselves spending more time home alone. Combined with less exercise from shorter days and rainy weather, dogs begin to get restless this time of year. Some signs that your dog could use some at-home stress relief include: whining or barking when you leave, more frantic greetings then normal, or getting into mischief during the day. 

If you suspect a change in routine and less exercise is to blame for the new stress-at-home behavior, try these tips to liven up your doggie’s day:

• Increase exercise intensity.  Pick up your walking pace to a brisk walk or add a few short sprint zones to your normal routine.  Your dog will think it is great fun and get a bit more of a workout. 
• Use your weekends.  Bring your pooch on a weekend family hike and you will have a calmer dog for the first part of the week.  For most dogs, exercise has an immediate and cumulative effect so you can use your weekends to make up for shorter mid-week walks.
• Daylight savings resolution.  Use the extra hour of sleep you will gain when the clocks go back to switch your long dog walk to the morning. 
• Play indoor games.  Hide and Seek, Tug of War or Go-Find are all fun ways to burn off energy without getting wet or cold outside.  Kids will appreciate the homework break.
• Go somewhere new.  Change up your routine by walking in a different neighborhood or park.  Fido will be more stimulated be the new smells and sights, even if the length of the walk is the same. 
• Replace food bowls with toys.  Extend the fun of mealtime and give your dog a mental workout with stuffed Kongs and food puzzle toys.
• Hire a pro. Professional dog walkers will come to your house on designated days and take your dog out for a walk, hike or play. It is a great feeling to come home to a happy and well-exercised pet.

If adding brain-games and exercise do not help to calm your pet when left alone, consider what changed in your dog’s world that would cause her to feel anxious.  Going to the vet to rule out a medical issue is always a good first step.  One dog began to urinate indoors at the same time new roadwork construction project was causing noise just outside of the window.  Another became frantic when a family of squirrels took up residence in the walls.  When you are at work, your dog may be dealing with new neighbors, changes in flight patterns from a nearby airport or a free-roaming neighborhood dog or cat.  Ask a neighbor or set up a webcam during the day to get to the bottom of a puzzling situation.

In the next entry, I will describe training exercises to help a mildly stressed dog.  What are your tips for keeping your dog busy during the day?  Do you have any food toy recommendations to share?

This blog post was contributed by blogger, Jeff Narucki whose blog, Senior Pooch explores the adventures and love of owning a senior pooch!

Why so old?  I recently had someone at work ask me why I would get a dog so old, although I suspect the question was really, "Why did I adopt an older dog again?"

Quite simply, I did it because they deserved a second chance, I wanted a dog, and I felt I could handle the challenge and expense.

Senior dogs do come with baggage, but honestly, some handle it much better than others. My pal Boo Boo, for example, was afraid of everything when I got him. I couldn't put my foot up to block him from going out the door first without him cowering like he was going to be kicked. For some dogs, trust doesn't come easy. It was probably six months before I noticed that he wagged his tail for the first time.

The expenses can get up there quickly. Not in every case, and sometimes not until the very end. I'd venture that breed, size, and how well they're taken care of play big factors in these areas. 

Patience is another big factor. Some dogs are stubborn, and none more so than some older dogs. I've been lucky in that once we achieved a certain degree of trust, that my dogs have had an open mind about working with me. It may very well be that older dogs are so set in their ways that they take longer to train, so patience is something that I've had to learn when dealing with challenges. On the dog's side, the biggest challenge would appear to be, at least from what I've read in the many ads for older dogs on PetFinder.com, is that they recommend the older dog, being an only dog. I could definitely see that and would never recommend dropping a puppy in with an old dog, who is more interested in sleeping than jumping around and playing all day.

That said, older dogs are frequently house trained, and are usually eager to please their new owners (at least in my case). With Rusty, this has translated into me teaching him a variety of new tricks and skills, the most important being "Leave It". We still have a ways to go, but with persistence (and the occasional treat... OK sometimes more than occasionally) he's learning all sorts of new things and is much less of the madman that I adopted. 

As far as I'm concerned, there will always be an older dog in my house.

These days, you can't have a conversation without someone saying, " I saw that on Facebook!"  Whether you are a fan of social networking or not, you can't ignore it's power to connect people to a each other, to groups, to businesses, and in this case, to a cause to save a beautiful shelter dog.

Meet Nathaniel.  Since May, Nathaniel lived at the San Jose Animal Care Center.  Every day, he patiently waited for someone to come to the shelter in search of a handsome, athletic, sweet dog who wanted nothing other than a home and a friendly human to love him.  Did I mention that he is a pit bull mix?  Unfortunately, with the bad press that never ceases to highlight this breed over all others, there are less humans out there who would consider Nathaniel because he has some pit bull in him.

The time dragged on, but Nathaniel kept his attitude in check knowing that if he was a good boy, someone would come and take him home.  Fortunately, there are these amazing people called shelter volunteers who shower the animals with love and give up their spare time to walk and assure them that the perfect person will come.

This good dog, like many others, can only deal with so much confinement.  Nathaniel was starting to exhibit classic kennel stress behavior.  Unfortunately, the shelter has no other option but to put these animals on the euthanasia list since keeping them in the shelter environment indefinitely is inhumane.

Nathaniel's time was up.  His outlook was bleak.  Little did he know that social networking would save him.  San Jose Animal Advocates decided to place a paid advertisement to plead the animal-loving population of San Jose to take action and save this dog before it was too late.  He had 24 hours for someone to go to the shelter and adopt him.

Maybe it was his photo with his soft grey eyes saying, "I've been a good boy, and have waited for so long".  Whatever it was, due to one Facebook advertisement, Nathaniel's future guardian found him just in time.  To this good citizen who is on Facebook and took immediate action to save Nathaniel's life, we salute you!  And to Facebook, well I guess I'm a believer now of the good that this phenomenon can do.  I might even rent The Social Network this weekend.

There is another very deserving dog whose life hangs in the balance.  Please see Dallas' Facebook page and share with your friends.

Lastly, many people didn't realize that our local shelter, San Jose Animal Care Center is not a no-kill shelter.   It isn't.  It takes in over 20,000 animals a year, and is one of the largest shelters in California.  There are many Nathaniels, Dallases, and so many beautiful, loving animals (dogs, cats, bunnies and rats) who keep hoping you will come and take them home.  Go visit today and find your next best friend.

The below video is for Nathaniel: 

Our local shelters and rescue groups are overflowing with adoptable dogs looking for homes and most people don't realize there is a problem.  

Why is this happening?  Many believe that the over abundance of dogs is due to the slow economy.  Dogs are being surrendered or abandoned because people can't afford to keep them.  Ironically, at the same time, the pet food/supply industry continues to grow with people spending more on their pets than they ever have.  I think the fundamental problem is that people don't realize this problem exists or how to help.   What can we, the animal-loving community of the greater San Jose area do to make a difference in the lives of these dogs?

1 - Tell everyone who expresses an interest in adopting a dog to VISIT THEIR LOCAL SHELTER FIRST!!! 
The dogs in our area shelters are in the most danger of being euthanized, especially when there are too many of them and not enough space.  In the greater San Jose area we have *3 local shelters, all of which are pleasant places to visit.   San Jose Animal Care Center, Humane Society Silicon Valley, and Silicon Valley Animal Control Authority all have wonderful dogs looking for homes to call their own.   Before visiting a shelter you can peruse the available dogs online.   Each shelter maintains a website of available animals which is updated frequently. 
*Santa Clara County Shelter is not far, in San Martin.

2 - Didn't find a perfect match at the shelters?  Check out the MANY great rescue organizations in our area. 
Our directory has a list of the local dog rescue organizations which are in the greater San Jose area.  Please check out their websites to view their available dogs.  If someone is interested in a specific breed, before they start looking for a breeder, remind them that there are numerous breed specific rescue groups.  In California, there are MANY breed specific rescue organizations like Norcal Golden Retriever Rescue or Golden Gate Basset Rescue to name a few.  There are even rescue groups that specialize in older dogs such as Muttville.  The majority of shelters and rescue organizations list their dogs on Petfinder.com.  Type in the breed you are looking for and your zip code and you'll get a list of shelter/rescue dogs meeting your criteria within seconds!

3 - Stay away from Craigslist!
On Craigslist you will often find many offers for free puppies (animals should never be free) or "pure bred" puppies at a high price from unreliable backyard breeders.  Do not advocate supporting these sources for animals.  Remember, close to 1 million adoptable companion animals are being euthanized in our shelters because people are looking to other sources to "buy" their pet.  Looking for puppies? Shelters and rescue groups have puppies all of the time!  Looking for purebred dogs, see #2 and go to the many rescue groups who work tirelessly to save dogs from overcrowded shelters.  Advocate being part of the solution, not the problem!  If everyone just told one person they know where to adopt their next pet, we would be making a HUGE difference!

4 - Volunteer at your local shelter. 
Do you have a little spare time to give to animals?  All shelters have a wide variety of volunteer tasks you can take on.  From walking dogs, to helping with adoptions, there is no limit to the impact you can have on the shelter animals.  Why not give a little love to a dog who is waiting for their permanent home?  Of course, remember to give a hug to your dog at home too!

5 - Become a dog foster parent. 
All shelters and rescue groups are constantly looking for foster homes for their animals.  With more foster homes, they can save more dogs!  Being a foster parent is extremely rewarding and bottom line, saves lives.  Check out our foster section and pick any organization, go to their website, and they will have a foster application and/or information on how to get involved as a potential foster parent!  You will not regret it, I promise you.

6 - Advocate for spay/neuter. 
If you know anyone who hasn't spayed or neutered their dog, PLEASE tell them that this is a must!  Many local shelters and organizations in the greater San Jose area offer reduced cost spay/neuter services.  Much of the pet overpopulation problem stems from the many unwanted litters that easily can be prevented. 

7 - Consider adopting a senior dog. 
Many people overlook older dogs and opt for a puppy or very young dog.  Are you sure you are ready for a puppy or a teenage dog?  Younger dogs need A LOT of training and exercise.  Older dogs are typically already trained and their personality is already formed.  With a busy life style, an older dog may be a lot easier to bring into your household.  Look at Jazzy, age 10,  from Muttville, a Bay Area rescue that specializes in older dogs.  He was saved from an area shelter a day before he was going to be euthanized.  Wouldn't you like to come home to him every night?  Look at those beautiful brown eyes!

Please, please, please SHARE this post with people you know! 

We can make a difference in the lives of animals in our community one at a time.  If you need help in your quest to adopt a shelter or rescue animal, feel free to contact us.  Do you have an adoption story to share, please feel free to contact us too.  In closing, the Shelter Pet Project has made some very effective and charming videos to help raise awareness for shelter pets.  Let's try to help more shelter/rescue dogs end up like the dog in the video.