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.

A recurring theme we see in the animal welfare world is the economy causing severe hardship to the local animal shelters and local animal rescue groups.  In an effort to raise much needed funds to continue saving pigeons and doves, MickaCoo Pigeon and Dove Rescue has applied for a Pepsi Refresh Project grant and is eligible for $10,000.  Elizabeth Young, Director of MickaCoo has contributed the below story.  Learn about the great work this local animal rescue group engages in, and in this case, it's as easy as a click to make a difference in the lives of pigeons and doves in our community!


MickaCoo Pigeon and Dove Rescue (MickaCoo.org) provides vet care, foster homes and adoption placement for hundreds of domestic, unreleasable pigeons and doves that would otherwise be euthanized in Bay Area animal shelters.  Since 2008, we have been an all-volunteer division of nonprofit parrot rescue Mickaboo Companion Bird Rescue (Mickaboo.org) and we are always in need of donations, funding and adopters to help these gentle, intelligent and usually overlooked birds.  MickaCoo has an opportunity to win a much-needed $10,000 grant in this month's Pepsi Refresh Project.  The little birds that many disparage are making a surprisingly strong showing in this month’s Pepsi Refresh Challenge for a $10,000 grant. Currently, the pigeons are hanging tough in 14th place out of 160 worthy entrants in the $10K category. They need to be in the top 15 to win the funds that will keep MickaCoo’s rescue efforts afloat. Voting closes in just a few days, on September 30.

Domestic Pigeons and doves are different from urban pigeons. They can’t survive without human care.  Abandoned domestic pigeons and doves that aren’t rescued will die of starvation, illness, predation, or euthanasia.

• Most animal shelters consider domestic pigeons and doves “unadoptable.” Shelters euthanize them at a higher rate than almost any other type of animal.
• Pigeons and doves make great pets. They are gentle, smart, and easy to care for.
• The San Francisco Bay Area’s MickaCoo Pigeon and Dove Rescue has mobilized enough support, volunteers, donations, and aviaries to save more than 450 of these “impossible” birds in the past 3 1/2 years, placing them in safe, forever homes. This year alone, MickaCoo has found homes for 200 pigeons and doves, like Yuzu and Quince. 

To learn more about MickaCoo Pigeon and Dove Rescue, please see their website at http://MickaCoo.org.

With our society's preoccupation with reality television, perhaps the next new show should be "Kitten Season: San Jose"?   Unfortunately most people would be shocked and horrified at the realities of how our area shelters, humane societies and cat rescue groups struggle to save these tiny lives during kitten season in the greater San Jose area.

Every year between April and October area stray, feral and domesticated cats give birth to many kittens.  Statistic:   Did you know that left unaltered a cat and her offspring can produce over 420,000 kittens in 7 years?

Sadly six months into kitten season, pre-wean kittens (kittens under 8-weeks-old) are still pouring into our local shelter, San Jose Animal Care Center.  The shelter reaches out on a daily basis to area rescue groups with a list of cats and kittens who need rescue.  Many of these are underweight kittens.  If the *rescue groups can't take these kittens which are typically under 8-weeks-old and weighing less than 2 pounds, they are sadly euthanized because  they are not "adoptable" until they are old enough--and big enough--to be spayed or neutered. Statistic:  More than 3500 pre-wean kittens are euthanized in Santa Clara County shelters every year.
*rescue groups rely on having foster homes to allow them to save more animals

So the logical question you might have is, what should you do if You find homeless kittens? According to Laurie Melo, founder of Itty Bitty Orphan Kitty Rescue "If people would only foster these kittens until they are big enough to be spayed or neutered, they could be placed for adoption through a shelter or rescue group and have a chance at life."  This community involvement is critical due to lack of resources and staff at our local shelter to care for these kittens.

In an effort to educate the public on what is involved in fostering kittens, Itty Bitty Orphan Kitty Rescue created the Pre-Wean Kitten Project.  As part of the Pre-Wean Project, IBOK Rescue provides Starter Packs available to more than 20 Bay Area shelters and to all 40 Pet Food Express stores.   In addition, IBOK produced a 30-minute instructional video on how to care for pre-weaned kittens.  The video shows you everything you need to know to hand-raise the kittens until they are old enough to be adopted and is available on DVD and online (watch it here).  I personally have used the pre-wean packet and attended IBOK's class at HSSV.  As a result, my current foster kittens are thriving.  Until you try bottle feeding these little ones, you have no idea how rewarding it is, not to mention life-saving for the kittens.

What else can you do to help? Spay/neuter ALL of your pet cats.  This act alone helps save thousands of lives!  In our area, the San Jose Animal Care Center has low cost/spay neuter clinics for cats on a weekly basis.  Make your appointments online and for $20 females, $15 males you can do the responsible thing for your cat/s.

Reality check:  As I was leaving HSSV with my foster kittens, someone had brought in a card board box full of kittens found in a dumpster.  Again, please save a life and spay/neuter all of your pets.  That's the least we all can do!

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: 

We are thankful for the nice coverage of our upcoming fundraiser, and the ongoing Chihuahua Crisis in San Jose in the San Jose Mercury News and the Silicon Valley Community Newspapers. 

San Jose Mercury News Article
Silicon Valley Community Newspapers Article

It took Mary's article in our local Rose Garden Resident (pictured) for me to realize that our group is 1 years old!  Time flies as they say, and in the animal welfare world this is especially true given the endless numbers of homeless animals in our community who need to be saved.

Some of the SJAA goals I would like to see for this year include:

1 -  Strengthen the ties between the area rescue groups
2 - Support a mobile spa/neuter van service in San Jose
3 - Attend more community events to raise awareness of the homeless pet population in San Jose
4 - Promote the hard work of the animal rescue group volunteers
5 - Promote our local area shelter

Thanks to all who have made this year possible for our little community group.  We look forward to a productive year, and welcome any and all feedback!

July 4th may be a wonderful patriotic fun-filled holiday for us humans, but not so much for our pets.  In fact, more pets go missing on July 4th than any other day of the year! 

Since we are about a week away from this national holiday, it is the perfect time to be prepared in case your pet is lost.  So here is our San Jose Animal Advocates list of the 5 things you should do immediately if your pet is lost:


1 - Notify your neighbors.  Email a picture of your pet and where you last saw it to your neighborhood email group.  If your neighborhood doesn't have an email group, knock on some doors and let your immediate neighbors know.  Ask them to check their garages as often cats will go into a garage to explore and get locked in there!  Also, consider using a service like FindToto.com which alerts people in your neighborhood that your pet is missing.  They actually have a database with phone numbers of your neighbors!

2 - Post a flyer.  This age-old idea of posting a Lost Pet flyer actually does work!  There is even a useful online tool to help you create a good lost pet flyer asap!  Post these flyers on telephone polls, put under your neighbors' mats or in their mailboxes, etc.

3 - Search online for lost San Jose* pets.  Do a quick search to see if your pet has ended up at the San Jose Animal Care Center.  We have created an easy link for you to check all animals (dogs, cats, other) who have been turned in to our local shelter.  Here is the link:  http://bit.ly/sj-lost-pets
*Applies to residents of San Jose, Saratoga, Los Gatos, Milpitas & Cupertino.  If you live in another jurisdiction, see our Directory for the corresponding shelter.

4 - Go to the San Jose Animal Care Center.  Did you know that a shelter only needs to hold on to your pet for 72 hours?  If you are a resident of San Jose, Cupertino, Saratoga, Los Gatos or Milpitas and your pet is lost in that area, it will be brought to the San Jose Animal Care Center.   We recommend that you GO to the shelter and complete a lost pet report, and take a lost pet tour to see if your pet is there.  Hours for lost pet tours are Tuesday - Saturday 11:00am to 6:30 and Sunday 11:00am to 4:30pm.  They are closed on Mondays.  Need directions to the shelter? 

5 - Place a lost pet ad on Craigslist.  Since many people are not looking in the newspaper as much these days, it is a great idea to post a lost pet notice on Craigslist.  It is free, and it just might help you get your best friend back.

Speaking of July 4th, San Jose Animal Advocates will be at the Rose, White & Blue festival after the parade.  Come by and say hello, and we will have a handy reference card with these lost pet tips and more!  Have a safe and happy 4th!

Meet Hannah.  She is 9 years old and last year found an injured baby bird in her yard and took it to the Wildlife Center of Silicon Valley.   Through this experience she learned about what to do when you find injured wildlife.  She shared this experience along with a drawing of a baby mockingbird in a story featured in our Fall newsletter. 

This past holiday weekend, Hannah held her annual bake sale and decided that the proceeds should be split between the Wildlife Center of Silicon Valley and Golden Gate Greyhound rescue group.  She remembered the organization that took care of her injured baby mockingbird and wanted to do something to help other injured wildlife.

Have you heard about animal rescue groups, but don't know who they are, and what they do? 

San Jose Animal Advocates is excited to start a new series called "Get to Know Your Local Animal Rescue Group".  These local animal rescue groups work tirelessly with our area shelters to "rescue" as many animals as they can.  These animals typically fall into the following categories:  1) they have treatable medical conditions;  2) they are not old enough to be adopted; 3) they are not doing well in the shelter environment; 4)  they have been in the shelter too long.  The rescue group will pull these animals from the area shelters and do whatever it takes to rehabilitate them so that they can be adopted into a loving home.  Since rescue groups do not have a facility to show their animals, you will often see them at adoption fairs at local pet stores.  Their animals live in homes with foster parents who help make sure the animal is happy, healthy and ready for their forever home!

Please take a look at our directory for a list of our local animal rescue groups.  They are always looking for help and we welcome you to contact them directly to see how you can help!

Our first animal rescue group profile is for The Perfect Dog Rescue.

Location:
Our mailing address is PO Box 361441, Milpitas, CA, 95036, but we have foster homes throughout the bay area. 

Mission:
We believe that ANY dog can be the perfect dog for the right individual. The Perfect Dog actually rescues the “IMperfect” dogs who have simply been overlooked at the shelter or who have special medical or behavioral issues which puts them at risk of euthanasia, and finds them the perfect homes. We never discriminate. If there is a dog in need, it doesn’t matter its age, breed, condition, history, etc. If it needs help, we will do what it takes to find a way to help the dog. We believe in giving every dog a chance and we believe there is the right home for every dog out there. We currently get most of our dogs from the Santa Clara County Animal Shelter in San Martin, CA.

Where can the community find profiles of animals up for adoption? 
ThePerfectDog.org, Adoptapet.com, Petfinder.com and Facebook.

How can the community help? 
There is always a need for foster parents! Contact Diana at (510) 333-4420 or [email protected] to learn more about becoming a foster parent.

Favorite rescue story:
Dewey was 10yo dachshund with heart failure, picked up as a stray at the shelter. He was in such bad shape that he coughed all the way and threw up before we even got into the car. After a checkup at the vet, he was given medication to help his heart, and he began to make improvements. Only a week later, he tumbled downhill again, much worse than before. Turns out, in addition to his heart failure, he had come down with a horrible abdominal infection. 7 medications and a couple weeks later, he was bouncing around on his walks again. After the scare of nearly losing this wonderful character that Dewey was, it was the greatest reward to see how much his health improved and how much better he felt after, simply, the proper amount of TLC. He is a very happy guy, always ready to go, and loves life! Despite his heart condition, he found a WONDERFUL forever home!

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.