My Darling Dogs Articles

It is a purebred dog for only one reason: because someone cared and supervised the birth of every single generation. For decades past, or even for hundreds of years in some breeds, someone saw that the right dog was bred to the right bitch, and reared the pups to a healthy adulthood. Think how hard it is to keep a bitch in heat from cavorting about with any cur that passes by. Do you think that she cares about the lineage of her whelps? No! Humans care! And ever since the breed was originated, humans have supervised every step to improve on the features that make every breed useful, special, and unique."

  As Phyllis A. Holst so aptly describes in her book Canine Reproduction, we have a huge responsibility to keep our breed "pure, strong, and correct." Each breed has specific characteristics typical of that breed and we want to breed dogs that are of excellent quality, that meets their breed standard, have wonderful temperaments, and are in top health without hereditary defects. When you are looking for a breed to fit in with your family's lifestyle, know what you want. Do you want a large dog, small dog, guard dog, working dog, a loveable companion, one who is good with children? All of these are important questions. In this day where "designer" dogs are popular, it is still reassuring to know that you can find a dog specifically bred to suit your requirements. 

  Our Bolognese are carefully bred to maintain their specific breed characteristics. Bolognese are intelligent, sensitive, affectionate, and playful. They have been bred for centuries as strictly companion dogs. They are very interactive and love to greet you with their "bolo" dance.  Bolognese sat in the courts of kings and queens. Now they are accessible to you and your family as wonderful pets and loving companions! 

  Casper a Bolognese, lives in Florida with his owners Ann and Bruce. They trained Casper to potty in their bidet as a young puppy. They say Casper never has accidents in the house. While we might definitely consider this the ultimate in potty training a puppy, most of us don't have bidets and so we resort to taking our puppies to the great outdoors or training them to a puppy pad. The main thing to remember when training a puppy is to be very consistent. Always take your dog to the same location, use the same command such as "Potty" or "Out" or whatever you decide and have the puppy on a leash if you are not in a fenced-in area or yard. Wherever you take them, that is where they will learn to go. If you are training to a puppy pad, keep it sufficient distance away from his crate or sleeping area and food. Puppies like to keep their sleeping area and living area clean, so keeping the puppy pad 5 or 6 feet from this area lets him know this is the place to go. Many puppy pads have a scent on them that attracts the puppy to them. When the puppy goes where he is supposed , always praise him and/or offer him a small treat. When training him to go outside, at first you must take him out every hour or so. Stay no more than five or six minutes. When he goes, praise him lavishly, offer him a small treat and then take him back indoors. Then he will learn that going outside is the time to relieve himself, not play time, If he doesn't go, but goes when you come inside, say: "No!" firmly and take him back outside for a few minutes. Always take your puppy out after sleeping and eating, and after play periods and anytime he indicates he is looking for a place to potty... most commonly, by sniffing. Bolognese are smart dogs and it doesn't take too long to get them trained. Be patient however, they are just babies and do not have fully developed muscle control. With consistency and patience, you will not only have a happy puppy, but you will be an even happier owner!​

After thousands of years of living together, dogs are attuned to us like no other animal. Given the fact that dogs have been around a long time, dog research itself is a surprising new area of science. Professor Daniel Mills of the University of Lincoln in England says: "What makes our relationships so special is the dog's ability to be able to read our emotions so effectively."  

We treat them like they are fellow human beings, with all the thoughts, feelings and emotions of a family member. We share our lives, our homes, even our beds with them. One area that professor Mills is using is eye tracking technology to probe how close our relationship is. "When humans express emotions in our faces, we don't do it symmetrically. It's been shown that, if you take somebody's face when they're expressing some emotion like happiness or anger or something like that, there is a difference between the left and the right side. One of the theories is that maybe our emotions are more faithfully presented in the right side of our face, and that's the side that we tune in to And when we look at a face, we have what's known as a natural left-gaze bias, so you naturally look much more towards the left, i.e. the right hand side, of somebody's face." Eye-tracking software demonstrates that, when presented with a human face, we nearly always look left first. Daniel Mills wanted to find out if dogs us the same trick to read human faces. "We found that dogs, when they are looking at pictures of dog faces or objects, will look randomly on the left or the right. But, when it comes to human faces, we made a remarkable discovery. Dogs look at movement on the left of human faces. As far as we know, no other animal has this relationship with the human face. And dogs don't do this with each other. This suggests that dogs have acquired a new skill enabling them to communicate with us on an emotional level. Evidence appears to underpin our conviction that dogs understand us in a way that other animals cannot."  

Another interesting discovery is that our interaction with dogs has a biochemical signature that may be similar to what happens between a mother and baby. Professor Kerstin Uvnas-Moberg has been studying the role of the hormone oxytocin in creating the bond between mothers and their newborns. Oxytocin helps the mother quickly establish the positive feelings and the bond between mother and baby. Professor Uvnas-Moberg believes oxytocin plays a similar role in the bond between dogs and their owners. To test the theory, blood samples are taken from dogs and their owners before and during a petting session. "We had a basal blood sample, and there was nothing, and then we had the sample taken at one minute and three minutes, and you could see this beautiful peak of oxytocin. The fascinating thing is, actually, that the peak of oxytocin is similar to the one we see in breastfeeding mothers. Surprisingly, it's not just the owners who are affected. Blood samples taken from dogs reveal a similar burst of oxytocin. It is a mutual kind of interaction." Oxytocin has a powerful physiological effect. It can lower the heart rate and blood pressure and may lead to reduced levels of stress. Research indicates that owning a dog could even extend your life. If you have a dog, you are much less likely to have a heart attack, and if you have a heart attack, you are three to four times more likely to survive it if you have a dog than if you don't.  

The rest of the interview describes studies with wolves, chimpanzees, foxes, and the differences between these animals from the time they are babies and their relationship to humans in comparison to dogs. Puppies trust people and are interested in them right away. Humans respond to puppies and seem to have a natural desire to nurture them. Experiments show that there is no animal so connected to us like dogs. As Daniel Mills concludes, "I don't think it's any coincidence that that dog is referred to as man's best friend."After thousands of years of living together, dogs are attuned to us like no other animal. Given the fact that dogs have been around a long time, dog reasearch itself is a surprising new area of science. Professor Daniel Mills of the University of Lincoln in England says: "What makes our relationships so special is the dog's ability to be able to read our emotions so effectively."

 Puppies often tend to nip at fingers while playing and even though this is the natural way that puppies play with their siblings--nipping and pulling and rolling, it can be a bit annoying and sometimes painful as their little teeth get sharper as they grow. A trainer advised that when playing with your puppy, if he/she tends to bite, stop playing, rub butter on your hand .Let the puppy lick it off, all the while saying "Gentle, gentle." Do this a couple times a day for 2-3 days. Then later if the puppy forgets and bites, again, just say "Gentle, gentle" and the puppy will respond accordingly. What a great positive reinforcementDo 

Sometimes Dogs can get stains around their eyes. There are several reasons for this.  First, it can be genetic. Dogs can be born with narrow tear ducts or extra eyelashes that curl under and rub the eye.  We don't breed dogs that are predisposed to these genetic characteristic.  

Puppies can tear while they are teething and receiving vaccinations. Puppies cut teeth up to 8 months. This may cause pressure on the tear ducts. Just like a human baby, where teething can cause runny noses and excessive tearing, so it does in a puppy.  

During this time try applying a little coconut oil under the puppy's eyes. Coconut oil helps stop the tears from penetrating the hair.  Tear staining is actually caused by red yeast in their systems.  Coconut oil also has anti-fungal and anti-bacterial properties.  To help prevent staining by rubbing a little coconut  oil under their eyes.  It stops the tears from soaking into the hair.  We also let them lick a little off the spoon!  

If your dog is an adult that has had no previous tearing, and suddenly begins tearing, see your vet to check for ear infections and tooth problems.  Even though tear staining can occur, it is solvable.