When the dog digs... and digs... how to prevent that war zone look from overtaking your yard... okay, I'm a hypocrite... our yard does indeed look like a war zone ... and our dog did it and he's been at it for years. If we have time today, we're going to Home Depot to find some vinyl-covered chicken wire to lay down in the war zones of our back yard. Our dog doesn't dig... No, he eats flowers and the tasty herbs, and he scruffs the yard ... a lot... He must think it's a more efficient means of eradicating the grass and ground cover. I would
never recommend you clip a dog's toenails to the quick... (as suggested in the article). [Do It Yourself Network]
Related: The Animal Doctor Explains Digging by Dogs. He may have explained it, but he didn't offer any real solutions to keeping a dog from digging up your garden. We had the same problem with our dog, who discovered some chipmunks living under a statue in our garden. He was successful at upending the statue and almost demolishing himself and he was successful at digging giant holes but he never caught the chipmunks. We ended up trapping the chipmunks and releasing them in Sligo Creek Park. [Washington Post]
As for digging, we tried some commercial products which work by providing an offensive odor to the dog so he won't enter the area. Of course, those didn't work either. No, the simple solution is to use plain old dog poop to stop him. Take some of his fresh doodies and drop them in his digging holes when he isn't looking. Cover them up. (You have to be stealthy, because it's the element of surprise that will get him). Allow him to enter the area on his own and commence digging. When he discovers his own poop in his hole, he'll be very offended. If he's smart, he'll be cured immediately of digging. If not, after one or two more times of finding his own doggie delights, he will be completely cured of digging. This worked for our dog, and he was an ambitious digger. [We got this tip from
George Cockrell, a Washington DC area dog trainer.]
Cattle banned from market after exposure to pet food ...you don't want to eat pet food either... UK In an effort to prevent the spread of mad cow disease, two UK farmers who exposed their cattle to pet food are forbidden to bring those cattle to market.
'Although pet food containing processed animal proteins is permitted on farms - for domestic pet use - [UK] regulations state that it must be securely packaged and stored to prevent cattle and other livestock from gaining access to it...' [UK Pet Industry News] (It isn't clear whether the cattle even ate the pet food... but this regulation is alarming. What does it mean for pet owners who buy pet food ... are Fluffy and Fido exposed to mad cow disease from their pet food? What pet food is safe? ... I buy Bench & Field certified organic dog food, but we've given our dog many other dog foods... )
Owner drags dog to death behind car .... says she didn't realize the dog would be hurt... TX 'The owner of dog that had to be put to sleep after it was dragged behind a car for two miles told authorities Thursday that she was the driver and didn't realize the animal was being hurt as she drove it to the animal shelter...' [Corpus Christi Caller Times] (now that's stupid... hope she doesn't apply to be a cop.)
Cop rescues dog from ferocious skunk ... without firing a shot... NH Most cops are
not dog-killing pistol shooters. One such police officer actually tried to rescue a dog from the jaws of a rabid skunk.
'A police officer trying to rescue a dog from the jaws of a skunk Wednesday night was forced to kill the wild animal in the effort...' He first blinded the skunk with a flash-light, which prompted the skunk to release the dog from its jaws and to attack him instead. He used pepper spray at first and only after the skunk kept attacking, did he take his baton out and hit it on the head (which killed it instantly)... [Nashua Telegraph]
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