Here's yet another story of an assistance dog being used to help a child with autism. The story is short, but has some great footage and mentions costs associated with such programs. Training dogs for this type of work takes months of daily work - it's costly, but you can also see it can make a tremendous difference in the life of a person with a handicap.

Several months ago I posted an entry regarding a CD titled "Through a Dog's Ear Volume 1 - Music to Calm Your Canine Companion". My initial entry commented on many favorable comments I had heard from other canine professionals. I'm happy to report that my own experience with the CD has been very positive.

"Shep", one of my own dogs adopted at 6 months of age, has always disliked our patio room. The room sometimes creaks and makes noises with temperature changes. Because Shep was poorly socialized to noises as a pup, he is very anxious in this room. When I took Shep in the room and played the CD, his normal anxiety subsided quickly. How quickly? By track 3 he was laying down, his breathing slowed, and his normal trembling stopped. By track 5 he moved over to his mat and lay down again, this time laying on his side, resting comfortably. WOW - impressive! NOTE: For best results follow the instructions included with the CD for introducing your dog to the music under non-stressful conditions first.

Today I'd like to share news received from Lisa Spector (the pianist on the CD), of this group's "Shelter Program". This "Shelter Program" makes this great music available to Shelters and Rescues who are willing to participate in a study. The study is geared to track the effectiveness of this music in improving adoption successes - a very noble cause. If you're affiliated with a Shelter or Rescue I strongly urge you to spend a few minutes reading about this program. More info is available at: http://throughadogsear.com/shelter_program.htm

I sincerely wish this group great success. I believe their music can really make a difference in many homes, and I applaud their new program focused on helping those dogs who still need a home. I hope to share more news about yet another project from this group very soon - stay tuned!

Cincinnati officials have been under pressure to address a growing problem with Pit Bull attacks and issues in several area neighborhoods. The City has had legislation for decades (1984) regarding this issue, but the problem continues.

It seems the most recent attempt to improve the problem is to get several police officers trained to recognize Pit Bulls. The officers would then be able to remove the dogs from owners that have not registered and/or insured their dog per the City's laws.

Cincinnati may feel improving Pit Bull identification is a solution, but it's not an easy thing to do. Check this link to see how well you can "find the Pit Bull". Additionally, breed specific laws unfairly penalize responsible owners and increase burdens on shelters - read more here.

Getting serious about vicious dogs means getting serious about the cause - irresponsible people breeding or raising problem dogs. Yes, laws can help, but only when they target the source instead of the symptoms.

A Police K9 was killed yesterday in a shooting incident it PA. The Police K9, named Aulf, was 6 years old and was assigned to an officer who is a 12-year veteran of the police bureau. According to police, the incident began when a Pittsburgh Police Officer attempted to stop a man believed to be holding a weapon. The Officer saw a gun and released the dog who the suspect shot. Further gunfire was exchanged and the suspect was killed. The dog was taken to a a local vet clinic but died of his injuries.

Pittsburgh Police report their K9s receive 3-4 injuries per year in the line of duty.

A NC Trooper has been fired after video was taken of him kicking his dog. While the video below shows disturbing footage of abuse that should not be tolerated, there are a few other points that deserve some discussion here.

First, the story indicates that the Trooper was trying to get his dog to release a toy that was provided as a reward during scent detection training. I would question why rewards beyond verbal praise by a handler are being used. This common practice with a lot of Police K9s is entirely unnecessary. A well trained dog that respects its owner/handler will be more than satisfied to work hard for only verbal praise. If that's not the case, then the dog doesn't have the greatest respect for the owner/handler IMO.

That lack of respect can cause a lot of problems when training any dog, but especially working dogs. If this dog wouldn't release a toy, how reliably will it release a suspect that it has taken down? Any Police training that focuses on heightening a dog's drive to attack without concurrently establishing strong control and releases is asking for trouble.

Certainly this Trooper's conduct appears "over the top", but the story also notes this dog was due for retirement (and actually was retired) after this incident. So here we have a dog that's been on the street for any number of years and won't release a toy when the handler tells it to release. Perhaps the NC State Police should reconsider their training practices, as well as acceptable levels of performance and reliability from dogs they have working in the field.