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Sunday, December 23, 2018

Schoodle Sunday: Things That Helped My Anxious Dog

I’ve had my dog, Daisy, for over a year now! And boy, have I learned a lot in that year! She’s also chilled out quite a bit, so I wanted to share what helped with this. Some are things that you can control, some are not. And some may not work for your dog, even if they worked for mine.

When I first got my dog, she was super anxious. She would never ever sit still and spend hours walking in circles and whining. She was super clingy and on-edge. Because I hadn’t had a dog before I didn’t know if this was normal or not. Thankfully, my vet noticed her anxious behavior and stepped in. Two of my friends (who are very good dog owners and have more experience than I did) also helped me in the first couple of weeks. Thanks to the things outlined in this post, my dog is much less anxious and much happier than when I first got her. 

Look at the pictures – she's like a completely different dog. Notice how tense she is in the first two pictures, from when I first got her. Then look at her newer pictures where she looks more relaxed and happy. <3 span=""> 

 





  1. Age/time Its only been one year and already my dog seems less teenager-y. (I adopted her just before her second birthday, now she’s approaching her third.) Like everyone has told me, dogs mellow out with age.
  1. Medicine This was a decision made with my dog’s veterinarian – because of her extreme level of anxiety, medicine was a good solution for her. It took a while to kick in and there were plenty of other factors that contributed to her current demeanor, but this helped a lot!
  1. Living in One Place
  2. When I adopted my dog, I was her third owner and it was her fourth physical home. Because of our move earlier this year, our current apartment is her sixth physical home – and all of those changes happened within a six month period of her life! Even a human would be pretty anxious if they had been through so much. Now that we’ve been in the same place for almost a year, she’s relaxed a lot. She knows where “home” is and who her owner is. I’m not going to leave her and if I do (for work or whatever) I’ll be back soon enough!
  1. Routine
  2. It took a while before Daisy and I got into a groove. We still adjust daily schedules slightly for every season, but for the most part, each day is the same: 
  1. Owner wakes up and takes shower/gets ready for work 
  1. Owner takes Daisy outside to do her business 
  1. Owner preps room for the day (she stays in my room during the day and I try to make it “dog-proof”. Every day I open the blinds, give her her food, make sure her water bowl is full, give her her medicine with a scoop of peanut butter, move all my bedding into my closet, put a sheet [set aside just for her] on my bed, and then move anything off of my nightstand into my closet as well. I take off her leash and give her some pets goodbye. [Unless she’s absorbed in her food and could really care less if I was leaving. ðŸ˜›]
  1. Dog Park If you’re a dog lover, you’re probably well aware that a tired/exercised dog is a happy dog. My new apartment complex has a dog park and it has made a WORLD of difference. I will write a separate post on how me and my dog got used to the dog park, but now it’s fantastic. My dog can run at a much faster pace than if she were attached to me via a leash. Plus, there are other dogs for her to play with, and them chasing each other definitely wears her out! There are lots of sniffs for her (which is mentally stimulating, I think), and she gets to socialize with other dogs. I was afraid to take her at first since she barks and jumps on dogs when she meets them – but she’s only high strung for thirty seconds or so. Then she goes and does her own thing or plays with the dog – depending on that dog’s signals. Anyways, my dog seems much happier now that she can play with friends of her own species and now that she gets a lot of excercise. (We would go on a lot of walks before we discovered the dog park, but these just didn’t wear her out as much.) Plus, it’s great for my mental health because I get to socialize with people too. ðŸ™‚

Sunday, September 2, 2018

Schnoodle Sunday - A Day with Daisy Dog

(Note - I wrote this post about six months ago but didn't post it. A lot of this info is still great, which is why I'm sharing it. Thankfully, Daisy has gotten a lot less hyperactive and anxious now that we're settled into our apartment.)

Don't judge me too much, but sometimes staying home all day with Daisy drives me a little... crazy. She has a lot of energy and I'm very much a couch potato. Here's how one of our more successful days went - I discovered that frequent (but short) training sessions, as well as distracting toys, helped a lot.

Distracting Toys Ideas:
Frozen Kong filled with peanut butter
Frozen Kong bone filled with peanut butter
Kong stuffed with beef treats
Kong bone stuffed with training treats
Webbed ball stuffed with training treats (or kibble)
Webbed "drumstick" filled with crunchy treats
Rawhide roll
Bull stick
Beef Knee Cap
Infinite Bento Ball

6:00 Wake up and go for 45 minute walk
6:45 Feed Daisy, give medicine
8:00 Five minute training session (I like this book for teaching the basics and this website for other ideas)
8:05 Give distracting toy (And if neccessary, prepare/freeze another one)
Repeat every hour :P
12:00 Take outside to potty
4:00 Go on a 30 minute walk

Sunday, August 26, 2018

Schnoodle Sunday - Doggie Comics

I just discovered Off the Leash comics, and they're adorable! Linked below are two comics that I think best personify my doggo.

http://offtheleashdogcartoons.com/off-the-leash-dog-cartoons/the-belly-scratch/#.W3iLYOhKjIU

http://offtheleashdogcartoons.com/off-the-leash-dog-cartoons/the-cling-on/#.W3iSfehKjIU

What comics (from any strip) best describe your dog? I'd love to read them!


Wednesday, August 22, 2018

Watch It Wednesday - Week 1

Hi all! Sorry for the inconsistent posting - I've been focusing on my book blog (akbookworm.com, if you want to check it out). Since "Reading Wednesday" has been moved to AKBookworm, here's "Watch It Wednesday" to take its place. Here are random YouTube videos I discovered and enjoyed. They're not necessarily new, but they were new to me. I hope you enjoy!

Some really awesome nail art:


I just discovered these mashups, and they're great! This one is my favorite so far:


Apparently pumpkin spice is already back? Here's why we like it so much:


This YouTube channel is in Spanish! I find it a good way to practice my listening, since I've seen similar videos on English channels... so I have some context as to what's going on!



Blast from the Past
(The oldest video on my "Liked Videos" list)

This is a really, really, stupid video. But I've never been able to watch it without laughing!

Monday, August 20, 2018

Happiness Podcasts!

Welcome to Makeover Monday! Here I hope to feature all aspects of a makeover - from hair and nails to fitness and happiness. Today I want to share with you two of my favorite happiness podcasts - they go over the science of how to be happy and share many great tips to incorporate into your everyday life.




My friend recommended The Science of Happiness. In this podcast they have a "guinea pig" (usually a really interesting person) and have them try a happiness activity from The Greater Good Science Center. They introduce the activity and discuss the person's experience. In the second half of the podcast, they go behind the science of why each particular activity makes someone happy.

Happier with Gretchen Rubin is a little less science based, but is still fantastic. Gretchen and her sister give weekly happiness tips (I love these!) and discuss different aspects of happiness and hurdles throughout their lives. They also focus on creating good habits.

What's your favorite happiness-themed podcast? (Or, what podcasts make you happy?)

Sunday, August 19, 2018

Schnoodle Sunday - Things My Dog and I Have in Common

It was a stressful six months or so after I got Daisy. We moved in the middle of that, which didn't help either of our stress levels. :P But I did a lot of learning and growing as a dog owner, and Daisy did a lot of calming and relaxing as we settled into a daily routine. I'm so glad I have her in my life, even if she drives me crazy every once in a while.
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Here's just a funny post for you about things my dog and I have in common.

1. We both love to devour good books
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Do you notice the bite taken out of the corner of the book?
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2. We both love getting packages in the mail
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She opened this entirely by herself. (There's dog food inside, so there was nothing that could hurt her, and it sure occupied her for a while!)
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3. We both have great taste in accessories
(I couldn't get a good picture of this one, but she's done her fair share of chewing on purses and shoes.)
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4. We both like playing with yarn
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You should see her go to town "attacking" the yarn, throwing it in the air, and getting it to unravel and take up more space than you imagine one ball of yarn could take! (Also, none of the yarn is super tight on her [even though it appears it might be] and she had my full supervision as well as help getting untangled.)

What do you and your dog have in common?

Saturday, August 18, 2018

Sippin' Saturday - Starbucks White Mocha Frappuccino

I'm trying to move away from drinking sugary drinks, but I haven't completely done so yet! So until then, you'll probably see more of these posts. :)

I'm not sure if I've shared the following drink with you, but I've been enjoying it enough lately that I'm going to share it anyways.


This drink is very, very sweet, so if that's not your thing, you won't like this drink. However, if you're a fan of the white mocha, then this is a great alternative for summer! Same flavors, caffeine rush, and sugar rush, but it won't make you miserably hot when it's already 115+ outside.

What's your favorite frappuccino at Starbucks?

Thursday, August 16, 2018

Thrifty Thursday - August 16, 2018

Welcome to Thrifty Thursday! I hope to make this a regular feature where I share different ways to save money and make some extra! A couple of caveats:
* Some of these deals may only be applicable locally (I'm in the Phoenix, AZ area)
* Some of these deals may not be available to everyone. Sometimes apps give custom deals.
* I'm new to this! So there's a lot for me to learn, budget-wise.

Ways to Earn

Sell Stuff on Ebay - This week's idea - sell unused dog toys. My dog ended up with way more than any she would ever use. On to Ebay they go!

Use Long Game - If you save using this app (it's FDIC insured), you get points that you can use to  play virtual games... that have real rewards! I earned $3, which isn't much, but is something.

Follow Up on Fees/Charges - Stay on top of things! And don't be afraid to ask what unknown or unexpected charges are. This can help you save (or recoup) some cash.

IBotta - I don't treat these like coupons - I treat it like I earn something in exchange for buying something. So usually if I wouldn't buy it at the full price anyways, I'm not going to buy the product for IBotta. I also try to focus on $$ rewards instead of cent rewards.
(Don't have IBotta? You can use my referral link here - this will help both of us earn some extra cash!)
Bonuses I'm going to try for:
Back to Basics Bonus - Receive $5 when you redeem 4 different offers.
Best Foods Real Ketchup and Mayonnaise - Receive a total of $4 when you buy both.

Ways to Save

Fry's Friday Freebies - If you have the Fry's app, every week they have a coupon for something free on Friday. Two weeks ago I got a free box of mac and cheese. Yum!

Also, Nabisco snack crackers are 99 cents a box on Friday/Saturday. (Limit 5, I think)




Sunday, January 14, 2018

Dog Links I Love

This post is inspired by Modern Mrs. Darcy's Links I Love series. Today I want to share with you dog-related links that I found on the web. These were entertaining, helpful, or useful in other ways.

Veterinarian-Approved Advice on How to Train a Dog - wikiHow

How to Care for Dogs After Spaying Surgery | PetHelpful

Doggie Daycare Can Be a Wonderful ... - Whole Dog Journal

The Truth About Dog Daycare | FernDog Training

Help! My Dog Barks & Lunges At Other Dogs! — Your Dog's Friend

My Dog Doesn’t Like Other Dogs: 5 steps to Stop the Barking and Lunging

Is Your New Dog Making You Miserable? You’re Not Alone

Here are the pins I've found. Please pin them from Pinterest or the original source, and not my blog. :) Clicking on the picture will take you to the pin.




I'm sure this will be a periodic post on my blog, so keep an eye out for even more links to doggie-related content. :)


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