NEW In This Issue!

	Two of The Five Senses
	Announcement
	Dog In Need
	Did You Know?
	Dog Behaviors & Abuse

Issue #0009 - Published by L. Neilson

KKI is absolutely committed to teaching what is believed to be the “Truth” about canines and their behavior. KKI will always put the well being of the dog first and foremost, even in the face of adversity.

I will discuss each of the five senses in the order of importance to the dog, at least as far as us mere humans can determine.

The Sense of Smell

The sense of smell can be considered the dogs' primary sense. Dogs use their sense of smell for communication, learning where they are, hunting and indicating food preferences. They recognize their owners and their home more by smell than by sight. The sense of smell is important for locating and tasting food and may even have an effect on the taste of food. If a dog does not like the smell of food they will not eat it. A dog's sense of smell is a million times or more sensitive than humans. Perception of odors varies depending on the odors chemical composition, ambient temperature and molecular weight of the scent molecules. Heavy molecules that are somewhat more soluble in water are more easily smelled. These are the underlying principles of dogs trained to recognize human scents.

The Sense of Sight

It is currently accepted that dogs have better night vision than humans. Their retinal cells are better at concentrating incoming light which allows them to hunt at night. Dogs can perceive distant motion very well, but have difficulty distinguishing stationary objects at the same distance. Thus the importance of visual signal training. Visual angles also differ among breeds depending on the type of work the breed was developed to perform. For example, herding dogs' need the maximum field of vision and will have their eyes located mostly on the side of their heads.

To be continued...

After much consideration not to mention an internal wrestling match I have decided it necessary to take a temporary leave of absence from my training schedule. It has been in excess of five (5) straight years of six days a week out in all kinds of weather working with my clients and their dogs. As I write this I have room for only two more training clients in 2008. I will then be fully booked until September the 13th. Does this mean I will be doing no training at all? Absolutely not! What it does mean though, I will not be working 6 days a week after September 13th. I will still accept most emergency behavioral issues and will always be available to assist with the issues others will not or cannot address. There are some things that may change all this; if I could find a suitable and affordable location I would do limited seminars and group classes. I will still do volunteer work for schools that request the "Bite Free" seminars for elementary school children.

It is my plan to resume a full schedule of training early in 2009 so I will be back.

It is hoped that by taking a bit of a break I will be able to invest more time into my dog training book that has been ignored for far too long.

L. Neilson
Konfident Kanines Inc

Hi, all - my name is Jess, I'm one of the web guys who helps out Larry with the Konfident Kanines e-newsletters and the website.

Like most of you I'm an avid dog lover - I've grown up with dogs all my life and found they're a wonderful source of fun, love and excitement! Our family is up to 3 dogs now (2 pugs and a pug/dachund/? cross); however, we also have a new family member (our son, Riley) so our home is starting to get a bit overcrowded with Riley taking up most of our time.

Unfortunately we need to part with one of our loved family members and I'm asking the general Konfident Kanines community for help finding a good home for Desmond.

Desmond is a charming dog - he's a little over 2 years old, loves to be walked and is quite the loveable dog. He's had leash and general obedience training with Larry in the past and he's up to date with his shots as well as being neutered. Desmond can be a bit of a handful but learns well with praise so we thing a single person or couple might be well suited for him. As well both Larry and I can meet up with any potential adopters and help them integrate Desmond into their home.

If anyone is interested in meeting Desmond or knows of someone interested in a dog, please email Larry at larry@konfidentkanines.com or myself at jess@fimedia.ca

Fear of human contact and other bizarre avoidance behavior can sometimes be traced back to abusive handling and mistreatment. Sometimes - but not nearly so often as one might think. Our appeal to abuse as a cause of fear may be somewhat inflated. In fact if every fearful dog that I have encountered over the years was fearful due to abuse then we have a much greater problem than what can factually be substantiated.

Potential adopters are far too often informed by shelter workers that a prospective adoptee had been abused, especially if the dog in question exhibits a behavior problem associated with nervousness or fear. Such unverifiable information may be based on erroneous generalization that fearful behavior is prima facie evidence that a dog has been abused or neglected. Undoubtedly physical and emotional abuse occurs and may be a significant cause of fear; however it probably occurs far less often than one might expect from the frequency of such reports. Often one need only look to the breeding or lack of quality controlled breeding to establish the source of such undesirable traits.

Did You Know?

The Vancouver Island Marmot population numbers less than 100 animals.

Even if every person in America adopted a pet today, there would still be thousands without a home.

"PT" boats were used by the U.S. navy in World War II. The "PT" in PT Boat stands for "Plywood Torpedo"


Words of Wisdom

Forget Injuries - never forget kindnesses

If you wish to know the mind of a man, listen to his words

A single conversation with a wise man is better than ten years of study