Welcome to My K9 Blog!

 Hello and Welcome to the "Spot!" 😀

    I'm so glad you have found your way here! The more the friends we have, the more fun we will have learning about our favorite family members - our dogs!

    This is going to be a place where all kinds of information will be discussed from choosing the right breed of dog for your lifestyle (not the other way around, or simply because it's "cute,") to the appropriate training and care for that dog - believe it or not, they are not all the same with the same needs or even learning capacity.

    (Yuki, 7 y/o, Advanced Obedience/Tricks)

    A little bit about me: I am "Sharkey," and I currently have 5 dogs - Daisey, Yuki, Freyja, Loki and Thor, but let's start at the beginning... My journey started in childhood when my dad rescued a puppy that was dumped outside of his work. I was in the 1st grade. He was merely weeks old - we think a Border Collie/Brittany mix. We named him Spotty, and he was the smartest dog I had ever met (of course, because he was mine - and my brother's). His ability to learn new things was so fascinating to me, I fell in love with the way a dog's mind works. Then, we started to dog sit for my dad's boss and he only ever had German Shepherd Dogs (GSD). Casey. She was my first love of the breed and the reason why I became obsessed. She was beautiful and smart. 

    Fast forward to 2011, when I got my first GSD for myself - my time in the Army was coming to an end, so I was super excited to begin this journey with my very own GSD because I finally had the time to dedicate to this amazing breed! 😀 Thus, Walther von Kitsos came into my life! He was my everything - from mistakes to success, he was simply the best friend anyone could ever have. 

(Walther, 20 March 2011-20 March 2021)

    I unfortunately lost him at 10 years old to a twisted stomach (also known as bloat). It was the hardest lost I ever had to deal with because he was my very first GSD - my pride and joy of basic obedience and the "goodest of boys." I lost him for about 5 years when my ex-husband took him in the divorce (after I had already bonded to him and was starting him on Schutzhund training, but when I got him back (because he landed in jail and never took my information off the chip) the only thing I could really do at that point was retrain the basics and get him back to a healthy weight. The poor fella... but at least he had a loving place to "retire" himself at. 💕

    In between that time of loss, I gained a love named Daisey. She was sent to me from an Army friend who couldn't handle her energy for the stage of life he was in and asked if I could take her on because of my experience with GSDs. Of course I would never turn that down, so she was sent to me from NJ to Hawaii. What a journey! She was 2 years old when I got her - and I still have her to this day at 11 years old. 

(Daisey at 4 years old, at a rest stop on a road trip)

    She was such a pain in the butt! She had no concept of boundaries or limitations, no rules and no training other than sitting - when she felt like it. There were some days where I felt like a failure and questioned whether or not I made the right decision to take her on... but I didn't let that attitude win me over. I started with walks, building that pack bond, three times a day, training after each walk, play after each training. Thank goodness I was only in school full-time and was not working, so I was home all day and was able to give her the attention needed to bring fulfillment to both of our lives. Six long, hard, months later, I had discovered she had an amazing nose for scent work, and was a natural for Service to aid some issues I had with my PTSD from my time in the Army. Thus, a Service Dog was made, with an amazing knack for finding things. Today, she may be old with two ACL surgeries under her belt, but she is still my Velcro dog who will whine and scratch at the door if I'm needing assistance when I'm by myself - otherwise, I deem her to be retired at this stage of her life. 😊 It's just play and fun for her. 

(Daisey, 2022)

    Over the course of time, I ended up with Freyja, a GSD/American Staffordshire Terrier/Alaskan Malamute/Bloodhound (yeah, that was a lot), who was rescued by a friend of mine while she was watching my dogs during my tour in Afghanistan. She was a part of a litter who was threatened to be drowned because it was an "accidental" pregnancy. She is the one who will be taking Daisey's place as my Service Dog. 

(Freyja, 2022, 2 years old)

    

    Then we got Thor, a GSD mix, from the Humane Society of Southwest Missouri. He was meant to be a friend to Freyja since she needed a dog to play with because Old Miss Daisey wasn't having it with her shenanigans. Ha! He was perfect for her and they are now the best of friends! His job is solely to be a pet, and best friend to Freyja. 😃

(Thor, 2002, 1 year old)

    Then we got Yuki, a GSD mix, who was a rescue from a bad situation from another friend. She was malnourished and rebellious, needing a lot of attention in the respect department, but she seemed like she was maybe a show or trick dog maybe several owners prior. She knew how to do a lot of things beyond basic obedience, so we put a lot of focus on that when she was in better health.

(Yuki, 2022, approx 7 years old)

     Lastly, we ended up with Loki, who was rescued from a bad backyard breeding situation - and also my first Belgian Malinois! I said I would never have a Mal, because their energy was too much for my situations in the past - since they are essentially a GSD on cocaine, but I felt like now I was able to step out of the comfort zone I was content with and broaden my knowledge. I couldn't have been happier with the decision. We initially got him for my husband for the work he was doing, but then his occupation changed, but our training with him never stopped. He is continuing with his bite work and will eventually go for PPD.

(Loki, 2022, 1.5 years old)

    With over 10+ years of experience with working line breeds, I'm confident to call myself a trainer from personal experiences, as well as through book knowledge - I come backed with a certificate from Duke University on Dog Emotion and Cognition, as well as several other international training and animal psychology courses. 

    I look forward to the journey with all of you and the open discussions! Feel free to ask questions, whether from personal experience or simple curiosity. This is where my heart lies and this is where I belong - with all of you and our dearest canines!

-The "Shark" Amongst the Paws