4 Reasons Grandma Needs a Dog

By Guest Writer, Jasmine Leighty

Grandma’s gotten cranky. While your mother used to love gardening, sunshine and chatting with her friends, getting older seems to have made her prefer grousing, sneering and chortling at your ideas. She spends hours in front of reality TV, at least on the days she gets out of bed. She even yelled at her grandkids during the last visit, something that’s nearly unheard of for many grandmothers.

The answer is not to stop your visits, but it could be to bring along a dog.

The power of pets is already making its mark in many hospitals, assisted living communities and even prisons. Hospitals from Wisconsin to Los Angeles have some type of pet therapy program in place while prisons in Arkansas incorporate a program that allows inmates to train shelter dogs prior to the dogs' adoption. Hundreds of senior living centers across the county also have pet programs or residents.

“Animals re-engage people with life,” says Loren Shook on USA Today, who first witnessed the positive effects animals could have on patients in the psychiatric hospitals where his family used to work. He now helps incorporate the positive effects of pets in his current position as CEO at a senior living center and hospital in Baltimore, following the ever-growing nationwide trend. Those seeking assisted living in San Diego can now just as easily find senior living centers that allow pets on the West Coast as others can find pet-friendly housing for seniors on the East.

Re-engaging with life is just one of the many benefits of what animals can do for their patients, residents and prisoners. Those same benefits can especially hold true for older adults like Grandma.

Whether Grandma’s crankiness comes from being alone too much, feeling useless or being stressed out, a dog can provide companionship, a purpose and stress relief.

Companionship

Grandma might stay home all the time because she has no reason to leave to house, which results in no one to talk to other than the real housewives of New Jersey. A pet provides instant and welcome companionship. A study published in Social Behavior and Personality polled elderly dog owners who lived alone and found 75 percent of the men and 67 percent of the women proclaimed their dog was their only friend.

Socialization

If Grandma’s still in good walking shape, taking the dog for a walk forces her out of the house, where she may encounter plenty of people to chat with when they come over to admire her dog. People are more prone to approach folks who have a pet, viewing pet owners as warmer and friendlier.

Purpose

With her career long gone and Grandpa gone several years after, Grandma may feel like she has little reason to get out of bed in the morning. A pet provides that purpose and gives her an identity. She’s no longer a nondescript cranky grandmother. She’s a doting dog owner.

Stress Relief

Petting a dog can bring Grandma’s stress and related grouchiness down a notch. A study published in California Veterinarian found 74 percent of the elderly adults surveyed said they felt better after simply touching their pets. Research noted by the Centers for Disease Control and WebMD point to health benefits that include:

• Improved cardiovascular health
• Decreased blood pressure, cholesterol and triglyceride levels
• Alleviation of depression
• Strengthened immunity
• Lessening of allergies
• Movement that helps symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis
• Increased levels of well-being and overall quality of life

About the Author: Jasmine is the client services manager for a boutique marketing firm. She loves to write, study SEO trends and take her golden retriever to the dog park.
 

Father Knows Best: How to Train the Dog

By Guest Writer, Dylan Wright

A day spent unleashing your dog's inner Lassie is also a great way to share some quality time with your children. Although it does depend a little on the breed of your dog and its temperament, most canines can be taught a new trick in less than a day. The process of teaching your pooch fun tricks can also be an excellent bonding moment between all parties involved: parent, dog and kids, alike.

What You Will Need

• Treats
• Leash or training collar
• Quiet location with few distractions
• Patience

Sit

If you've already taught your dog to master the necessities, like using a PetSafe pet door to go potty, the next thing you and your children need to work on with your dog is the command for sit. It is the basic first step for almost every other trick. Start by gently pushing on your dog's rear end, while saying, "Sit" in a firm voice. When his bottom touches the ground, you should praise him enthusiastically and give him a treat, advises well-known dog trainer Cesar Millan. After a moment, ask your canine to stand and then repeat the process.

After a few minutes, allow your dog to take a break. When you start the lesson again, don't be surprised if he seems to have forgotten what he has learned at first. Typically, most dogs will remember how to do the trick after a few false starts. If your dog is not picking up on it at all, sportdog.com suggests incorporating a training collar with adjustable correction levels for better results.

Once your dog seems to be sitting on command, ask your children if they want to try to ask the dog to perform the trick. Tell them that your dog will need to hear the command as close to the way you said it as possible. Your canine, of course, may or may not respond at first. If he doesn't, talk to your children about patience and why it is important not to get frustrated with the dog.

Most children are very excited and delighted the first time a dog responds to their command. They may want to do the trick over and over again or they may start shouting the command because they are so thrilled with their accomplishment, so you will have to reinforce to them what you have taught them. In some instances, you may be spending as much time training your children as you are teaching your pup.

Shake Hands

Once your pup has learned to sit, you can move onto "shake hands." However, it is best not to teach more than one trick to your dog at the same time. So give him a day or two off before starting with the new command. For "shake hands," start by having your dog sit, then gently pick up his paw with one hand while saying, "Shake hands" and extending your other hand. Place his paw in your hand, praise him enthusiastically, and then repeat the process. The ASPCA stresses that it is always important to keep dog training sessions short.

High Five

Once your dog has picked up "shake hands," set him up as if you were about to ask him to shake hands. In the same tone as you would say "Shake hands," instead say, "High five" and raise your hand. Your dog will probably be confused at first. If he is, flip your hand like you were asking him to shake hands and repeat, "High five." Often that will help the dog understand, and he will touch your hand. Try again until your dog understands that you want him to touch your hand at the higher position. After a while, your dog will understand that the raised hand means high five and the lower hand means shake hands.

 About the Author: Dylan is a musician and writer from Albuquerque, N.M.

Pets are Having a Doggone Good Time at Home These Days

By Guest Writer,  Vicky Kelly

We’ve known we have influence over our pets ever since they became domesticated, but are we actually inspiring them to become like us now? While your pet can sit, stay, roll over or just meow back in response when you ask it a question, there is also evidence that our pets are trying to literally do what we do.

Think about it from the pets perspective: You’ve raised them from a baby in many cases and they watch you all the time, attempting to figure you out. While they may not be quite as intellectual as humans, our pets are often smarter than we might think. 

Cat Games 

The iPad has become an incredible device for millions of different people of all ages, Now, it also has apps for cats. According to the LA Times, the ipadgameforcats.com was released as a free download for owners who don’t want to actually play with their cats themselves. On the game, cats will chase different dots of light and respond to different sounds, distracting themselves for hours. Perhaps Apple saw this coming, but the surface of iPads are built to be resistant to cat’s paws and nails. 

Dog Computers

According to The Telegraph, scientists at Open University are working to build what are known as smart kennels, which will allow dogs to do certain things on their own around the house. These activities will include feeding themselves, opening and closing certain drawers where toys may be located or set off an alarm when there is trouble. The kennels will be controlled by touch screens or sensors that can be pressed with paws, so a dog can simply learn to press these buttons like they would to go through a dog door. So in the future, your dog might be like a roommate in your house that's not paying rent, like a kid home from college who hasn't gotten a job.

TV for Dogs

Want 24 hours of cuteness? Look for a cable station at  that is known as DogTV. It’s like leaving a television on to keep your dog entertained while you are away from the house to reduce stress, according the The New York Times. At least that’s what people at DogTV seem to think. Various network programming appeals to dogs, according to their own market research (meaning lots of dogs. So if you want to add a channel to your cable plan to keep your dog preoccupied while you are away, this might be an option at www.cable.tv.

Just block the late night programming: There's evidently a lot of leg humping.

Dog Bars

You thought the dog park was fun? Wait until dog bars hit, where canines will drink doggone good beverages together. Currently being "brewed" in Napa Valley, Happy Tail Ale is loaded with beef broth, vitamins and minerals, according to beerfordogs.com. Also, Doggie Brew comes in many different flavors and even has one meant for vegan dogs, according to inventorspot.com.

The IDing process for these dogs still remains somewhat of a mystery, though it’s pretty much sealed that no cats will be allowed.

About the Author:   Vicky is a part-time tech assistant for an animal hospital and a freelance writer for several blogs about pet care.