K-9 Kampus Diaries

First let me start out by introducing myself. My name is Mindy. I am currently an assistant to the trainer at K-9 Kampus. I came to meet Mel around a year ago through a mutual friend. I have always been in love with animals and found Mel’s theories and methods very intriguing. It was not long before the questions started flowing and the answers ,that truly made since to me, started coming. So I began to spend more time with Mel and our friendship became stronger and stronger. I am currently being trained by K-9 Kampus to become a instructor. I have to tell you that it is the most rewarding thing that I have ever done in my life, other than my children and husband.

OK , so Mel and I have these amazing talks almost every day and the knowledge that is obtained throughout these conversations is just out of this world. So the idea is that I am going to try and give you a little in site to what it is like being the person getting the training at K-9 Kampus. I will often talk about topics that Mel and I have discussed on that day, things that I may have seen happen during training, etc.

If you have ever watched a dog truly use its mind to figure things out then you will completely understand my first story. It is about an awesome black lab named Charlie. Charlie arrived at Mel’s and immediately became my buddy. Being that it was early in my decision to become a trainer, I didn’t get to have a lot of hands on in his obedience and things like that but I certainly watched with a close eye. I saw this energetic puppy grow into this awesome, life saving, one to be counted on, johnny on the spot dog. Charlie is a Search and Rescue Dog and he is good at what he does.

I watched as Mel began training him starting out with just getting familiar and comfortable because he was in for a long ride. Over a short period of time his obedience became stronger and stronger. It was almost time to see charlie do what he was meant to do.

It was a very chilly day and we were out at a friends property where there is a lot of wooded property as well as beautiful fields. There were many dogs training there that day all under Mel’s instruction. Finally it was time to see my buddy do his thing. So Mel asks me to go get Charlie out and get him ready to go. So I did with no hesitation. I think I was just as excited to see him find the “victim” as he was. So I am holding him on leash as our “victim” finds his way into the woods and hides. Then its go time. The “victim” is in place and it is time for Charlie to search. I let him go and watched him track the “victims” trail into the woods. It was not long until he came back with a very proud strut and a “victim” following behind him. I was so proud. Then it was my turn to hide. I ran and ducked down into a large pile of brush. I could hear the handler getting him excited and ready to work. It was not seconds later that I heard him coming for me. Next thing I knew he was right there. Awesome! We continued running drills for some time and he never failed to find his “victim”.

Later that month it was time for me to assist Mel with Charlie again. This time we were in a national park area with deep ravines  and lots of trees and places to hide. This time I dropped Mel off on one side of a ravine and Charlie and I kept on driving. Mel got herself into position and it was time for me to follow Charlie and truly watch him work. Once again only a few seconds went by and he was at the “victim”, he came back to me and gave me an alert as to say I found her, come see! Good Dog!!! We walked together a little farther down and there she was sitting behind a tree. I had not even seen her but Charlie had no problems finding her. We ran a few more drills that day, every one of them were a success. Once again Good Dog!!!

A few weeks later and Charlie was ready to meet his new partner. Mel had found Charlie and picked him for this gentleman. He had never met Charlie before he arrived on that day. They bonded quickly and Charlie was ready to do what he was meant to do.

That was my first experience of seeing Mel take a dog from Zero to Hero and I was absolutely hooked. I would put my life and even the lives of my children in the paws of a SAR dog trained by Mel any day. There abilities are unmatchable to anything I have ever seen.

So that was one of my first stories. There will be many more to follow as new things are happening every day! It is exciting and amazing to say the least.

Myth

Myth: Spaying or neutering your pet will prevent your dog from roaming, or from running away.

Myth: Spaying or neutering your pet will prevent food aggression.

Myth: Spaying or neutering your pet will prevent dog aggression.

Myth: Spaying or neutering your pet will reduce chances of biting.

Myth: Spaying or neutering your pet will prevent territorial marking.

Myth: Spaying or neutering will curb hyperactivity, or will hamper drive.

Myth: Spaying or neutering makes pets better, more affectionate companions.

Fact

Fact: Neutering will remove all possibilities of testicular cancer.

Fact: Spaying will remove all possibilities of ovarian and uterine cancer.
Fact: Neutering the dog before the age of one year, and sometimes even older, removes the possibility of proper growth, to include proportionately sized head, neck, shoulders, and pelvis, skeletal growth, and muscular formation.

Fact: Spaying the bitch before the age of one and sometimes older prevents proper feminine growth to include strong, defined hips, neck, and pelvis, skeletal growth and muscular formation.

The fact is, if people were not irresponsible dogs owners in the first place, the need for spay and neuter would be very limited. Too many dogs are spayed and neutered in our country for the wrong reasons, and the larger balance of the above examples of myths purported to dog owners refer primarily to behavioral issues, not reproductive ones.

The term “fixed” has become the most commonly used terminology when referring to spay or neuter, when, in reality, the dog is not broken. Over the last number of years, the pet-owning public has been conditioned to accept not only the application of this terminology, but the accompanying thought processes that are attached to it. If you own a pet, not only is this animal “broken” for possessing the very reproductive organs God created for them and are uncontrollable, undependable, irresponsible breeding machine that will kill or maim every person who stands in their way, but you, the pet owner, are wrong and will be a social outcast for allowing the continued existence of this animal in such condition.

We must refuse the use of the terminology “fixed” when referring to the sterilization process, and come to terms with the fact that the dog is not broken. It is surprising how many adults do not even know the correct application for the terms spay and neuter. There is little acknowledgment that these are two separate, completely different surgical procedures and apply specifically to male and female anatomy, as applicable.

Along with the use of “fixed” as a replacement of the correct, applicable terminology, comes a much more attractive light being shed on having the dog undergo this process. No longer is there conscious thought that this is a surgical procedure requiring the sedation of the dog, cutting of the dog with a scalpel, the cutting and removal of the reproductive organs, the sewing of tissue, and the resulting soreness and recovery process. Using the term “fixed” affords a bit more detachment from the actual events that are about to take place on the dog’s body because it seems not only the right and acceptable thing to do in today’s society, but we have removed the association of what we are doing to the dog.

This is not like taking your car to the service center to have the brakes “fixed,” dropping the car off and picking it up in the afternoon and the worn or defective parts have been replaced, and the car is now serviceable and safe. Yet that has been the growing approach towards spay and neuter. Simply drop the “broken” animal off at the clinic on your way to work, and in the afternoon you can pick up your “fixed” dog – now presumably safe and trouble free.

In addition, with all of the preaching about spaying and neutering it has actually been programmed into society that you basically no longer have to be responsible for this animal. Think about this for a minute. When you spay the bitch, she cannot get pregnant, just as when you neuter the dog he cannot cause pregnancy. If people were responsible and kept the bitch in heat contained and supervised, she could not be bred. If the dog were supervised, he would not have the opportunity to breed. However, the lacking in responsibility of dog owners contributes to the excessive, unwanted, and often even unhealthy breeding, resulting in more strays that either end up as road kill, or overpopulate the shelter industry.

I have a remarkable seven year old client who owns a five year old unaltered female Labrador, named Lizzy. She can, with confidence, educate one as the reproductive system function and cycle of the female dog, as well as how to be a responsible pet owner by preventing unwanted litters, without taking the easy way out with spay and neuter. So for those of you who are irresponsible pet owners that fill up our streets and shelters with unwanted litters, you might want to think about this.

By mandating spay and neuter, we take this level of responsibility from the dog owner. If the reproductive capabilities no longer exist, then the owner of such dog has no concern of responsibility for unwanted litter, and this “safe” dog is often left to run free on their own. And why not, the dog cannot contribute to the population issue, right? This says nothing about chasing the neighbor’s cat, tearing into garbage, leaving their poop in someone else’s yard, nor does the “fix” make the dog immune to the effects of a four thousand pound automobile.

We are faced with regulations making it mandatory for the spaying and neutering of animals before being available for adoption in shelters and rescue organizations. While on its face, this may look good. It really is not. The single most common answer we receive from shelters and rescues when questioned why they participate in a similar policy is “Well, you just would not believe how irresponsible some of the people are when they come to our place.” This is not an answer – this is an excuse, and such a wide-spread, almost text book level response that we hear the exact same thing from different organizations located throughout the country. If the shelter or rescue believes the people adopting a particular dog are that irresponsible, then please do tell why they are adopting the dog out to these people in the first place.

An almost unthinkable amount of money is spent yearly by shelters and rescues for the spaying and neutering of cats and dogs whose previous guarding was irresponsible. However, all of the money that goes toward spaying and neutering is not really going toward the spaying and neutering of poor, pitiful animals whose life is depending upon such procedure. The reality is that this is actually secondary, being a by-product of the fact that the money is actually paying for picking up the responsibility of the careless owner who won’t supervise a pet that they took on the responsibility of owning.

We are also faced with legislature such as mandatory spaying and neutering of pets between the ages of four to six months old. The animal industry, to include shelter and rescue organizations, breeders, professional trainers, and veterinarians need to take a stand against this. This is a huge disservice to the creature we have domesticated. How can anyone actually consider mandating a surgical procedure that interferes with the dog’s natural process of growing and maturing into the animal they were domesticated to be? One cannot even properly evaluate a dog for suitability for breeding or for a working field until the dogs is at least one year old.

People are irresponsible. Some people are irresponsible due to lack of education. Some people are irresponsible due to choice.

Though I feel spay and neuter has become not only a crutch within our society that has actually removed responsibility and accountability from pet owners, and has been misused as well as overly used, there are those situations where spaying and neutering of the dog is applicable.

Spaying the working female at the appropriate age in order to prevent distractions to others working alongside them, or messes that will need to be cleaned and sanitized during actual deployment is an example of a reasonable argument to spay. Dogs that have been diagnosed with demodectic mange or other various medical issues should be spayed, neutered, or even in some instances euthanized to prevent a life full of intense suffering. However, this is a decision that must be made between the veterinarian and the owner, not a law that should be dictated.

I am sure we all wish we had the solution to this overwhelming problem in our society. How nice it would be to be able to say “and that’s it, all in a nutshell,” and just fix the whole thing. I do feel however, that we all agree that education is a good start.

Higher Learning For You & Your Dog at K-9 Kampus
"Standing With The Dog K-9 Psychology In A Nutshell" by Mel Helmick