Cesar vs. Chihuahua on tonight's Dog Whisperer!

Dog Whisperer week begins December 28th!!

Tune in to National Geographic Channel for Dog Whisperer week, beginning December 28th!

Check your local listings!

central Massachusetts ice storm

Storm damage, Spencer MA
For video, click on my videos to the right, or go to my YouTube page k2k9dogs

Sessions With Cesar, a great holiday gift!

Finally a chance for the average person to learn from Cesar Millan, without having to audition for the Dog Whisperer TV show, or live in southern California!

It's Sessions With Cesar, the interactive online coaching course available from Cesar Millan for the first time, ever.

Sessions With Cesar. Login, enroll (for a low monthly fee), choose your dog's behavior problem, and you're ready to go. The course consists of tutorials, audio clips from Cesar, and video clips where you can see exactly how Cesar works his magic with dogs.

After completing each section of the course work (at your own pace), you take a brief quiz. It's that easy, and it's fun! As a special added feature, Cesar's Pack is an online community forum where you can ask questions and communicate with other dog lovers. Cesar's Ambassadors are also there to help guide you through the course and try to answer your dog behavior questions.

For more information, go to http://www.sessionswithcesar.com/

Sessions With Cesar makes a great holiday gift for that "dog person" in your life!

K2

Sessions With Cesar Ambassador

Cesar Millan Inc Ambassador

Cesar Millan seminar in Atlanta December 6, 2008

Fellow Dog Lover!

If you are a dog owner or just love dogs, I hope you will take a moment and share this wonderful opportunity with your friends, families, co-workers and in and around your communities.

As a Cesar Millan Ambassador, I am proud to be able to share the opportunity for you to see Cesar Millan, LIVE! As you may know, Cesar's Way has swept this nation empowering dog owners the knowledge to rehabilitate their own dogs behavior issues instead of surrendering them to shelters and rescues, where many would have ended up losing their lives!

I ask that you help save even more lives by posting the attached information to your website, put up flyers in local businesses and around your communities, and share it through emails! And don't forget to purchase tickets for yourself, as well!

Working together, we can change the way the world treats animals and live healthy, happy and balanced lives with our dogs!

Cesar Millan, LIVE!
National Geographic's, The Dog Whisperer
December 6, 2008 in Atlanta, Georgia.
TICKETS AS LOW AS $25.00

Thank you for your consideration,

Kathleen S. Mueller, Ambassador

Cesar Millan, Inc.

"Exercise, discipline and then affection. In that order."

Cesar Millan's new book: "A Member of the Family"

I received Cesar Millan's third book, "A Member of the Family" today. I have both of Cesar's other books, and figured by the third book it probably wouldn't be so great. Boy, was I mistaken!

I turned randomly to the chapter written by Ilusion Wilson Millan, Cesar's beautiful wife. I was instantly hooked, and could not put this book down. I then turned to the chapter Cesar wrote about his beloved sidekick, Daddy, the greatest representative of Pit Bull known to man.

I know there are a lot of people whom I call "anti-Cesareans". These are people who dislike Cesar Millan because a) he doesn't have a degree and b) they (erroneously) believe he is cruel to dogs and c) they (erroneously) believe he is an illegal immigrant. For those anti-Cesareans, I have a message for you. READ THIS BOOK. You will find out about a man who has a deep and abiding love for dogs of all kinds, his family, his friends, and all human beings. Millan is a true specimen of humanity. The definition of "a good guy".

After reading this book, there should be no doubt in ANYONE's mind that Cesar is uniquely qualified to work with problematic dogs as perhaps no one else in popular culture today. But what is most remarkable is his open-arms approach to other dog behaviorists (some of whom have degrees, some who may not), and his understanding that there is room enough in this crazy world of ours for everyone. There is time and space for every method of interaction with canines, as long as it does NOT harm the dog. That is what Cesar Millan stands for.

I cannot stress enough (and for the bazillionth time!) Cesar Millan is not a dog trainer. He understands canine behavior and "what makes a dog tick" (pun, sorry) based on a lifetime of living with, and LOVING dogs (and humans alike).

Do not pass "GO". Get this book, now! I promise you, you will not be disappointed.

And for those anti-Cesareans: life is too short. Stop being so petty and give this guy a chance. If he were standing in a room with you, he would give YOU a chance, of that I am positive.

Happy tails.
K.S. Mueller

Anemia - the often undiagnosed epidemic

I generally reserve this blog for dog-related or other non-medical stuff, and use the Fibro-Fog Chronicles to post about medical info. But this topic is important enough to broadcast more widely, so I'm posting it on both blogs.

Women: please! Get yourselves checked for anemia. This is an often easy-to-treat problem, and incredibly easy to diagnose. However, this epidemic (as some experts believe) is often overlooked and undiagnosed, with perhaps millions of women being told "it's all in your head" or "there's nothing wrong with you". There is no excuse for this. Doctors: please! when a woman comes to you with annoying symptoms do not "diss" her -- test her for anemia, and then educate yourself on the symptoms of anemia.

I was told that my symptoms were NOT from my hereditary anemia by several doctors. Guess what, that is not true! All of my symptoms are from anemia. Every single one of them. Yet not even the hematologist nor the neurologist nor the rheumatologist suggested anything of the kind. It was simply "No" (from the hematologist) and "there's nothing wrong with you" from the others. Do not let this happen to you! Get yourself tested, and educate yourself on anemia. Below are some links to help you get started. Check out Wikipedia as well.

I found this web site anemia.org. This non-profit organization was created by medical professionals who see anemia as a huge epidemic in the United States and want to bring this fact to the attention of the medical establishment, ordinary physicians, and citizens in general. They estimate that 3.4 million people have been diagnosed with anemia (in one form or another), but that this estimate is low, and that anemia is much more serious of a health concern than people realize.

Anemia is often UNDIAGNOSED, even though a simple, routine blood test can detect anemia very easily.

As you can imagine, since I have been diagnosed with a hereditary form of hemolytic anemia, I am on my latest crusade! I totally agree with these folks that anemia is seriously under-diagnosed. In fact, perhaps my journey of the last 5 years would have been significantly shortened had any one doctor taken the time to learn that the symptoms I am experiencing ARE symptoms of anemia (contrary to what they all told me).

I hope to be able to invove myself in this organization somehow, and am planning to write a letter to their executive director.

In the meantime, here are some links you may find interesting:
http://www.anemia.org/patients/symptoms-quiz/
http://www.anemia.org/resources/education-kit/about.php
http://www.anemia.org/patients/faq/
http://www.anemia.org/
http://www.anemiainwomen.com/html/home.htm

K2

Jimmy Buffett wannabe? (or, sunset at the equator)

My luggage has still not arrived. Tobago story. That's what we call a mishap that is SO TYPICAL of Tobago. A beautiful island, but you can't get ANYTHING DONE around here without hitting beaurocracy and laziness in the extreme.



Anyway, when we go out to the store, etc. I have to wear Gil's clothes.



Here's a very attractive photo of me making a lame attempt at imitating Jimmy Buffett, or so it would seem.

Here's a photo of Echo, the Tobago dog

Echo

Easy-Walk Harness by Gentle Leader Company

I just bought two "Easy-Walk Harnesses" made by the people who make Gentle Leader. I had read about the harnesses in a magazine. I went to Target today, and I was just looking at pet supplies like I always do, and they had them, so I bought two of them. Well, lemme tell you, these things are AMAZING! The leash hooks onto the front of the harness at the dog's chest. It automatically makes the dog walk behind you. Then, if the dog does try to pull, you give a tug to the side "a la Cesar" and the dog (supposedly) stops pulling. I haven't tried that part yet. I just put the harnesses on, fit them to each dog, and then we walked around the living room and kitchen. I would have tried to go outside, but the road is all ice and I'm really tired from being in Boston and driving all day. So, I will try them out tomorrow for real, outside (during the Super Bowl lolol). If this works, I will be able to walk my dogs together again with no panic attack!!!! I'm so excited!

And later....

I walked the dogs across the other side of the lake and back today with the new harnesses and it was WONDERFUL!!! ! Hector didn't know what to think LOL It threw him for a loop! I felt SO confident. It will be interesting to see what happens when we encounter a strange dog or cat.

And the next day....

Yay!! Just got back from walk number 2 with the new harnesses. What a DREAM! Whomever invented this thing was a genius. It's way better than the Illusion Collar (sorry Cesar!), and runs circles around other harnesses (literally lol). Hector just walked right by my side the whole time. The leash was loose "briefcase style" like Cesar demonstrates. This time we went on our usual route, only it is a big hill and extremely icy (all that melted stuff from yesterday froze overnight), so I got a little panicked about that and made the dogs turn around because I didn't want to fall on the ice just from being a klutz lol. They didn't pull at all. I think Hobie is mad because he can't do his little "back out of it" routine like he tries with most collars lol. And I'm so happy because I don't feel like I'm choking the life out of my dogs by having collars on them "show-dog style". I think this thing is amazing. So far, so good. I'll keep ya posted!

Altenburg family members

If anyone from the Altenburg legacy happens to stop by this blog, I am looking for any relatives who may be diagnosed with one of the porphyrias: AIP, HCP, VP, etc.

Our family is from Cook County, Illinois and parts of Wisconsin. My mother is "Mook" Altenburg, her parents were Ernest and Lucille.

If you are one of my cousins or their offspring, and think you may have information regarding a family medical history of porphyria, please contact me privately by email at kathleensmueller@hotmail.com

I'd also like to connect with Altenburg cousins anyway!! lol

All the best,

K2

Happy Birthday Millennium Dog!

Hobie the Y2K K9 turns eight years old today.

Here is a fun video of Hobie listening to wolves howling on CD.

All-new Dog Whisperer tonight!

Dog Whisperer's regular season resumes tonight after the holiday marathon break.
Don't miss it! Sounds like a good episode! 8 pm eastern, repeated at 11 pm.

Don't forget to watch the new show about dogs immediately following Dog Whisperer at 9 pm eastern, repeated at midnight.

Happy trails!

Dog Whisperer Week on NGC

Whoops! Forgot to post here announcing Dog Whisperer Week on NGC, which ends tonight.

My bad!!!

Dog Whisperer Marathon Friday!

Dog Whisperer Marathon on the National Geographic Channel starting Friday at 2:00 pm Eastern. Check your local listings!
For fun, go onto National Geographic's web site, and take the "Diagnose The Dog" test on the Dog Whisperer page! Fun!!!
Happy Thanksgiving everybody.

Since Hector was a pup!

Some of you may have read my essay on k2k9.com about my wonderful dog, Hector, and how he got his name. His name came about because of a phrase some of us at work used "we've been doing things that way since Hector was a pup". This is a phrase evidently popular for centuries. When I got Hector, we couldn't think of a name, and I was at work with my dear friend Roberta and she used the phrase (as we always did) and we looked at each other and said "HECTOR!!" and that's how my Hec got his name.

Somebody was Googling over the weekend, looking for "since hector was a pup cartoon" and landed on k2k9.com (yeah, I can spy on them and see how they ended up on my web site).

I decided to Google the same phrase and see what else comes up. Here is a great article explaining the possible origins of the phrase "since Hector was a pup".

"since Hector was a pup"

Dear Editor:
I sometimes hear the phrase "since Hector was a pup" and can't for the life of me find its source. I suspect it refers to the Hector of Homer's "Iliad." Can you confirm this hunch?
—M.E., Scottsboro, Ala.
Dear M.E.:
No one seems to be quite sure of the origin of this curious phrase. "Since Hector was a pup" is one of a variety of expressions meaning basically "since way back when," another favorite being "since Pontius was a pilot."
Several sources offer the unsubstantiated suggestion that the expression is based on the once-common practice of naming big dogs "Hector," most likely after the hero of Trojan War fame. Names for dogs, just as for people, go in and out of style. (We wouldn't even want to guess how many dogs were named "Lassie" in the 1960s.) According to the theory, "Hector" was in vogue for dogs in the mid-to-late 19th century, and the expression refers to the long past puppyhood of the family dog.
If this theory is true, it would discredit other suggestions that the expression was coined later by W.C. Fields or by the creator of a comic strip popular in the 1920s, "Polly and Her Pals."
It may be that one or both of these humorists was simply the vehicle for popularizing an expression already in existence. "Since Hector was a pup" may also have been a favorite expression of poet and dog-lover Ogden Nash, who works a variation on it in these lines:
"She seems to pant, time up, time up!
My little dog must die,
and lie in dust with Hector's pup;
So presently must I."

so proud of my hector!

I have to brag about my wonderful dog, and how great I handled a potential panic-attack situation!!

So, I stupidly accepted a vet appointment for 5:15 pm tonight. Bad idea since the vet's office is on the main highway called "Route 9" (the old Boston Post Road for any of you historians out there), and very heavy work traffic at 5:00-ish.

It was pouring rain, and already dark by the time I left the house with Hector in the car. I decided to leave my eyeglasses at home even though I have a hard time seeing at night, and especially in the rain with that glare, but the other challenge is walking the dog with glasses on... my glasses make me a little dizzy, and Hector pulls so I was afraid I'd fall down and the glasses would smash into my face.

So, perfect setup for a panic attack:

1) Having to take Hector somewhere where there will be other dogs (and cats)
2) Pouring rain
3) Pouring rain in the dark
4) 5:00 work traffic on Route 9
5) Route 9 itself, which I avoid like the plague at all costs
6) Having to make it to an appointment on time
7) Driving on very dark back roads which are under construction and heavy work traffic to get to Route 9

I made it all the way to Route 9 which is about 10 minutes from my house on awful back roads. As soon as I get to the set of traffic lights where I need to turn right to go to the vet's office, there is a HUGE accident in the middle of the intersection, police blue lights flashing, cars backed up for miles. I'm early, but now I'm thinking "I'm gonna be late" and then, "That could've been ME" Yep, somebody ended up with our worst nightmare: a car crash, in the middle of a busy intersection on route 9 in the dark at rush hour in the pouring rain.

I get to the vet's office, and we are 15 minutes early. I see a person with another dog go inside ahead of us. I do not want to encounter them, so I park in the back of the building. I calmly take Hector out of the car and we go for a little walk. Remember, it's dark, and pouring rain. I have to make sure I have my keys, credit card, and his papers from the previous vet because I've changed vets since the last time he had shots. Hector and I walk around in the back parking lot for a while, and we're getting soaked and he does his "business" (thank goodness).

I go back to the car, and realize we've still got 10 minutes to kill, and I don't want to encounter the other patient (dog). So, we get back in the car, I start it up to turn on some heat, and I sit there and read the newspaper which happens to be on the floor of the car. I decide I am going to go inside at 5:14 exactly. I read until 5:14. Then, I gather my keys, credit card, papers, put them in my pocket, grab the dog, and we walk up to the building.
Yippee! The waiting room is empty!

The ladies greet us and everybody ooohs and aaaahs over Hector because he is so handsome and so goofy all at the same time.

We sit down after we weigh him, and he's had some treats. As we're heading to the waiting area, a customer comes out of the exam room with a German Shepherd Dog. Hector and the dog sniff each other, but no problems ensue. This is remarkable, if you know Hector. He usually goes nuts when he sees another dog.

A minute later, a man, and a young boy of about 11 years old, and an elderly woman come in with a Yellow Lab/Mix who is shaking and all three of the people are freaking out. The dog has no collar on and the boy is holding the collar and leash in his hand, saying, "It's not my fault. It was an accident." What happened was, the dog pulled so hard that it broke its collar and was loose in the parking lot with no collar, no leash, during rush-hour on Route 9. (Our second worst nightmare, those of us who own dogs). The grandmother assures the boy that everyone knows it's not his fault, the dog is safe now, and they are amazed that the dog ran in to the office instead of out into traffic! The man is holding the dog on the ground and trying to tell it to calm down, but the man is shaking so badly the entire family is petrified. The grandmother tries to fix the collar (a flimsy prong collar made for a chihuahua, not a Lab!). As I'm watching this, I am amazed that Hector is within 12 inches of this dog and could care less. He is just totally relaxed and calm, and so am I!

As grandmother fails to fix the collar, I offer the advice of taking the leash and looping it thru the handle, thus making a collar and leash combo out of the leash. They all smile at me, toss away the broken collar, and do as I suggested. Everyone breathes a heavy sigh of relief.

Just then, a little baby Chocolate Lab comes in with its owner. Of course, the puppy greets everyone, and everybody is ooohing and aaahhing again. Once again, Hector sniffs noses with the pup but doesn't cause a ruckus like he's been known to do. The perfect gentleman, he just sits quietly beside me.

We get called into the exam room, and Hector gets fussed over by two assistants and the vet himself. Hector gets his shots, and off we go.

When we get back into the waiting area, there are two more dogs. Again, Hector either ignores or just sniffs and keeps walking.

After I pay the bill, two people come in with two CATS. One loose, being held in the owner's arms, the other in a crate. I tell Hector to sit, and we wait for the people to pass us before we proceed out the door. Hector again, the perfect gentleman, he almost didn't even care that there were two cats in the room!!

I was so happy, I actually did one of those skip-jump things like you see on TV as we were jogging through the parking lot on our way back to the car!!! and I think I even let out a little WHOOP!! LOLOL I was so proud of Hector, I smothered him with kisses when we got inside the car! ROFL

Wait, there's more... afterwards, I went to WAL MART to get dog food and some food for us people! WOW!!! and guess what? No panic attack!!!! (that's the same Wal Mart where I had the bad one a month or two ago)

I am so proud of Hector for being so well-behaved, and of me for not having a PA!!!!!

K2

k2k9 forums and blogs now ready!

Hope you'll visit k2k9's forums and blogs, located here:
http://www.fibroworks.com/k2k9/

Forums

Coming soon! On k2k9.com we will host a forum for dog enthusiasts as well as a place where each forum member can create their own Dog Blog!! Should be up 'n' running in a few days! Stay tuned!!

In the meantime, if you are a person with fibromyalgia, or know anyone who has fibromyalgia who might be interested in my forum on my other web site (www.fibroworks.com) please send them my way!

Here is the URL: www.fibroworks.com/board2

New photos

Just wanted to share these. Hector at the top of the stairs, and a rainbow in my backyard.