You are here: You are here: Home > Cindy’s Blog > Discipline vs Training vs Love

I was out one day with a friend who is a total cat person, and has never had a dog.  She asked me, “Why don’t people train their dogs?”  What a basic question.  I needed a simple answer.  So I said, “cause most people equate discipline with being mean”.  Way too simple I know.  But I have to say it rings true, more often than not.

People love to say how they “spoil” their dog.  They wear it like a badge of honor.  Like that proves how much they love their dog.  So a person like me, who won’t put up with much, such as barking excessively at the door bell, or jumping up on people,  are deemed mean and tough on their dog.

People have asked me how do you train your dogs?  I have no good answer.  I have never formally trained them.  They just know not to tick me off.  How do they know?  I don’t know.  They just do.  I think it’s an alpha thing.  But still they ask.

Like one friend whose dog barks incessantly over nothing, clouds could move and this dog barks. Sure, it gets on her nerves, and everyone around her, so she asks, what do I do?  I tell her, “get used to it”, for she doesn’t have it in her to correct the situation. 

She is a typically dog owner that equates discipline with not loving your dog.

Funny thing is,  one time I was left with the dog alone,  it started barking, I told it to knock it off, and that was the end of it.

Now some people would deem that being mean.  In some eyes, they are probably right.  When I finished explaining this theory to my cat-loving friend, all she said is, “sort of like kids?”  Now isn’t that the truth?

EPILOGUE: If you doubt me in the correlation between raising kids & dogs, read this article from a retired Emergency Medical Technician/ professional dog trainer. It’s worse than I thought.

You are here: You are here: Home > Cindy’s Blog > Shark Finning: A tradition right?

Unless you’ve been living under a rock and don’t know what shark finning is, I will give you my take on the “act of slicing off  fins from live sharks,  and more than likely, discarding  them back to the ocean, still alive, to die a slow agonizing death”. (Want more basic facts and the state of this practice in Canada? Click here:

https://www.animaljustice.ca/issues/shark-finning

So…. what should we do about such a barbaric practice?  Make laws banning it?  This might make it a bit more difficult, but you know darn well it will still go on and why?  Because I feel it is a “cultural” thing and with cultures, comes traditions.

Try stepping on those multicultural toes. Make all the laws you want. The prediction of what people will do is best determined through them questioning their own morality. How far will they go to participate in an immoral act to retain their traditions?

When I say morality, I mean the state of people’s minds in determining what is right and what is wrong.  Does morality ever trump tradition? Well lets hope so. Plus I believe tradition evolves, into modern day political correctness.  For instance, take in consideration of what we did as a family by my parents taking us to the circus, and watching dancing elephants and tigers jumping through fire hoops.  It was the norm; no one thought anything about it. This tradition is now politically incorrect.  Gee, now that I think of it, maybe political correctness does have its moments.

Perhaps, that makes me “cherry picking”, my PCness, I could see someone accusing me of that.  (look out FaceBook trolls).  I witnessed this clash of morality vs tradition after asking a Chinese soon- to- be bride, (after she bored me to tears about her up and coming  wedding),  if she was going to serve shark-fin soup at her reception. You could see her cringe, which meant yes.  She explained her grandmother expected it to be a “traditional” wedding.  Which translated into, grandma is paying for the wedding, and the Golden Rule applies, “the person with the gold rules”.

As sad as this is, I am sure this bride knew it was morally wrong to do so. Perhaps someday, if she ever has a little girl, that they both will know better than to serve tasteless, expensive shark-fin soup at her daughter’s reception.   Ohh…maybe it won’t be an issue, cause by then no sharks will be available for consumption.

EPILOGUE: For a 2018 update on the laws in Canada concerning shark finning, click here:

Shark finning bill passed unanimously by committee; moves on to Senate

You are here: You are here: Home > Cindy’s Blog > Racetrack vet and the rookie

One of the advantages of working at a racetrack was the diversity of the learning experience. My “job”, as you might want to call it in the morning was a hot walker. I shouldn’t call it a job, for it was more for the experience as I was going to college to be a vet tech. I didn’t get paid. Gerry Cheervers whose horses I hot walked, insisted that he get me something at the end of the summer. Of course I kindly declined. But he insisted, so my request was my first cooking utensils, an olive green combination electric frying pan/crock
pot. A great gift for someone bound to college.

Once the morning workouts of the horses were finished, I’d then tag along with the track vet. Now we get into the nitty gritty of horseracing. My most important role was the timing of the “drugs/enhancers” we gave to the horses. It was my responsible to know when the horses were racing, in order to give them their “boost”, so they wouldn’t pee any of it out after the race if they won and were checked. People were astonished when I’d interrupt the vet talking to a trainer or owner, saying, “Excuse me, but we have to get to barn C by noon”. To have a vet listen to a little “intern”, met the world to me, but he knew what was at stake. I remember thinking when all the hoopla was going on about poor Ben Johnson in 1988, Canada’s Olympic Gold Medalist Sprinter who was stripped of his medals cause of “doping”, just because someone in his camp didn’t do the math properly. At the time I didn’t know enough about whether Bute, Lasix, or jugs of electrolytes was legal/ ethical or whatever, all I knew was this was my responsibility and that’s what I
did. You look back on things like this when you’re older and say to yourself, you were part of the problem., but when you’re young you

go with the flow.

Another treatment that we did was called Pin Firing. The theory was to induce a counter-irritation to the horses’ legs to speed up and/or improve healing, and when it heals the legs are stronger. I asked the vet if this was true, he just shrugged and in a bitter voice just said, “it’s an excuse the trainers give the owners to give the horse a rest from racing”. I figured we never did it to any of Gerry’s horses cause he listened to his trainer which I respected.

I also learned what a nervous sweat was. The vet was grumbling about having to geld a 4-year stallion. What it was doing at the track I have no idea. We got to his box stall and I could hear him blowing, snorting, and kicking the walls. The vet handed me a twitch, again, something that you look back on and say, this tool to control a horse is just not right. I took it, and immediately started to drip buckets of sweat; this horse was going to kill me if I went into its stall. I started to make my way in, and the vet and groom both started to laugh. They took the twitch from me and in they went. I witnessed my first gelding of a horse. I nearly fainted, and the piece de resistance is when he took the sweet breads and threw them on the hot tin roof of the barn for the crows to eat.

As I look back at all that I did on the track it makes me realize that when you are young, naïve, and unworldly, things don’t bother you as much. You’re not as judgemental, and adapt more readily to the situations you are put in. It’s not til you get older, that you say to yourself, I can’t believe I did that. One could say, where were your parents in all this, what did they think? But as with most kids, when asked how your day was, I just mumbled “Just fine”, and my parents, as I am with my kid, we are completely happy with that response. Ignorance is bliss in so many ways.

EPILOGUE: I am sure a lot of track vets are torn in finding the balance between their job description  & love of horses. For a good read on this subject, click here:

You are here: You are here: Home > Cindy’s Blog > Designer VS In-Vogue Dogs – Both Bad News for Dogs

Meet Riley, 1^st dog on the left in the group pic, with dog rescuer Carla,  who owns 4 rescue dogs ( not pictured is a Keeshond mix Max, rescued from a high kill shelter from the States).In the middle is  Daisy who was destined for the dinner table in Thailand.  Click here for her story:  https://www.doncherryspetrescue.org/rescue-stories/daisys-rescue-story/  , plus Cali.

 Both of which are Simply Pets package dogs. For Cali’s story click here: https://www.doncherryspetrescue.org/rescue-stories/calis-rescue-story/

Riley’s story varies a lot from the other three, but still the common denominator is the same.  They were adopted by a person who sees no need to buy a dog, when there are so many out there already that need homes.  Riley’s former owners paid $1200 for him. He wasn’t a “ show dog”  or from a “reputable breeder”( whatever that means), but from a person breeding “Rare White European Goldens”, “Exquisite Platinum Imperial Goldens” or better yet, which always is a selling feature, an   “Oprah Winfrey Golden.” Click here for more facts about this rare strain of Golden Retrievers, you will be enlightened.  Remember…. One of the mandates of this Foundation is to educate people.
https://www.google.ca/url?sa=t&source=web&cd=6&ved=0ahUKEwi3yKjv8fvQAhUn54MKHZ1gAQIQFggrMAU&url=https%3A%2F%2Fpethelpful.com%2Fdogs%2Fthe-truth-about-English-Cream-Golden-Retrievers&usg=AFQjCNEDyXDLL6CPw9Tkgjt69ojkfVSj0Q

These Golden Retrievers that are bred specifically for their coloring, is a perfect example of people ( carneys of sort) that capitalize on people’s gullibility of trying to be in vogue by having an in-vogue dog.  An in- vogue dog is different than a designer dog.  This is the Cindy Cherry version of how they differ.  A vogue dog comes from a type of breed that becomes popular because people want to be in style with their dog.  For instance, when 101 Dalmatians comes out by Disney every 10 years or so., there is a spike of popularity of Dalmatians. 

When the TV show Frasier was first on the air, Jack Russels became popular cause Eddy on the show was so cute.  (Great reason to buy a dog, don’t you think?). French Bulldogs are very vogue now.  Could it be that people see Stella on the # 1 Comedy show on TV for the last 8 years, and want a dog just like her?  On a personal note, it pains me when people refer to a Bull Terrier as a “Don Cherry” dog. I cringe.

No one should ever get a dog because of its popularity in whatever form.  Now a “Designer” dog, is when someone   mixes 2 purebreds together, then in true carney form, tout to gullible people that this “breed” has the positive traits of each breed.  Really?  People really fall for this!   One of their favorite selling points is that this breed is “Hypo-allergenic, so if you have a child that is allergic to dogs, this is the dog for you!” 

Makes sense, doesn’t it? Probably the number 1 reason that dogs end up in the pound, is because of “allergies”.  Does all this make sense?  Remember folks if your kid is allergic to dogs, what part of the dog sets them off?   Most people assume it’s the fur, however it could be other parts of a dog.  Could they breakout due to dry skin or dander of the dog?  Are they allergic to the saliva or tears? So when the dog licks your child they break out?  So please get educated on the selling points on people selling dogs for profit.  I have seen people pay $3500 for a “BerniePoo”. 

This is a very up and coming mix for you people that want a designer dog, for Bernese Mountain Dogs are very popular now.  Just check out how many times you see them in advertising or on packaging.  Mix them with a so-called hypoallergenic breed like a poodle, and there you have it.  An answer to your problems if your kid has allergies.   Hopefully, after reading this article you will know better.

You are here: You are here: Home > Cindy’s Blog > Why I Love Judge Judy

Judge Judy knows her way around the dog world.  August 23, 2018, Season 22, Episode 240 was one of my favorites.  Did she ever make mincemeat out of both parties involved.  It was over a couple wanting their money back cause their “tea-cup MaltiPoo” grew too big.  Go figure.  As B.T.Barnum said, “there’s a sucker born every minute”.  And boy, is there a lot of them around when it comes to buying dogs.  As the poster boy for a puppy mill owner, the defendant said, these are “designer dogs, that is why they are so expensive”.  Like $2500 expensive.  Judge Judy corrected him and said they’re mutts.  (not that there is anything wrong with that). But really? To pay $2500, with a written contract saying there is no guarantee of their size?   She fired off questions to the seller, who in all honesty, was a broker of the pups. She asked for instance, how many puppies do you sell in a week, adding surely you must know because you have to pay taxes on this income.  I love when she routinely asks about income.  I am sure the IRS tapes her show for this reason.  Then she made the buyers look even stupider.  Showing they did not do their due diligence in having a little bit of intelligence when purchasing a dog.  I was hoping that everyone out there that buys one of these new expensive “designer” cross-breeds saw this show.  The sellers of these type dogs claim many things that a gullible rookie purchaser wants to hear.  Teacup size, non-allergenic, or my favorite, “ it has the best traits/personality of these two breeds”.  Give me a break. Needless to say, the naïve dog owners never got their money back. As Judge Judy often says, if you don’t do your due diligence, then it’s like buying a used car, you take your chances. 

Another episode that really went viral, is when she shows her archetypal type of judgement of proving who is the rightful owner of a dog.  Similar to the Judgement of Solomon, the dog decided.  Check it out here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bG0a6Oy7rfA

I must say though, she is pretty tough on the “pitbull” owners.  But I must admit, most often than not, these owners are not quite aware of the potential of trouble that follows these dogs.  Call them naïve,  but lets face it, even if their dog is attacked, you know who is going to come out looking bad.  Unfair? Certainly, so avoid trouble.  For instance, why have a spiked or prong collar on it? Why call it Rambo? And why isn’t it neutered?   You don’t think these stereotypical traits have anything to do with enhancing  the reputation these dogs have?  Judge Judy is fair and objective, but sometimes even she can’t help but be influenced by sterotypes.  She’s only human.

EEPILOGUE: Even though on her show she is constantly saying she doesn’t want to hear from all the Pitbull owners when she rules against them &/or lectures them on the special precautions of owning such breeds, I think she still is an advocate for responsible dog ownership. And the ones that aren’t, pay dearly, not only from their wallet, but through humiliation on TV. Gotta love it!

Please review some of these cases, click here :
https://people.com/pets/judge-judy-dog-pet-cases