Whole Dog Camp

05/30/2026

Practice on stairs is a great way to help teach dogs to stay beside or behind you, and you definitely do not want dogs to drag you down the stairs! https://www.instagram.com/reel/C2QKVpjvTzy/

05/29/2026

Tonight I ended up trying to help a friend whose puppy ate a kid's vitamin containing xylitol. Simple accident: kid dropped vitamin, puppy scarfed it down. (Note: this household is knowledgeable and is xylitol free, but a relative bought the vitamins, unaware of the risk to the dogs.)

The puppy only ate *one* vitamin. Which turned out to contain 1500 mg of xylitol.

100 mg/kg is the threshold for hypoglycemia which can be fatal. At 500 mg/kg, hepatic necrosis occurs -- destruction of liver tissue.

So just ONE chewable vitamin ended up creating a serious problem for a 30 pound pup (which is not quite 14 kg).

The emergency vet induced vomiting. Thankfully, the puppy had had a meal and so there was food in her stomach. In the vomit was the orange tablet, identifiable though dissolved.

Quick thinking on the owner's part (including grabbing the bottle of vitamins) and fortunately a nearby 24/7 emergency vet hospital meant that this pup received prompt treatment, and should make a full recovery.

Check your medications, vitamins, gum, candy, toothpaste, mouthwash, peanut butter and more for xylitol, also known as birch sugar.

This is useful information to have on hand:
https://www.calculatorsfordogs.com/health-nutrition-calculators/xylitol-toxicity-calculator

ALWAYS contact vet and ASPCA Animal Poison Control center immediately!

As for everyone (the non-vets) recommending the use of hydrogen peroxide, please update your understanding:
https://www.gsvs.org/woodbridge-nj/blog/hydrogen-peroxide-for-dogs-emergency/

Pass this along. I hope you never have to use it.

05/28/2026

Whole Dog Camp is sort of like the YWCA, but for people with dogs.

Looking for safely fenced places to play and train (agility! rally! fetch! service behaviors! Reactivity!) with your dog? Hoping to build a community of dog friends? Are you hoping for a place where you can stay and train WITH your dog, rather than ship your dog to a stranger for training?

Yes, our accommodations are ADA accessible, and we can help you grow in your journey with your service dog.

Group classes Wednesday afternoons snd Saturday mornings through the summer. For more info, message me!

05/27/2026

E-collar training wouldn't have helped prevent this.

05/25/2026

it's important to build your puppies value for hanging out near you and chasing you around

05/24/2026

We are not living in a democracy. Social media decides who sees what and when. https://www.instagram.com/reel/DYNr76IJqXU/?igsh=MTJhYmQ5ZDg2N2VkaA==.

05/23/2026

Maggie gets very excited when she sees me holding a rake or a hoe or a shovel and so I tried to push her outside of the gate while I was gardening, but now I see that when she sees me with a shovel, she has a game in mind.

05/23/2026

socializing dogs, also known as weeding the garden. 

05/23/2026

05/21/2026