Down & Dirty Dogs, Inc.

07/27/2026

People can say "don't hug me" but how does your dog say it?

Are you a hugger? Is your dog?

Would your dog CHOOSE that hug?
That’s a hard question to hear.

We need to be honest for a second.

I get it. We hug who we love.

But for a lot of dogs, a hug isn't affection.
It's restraint.

If they're yawning, wriggling away, flicking their tongue, turning their head, or freezing?
They could be trying to tell us that what feels like affection to us, feels like restraint to them.

They wriggle.
We pull them in closer.

They turn away.
We tell them not to be "silly".

They try to leave.
We hold on even tighter.

Tolerance is a big step away from enjoyment.

And while we're doing this.
Our children are watching.

They're learning that when someone says "no" with their body, we can simply ignore it.

That's one lesson we never want to teach.

Choice matters.
Freedom of movement matters.

Teaching our children to recognise and respect a dog's body language?

That absolutely matters.

07/22/2026

Oh this can go very wrong.😬
And afterwards we think we've figured out why.

"They just don't like the other dog"
Maybe.

But sometimes we've accidentally stacked those odds against them before they even met.

They aren't just meeting another dog.
They're also meeting an entirely new environment.

You know you're going to your friend's house at 12:30.
Your friend knows.
Your dog?
The other dog?

They have absolutely no idea what's about to happen.

A dog's home isn't just a house.
It's where they sleep.
Where they eat.
Where they relax because they know every sound, smell and exit.

Then suddenly.
An unfamiliar dog walks right through that door.

Now imagine the opposite.

Your dog walks into another dog's home.

Nothing is familiar.
They don't know the rules.
They don't know the exits.
They haven't had time to take in the environment in before they're encouraged to greet another dog.

Two dogs.
Two very different environments.
And two very different emotional experiences.

Sometimes the first meeting isn't just about the dogs.

It's also about where they're meeting.

And that environment?
It’s often dismissed as not the most important part.
But it’s often the key factor in successful meetings.

It can also be the main reason everything just went wrong

07/12/2026

06/29/2026

You judged them in 20 seconds.
Twenty seconds.

A dog barking.
Lunges.
Growling.

Maybe you rolled your eyes.

Maybe you muttered to yourself "just train that dog"
Maybe you were just thankful your dog "isn't like that".

But here's the thing.

Sometimes it only takes one frightening experience, one painful injury, one dog attack or one life-changing event for everything to change.

What you didn't see?
The six months before those twenty seconds.

You didn't see the early mornings.
The planning and precision behind a “simple” walk.

The tears.
The self-doubt.
The hours dedicated to helping their dog feel safe again.

Sometimes the kindest thing you can do isn't offer advice.

It's simply to create space.

Because what looks like an "untrained dog" to you, may actually be one of the hardest moments in someone else's journey.

There is always more to the story.
And that criticism?

It stays with people far longer than those twenty seconds ever will.

06/15/2026

The ✨magic✨ of playgroups!

Left to right:
Slinky: usually bouncing like crazy around his kennel - snoozing!
Regal: usually barking - snoozing!
Scooter: usually barrier reactive - SNOOZING!!!

All three are very sweet boys who don't present well in their kennels. We weren't even sure Scooter would want to play with another dog, considering how he acts when they walk by his kennel! But as soon as he was loose in the yard with Slinky, they both had the best time running and wrestling! Available for adoption at

06/06/2026

Seeing something isn't the problem.
Losing everything else is.

Looking leaves room for everything else around them, including you.

Fixation doesn't.

The environment starts to get much, much smaller.
Your voice starts to disappear.

Food? Not much interest then either.

They are well and truly locked on.

And it can happen fast.

Their body becomes still.
Their eyes narrow or even widen and there's laser focus.
The neck can stretch forward and lengthen.
The mouth closes.

Your dog that was taking in the world around them is suddenly taking in just one thing.

That's the difference.

Fixation shuts everything else out.

06/04/2026

Did you know? Most dogs don’t want to really bite; they would rather use lower levels of force to get their message across.

This often involves growling or showing their teeth.

There are also very good chances that before showing their teeth, dogs may have given more subtle signs of not feeling comfortable such as licking their lips, blinking, yawning, lifting the paw, walking away, or turning their head.

When these subtle signals went ignored, dogs were forced to escalate to make their point come across more clearly.

Discover more about teeth baring in dogs: https://dogdiscoveries.com/behavior/dog-teeth-baring-why-dogs-show-their-teeth/

06/01/2026

Some people are holding onto their dogs by a thread.
And we're arguing about blueberries.

Now isn't the time to shame people for feeding their dog the only way they financially can.

If some rice needs to be added to bulk a meal out because there simply isn't enough food, then that's where some people are right now.

A perfect raw diet served in a beautiful bowl with blackberries, green-lipped mussels and salmon oil might look great on social media.

But for some people, it feels like a slap in the face, over and over again.

They don't know you're already skipping meals yourself.

They’ve no idea you're juggling rent, power, groceries, fuel and a dozen other bills while trying to keep your dog fed too.

Being told "if you cared, you'd find a way" is SO easy when you're not the one standing in the supermarket trying to figure out how on earth you can get the whole family fed for the week when your bank app says seventeen dollars.

Let's be real.

People are surrendering their dogs because they can no longer afford to keep them.

Others are doing everything they can not to.

They're behind on the mortgage.
Behind on the rent.
Putting off things they really need.
Living in cold houses because the power bill has become yet another thing to worry about.
Answering the phone?
Well, you don’t really do that anymore because you know it’s someone wanting money that you just don't have.

And through all of this.
Day in and day out.
People are trying to keep their dog.

Because their dog is family.

Their dog that sleeps on their bed, snuggles and snores.
Their dog that got them through the divorce.
Their dog that sat beside them when life just fell apart.

Their dog was there in those moments when nobody else was.

People are clawing and scraping to hold onto that relationship.

And while they're doing everything they can to keep their dog in their home, they're being told they aren't good enough because they just can't afford someone else's version of the perfect diet.

Perspective matters.
Of course nutrition matters.
And yup, we should feed the best diet we reasonably can.

But right now.
In these economic times.
A dog eating a less-than-perfect diet in a loving home is often in a far, far better position than a dog that loses that home altogether.

And for many families, that's not a hypothetical.
That's the very decision they're trying desperately not to make.

05/29/2026

AND just because they back up doesn't mean they're unfriendly! It's very common for dogs to be nervous about things above them, especially when it's coming right at their face and it's attached to an unfamiliar human.

If you wanna make friends, try facing sideways, and inviting them over with a soft pleasant tone. The position is much less intimidating to the dog, and the invitation allows the dog to show you whether they want attention.

Credit to Heal The Dog for the post!