Why do you do it Just because I can !

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Reminder Why do I ride

On the rare occasion, I manage to get down to the Brisbane River for the Monday night noodle ride.

Here is a quick description of the ride. Meet up, talk crap, ride off, spin a yarn, ride, laugh, attack the occasional hill, sprint, ride, stop, eat cheap noodles, talk more crap, ride home while burping.

Given the training I do, last night I was asked, "So Matt, what is this ride for you?"

I responded by saying that it is an awesome reminder of how much fun cycling is. The group is honest, fun & they are simply there to ride their bikes.

Before I met up with the guys I had a quick catch up with Hubcap Andrew Handyside. Smiling, riding & keen to smash out an awesome race this Sunday. Hubcap shared his goal for Sunday with me & I will be sure to call him on it.

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Viewers questions What can i do to keep my dog energetic

Play some games with your dog and make interactive toys.

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Why Do Dogs Mount or Hump

Why does my dog hump?  Why do dogs mount other dogs?  Why does my dog hump his bed?  As a professional dog trainer and author, I hear these questions at least once a week.  Yes, you read that correctly, weekly.  This dog blog post has been on my to-do list for quite some time.  So, today is the day when I will finally give you my two cents on why dogs hump.

As with most dog training and behavior questions, it is never the same answer or reason for each

Photo-Malingering

dog.  There are a lot of variables, and considerations when trying to figure out why your dog humps or mounts either you, another dog, the air or an object such as his bed or toys.  I will go over various reasons to this age-old question.  First, both male and female dogs mount.  Second, spayed/neutered and unaltered dogs all mount.  Third, all ages of dogs hump.

• Play-A dog will often mount during play, or even as an invitation to play. When dogs are aroused (not sexual, just excited), they often can be seen redirecting that excitement onto something else.  Puppies are often seen mounting or clasping during play.  I know from experience, this is one of the biggest times I see my own dog, Dexter humping.  Dexter is notorious for doing this in the middle of a big game of tug, chase, almost any game he finds really fun.  His favorites are the cat bed and a pillow.
• Anxiety or Stress-When a dog is stressed, anxious, or unsure, they often perform what we call displacement gestures.  A simple way to think of a displacement gesture is when a dog doesnt know what to do because of conflicting emotions, so they do something out of place.  Mounting, sniffing, walking away, lip licking, these are all common displacement gestures.  Once again, I can recall my golden retriever, Theo doing this in times of stress.  He had separation anxiety, and when he would see me getting my things together, he would often air hump. Like Dexter, he also did this when over aroused during play, except he air humped, and did not use an object.
• Dominance or Control-I think these two can be lumped together for this purpose.  There are those times when a dog may mount to control a situation.  This can be seen on both sides of a coin, to dominate, or just to get control, or stop a behavior.
• Sexual or Mating-Obviously this is one of the reasons a dog may mount, or attempt to hump. 

So what does all this mean to the dog parent?  Knowing why a dog is doing something is always key in determining a course of action if any.  Humping can become a compulsive behavior, so its always a good idea to stop it from continuing before it gets out of hand.  However, you want to be kind, gentle, and not make a huge deal out of it, or it can actually escalate. 

For play mounting, throwing in some obedience-type behaviors to settle a dog down can be helpful.  A sit, stay, down, stay are good ones to add.  For my monkey of a dog, Dexter, I toss the bed and pillow in the closet when I play, Dexter is a very obsessive boy!

All dog anxiety needs to be addressed for the welfare of the dog.  I worked with Theo on his separation anxiety, and also calmly had him do a down/stay to settle him down.

Dominance or control mounting is usually because a dog is put in a situation where he actually doesnt feel secure in. Slow introductions, and taking things easy are helpful.

There you have it.  Those are some of the most common reasons dogs hump and what you can do about it.  When its all said and done, its a very NORMAL dog behavior, so dont get too stressed about it.

Do you need extra dog training help?  I offer in-person,  phone consultations, weekend dog retreats and public seminars.  Contact me today for details.

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Tonya Wilhelm-Global Dog Training http://www.globaldogtraining.com

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What did you do on Thursday night

Late night shopping? Not bloody likely! Not for Rach, Mark & I.

The three of us headed out for a xc ride. 71kms & 2300 metres of climbing! My Scott Scale20 was getting the forks serviced in preparation for the up & coming races. The next horse in the stable was the Ventana single speed.

There was some hike-a-bike. We saw two sugar gliders, a few possums, many Tawny Frog Mouthed birds, Rach was a bit of an animal at times & Mark pretended to be a gravel dwelling snake after a dive into the dirt as a result of something catching his front wheel on a fast decent.

Marks Ay Up lights were ripped from his helmet mount, the cable was ripped out of the back of the lights. We picked them up, popped them back into the mount, plugged the cable back in & you wouldnt have know he had just crashed. The lights werent even scratched.

Summary: Get some lights, push your pedals & not a trolley!

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Compression socks Do they really work

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Training long & hard during the mornings, spending 1/2 the day on my feet & the other 1/2 on a computer I was finding my calves were suffering the most.

One of the great prizes from the Dusk to Dawn race in Perth last year was a pair of compression pants coupon from Line Break

I didnt feel I would get the use out of a pair of long tights. I dont even know if they will work or not. So I emailed a very helpful & accommodating Barry asking if I could get just a pair of calf socks instead.



With in a couple of days I received my calf socks. I found the measurements on their website to be accurate with their sizing.

So on a day when my calves were smashed from weekend racing & some morning training, now is a good time to see what they can do.

I found the socks gave my calves relief with in about 20 minutes of wearing them. I left them on all day & my legs felt GREAT!

Summary after 2 months of use:

• Very comfortable
• Look good
• I have found they DO work to rapidly assist in muscle recovery very, very well.
• Now referred to as my magic socks
• A little difficult to put on the first couple of times.
• Some of the stitching has opened up a little.
• I am so impressed with the results I am going to invest in a pair of the longer leg short, tights from LINE BREAK

Next step, I am going to see how they go 24 hour racing! I am thinking these long, shorts would be awesome for XPD?!


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