Animal Shelter Foster Homes Needed

Tails will be wagging in Smyrna Sunday afternoon when the Best Friends Pet Care Treat Truck for Dogs comes to town giving away free ice cream and cookies.

The colorful, doggy-logo’d truck will be visiting dog parks with treats and fun for dogs and the people who love them. Best Friends, which provides boarding, daycamp and grooming, created the truck to give the community a taste of the fun and caring its staff provides to pet guests every day at its pet care center at 1087 Johnson Ferry Road in Marietta.

The truck will be in the Jonquil City’s two dog parks on Sunday afternoon. From 1:30 – 3 p.m., the truck will be at Lake Court Dog Park located at 3500 Lake Dr. Then from 3:15 – 5 p.m., it will be parked at Burger Park, located at 680 Glendale Place.

Shelter Animals and Petfinder

If you visit the  and see animals that you later try to find on Petfinder, they may not be listed. When animals come in as strays the shelter holds them for seven days to see if the owners reclaim. Shelter volunteers post the animals for adoption on Facebook or Petfinder after seven days. Plus, with over 300 available animals for adoption at any one time, it's difficult for volunteers to keep up.

Petfinder is updated daily, usually in the morning from the previous day based on the list received from the shelter.

Foster Homes

FOSACobb is always in need of foster homes, though not directly for the shelter. They do transports to out-of-state rescues and are always looking for 2 to 3 week fosters until the animals can leave on transport. Also, many of the rescues that save dogs from Cobb are looking for foster homes.

Inquire at the FOSACobb Facebook page for more information.

Click through the photographs accompanying this article to see shelter cats for adoption.

Vet Tip of the Week 

If your dog is possessive over his food, resist the urge to punish him or try to show him who’s the ‘top dog.’ This will only make the situation worse. Instead, teach your dog that good stuff happens when people are near his food bowl. Here are two ways to retrain your dog not to be aggressive around food:

• At every meal, stand a distance away from your dog’s dish that does not elicit a protective response, and toss small bites of your dog’s favorite treats. Even after they have finished eating, continue to toss treats as you move a little closer to the bowl. Each meal, you should start tossing treats a little closer to your dog’s bowl, but don’t move too close too quickly so that your dog growls or tenses. The key is to teach your dog to stay relaxed at all times, and to expect delicious treats when people are close to his/her food dish.

• If you’ve already taught your dog to sit, you can try this method to eliminate food aggression. Start by holding your dog’s dish, and wait for them to sit. Once your dog sits (and this could take some time), slowly start to put the food bowl down. Be ready to swiftly pick it up if your dog breaks the sit and moves towards the bowl. This exercise is best done if your dog sits at least a few feet away, so at first, some dogs will need to be on a leash that is tied. Once your dog sits patiently when the food dish is placed on the ground, move a good distance away and let him/her eat.  When your dog is finished eating, slowly approach his/her dish with a yummy treat they only get for this exercise. You should be just outside the area around your dog’s dish that they feel the need to protect. Wait for your dog to sit before giving them the treat. Once your dog routinely sits as you approach after a meal, begin offering the treat while they are eating. Again, wait just outside the area they typically guard, and when your dog sits, give them the treat. You can move closer only after your dog sits every time you approach at the initial distance. Repeat this exercise at every meal. Eventually, when your dog sees you approach their food bowl, they will sit instead of growl.

Remember, retraining takes time and patience. By following these exercises, eventually, your dog’s food aggression will fade. These exercises are also helpful with puppies to prevent food aggression from ever starting.

Dr. Lori Germon is a veterinarian at in Smyrna. You can find information on pet introduction and other pet topics at their website. You can also find them on Facebook.