pet_matters_article003

Articles on Pet Matters:

A Little Bit About The Pomeranian

This is dog is occasionally referred to as the Miniature Spitz dog or European Spitz. In its native land of Germany it is the smallest member of the German Spitz group. The Pomeranian is also sometimes called the German Spitz in Germany.

In Germany the Pomeranian was bred to its present size in Pomeranian during the nineteenth century. Its ancestors were of the Spitz type and larger. Among the Pomeranian’s ancestors are the Samoyed, Norwegian Elkhound, Chow Chow and other northern European breeds. It is possible that the Pomeranian was reduced in size from the large white sled dog that originated in Iceland and Lapland. Exact time of origin is unknown. Queen Victoria of England took a great liking to the Pomeranian and helped to increase its popularity in her palace in 1888.

Other Spitz types were used as herding dogs and sled pullers. The Pomeranian, however, has always been a lapdog. It came to America in the late nineteenth century and was shown in the miscellaneous class in 1892 by the AKC. American Kennel Club recognized the Pomeranian officially in 1900. Since that time he has become quite popular as a pampered little pet.

Personality

The Pomeranian is sometimes a little too courageous for its own good. He serves well as an alarm dog, but its barking sometimes becomes a habit that needs to be discouraged. The Pomeranian has one primary purpose and that is to please its owners. It sometimes shies away from children that play too rough. The Pomeranian may not be a good choice for a household with children or as a child’s pet. They socialize easily with cats and other small family pets.

The Pomeranian is definitely one of those big dogs in a little package. They usually won’t back down from a much larger dog. This aggressiveness can be self-destructive as obviously a bigger dog could make mince meat of a tiny Pomeranian.

The Pomeranian is eager to learn and is devoted to its family. He is affectionate and has a very loving nature toward its own family. He is delightful and is always ready for a quick game with those he loves.

The Pomeranian responds to command if they are consistently given and he is rewarded with edible treats or kind words. The Pomeranian has a tendency to become somewhat of a “spoiled brat.” When his bad habits surface he may simply ignore commands to “act better.” He is rarely seen in agility trials; however, the Pomeranian does well in obedience trials.

Appearance

A Pomeranian stands about 7 to 8 inches tall and weighs from 3 to 7 pounds. The tiny Pomeranian has a short body, straight legs and well-balanced overall appearance. He has erect ears and a fox like expression that gives this little dog an alert expression. Pigmentation of the nose, lips and eyelids are always dark, usually black.

The Pomeranian’s coat is double and profuse. Acceptable colors are red, orange, cream and sable, black, brown and blue.

Grooming the Pomeranian

The coat of a Pomeranian is made up of an undercoat and an outer coat. The undercoat is soft and fluffy. The outer coat is fairly long, straight and harsh and covers the entire body.

There is an abundance of coat around the neck and the fore part of the shoulders and chest that forms a frill that extends over the shoulder. The forequarters are well feathered and the thighs and hind legs are well feathered to the hocks.

The Pomeranian requires regular attention to keep it clean and attractive. Thorough brushing once a week is required to keep the coat in good condition.

You will need a slicker/pin brush, medium-tooth metal comb, scissors and cotton buds.

Brush against the lie of the coat to give the Pomeranian its round pompom appearance. Brush first with the slicker/pin brush working from the top of the head, layering the hair as you go and be sure you reach the skin level. Then work through the coat with the comb to remove any tangles left behind from the brushing.

You might consider using a dry bath on your Pomeranian’s coat when in full coat. When the Pomeranian is in full coat, use a suitable pH-alkaline-balanced shampoo and rinse well.

Connie Limon
12 Dec 2006

Connie Limon. Visit us at http://www.abouttoydogs.com and sign up for our newsletters. About Toy Dogs is a guide to the selection and care of toy dog breeds. We feature articles, dog training resources, dog books, dog supplies and a toy dog breed directory. Purchase a full page ad with up to 3 pictures, a video of your dogs with up 12 pictures; ads are featured in our newsletters, all for the price of $25 per year.

Your Puppy: Have Fun While Fixing the "Naughtiness Factor"

Rowdy little children and naughty little puppies have so much in common! Let's learn from the human example, so we can quickly and gently redirect puppies away from naughtiness, toward great and fun behaviors.

Article:

I sat trapped on the airplane, hurtling toward Orlando, strapped into my seat, some 30,000 feet above ground. I say “trapped” because my seat, my entire row even, was constantly shaken, bumped and tossed by a pair of blond haired, angelic looking little monsters in the row in front of me.

Michael, twelve, and his brother, eight, found relief from boredom in the only way they knew how…by fighting, wrestling and annoying everyone for three rows in all directions.

At first, I, too, was irritated by the little blond cretins. But as their father finally erupted out of his seat to threaten the boys with bodily harm, I began to smile. I nearly laughed in fact. Not because the boys were finally getting a stern talking to. But because of the image that came to me.

Suddenly, the kids reminded me of a pair of blond Golden Retriever puppies, happy, rowdy…and completely out of control. Michael and David, lacking any direction from their parents, defaulted to known behaviors on that flight. They “tore it up, from the floor up.”

Dad yelled at the children in that low, angry tone well bred parents use when what they really want to do is scream out loud at their kids in the Walmart. And he scared them. Most of coach was grateful. But the good effects from that dressing down were all too temporary. My seat began to rock and roll once again. The puppies-I mean the kids-defaulted back to standard boy behaviors.

That’s when mom intervened. She came bearing gifts. Sweetly she told them that their choices included certain death at the hands of their father…or they could do the activity games in the shopping bag she dropped in their laps. She walked away.

The boys tore into that sack like Golden puppies into a Kong stuffed with liverwurst. Bags of pretzels, disposable cameras, coloring books and playing cards gushed from that cornucopia of childhood goodies like a geyser from Old Faithful.

This was a good thing.

Mind you, they were still boys.

“Are we almost there yet?”

“How much minutes left?”

Questions and protest still gave the boys opportunity to be, well, boys. But the worst of the pandemonium was over.

I have this bizarre tendency to view dog training as a metaphor for life itself. Not much in the way of human behavior escapes some direct correlation to dogs in my view. So I thought about Michael and David and about why they reminded me so much of puppies. Then it hit me.

Dad came along and told them what not to do. And that didn’t function for more than a few moments. Mom had a better idea. She showed the boys a new behavior they could do, concurrently presenting them with a consequence if they failed to choose the new, and more rewarding behavior she designed for them.

The parallel to our lives comes when helping dogs or puppies stop unwanted behavior. It is effective to teach a dog a new behavior that is incompatible with his unwanted behavior. It is less effective to simply correct a dog for doing the bad thing.

Take jumping on people. You can simply correct for it. But temptation remains. Plus, get with the 21st Century already. We have dogs for the “warm and fuzzies.” We are ever less likely to knee their dog off when the dog just wants to greet us. So instead of battling the dog, why not teach him to sit and offer paw to solicit attention? He can’t do that and jump now can he? Plus it’s such an engaging trick that it’s likely to win much more notice for the dog, and thus, becomes self-rewarding.

Dick Russell, a professional dog trainer in Louisiana, says he teaches the same “sit and give paw” routine to space guarding dogs. A dog won’t often sit and shake and guard space from a child all at the same time. I handle this problem in a different way. Using a gentle touch with the leash and collar, I teach the dog to move, and give up any space humans want to take. Either way, you’ve taught the dog what TO do as much as what NOT to do.

As for Michael and David, they played with their new toys for quite a while. I eyeballed them periodically, however, waiting for the old behavior to reassert itself. I smile, thinking about the dog training equipment nestled in my checked baggage. If only I could do children, we could all retire to my own private island, where dogs run free and children behave.

Marc Goldberg
23 Dec 2006

Marc Goldberg is a dog trainer specializing in the rehabilitation of difficult dogs and improving relationships. He is Vice President of the International Association of Canine Professionals (IACP) and Editor of SafeHands Journal. The author also educates professional dog trainers in his techniques. Visit him on the web at http://www.chicagodogtrainer.com or http://www.dogtraininginchicago.com.