A light brown puppy licks at a robber toy filled with a snack

Ask Crystal: Destructive Rescue

Dear Crystal, From animal shelter suspected 2 yrs old, May was a stray all her life. Very watchful, loving but extremely destructive. She potties outside, same spots. She takes curtains down and she seems remorseful after. I…

Ask Crystal: New Friends or Foes?

Dear Crystal,  We rescued a male husky two days ago from our local humane society. His history is largely unknown, but he is underweight and extremely timid and jumpy.   We did a meet-and-greet with our female husky prior…

Ask Crystal: Barky Car Ride

Dear Crystal,  Tessa, our two-year-old (28lb) Aussiedoodle is a fluffy ball of energy and joy but has developed a terrible habit of barking in the car, which began when she was quite young and has been intermittent since. We have…

Ask Crystal: Building a Bond

Dear Crystal,  I adopted a 6-week-old puppy 4 years ago: My intention for her was to train her myself to be my service dog at best or therapy dog at the very least. The idea became very sticky and all tangled up when I became ill and was…

Ask Crystal: Mouthy Puppy

Dear Crystal,  We have a nine-week-old corgi puppy. She is biting constantly. We are trying to stay calm and positive but she is drawing blood. We try to distract her with bones or go outside. We have had her for 2.5 weeks and she is…

Ask Crystal: Nail Trimming Issues

    Dear Crystal,  My Rotty will not let me cut his nails.  It is affecting his walking ..so he doesn’t want to walk. He's struggling to walk...I'm disabled and don't have the money to get his rabies shot and…
A white dog with brown patch

Ask Crystal: Dealing with Anxiety

Dear Crystal,  We rescued a pit mix 3 years ago. She will occasionally potty in the house. She has very bad separation anxiety on top of sheer terror at the sound of fireworks and/or gunfire. She will run through the house opening doors…
close up view of a sad looking puppy laying on a couch

Ask Crystal: Managing Separation Anxiety

Dear Crystal,  My puppy is now 15 weeks old. She is ok in the crate if she can see me. I had to leave her in the crate alone and returned an hour later to find her soaking wet. Literally dripping wet but it wasn’t urine. It was saliva.…

Ask Crystal: Cat Litter Box Troubleshooting

Dear Crystal,  We have a feral cat that has become an indoor cat. She seems to be adjusting well to indoors except she doesn't like the litter box much. We have two in the same area and she will use one to pee in but poos on the floor…
a small light brown puppy lays in a crate with the door open

Ask Crystal: Whining Puppy Woes

Dear Crystal,  So, I put my new puppy in the crate to nap and he whines for a while and then falls asleep. He will wake up to whining and all I think about is letting him out and go potty. Should I wait again until he stops crying to…