Why "Canine Gems"?
the story behind the name
"I've had more than one person ask me 'Why Canine Gems?' If you're asking yourself the same question, there are a couple of reasons behind the answer:
The superficial reason is that I have a dog named Opal (who is, of course, a gem), and have had pets named after gemstones since I was young. So why not keep the theme going, ya know?
The more important reason is that, when people look at their misbehaving dog, they tend to ask them "What the *bleep* is wrong with you?" And, most of the time, the answer to that question--strange as it may seem--is "nothing".
No matter how adorable the dog, we tend to see misbehaving dogs like we would an uncut, unpolished rock that doesn't seem valuable at first glance. It's not until we look a little closer, or maybe cut into the surface of a stone that we realize its value, and dogs are no different.
When we're frustrated, as so many of us are when our dogs misbehave, we don't stop to think "Wow. I love this dog so much! They are so valuable to me." The fact is, though, they are valuable. We love our dogs, even when they drive us crazy. A dog's obnoxious--or even dangerous--behavior doesn't take away his or her value. It just makes it harder to see.
That's why I chose to call my business "Canine Gems": because, whether you can see it right now or not, your dog is a gem, and if there are behaviors making it hard for you to remember that, I consider it my personal mission to polish those off and show you the gem underneath."
-Melissa (Missy) Mote
