gringojay, the sawmill by-product is probably high in carbon and low in nitrogen. Chicken "droppings" are high in nitrogen and low in carbon but the droppings are usually diluted in bagasse or other 'bedding' used on the poultry farm, thereby increasing the overall C:N ratio. I feel that you will still have to add some more nitrogen either in the form of green material or ammonium sulphate. The composting process requires aerobic organisms (one reason why we turn the pile inside out) for a beneficial end product. Anaerobic bacteria can cause 'upsets'. The pile does require moisture but must be protected from heavy 'tropical downpours'. A thick covering of grass clippings can work well provided that it is understood that they are not part of this compost. They become a layer or two in the next compost pile. It is occasionally necessary to water the compost pile. Temperature is very important. The pile must "cook" at around 140 degrees F. We would push a shovel handle into the middle of the pile, leave it for about 5 minutes and feel the warmth on the end. Of course if the handle started to smoke we would know that the temperature was too high! Some experienced guys would discern the temperature gradient along the shovel handle and grade the quality of the "cook"; and I will leave you to wonder if a pun is intended.

With my dog the paw biting was due to an allergy...to grass. Be glad you don't have that to contend with, try stopping a dog from stepping on a lawn! We ran the gammit of antihistamines, etc and nothing worked except prednisone. Eventually we had to put him on Atopica which is cyclosporine for dogs, very expensive but effective. Take him to a pet dermatologist (if there is one in your area), they'll be able to test him and advise you. Some require referral from your vet, who will probably want to do some of his/her own tests first.

I would probably say that you would need to check for things like bed bugs, mites, fleas, or scabbies. Obviously your dog is seeing something that you cant see. My dog starting to do the flea picking or insect removal act after i had a friend stay at my house for about a week it started out in just a few areas like my couch or a bed my friend had spent a good bit of time on then i noticed my dog was doing this to me and i went to the doctor and found out that i had scabies i later found out that my friend had a few months ago and thought that she had got rid of it but apparently did not and hence the dog doing the little front teeth biting that you speak of.

***" the whole premise of 'alpha rolls' is based on fiction. In nature an alpha dog does NOT roll another dog onto it's back. Neither do wolves. The less dominant dog voluntarily shows it's belly as a signal of appeasement. It is never physically forced into that position by the other dog. Forcing dogs onto their backs can and will result in defensive aggression."*** This is an interesting subject and whether one likes the technique or not is their choice. I do believe that not every dog benefits from the method and it should only be done by someone who understands how to use it. In the wild the dog/wolf species has their own way of communicating that a human working with a dog cannot duplicate. If humans were able to show the same posturing and sounds (growls) that the alpha male/female does, then the alpha roll would never be necessary. In the wild, if a dog/wolf doesn't submit to the alpha, a fight results. So, since we're of a different species, we have to use what communicates to the dog that the human is alpha...........which leads us to the "rolll. Again, I'll say I think this is only needed on dogs that have a strong drive to be alpha and continue to challenge their owner. A poor trainer and a dog that is strongly determined to be alpha is why many of these animals end up euthanized, so I'd much rather see an alpha roll (by the right person) than an animal sent to its doom. I never finished reading the book by the Monks and I don't remember how or when they used the 'roll'. They may have changed their views due to novices trying to take what they perceived thru the text and then wrongly applying the training to their dog. Personally, I find trying to train my dogs by what I've read to be difficult. I'd much rather watch/work with a trainer in person and study their actions, voice, how they communicate with the animal and then try to apply the technique to my dog. As we all know from posting here, interpretation of text runs the gamut! No one is right or wrong on this subject and we'll agree to disagree...........and try to keep a biting dog from ending up euthanized.