Here at Bay Woof, January feels like the perfect time for renewing bonds with our dogs, and creating some fresh ones.
The holiday decorations are packed away (or will be soon enough), we’re all back in our own homes (or will be soon enough), and nothing sounds better than a good, relaxing snuggle with the soft, warm constants in our lives. Dogs are born sedatives. They help us take our minds off the nasty weather and that growing stack of bills. But we need to remember that dogs are born sponges, too – they share our moods, and they’ve probably absorbed a lot of our holiday season stresses.
How can we reward our canine companions for helping us stay sane and do ourselves a lot of good at the same time? We can give them the attention they crave by stepping up their training activities. Getting physical again after the post-holiday R&R smoothes everyone’s ruffled fur.
In this issue, Bay Woof jumps on the New Year’s resolutions bandwagon and brings you a wealth of resources to guide your 2013 canine training goals. We hope our compendium of training news, clues, how-to’s, and thought-provoking views will get you and your dog started on your best year yet.
Of course, training is a hot topic with dog aficionados year-round, and each month our Good Dog! column presents tips and tales from prominent Bay Area dog trainers. To make it easy for you to find the resources you need to help you handle your particular pup, this month’s column presents a listing of every Good Dog! training article from the past six years, all viewable here on our website.
We’re pleased to welcome back top-tier trainer Dr. Ian Dunbar who sets the stage by reminding us how far we’ve come from the bad old days when “leash correction” training techniques were all we knew. Learn about the history of rewards-based training here.
We present four new perspectives on dog training from four locally connected trainers. For those who’ve welcomed a new puppy into their homes this season, Aishe Berger of SF Puppy Prep tells us how she uses play to make training go down like a spoonful of sugar. Bonnie Brown-Cali of Dog Dynamics, Inc., offers a glimpse into the special world of those very special creatures, service dogs. Dynamite Doggies behavior counselor Jennifer Marie Joyce suggests easy ways to ease the stress of living with high-energy dogs. And deaf-dog training specialist Paul Klein opens our ears to the unique lessons to be learned when dogs experience what we do instead of hearing what we say.
But wait, there’s more! Kelly Gorman Dunbar’s Monthly Woof column challenges us to make the most of daily dog walks in 2013. If you or a loved one have experienced a physical set-back, you’ll greatly appreciate Jean Cary’s in-depth discussion of the benefits to be gained from adapting your dog for service work.
January is not only about new training goals. We’re also happy to share good news about last year’s many amazing breakthroughs in canine health; in Ask Dr. Dog column, Jenny Taylor, DVM, lists her picks for 2012’s best medical advancements. The Peninsula Humane Society & SPCA’s Senior Vice President, Scott Delucchi, tells us how Bay Area shelters are handling the Chihuahua boom; see the article for the answer (hint: very creatively!) Closing out our issue, Althea Kippes, a volunteer with Dachshund Relief Inc., touches our hearts in her Shelter Zone column about the rewards of fostering and rescue.
With that, we wish all our readers and their canine companions a very happy–and productive–2013!
— Deb C.Z. Hirsch, Assistant Editor
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