It's Dog Time!

Leslie Smith grew up in Kansas with two Cocker Spaniels, a pen and a notebook constantly at her side. She spent much of her time in her professional life writing for the corporate world, while in her spare time she volunteered with her local animal shelter. When she heard about DogTime.com, she leapt at the chance to combine her two lifelong passions, canines and writing! Now the editor at DogTime.com, she focuses on animal welfare and pitbull advocacy.

She was also a guest on PAWsitive Radio, All Things Pets, and what a conversation we had!  We talked about how animals connect people... and the importance of kindness. That kindness can make a difference in a dog's life.

DogTime.com is a content rich website featuring animals for adoption, positive reinforcement training videos and tips, ask the expert (health, diet, behavior and more) and information about ages and stages.  In our conversations about the needs of shelters and rescue organizations, Leslie gave some great information that she hears regularly from them:

• volunteers
• financial support
• help with dog handling and walking
• help with fundraising events
• writers (to write up the stories for dogs- well written stories help dog's get adopted)
• photographers
• help creating videos
• supplies (e.g. cleaning supplies, blankets, food, etc).

Make sure you check out www.dogtime.com  

The website has something for everyone!

Listen to the rest of the conversation with Leslie here:
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/chammond/2013/01/16/guest-leslie-smith

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You Had me at Woof!

Have you ever fallen in love at first sight?

That’s how it was for our dog Toby and I. Christopher, my husband, showed me Toby’s picture on the NASAP adoption website, and I saw this big happy face, gorgeous brown eyes and the biggest pink tongue I had ever seen. It was love at first sight.  We applied for the adoption of Toby and were delighted to welcome Toby into our family. In my book On Toby’s Terms (http://www.ontobysterms.com) I talk about the interesting time we had adopting Toby and what happened when we brought him home.  This seemingly perfect dog turned into quite the incorrigible dog breaking toilet tank lids, turning water taps on and routinely emptying closets and rearranging the furniture. Getting Toby a job, a purpose helped us rechanneled his energy and put it to good use, spreading kindness and joy wherever he went, including the hospital where he volunteered for 4 ½ years as a pet assisted therapy dog. Toby became a teacher for us, teaching us about unconditional love, patience, persistence and the importance of trusting your pet.

My friend Laura Marlowe, author of a beautiful book Tommy the Throw way Dog and I talked about the importance of animal adoption and rescue organizations. Laura explained that adoption was what saved Tommy the dog’s life. He suffered terrible abuse from his first owners who literally threw him away. Thanks to the compassion of a city worker who rescued Tommy, and brought him to safety, Tommy was adopted by a loving family, which is what inspired Laura to write the book.  You can hear more about adoption, Tommy’s story and Laura’s interview on PAWsitive Radio with Charmaine at:

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/chammond/2012/03/03/guest-laura-marlowe

My friend Craig Haverstick and I also enjoyed a conversation about adoption. He volunteers with the Chesapeake Bay retriever Rescue and Relief organization and has fostered and adopted dogs. Craig said something that really stuck with me… for pet owners to find ways to ensure their adopted pet becomes a life time member of the family, and does not get returned to a shelter.  The ways that you can make your pet a lifetime family member are to:

-         Ensure you seek professional advice (vet, trainer, behaviourist, pet rescue and shelter staff, breeders) when facing challenges with your dog

-         Get the proper training so that your dog can be the best it can be

-         Find ways to socialize your dog (off leash parks, dog beaches, doggie day cares, going for walks, etc.)

Toby’s behaviour was such that on  a few occasions we contemplated returning him to the shelter, but love won over and we got help instead. Finding Toby a job, giving him jobs at home, participating in training and agility classes, increasing the socialization opportunities all helped Toby’s separation anxiety lessen and improved his behaviour.  Some of our most cherished moments were with Toby… on his terms.  You can listen to the interview with Craig and learn more about pet rescue, water sports for dogs and helping your dog become a lifelong family member here:

 http://www.blogtalkradio.com/chammond/2012/03/17/guest-craig-haverstick

To find out more about Laura’s book, Tommy The Throw Away Dog visit:

Rescues are PAWsome!

Toby was a rescue dog, from NASAP http://www.nasap.ca/, and was five years old when we adopted him. We have enjoyed being able to support rescues through hosting book and speaking events and joint fundraisers, drawing awareness to their cause, and sharing Toby’s phenomenal story. He is a great example of a rescue success!  Here is one of the first photos of Toby when he joined our family. He was a dog who lived life big…. And of course On Toby’s Terms.

This weekend I had a fun interview with Eileen Proctor, The Top Dog, about rescue dogs, then spoke with Lillian Brummet on her radio show about how you can help your local rescue origination this spring.  Here’s what we came up with:

•        Stop by and have a visit, meet the staff and volunteers and the animals
•        Volunteer as a pet walker at a rescue, this can be a family affair
•        When you are spring cleaning, check with your local rescue organization to see if they are in need of old towels, blankets and cleaning supplies
•        Next time you are grocery shopping, pick up a few extra cans of food
•        Collect your change and every month drop it by the shelter
•        Help spread the word about animals in need of adoption
•        Donate your garage sale proceeds to a rescue organization

You can enjoy the interview I did with Eileen Proctor, the top dog here:

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/chammond/2012/04/07/guest-eileen-proctor

Here is the interview about rescue dogs and how we can support rescues in our communities:

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/consciousdiscussions/2012/04/08/dog-rescue-therapy-dogs

Dogs Can Improve Your Health!

Dogs truly are man’s best friend! According to Dr. Dawn Marcus, a neurologist and professor at the University of Pittsburgh, spending time with our pets, and pet therapy dogs can have a significant positive impact on our health.

Dawn was a guest on my March 30/12 PAWsitive Radio Show, and shared that therapy dogs are often placed in schools, reading programs, older people, in hospitals and group homes. One of Dawn’s dogs volunteers as a pet therapy dog in a children’s reading program, and her other dog volunteers doing hospital visits. Like our dog Toby, her dog benefitted from the variety of visiting with people, moving about the unit, and having different activities. Therapy dogs can have a significant impact on the people they visit; Dawn shared a beautiful example of a child in the reading program who demonstrated huge improvements after reading to Dawn’s therapy dog.

There are health benefits that can result from relationships and visitation with dogs. Dawn’s research in outpatient clinics (with patients and staff) involved having outpatients visiting during the wait time with a therapy dog. The research indicated that attitudes improved; there was less stress during the waiting times (for staff, patients and those travelling with the patient).  

Dawn’s research also demonstrates that interactions and visits with therapy dogs can positively impact patients dealing with chronic pain. For example, ¼ of patients had a clinically meaningful drop in pain as a result of spending a short time visiting with the therapy dog.  The study also showed a 40% anxiety drop, and a significant drop in fatigue and stress. Dawn provides the science behind the terrific stories about pet therapy dogs.

Also important to note is the significant drop in stress hormones, the increase in the body’s natural pain killer endorphins, and improvements in your immune system --- all from petting  a therapy dog. It truly is a therapeutic intervention.  The work of therapy dogs and their owners and handlers is making a difference!

Pets are great connectors. You would not believe the people we have met because of our dog Toby. Dawn talked about the same experience with her dogs. Pets help us create routines, consistency and get us up, out and moving about.

You can listen to the great conversation with Dawn Marcus at:

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/chammond/2012/03/31/guest-dr-dawn-marcus

You can follow her work with therapy dogs at her blog, www.FitAsFido.com

Check out Dawn’s fabulous book Fit As Fido:

 Dr

Toby’s (our dog) pet therapy experience is chronicled in his book On Toby’s Terms:

Learn more about our legacy project, A Million Acts of Kindness – Toby’s Global Mission at www.ontobysterms.com