Guide Dogs, Service Dogs, and Dogs that Make a Difference!

What an delight to talk with Holly McKnight.  Holly is the President of the Arlington Texas Chapter of the National Federation of the Blind as well as is involved with Guide Dogs for the Blind and Lone Star Puppy Raisers. Holly was born with the back third of her brain outside of her skull… the part of the brain that normally controls vision. Due to this, Holly was able to train with her first guide dog to assist her with everyday living when she was starting college. Her current guide dog, her third, is Pollyann. Holly will share lots of information on the show today about guide dogs… their training, their life, qualifications to be matched with one, types of dogs used, etc. Holly also got to sing at Carnegie Hall- what a thrill that would have been.

Holly talked about the various ways that dogs help individuals, for example guide dogs.  The training process for guide dogs is ongoing, and the benefits and sense of freedom they provide to their human companion is incredible. Holly described this as increasing her mobility!  Her dog Polyaan is a Yellow Lab, and is a great support to her. One element that is so very important is trust. Holly talked about the trust the builds between the dog and his/her owner.

Our dog Toby was not a guide or service dog, but he was an animal assisted therapy dog and I can attest to the incredible trust that Holly talked about. The more Toby and I volunteered together, the more I trusted him, and he trusted me. As well, this trust rippled over to the patients.

These organizations are such an important part of our community, and make a big difference in the lives of others.



Listen to my interview with Holly McKnight at:
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/chammond/2012/05/19/guest-holly-mcknight

You can also access the archived radio show interviews with great guests such as Laura Marlowe, Susan Sutcliffe, Kerri Lake, Georgina Bradley, Craig Haverstick and more at:  http://www.blogtalkradio.com/chammond  Also, don't forget to press the "Follow" button right below Toby's smiling face, that way you will get alerted to upcoming shows. 

Dog Books That Warm the Heart

What are your favorite dog books?  I have MANY.... one of them is Conversations with My Dog by Zig Ziglar.  For many years, I have been inspired by the writing of Zig Ziglar, a motivational speaker and author. His practical and tactical tips to life have helped many.  A couple of years ago I had the chance to meet Zig Ziglar and his daughter Julie, they were presenting at a large convention.


I have had many conversations with our dog Toby, some aloud and others in my head.  What I love about our pets is that they listen to our conversation attentively (well sometimes), appear interested in what we have to say, and somehow without saying a word help us find the answers to the questions that challenge us the most. 

What about you?  What kind of conversations have you had with your pet?  How does he/she respond when you are chattering away to them? What's your best lesson you learned while in conversation with your pet?

Zig's book talks about the many conversations he had with his dog about life, the lessons life brings and getting through challenges. 

Meeting Zig Ziglar was a highlight of 2010!

Happy conversations... Wishing you a great week! 

A Day in The Dog of the Day’s Life!

Our dog, Toby was showcased as the Dog of the Day on Sunday, May 27.  What a beautiful way to celebrate his life, and his legacy. Take a look at the beautiful posting that Pet of the Day wrote up about Toby:  http://dogoftheday.com/archive/2012/May/27.html

Toby on one of his favorite days.... Wednesdays
The day he volunteered as an animal assisted therapy dog.

A day in the life of Toby sort of went like this:

• Wake up, big stretch, smile
• Happy dance and half somersault (they still aren't getting up and out of bed yet....)
• A louder happy dance and dropping a wet tennis ball or goobered stuffed teddy on their face (....now they are awake)
• Two feet on the bed and big wet kisses
• Bark at the sunshine, the air, leaves blowing down the street
• Wolf down breakfast... don't waste a second...it's time to play
• Find the Kong, Frisbee and tennis ball (so they have a selection to throw to me)
• Share some more love and wet kisses
• Bark at the birds, the air, the sunshine.  What a great day!
• Quick nap in the sun.
• Nudge the books on the coffee table and lock myself in the bathroom.
• Flip the toilet seat up and down until help arrives.
• Share more love and wet kisses.
• Quick nap
• And the day and evening pretty much goes that way. A happy, loving, playful dog who seemed to bring 100% of himself to the world every day.

So much to learn from our animals.  The following day, the Pet of the Day wrote a beautiful review about his books, you can read it here:
http://petoftheday.com/talk/showthread.php?173214-Toby-the-gift
 
http://dogoftheday.com/archive/2012/May/27.html
 
Wishing you a playful, loving and purposeful week!

Top Dog Visits PAWsitive Radio

Whose the top dog at your house?

Toby was the Top Dog in our home, and of course, it was on his terms.... hence the name of my book, On Toby's Terms

Toby- what a smile!  A dog who lived life big, and loved even bigger
http://www.ontobysterms.com/

Another Top Dog, Eileen Proctor, was a guest on my radio show PAWsitive Radio and what a PAWsome guest she was!  Eileen offered great tips for listeners about animal behaviour, making our yards safe for our pets, and handling holidays with pets.  Check out the great tips below, or listen to the radio show at: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/chammond/2012/04/07/guest-eileen-proctor

Eileen Proctor- The Top Dog!
http://topdogeileenproctor.com/
For additional information about The Top Dog,
visit www.FURventlySpeaking.com



Tips from Eileen:
- Set rules and parameters for your pet, then ensure family and visitors follow the rules too!
- Be consistent
- Ensure you provide bonding time- this could happen through quality play time, training, etc.
- Socialize your pet
- Do your research before adopting a pet, choose the right pet to become your FURever Family member
- Training is for the family and the pet
- Pet proof the yard (check that plants are animal safe, avoid fertilizers that are harmful to pets, make sure your pet is not outside when cutting the lawn (rocks can shoot out from lawnmower and harm pet)
- Enjoy the moments that our furry friends give us.

As the pioneer of the dog daycare industry within Phoenix's Valley of the Sun in October 2000, national Pet Lifestyle Expert Top Dog Eileen Proctor has been privileged to become "Aunt Eileen" to thousands of K-9 Kids, bestowing biscuits, balls and bellyrubs to mixed breed and purebred puppies, adult and advanced-age dogs alike.  This unique and extensive "paws-on" experience... coupled with her steadfast commitment to and involvement with dozens of animal welfare organizations, has earned Eileen the titles of America’s Canine Connections Coach and The Voice of Pet Rescue. The Top Dog is a coveted national media personality, professional speaker, published author of “Top Dog’s Top Tips for Tip Top Dog Care: What Your Best Friend Wants You To Know”, as well as the inimitably charismatic and infotaining host of Blogtalk radio’s FURvently Speaking.


You can listen to PAWsitive Radio every Saturday at 3 pm MST at: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/chammond

If you can't join us live, no problem, you can click the link and listen to the down load. Don't forget to click the "Follow" button under Toby's picture on the blog talk radio link, then you will receive emails of the upcoming shows.  And, click this blog to follow the blog. 

Toby's website is http://www.ontobysterms.com/. 

Bola Ajumobi owns Slimy Book Worm- http://www.slimybookworm.com/
an online bookstore that also provides book reviews that help parents, grandparents, educators and those interested in purchasing great quality children’s books. Slimybookworm selects books that give the reader good value.


I had the opportunity to interview Bola on my Your Book As a Business Radio show, you can listen here, http://www.blogtalkradio.com/your-book-as-a-business/2012/05/19/guest-bola-ajumobi

Bola offered some great insights about the value of book reviews, including the fact they are a useful tool for parents, grandparents and educators in choosing books that are well written, and have been “vetted” as appropriate content for children.

For authors, Bola suggested that when approaching reviewers, the author should:

- Do some homework, visit the reviewers blogs, website and reviews to determine that your book fits with the reviewers genre and review guidelines

- Send a personalized pitch or request for the review

- Build a conversation, connection and rapport with the reviewer

- Do your part to help share and promote the review (e.g. post on social media, blog about it, put the review on your website, etc).



Bola stated that some of the most important features in children’s books are:

- The cover… people are drawn to that first (and people do actually judge a book by its cover)

- The quality of illustrations are very important

- The ability to get the book in front of the audience (children and parents and educators)


Other features such as stickers, pull out card, Q&A at the back of the book are all great ways to create a higher level of engagement between the reader and the book, and these are great added value. These are the types of books that people are more likely to pick up for gifts for children.

We are learning that readers love the questions we included at the back of Toby's book, the questions encourage conversations about animal assisted therapy, kindness, and friendship.

Toby soaking up the excitement the day his new book
Toby The Pet Therapy Dog & His Hospital Friends arrived.
http://www.ontobysterms.com/

To read the review that Bola completed for Toby The Pet Therapy Dog & His Hospital friends, please visit: http://www.slimybookworm.com/blog/review-of-toby-the-pet-therapy-dog-and-his-hospital-friends


To listen to Bola Ajumobi, and her wise words about children’s books and book reviews, you can listen to the audio at:

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/your-book-as-a-business/2012/05/19/guest-bola-ajumobi.

One PAW at a time

Can you imagine going through a difficult time in your life, and not having the resources to take care of you beloved pet, and therefore having to surrender your furry family member to a rescue organization? Sadly, that is the reality for many individuals and families.

Lynn Molnar is the founder of Thankful Paws Inc. As a volunteer and host of various fundraisers for local animal groups and causes - Lynn decided to broaden her horizons by forming Thankful Paws. She helps individuals and families care for their pet when difficult times jeopardize the family. Thankful Paws provides pet food, pet supplies, blankets and other necessities for animals when their family is struggling to meet their needs. I was so inspired by Lynn’s story and what she is doing to PAW it Forward! Food Banks are such an important pillar in our community. For many reasons, food banks don’t have pet food so what Lynn is doing, is meeting an important need.


She also writes a column for the Examiner online at Baltimore Animal Advocacy.   Check out the fabulous article that she wrote about our dog, Toby. Baltimore Examiner News: http://www.examiner.com/article/meet-toby-therapy-dog


I so enjoyed learning about what Lynn does and the organization that she started. Thankful Paws is a new organization dedicated to help people keep their pets during difficult financial times. Thankful Paws is a mobile food bank for pets, distributing pet food and supplies to people in their local communities. Lynn Molnar, the founder and President of Thankful Paws Inc. holds a Bachelor of Science degree from Johns Hopkins University, has been a vegetarian since the age of 16, and a strong supporter of animals welfare because of the love of animals that was instilled in her from her mother. www.thankfulpaws.org

Thankful Paws mobile food bank for pets provides an extremely important and well needed service in the community that Lynn resides. Her priorities are providing service to senior citizens, homeless individuals and veterans. Lynn has a big vision for Thankful Paws, it is her hope to expand this organization to be a nationwide service.

You can listen to the incredible conversation we had on PAWsitive Radio, all things pet show!

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/chammond/2012/05/12/guest-lynn-molnar

Thank you Lynn and Thankful Paws for what you do to make our world a better place, for us all!

The PAWdograph! How Dogs Leave Their Mark in the World!

Animals leave their mark in many ways... our dog Toby, a Chesapeake Bay retriever, left his mark by PAWdographing his books.  He PAWdographed books for many people, and enjoyed every minute of it!

Check out the little girl in this video as she prepares for a noisy Toby PAWdographing of her book On Toby's Terms at a booksigning on Toby's book tour. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mpdUEF_sNPU


After PAWdographing a book for another young fan, she drew us a beautiful picture of Toby... what a way to leave her mark in the world! 

What do you do to leave your mark on the world?  Listen to a great conversation with Lynn Molnar as she talks about the organization she started, Thankful Paws http://www.thankfulpaws.org/ a mobile food bank for animals!  I just love this concept and what Lynn is doing to make a difference in the world!  Her program is saving lives and keeping families together.

Thankful Paws is a new organization dedicated to help people keep their pets during difficult financial times. Thankful Paws is a mobile food bank for pets, distributing pet food and supplies to people in their local communities. Lynn Molnar, the founder and President of Thankful Paws Inc. holds a Bachelor of Science degree from Johns Hopkins University, has been a vegetarian since the age of 16, and a strong supporter of animals welfare because of the love of animals that was instilled in her from her mother

You can listen to the interview I had with Lynn here on my PAWsitive Radio Show: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/chammond/2012/05/12/guest-lynn-molnar

Remember, sign up to follow the show by clicking "follow" under the photo on the blog talk radio page.

To follow Toby on Twitter, @ontobysterms.

To follow Toby on Facebook: On Toby's Terms and Toby Tales