How to make a great dog jacket from one of your old winter coats!

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Earth Hour: A great time to unite our Planet for the environment!

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Isn't It Great When the Bad Guys Lose? Dog-Snatcher Gets Four Years

Christopher Young didn't ask to be caught, but he might as well have. And the Yorkie? Unharmed.

Dog theft is becoming an alarmingly commonplace crime. We keep hearing shocking stories: stolen dogs used as bait dogs, sold to research labs, and held for ransom. One particularly brazen theft occurred just last week, when Actress Tricia O'Kelley, from The Secret Life of the American Teenager and The New Adventures of Old Christine, had her Yorkshire Terrier dognapped right from her yard. Fortunately, the dog was dropped near her home unharmed -- the thieves might have been thwarted by all the media attention the theft had received.

Now, we get a heartwarming story about the other side of dog theft -- sentencing. In the District of Columbia, 18-year-old Christopher Young just got four years in prison for stealing a Yorkie at gunpoint. 

And the dog, thankfully, wasn't dognapped for very long -- he escaped right after the crime and made his way home by himself. 

Here's how it went down: On Jan. 5 at about 10 a.m., Young approached a woman walking her Yorkshire Terrier in the area of Fifth and Kennedy Streets. He displayed his handgun and said, “Give me your dog. Yorkies cost a lot of money.” The woman gave him the dog, and he ran. 

But this was no master criminal -- this was Christopher Young. He dropped his phone when he was running away -- of course he did. Also, Christopher Young was wearing a GPS ankle bracelet, thanks to a previous crime. GPS ankle bracelets allow police to keep tabs on people like Christopher Young. This particular GPS bracelet put Christopher Young right at the scene of the crime and also in the flight path as described by witnesses. 

It was the very definition of an open and shut case. And the dog? He escaped right after being nabbed and simply ran home. Nothing to it. 

Young pleaded guilty in March 2013 in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. During the proceedings, Judge Robert I. Richter hefted the book, judged its weight in his hand for a few beats, and then threw it at Christopher Young, giving him four years in prison followed by four years of supervised release. 

Judge Robert I. Richter is our hero of the day. 

Via DCist

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It's National Holistic Pet Day, a great day to learn more about how your dog can live more holistically!

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Great Dane Puppy Cam: Watch Future Service Dogs Grow Up

Explore.org and Dog Bless You provide a look into the lives of six puppies as they're trained.

Here at Dogster, we love big mutts and we cannot lie. While there's definitely a place in our hearts for petite breeds, big dogs like sweet giant George and record-breaking Zeus amaze us with their sheer size, engaging our imaginations and inviting us to hug them tightly.

We are no stranger to puppy cams -- in fact, we've got them all bookmarked in our browsers and we sneak a peek of adorableness whenever our boss isn't looking (well, all right, here at Dogster, our boss is usually looking at puppy cams with us and the squeals of glee echo throughout the office). But this particular cam of Great Dane puppies is especially awww-inspiring -- the six big pups are destined to become service dogs to disabled veterans, children, and people suffering from diseases such as multiple sclerosis and Friedrich's ataxia.

Thanks to the efforts of explore.org and Dog Bless You, we get a glimpse into the lives and training of these amazing service dogs with multiple cameras, which allow you to watch puppies Perry, Lola, Ebony, Mia, Willow, and Roxanne grow into healthy, noble dogs.

But that's not all! For every one thousand likes Dog Bless You's initiative, Dog Bless USA, receives on its Facebook, Tumblr, and Pinterest pages, the organization will donate one service dog to a disabled veteran. Since June, more than 150 dogs have began improving the lives of men and women who have fought to defend our country.

Are you ready for cuteness? You can watch the puppies sleep with the indoor cam and during the day you can watch them outside at the "puppy hill."

Photos via the Service Dog Project

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It's National Holistic Pet Day, a great day to learn more about how your dog can live more holistically!

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How One Great Dane Opened the Door for Battered Women

Dogs are amazing. We don't need to say it twice. They can sense our sadness and try to comfort us, they can help turn people's lives around, and they can make living with an illness much easier. Dogs and humans share a bond unlike any other relationship between people and animals. We've evolved to need each other -- it's a cosmic alliance that is centuries old.

It's this very bond that saved one woman from domestic violence and helped change the very rules of one women's shelter in Kansas City. Dubbed "Mackenzie" to protect her identity, the woman has her Great Dane, J. Matthew, to thank for where she is today -- a survivor who escaped an abusive monster.

"Mackenzie" can't show her face on camera in order to protect herself from her abuser.

Speaking bravely before an audience, Mackenzie described her painful experience, explaining, "When your life is being threatened and you're in that situation, you don't think. [You only want to] make it through the next blow. Make it through the next second. Make it through the next minute." It was during just such an incident that Mackenzie's boyfriend at the time hurled her right through a wall by her shirt. "Literally -- drywall, boards, nails -- to the other side."

J. Matthew risked his own life to save Mackenzie's.

Alerted to the commotion, J. Matthew rushed to Mackenzie's aid, lying on top of her to protect her from the continuing onslaught. Once the abuse subsided, Mackenzie was able to escape, but her boyfriend threw the dog off the porch, dragging him to a busy intersection and abandoning him there.

Afterward, and back with J. Matthew, Mackenzie was directed to a women's shelter called the Rose Brooks Center, where she learned her dog was not welcome. When Mackenzie insisted she would rather just leave town and stay at a rest stop than stay at the facility without J. Matthew, the Kansas City women's organization had a change of heart.

The Rose Brooks Center now welcomes women and their pets, and is building a fabulous new kennel to house the companions who are more than just pets, but family and support systems. With as many as 40 percent of battered women revealing that they don't leave abusive situations because they don't want to abandon beloved animal companions, the shelter's change of rules is one that can help save the lives of women like Mackenzie.

Rose Brooks Center CEO Susan Miller has no regrets about allowing dogs in the shelter.

Rose Brooks Center CEO Susan Miller doesn't regret the decision to banish the center's no-pet policy, saying, "It was just great to see the bonding they had ... the healing process they went through together. ... It really made us realize this was something we needed to do. We needed to provide this opportunity for women to bring their pets."

We're totally crying at our desks now, and we're not ashamed to admit it!

Via CBS News

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It's time to get your National Park on and enjoy the great outdoors with your dog!

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Watch Dog: Great Quotes from Furry Philosophers

When your job is answering scores of questions every day via email, it doesn’t take long before you have actually written tens of thousands of emails. Conservative estimate: 50 e-mails per day for a total of 250 per week x 50 weeks (I'm allowed a two-week vacation!) x 8 years = 100,000 e-mails. Even allowing that a good number of the responses are template based, we’re still talking serious numbers. Is it any wonder I sometimes get a little, well, goofy?

A few days ago, a Dogster reader asked a pretty straightforward question and signed off as a “literate” pet. Now, this person was having some fun, writing to Customer Support as their “pet author” instead of a human. And don’t I do the same? My standard signature is “Watch Dog,” sometimes embellished with “your friendly neighborhood watch dog,” to go along with our original corporate mantra: “Where no one knows you’re human.”

Lab reading a book courtesy Shutterstock.com.

Anyway, the next thing you know, since I’m writing to a “literate” pet, I decide I should raise the bar a little, and I added the following “quote” to the e-mail:

A fool's brain digests philosophy into folly, science into superstition, and art into pedantry. Hence canine obedience schools. -- George Bernard Paw

That was the proverbial push to take me down the silly road of furry philosophy. Here are the ones I’ve come up with so far, in no particular order or supposed hierarchy of relevance. They are what they are. I hope you have as much fun reading them as I did writing them.

Genius is one percent inspiration, ninety-nine percent being a dog. -- Pawmas Alva Edison

Ask not what your dog can do for you, but what you can do for your dog. -- John F. Caninedy

Speak softly and throw a good stick. -- Teddy Arooosevelt

Never ask for whom the ball is thrown; it is thrown for thee. -- John Dognne

Serious dog courtesy Shutterstock.com.

Nearly all dogs can stand adversity, but if you want to test a dog's character, give him a bone. -- Abraham Löwchen (Lincoln)

The paw is mightier than the sword. -- Edward Bulldog-Lytton

To nap, or not to nap: that is the question. -- William Schnauzerspeare

Cats should be seen and not heard. -- W.C. Field Spaniel

Okay, those are my contributions of furry (or maybe it should be fuzzy) philosophy. Give me your best canine convictions, dog doctrines, and pooch philosophy. You know you can do it. Find a quote by someone famous, tweak it into a canine version of quote and author, and post it in the comments section. Have fun and make Sigmund Fido proud!

May the furrce be with you. -- Yowlda

Til next week, best woofs. 

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Great Adoption Video by Bergdorf Goodman (Yeah, the Swanky NY Store)

Upscale NY store Bergdorf Goodman sells shoes for up to thousands of dollars a pair, and has a fur-storage room (the store will pick up furs straight from your house as soon as hot weather hits), but its latest promotional video makes the store seem quite accessible, and even imparts that warm holiday glow.

Check out these adorable dogs who have a great time “shopping” in the store, while a little dog who seems to have no one to call his own tags along. Watch it to the end for the heart melter. The store teamed up with the Humane Society of New York to put this video together. The bottom line: Adopt your next best pal. A great idea for the well heeled and those with heels that badly need repairs …

Thanks to our pals at Fashionista for sending this our way!

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5 Great Holiday Gifts for New Puppy Parents

Are you searching for the perfect holiday gift for a friend, family member, or coworker with a new dog or puppy? Here are a few of our favorite suggestions for new pet parents this holiday season!

The Gift of Good Behavior

Whether your friend has a new puppy or has adopted an adolescent, adult, or senior dog, enrolling the dog in a positive-reinforcement-based training program will help dog and owner develop a solid relationship based on trust.

Giving the gift of education will help ensure a dog is able to stay in his new home for a lifetime. Gift certificates for training services from a skilled behavior professional or trainer in your area make great stocking stuffers and can be purchased in nearly any denomination.

The American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior (AVSAB) publishes a handy checklist (PDF) to help you find a good local trainer.

The Gift of Knowledge

Training books and DVDs can also make great Christmas gifts. My favorite sources for training information are Tawzer Dog Videos, Dogwise, and Karen Pryor Clicker Training. Tawzer now offers a Netflix-type delivery service. Annual memberships in programs like these can be a dream for committed dog owners!

Consider giving your friend or family member an annual subscription to the Whole Dog Journal, a monthly independent publication that offers up-to-date information on holistic training, nutrition, and health care.

The Gift of Safety

You need management tools to keep your dog safe and out of trouble while teaching him desirable foundation skills. Crates, baby gates, exercise pens, and tethers are all invaluable in helping your dog adjust to a new household environment.

Susan Garrett’s Crate Games DVD teaches dogs not simply to tolerate, but to actually love time spent in their crates!

The Gift of Zen

Most dog owners prefer a dog who is happy and relaxed at home to one who is rambunctious with an overabundance of energy. Products like Through a Dog’s Ear and Dog Appeasing Pheremone (D.A.P.) help promote a state of emotional well-being in dogs.

Food-dispensing toys are another way to promote mental wellness and reduce boredom-related behavior problems in dogs — we’ll talk about those in more depth next week.

The Gift of Sanitation

While we all love dogs, they can certainly be messy. Appropriate grooming tools make great holiday gifts and will satisfy any neat freaks on your Christmas list. If you know what breed your friend’s dog is, call a local grooming shop and ask what type of tools they use. Adopters of dogs with high-maintenance coats may also appreciate gift certificates for a well-recommended groomer.

Even if your friend or family member has adopted an adult dog who was previously house-trained, dogs may need reminding that the rule “go potty outside” applies, even in a new environment. Clean-up tools, from enzymatic cleaners specifically designed to clean up dog waste like Nature’s Miracle to poop bags and scoopers, make it easier to keep the home and yard clean while new puppies and dogs are being house-trained.

Stay tuned! Next week, we’ll discuss some great gifts for dogs.

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The Great Spay/Neuter Debate: From a Trainer’s Perspective

When Janine Kahn, my fantabulous editor here at Dogster, invited me on as a guest blogger this month for the Dog Blog, she requested specifically that I not shy away from topics that may be considered contentious and likely to provoke thoughtful debate.

I tried to do Janine proud — we’ve discussed appropriate dog park behavior and the puppy mill industry these last couple of Tuesdays. Today, I’ve selected another subject that is likely to create a stir: spay and neuter.

Spay/neuter is generally recommended universally as a procedure with no or negligible side effects. It is the only ethical decision in terms of social consciousness related to pet overpopulation, and provides health and behavioral benefits.

Do not take the decision to spay/neuter lightly. At what age should you spay/neuter your pet? What management protocols should be in place should you decide to keep your dog intact responsibly — how will you adjust your environment to ensure you’re not contributing to the overpopulation problem?

Are intact dogs more “aggressive,” and are neutered dogs more likely to be obese? These are just a few of the questions pet owners would do well to consider.

The truth is, it’s not an easy decision. There are behavioral and physical benefits and risks, some of which are mitigated or altered based on the age of the dog at the time of neuter. While rescue and shelter organizations are understandably great advocates for early spay/neuter programs (often as young as 8 weeks!), little information is given to adopters about potential health risks associated with the procedure.

I’m not trying to dissuade anyone from neutering or spaying their dogs. I also understand the early need for spay/neuter in dogs who are adopted from shelters or rescues: Much as I cannot guarantee my clients will follow through with training, you cannot guarantee your adopters will take advantage of that spay/neuter voucher after the dog is taken home.

I am saying that I am a big advocate for educated consumers. When you are making a decision with potentially serious consequences, it is best to thoroughly research the pros and cons so you can make the best possible choice.

If you are not willing to securely fence your yard, even if that includes a potential cost of thousands of dollars; keep your dogs on leash at all times; and even implement a crate and rotate system in your home if necessary, talk to your vet about scheduling a neuter procedure at a time that is physically and behaviorally optimal for your dog.

I strongly believe that sterilization decisions should be highly individualized — related to the dog’s breed, physical development, the owner’s lifestyle, training and management abilities or options, the presence of other dogs and/or other pets, genetic health histories of both parents (when available), your home environment (chain-link fence in an area where there are many intact strays, for example?), etc. Conventional wisdom says to spay or neuter your dog at 6 months. But there may be real reasons to spay or neuter earlier or later, and you should carefully consider them, they must be considered carefully; hopefully as a collaborative decision among a knowledgeable veterinarian, behavior specialist, and committed pet owner.

It’s not much of a secret that I like to consider holistic health treatment for dog care issues. One of my favorite sources of information is the “Healthy Pets” section of Dr. Mercola’s website. The section is run by the fabulous Dr. Karen Becker, an integrated wellness veterinarian, and has a lot of compelling (albeit controversial) content. You can follow her on Facebook.

Check out her recent entry on the Mercola site, an unbiased examination of the data currently available on the physical and behavioral risks associated with spaying or neutering at any stage of a dog’s life.

What are your thoughts? Are your animals intact? Neutered or spayed? If spayed or neutered, at what age were they sterilized? Have you noted any health or behavioral changes in your dog(s) related to your decision? What information did your vet give you about the benefits/risks associated with your decision? Please give your feedback in the comments!

About the Author: Casey Lomonaco graduated with distinction from the Karen Pryor Academy for Animal Training and Behavior, and is a member of the following professional organizations: APDT (Association of Pet Dog Trainers), CGC evaluator — AKC (American Kennel Club), TDF (Truly Dog Friendly), and the No-Shock Collar Coalition.

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“Great” Compliments and Other Dog-Socializing Tips Courtesy of Susan Orlean

Author Susan Orlean, who released her latest book, Rin Tin Tin: The Life and the Legend last week with Simon & Schuster, has some tips on socializing dogs in her latest “Free Range” column for the New Yorker.

Susan Orlean (Photo by New Yorker)

Orlean moved from having acreage in New York’s Hudson Valley to the more city-dense Los Angeles, where her dog, Ivy, is reveling in all the new friends she’s made at the Laurel Canyon dog park.

Drawing upon her time as a dog owner in Manhattan before she moved to the more suburban Hudson Valley, Orlean came to remember seven key rules of etiquette when introducing your pooch to the playground. Her list touches on introductions, cellphone use (don’t be deep in convo if your little dear is a little terror), and how to handle what might be a grade-school clique (just deal).

Some examples from the woman herself:

1. Ask the dog’s name, never the owner’s name.

2. For some reason, every single request for the name of the dog is immediately followed by an inquiry about the age of the dog. I have no idea why, but believe me, this is true.

3. Compliment every dog on its beauty. If the dog is one-eyed, three-legged, gap-toothed, and mangy, make your compliment more fulsome. Having trouble thinking of a way to effuse about a pug-ugly mutt? Just remember, no one ever tires of hearing how “great” a face their dog has. Remember: “great” sounds really good without having a specific definition.

Read more of Orlean’s dog park tips over here.

Our favorite tip? How every dog deserves a compliment, and if you happen to encounter a pup you might not find to be the cutest, use the word “great” to describe its face. We can think of a few instances where this would have served us well.

Tell us, Dogsters, what is the most valuable social lesson you’ve learned at the dog park?

[Source: New Yorker]

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Fluoride Awareness Week, a great time to bring awareness to the dangers of fluoride in our water supply.

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It's National Holistic Pets Day: A great day to help celebrate healthy dogs!

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A Great Idea: Airport Therapy from a Lovable Dog

Henry James is there for anyone who needs a furry shoulder to cry on.

Airports aren’t filled solely with travelers who are harried or excited or just doing business as usual. Look a little under the layers of an airport scene, and you’ll find a woman going to the funeral of her beloved mother. Or a man moving away after a painful divorce. Or — for the sake of this blog — someone whose dog just died.

It’s all there if you just look around. That’s exactly what Kyra Hubis, a volunteer chaplain at San Jose International Airport in California, would do at the airport during her rounds. And sometimes she found people to help.

But it wasn’t until she started bringing in Henry James, her golden retriever therapy dog, that she became a magnet to those in need.

“I’ve walked the terminal without him and people don’t come up to me, but if I walk the terminal with him he’s an ice breaker,” Hubis said in a KSBY News story.

Henry James offers a soft and furry shoulder to cry on, and nonjudgmental ears to hear troubles of others. He’s there for everyone, from the grieving to the simply nervous.

Hubis said a couple recently approached Henry James, and the wife, “knelt down on the floor, buried her head in his fur, and for a good two or three minutes was sobbing and telling him her father was dying in town here and that she and her husband were having to leave and she didn’t know if she was ever going to see him again.”

I think airports should trade in all their TSA scanners for therapy dogs, don’t you? The terminals would be more relaxed and happy places to be.

Thank you, Kyra and Henry, for being such devoted practitioners of your highly caring craft.

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Great green and organic tips for Fall lawn care!

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George the Great Dane, World’s Largest Dog, Scared of Small Dogs

George is a gentle giant, a would-be lapdog

Dogsters, we’ve done a story or two about George, the world’s largest dog, in the past. But now that he’s coming out with his very own book, I thought you might want to get reacquainted with this gentle giant. Below is an excerpt from his upcoming book, Giant George, which will be available August 4. You can sign up now at Amazon to be notified when it’s available.

Excerpt from Giant George: Life With the World’s Biggest Dog

By Dave Nasser, with Lynne Barrett-Lee

Though it didn’t really register, George’s paws were comically large even then. But all we saw was this cute puppy.

We certainly never dreamed he would one day become the biggest dog in the world, standing nearly 4ft high at the shoulder, 7ft long and weighing nearly 18 stone. Right now, he just looked bewildered.

He came into our lives in January 2006, just a few months after we had married and set up home in Arizona. We both had busy jobs, Christie selling medical equipment while I was a property developer, but she had always planned that, once she had a house of her own, she would also have a dog.

She wanted a Great Dane as they make great family pets, so we tracked down a litter of 13, born 1,000 miles away in Oregon. Their owner emailed us a photo showing a chaotic jumble of paws, snouts and tails.

Twelve were entangled with one another, but our eyes were drawn to one pup standing apart from the rest. He was clearly the runt, endearing him to Christie immediately.

George made the long journey from Oregon to Phoenix by plane and we picked him up from the freight area, tired but unshaken.

As soon as George settled into our home, we discovered our plans to be fair but firm parents were wishful thinking.

All the things that make Great Danes wonderful pets — their lack of aggression and their attachment to humans — make them more emotionally sensitive than other dogs.

They need to be with their ‘pack’ at all times and at night the cute pup with intensely blue eyes turned into a caterwauling banshee whenever we tried to leave him alone in the kitchen.

No matter how much we reminded ourselves that he had every home comfort (warm dog bed, warm blanket, warm kitchen, squeaky bone), each whimper created a picture in our heads of a tragic, abandoned pup, desperate for his mother.

Eventually, we gave in and shunted George’s dog bed into our bedroom. In the coming months, Christie really threw herself into being a mum to George. As well as a photo album, he had a growth chart — we were soon reading it in awe.

At five months he still acted like a puppy, chasing his tail and playing games of fetch and tug-of-war with his favourite bit of rope. But he was already the size of a fully-grown Labrador.

He was putting on more than a pound a day and he bounded around like Bambi, skittering on our wooden floors and hurling himself at everything he fancied, including us humans. His displays of affection could leave you pinned temporarily against a wall or a piece of furniture.

His size did not go unnoticed in the outside world. Our local park had a section for puppies but we were bullied out of it by other owners, who were scared George would hurt their pups, — but the opposite was true.

The smaller dogs ran around and under him, and he’d be constantly sidestepping them, obviously anxious and jittery. Slowly we realised that our enormous puppy was a big softie. Besides his terror of being left alone, he had a fear of water.

He’d growl anxiously at the side of our swimming pool, alarmed that his ‘pack’ members would so willingly place themselves in danger of drowning.

If the pool was his most-hated place, his favourite was our bedroom. Eventually he outgrew the single mattress we placed there for him and preferred instead the comfort of our king-sized bed — sprawling between us like some over-indulged prince while we spent half the night clinging onto the edges.

In the summer of 2006, we solved this problem by buying him his own queen-sized mattress, which he still sleeps on today at the bottom of our bed.

But soon we encountered another challenge as George reached doggie puberty. Once he had grabbed life by the lapels, now he was grabbing onto legs — table legs, chair legs, human legs, he wasn’t picky — and doing what all male dogs do with the vigour of a canine giant.

George was built for counter surfing

A sausage on the barbecue was like a siren to a passing sailor. You couldn’t turn your back for a minute. And he was so tall that he actually had to bend down to pinch food off kitchen counters.

He could reach the high shelves as well, so we had to hide everything away in cupboards. Soon, he was getting through around 100lb of dry dog food every month.

As he approached his first birthday in November 2006, weighing about 14 stone, it was getting physically impossible to make him go anywhere he didn’t want to — including the vet’s surgery. He had not forgotten the time he went there in possession of his manhood — and came out less than whole.

As soon as he recognised the entrance, he  refused to move. So I had to take him around to the less familiar back door instead.

For all these troubles, George gave us plenty in return, not least the following year when Christie lost the baby she was carrying.

Evidently tuned in to her grief, George was a constant presence at her side. When she sat, he sat too. When she stood, he stood and padded alongside her to wherever she was going.

(Continued in the book, Giant George, by Dave Nasser, to be published by Simon & Schuster on August 4, Excerpt © 2011 Dave Nasser. For more on George or the book, go to George’s website.)

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Great Dogster Contest: Win a Free Retreat at Camp Unleashed!

Dogs at Camp Unleashed, in Asheville, NC

Hey Dogsters! Ever wonder what it would be like to get away from it all for a few relaxing days with your dog?  Not just to travel somewhere new, but to go to a place together that was truly welcoming for both two-leggeds and four-leggeds? How about going back to that rustic summer camp in the countryside that you attended as a child—but this time, with your best canine bud?  And how about if it were a safe place where your pooch pal was free to be off leash, in nature, in a pack with other social dogs?

Here’s a contest to help you get there!  Post a comment below about why you and your dog should win a full scholarship ($800 value) to an amazing four-day experience together at Camp Unleashed (travel not included). It’s easy. Just leave a comment below telling us how you would and your dog would benefit by attending your choice of one of the following sessions:

September 2-5, Berkshires, MA

September. 22-25, Asheville, NC

September 29-Oct 2, Sequoia Lake, CA

Enter by Monday, Aug. 1, 5 pm PDT. The directors of Camp Unleashed will go through all the entries and select a winner and two alternates (in case winner cannot attend). I’m sure it won’t be an easy job, and I’m sure glad I don’t have to be the one to judge! We will announce the very lucky winner on Thursday, August 3 and contact the winner via email, so be sure to leave a real email address.

A little more about the camp: Founder Annie Brody started Camp Unleashed in 2004 to give dogs a vacation from the constraints of living in the human world with all of our “rules”– a place where dogs can be off leash, in nature, where they and their people can enjoy their “dogness.”  The Camp Unleashed philosophy is based on people deepening their relationship through observing their dog’s nature and learning to think like a dog.   There are lots of fun activities led by professional trainers. Choices include dock diving, agility, nose-work, freestyle, treiball, and more. Or you can just hang out with your dog at the lakefront, attend educational presentations, or relax with barks and crafts, etc.  And yes, dogs and their people bunk together in rustic cabins.

Dogs are barking for Camp Unleashed and people are loving it too! There are some beautiful videos and stories here, and also on the Camp Unleashed Facebook page. Dog lover and chef extraordinaire Rachel Ray shares her insights about Camp Unleashed in the video below.

Camp Unleashed featured on “Rachel Ray Feeds Your Pets Special” from Camp Unleashed on Vimeo.

If you’re the lucky winner and you choose to attend the California camp, you’ll even get to meet canine music expert Lisa Spector. Dogsters, you might remember my interview with Lisa about her creation of Through a Dog’s Ear, the first music clinically demonstrated to relieve canine anxiety issues. She is the local director for the new California camp and will be giving a presentation on using sound therapy to improve your dog’s health and behavior.

RULES OF CONTEST:

Winning is contingent on your dog’s acceptance (from camp’s behavior questionnaire).

Each Camp Unleashed session is limited to 50 dogs and their people to ensure a high-quality experience and maximum freedom for the dogs.

Safety and a relaxed ambiance for everyone are the number one priority, therefore:

Campers must be over 18 years of age and may bring one dog.

Camp Unleashed is for well-socialized dogs only.

Dogs must be at least six months old and have received all required vaccinations.

Dogs that have demonstrated ANY aggressive tendencies towards people or have bitten another dog are NOT PERMITTED.

No intact dogs are allowed.

A Health Certificate signed by your veterinarian within 30 days prior to camp session and proof of current rabies vaccination is required for all dogs in attendance.

An alternate and second alternate will also be chosen, in case the winner’s dog is not accepted or winner cannot attend.

You don’t have to be a registered Dogster to enter.

Judges for the contest are the directors of the three camps: Annie Brody, Kay Loveland, and Lisa Spector.

Click for a complete list of camp rules.

Good luck!  The winning human and dog will have a chance to immerse themselves in nature, celebrate the full free expression of their dog’s dogness, learn to think like a dog, and will leave camp with a deeper bond with their dog. And dogs and people alike will make wonderful new friends.

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Great Little Doxie Pup Videos: Iso in Slow Motion

Dogster fan Marie pointed us to Iso the dachshund puppy, and the series of videos his people are making of him. (Thanks, Marie!) They’re all in slow motion, with great songs, and very appealing camera work. I’ll post a couple below, and there are four more on YouTube at the moment, so sniff them out there if you want more.

The first video is of Iso’s first time on the couch. The second is of bath time. Enjoy!

(Dogsters with sensitive ears, cover those ears just before 1:52 for a second or two during the couch video. I had to listen a couple of times to realize a certain word that starts with “f” was there. I thought it best to forewarn, because I know there are some ears that would prefer not to hear it.)

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