Resources

Local Resources

Your Dog’s Friend – a local non-profit group dedicated to keeping dogs out of shelters that offers excellent free workshops – www.yourdogsfriend.org

Websites recommended by Your Dog’s Friend

Trained! – for group classes in DC – dogtrained.com

Wholistic Hound Academy – for group classes in northern VA – wholistichound.com

Green Grover Pet Services, LLC – for group classes in MD – greengrover.org

Online Resources

ASPCA Virtual Pet Behaviorist – http://www.aspca.org/pet-care/dog-care

Dog Star Daily – http://www.dogstardaily.com

Dogster – www.dogster.com

Dr. Sophia Yin, DVM, MS – drsophiayin.com

DogsLife – www.dogslife.com

    In Memoriam 2014    

The Whole Dog Journal – “A monthly guide to natural dog care and training”

(also available online at www.whole-dog-journal.com)

Your Dog – “The newsletter for caring dog owners”

(Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University)

Dog Watch – “Expert information on medicine, behavior and health from a world

leader in veterinary medicine” (Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine)

Donaldson, Jean. The Culture Clash. (Berkeley, CA: James and Kenneth Publishers, 1996).

McConnell, Patricia, PhD. The Other End of the Leash. (New York, NY: Ballantine Books, 2002).

Pryor, Karen. Don’t Shoot the Dog – The New Art of Teaching and Training. 2^nd ed. (New York, NY: Bantam Books, 1999).

TTouch

“Tellington TTouch offers a method of training which can help to overcome behavioral, physical and performance problems in companion animals and horses through private sessions, workshops and classes.”

-Pam Wanveer, Woodside TTouch, http://woodsidettouch.com/index.html

“Tellington TTouch® uses a combination of circular touches, slides, and lifts, as well as movement and body wraps, to effect positive changes in stress levels, physical and emotional balance, and the ability to learn. When working with a human-animal team, TTouch enhances communication, focus, and connection.”

-Marnie Montgomery, Joyful Dog LLC, http://joyfuldogllc.com/about-tellington-ttouch-and-training/

General

Nationwide TTouch website – http://www.ttouch.com

Local TTouch Practitioners

Pam Wanveer of Woodside TTouch – Level 3 (? the highest level) Practioner (as well as a Craniosacral Practitoner) with years of TTouch experience who offers private sessions, workshops, and classes.

http://woodsidettouch.com

Marnie Montgomery of Joyful Dog:  http://www.joyfuldogllc.com

Calming Aids

Dog Appeasing Pheromone (DAP) products:  collars, diffusers, spray.  Brands:  Adaptil, Comfort Zone.  Available on various pet retail websites.

Dr. Bach’s Rescue Remedy for Dogs (Rescue Remedy Pet) – http://www.bachflower.com/rescue-remedy-pet

Through a Dog’s Ear – http://www.throughadogsear.com

CDs or MP3s designed to desensitize dogs to specific sounds they fear.  Canine Audio Therapy – http://www.scarednomore.com; Canine Noise Phobia Series – http://throughadogsear.com/canine-noise-phobia-series

Thundershirt  (a product similar to the body wraps used in TTouch)

http://www.thundershirt.com

Some pet loss is inevitable:  equipment malfunctions, pets can be in cars when car crashes happen, some pets are stolen, and, of course, there’s simple human error (gates not fully closed, careless – or careful, but just not sufficiently careful – walkers or sitters, etc.).  Despite, even because of, that inevitability, pet parents should not only take care to avoid all of those circumstances, they should take extra precautions in case this happens to their pet.  These steps can greatly increase the chances of recovering a pet.

1.  Make and keep a scent article of your pet.  Especially if you have multiple pets, a scent item like a bed or a toy could be “contaminated” (with the scent of more than one of them), so telling the tracking dog to match and follow the scent on that article would be unclear and confusing to the dog.  Therefore, you should make a scent article for your pet (or each of your pets, if you have more than one).  To do this, take a clean absorbent item like cotton (I use a rag / cloth, but things like gauze pads work fine too) and rub it all over your pet:  face, ears, mouth, butt – all the smelliest places! – and try to get a little fur.  Then put the article into a sealed plastic bag (like a ziploc bag), label it, and put it in your freezer.  It’s very simple to do, but can be invaluable some day!

2. Make sure your pets are microchipped! If your pets are not already microchipped, get this done as soon as possible. It is relatively inexpensive and having it put in does not hurt your dog. Another essential step is to make sure you enter your contact information online with the microchip company – it won’t help your pet to have a microchip if there’s no information associated with it. While some people still don’t know about microchips, most pet people do and will take a “found” pet to a vet or shelter whose staff will scan for one. Furthermore, if your pet is stolen, this is the only way to prove ownership so you can get your pet back.

3. Have your pet wear identity tags on his or her harness or collar that will let non-vet / shelter staff know how to contact you. While a lost pet can slip out of a collar or harness (or get lost when he or she is not wearing one), this still increases your chances of getting your pet back. In addition to traditional tags with your phone number, address, etc., some companies now offer scannable tags so that anyone with a smartphone can read the tag and get the same information that a microchip would have, provided again, that you registered that information online. My dog has one from a company called PetHub (https://www.pethub.com/affiliate/10537/), which offers pretty inexpensive tags in a variety of designs.

4.  Always have relatively current full-color pictures of your pet that show any specific markings or other identifying characteristics that would help someone recognize your dog. Make sure the pictures have good contrast – e.g., don’t photograph a brindle dog on a brown or black background – and that they show most or all of your pet’s body.

Local Pet Tracking Resources

Pure Gold Pet Trackers

Sam Connelly – Top Recommended Tracker with very broad service area (anywhere along the East Coast with main focus in the Mid-Atlantic area; exceptions made on a case to case basis).

(410) 365-7456 – puregoldpettrack@aol.com – www.puregoldpettrackers.net

General Lost Pet Resources

Missing Pet Partnership – www.missingpetpartnership.org

An abundance of volunteer opportunities exist throughout the greater DC Metro Area Animal Shelters:

• Washington Humane Society
  • New York Avenue Shelter
  • Georgia Avenue Shelter
• Washington Animal Rescue League
• Animal Welfare League of Arlington
• Animal Welfare League of Alexandria
• Montgomery County Humane Society
• Prince William County Humane Society
• SPCA-Humane Society of Prince George’s County
• Loudon County Animal Services

Another option is to volunteer with rescue organizations.  Fostering rescue dogs is a particularly effective way to contribute to the rescue movement.

General Advocacy:

These are two most informative, thorough sites that provide excellent, very current data on the state of animal law as well as efforts to change it.  They often detail opportunities for the public to help advocate for animal rights.

The ASPCA:  https://www.aspca.org/take-action/advocacy-center

Best Friends Animal Society:

• Awakening to Advocacy – http://bestfriends.org/stories-blog-videos/latest-news/awakening-advocacy
• Tips for Effective Animal Advocacy – http://bestfriends.org/stories-blog-videos/latest-news/tips-effective-animal-advocacy
• Join the Best Friends Legislative Action Center – http://bestfriends.org/stories-blog-videos/latest-news/tips-effective-animal-advocacy

Pit Bull Advocacy:

BADRAP – Bay Area Dog-Lovers Responsible About Pit Bulls – badrap.org

Pit Bull Rescue Central – Where Education Meets Rescue – pitbullrescuecentral.com

The Sula Foundation – sulafoundation.org

Other Advocacy Websites:

The American Humane Association – http://www.americanhumane.org/animals/stop-animal-abuse/advocacy/

Animal Welfare Groups in the Washington, DC Area – http://www.americanhumane.org/animals/stop-animal-abuse/advocacy/

World Advocacy for Animal Rights and Protection – http://www.worldadvocacy.com/animal_1.html

Wikipedia List of Animal Rights Groups – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_animal_rights_groups