Will Population Changes Affect Pet Ownership? And Sad News
If you have seen the latest population headline on minorities in America you must wonder–as I have–how this will impact dogs. Canine performance competition seems to be dominated by white owners, judges, and ring stewards. The veterinary profession is already wondering how this trend will affect animal welfare and care. By 2042, white dog owners will be in the minority if ownership follows the general population–but will it? And, what will be the influence of other nationalities and cultures on our best friends? Our foremost and most popular dog trainer is Mexican and he certainly has exerted a powerful and strong influence on dogs, especially with regard to the concept of “pack@–currently a topic of debate by many behaviorists and trainers. Another trainer, not as well known, is Terry Ryan. She introduced the Canine Good Citizen to Japan where it has become a great success. Ryan rose to fame during the early days of the Delta Society as a dog trainer who pioneered in training using games. Today she introduces us to trainers like Turid Rukgaas through Legacy by Mail. If you haven=t checked out Legacy you should!
GROOM EXPO is in Hershey September 10-14, at the Hershey Lodge and Convention Center. They advertise exciting seminars on grooming, boarding, pet day care, animal behavior, training, retailing and mobile grooming. The grooming demonstrations feature contestants from Animal Planet (there is a wide diversity of nationalities in this occupation). Events that caught my eye were the Saturday evening ADancing with the Dog Stars@, the puppy playground and AGrooming Golden Retrievers the Malaysian Way@by Gan Wee Yet. Grooming can be a dangerous profession and some of our best dog trainers/handlers began as groomers.
Another conference of interest is the Federated Humane Society of Pennsylvania conference on October 16-17 in Reading. The keynote speaker is Wayne Pacelle, president of the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS)–you saw him on Oprah during the puppy mill programs. Already there is an uproar about the choice. Many claim the president of a group that advocates population control through killing animals and mandatory spay/neutering should not be addressing a humane organization. (It is said that HSUS only funds kill shelters.) The President of Federated is Anne Irwin, a down-to-earth, no-nonsense lady. She introduced the concept of mandatory fire safety in kennels which now has been incorporated into our dog law proposal. The delegate many of you have met is Julian Prager. Prager seems to have a balanced view of canine legislation issues and is probably most knowledgeable of all dog lovers. He has spoken before many local groups and is often visible in the bulldog ring at dog shows.
I once had the privilege of attending a Federated Humane Society conference held in Scranton. I went with a member of the Geisinger Medical Center administration. He was concerned with what was being proposed to prevent dog bites since the victim population is composed mainly of toddlers. It was in the Ano smoking@ days and I remember him going from table to table and removing the ash trays! He told me he was going in order to see what Acrazy animal rights dog people looked like@. What did he see? The keynote speaker that year wore a simple flowered house dress and lots and lots of diamonds.
By the time this is published Connie Cuff will already be in the Daily Item as the first dog trainer to answer a question. The question came from Robin Montgomery. Please feel free to send in questions and, if you are a trainer volunteer, to answer questions. I have two other very respected and accomplished trainers on the panel and can always use more. Your question, your answer, may help a dog , a dog owner.
As some of you know we have lost another outstanding dog person–Terry Slaybaugh is now mushing in heaven with his beloved Siberian Huskies. Survivors include his wife Doreen, who has promised to return to stewarding, and their Shiba Inu–Doreen calls the breed a Asmall Aikta@.
Sep 07, 2008 | | Uncategorized