Doggie Networking -- Meet and Greet Time
Dogs and museums are not usually thought of as being at all compatible. But that kind of thinking is sooo yesterday now that Laura Vaughan, the director of the Barrier Island Center, ( BIC to those who know it well ) , is making BIC the de rigueur destination for Eastern Shore doggy field trips. Saturday was the first in a series of “field trips for dogs” to be held under the tall, shady oaks at the Center.
Under the expert direction of Beth Ann Sabo, a certified local dog trainer, Saturday morning’s experience started out a little like an old time country social but with kibble treats and pans of water instead of picnic baskets and lemonade ! It was a “doggy socialization” event and my daughter brought her Newfie puppy, Honey, for a little “meet and greet” with the 10 other dogs in attendance. As anyone knows who has recently gotten a puppy and has purchased a “how-to” book , the modern standard for socializing a puppy is to make sure it is equally at home around a variety of dogs as well as people. The mantra for this is “100 dogs and 100 people in the first 100 days” because the first 3 or 4 months of a dog’s life and the experiences it has during those 3 or 4 months imprint the dog for life. Basically the experiences and training a dog receives during that time determine whether it will be a friendly, timid or aggressive dog in its relations to both people and to other dogs. Beth Ann says that most dogs that are sent to the SPCA are placed there before they are two years old, primarily as a result of a lack of early proper socialization and training by their owners, who then get rid of the dog because of resulting bad behaviors. Having once had a dog for 12 years who loved all humans but who never met a dog she didn’t hate, (which was, of course, a real problem), my daughter is working hard to see that Honey does get properly socialized to dogs as well as people. She jumped at the opporunity to bring Honey to the BIC party to meet puppies of different breeds and temperaments.
K-9 Toys
So the dogs introduced themselves the old fashioned doggie way, sniffing, licking, sniffing, licking and then some more sniffing. And no ordinary “Spot” or “Rover” names for this crowd — instead Honey the Newfoundland met Hilda the English Bulldog, Frolic the Norwich Terrier, Ginger the Golden Retriever, Trey the Beagle and Rupert the Italian Greyhound, to name just some in the group. Beth Ann remarked as she was about to get down to the “work” of the morning that she had hoped for a variety of breeds for this first session but could not have imagined such an eclectic mix as a Newfoundland and an Italian Greyhound. Then dogs and owners settled into a few tasks; coming when called by name to improve focus and response; owners switching dogs with other owners to improve socialization with unfamiliar persons; sitting, greeting and then passing by another dog ( which, as anyone who has ever watched a Cesar Millan show knows, can be a bit dicy).
The final lesson involved having all the owners stand in a long line, their dogs by their sides. Then, one by one, Beth Ann came down the line to hold the leash so the owner could walk about 20 feet out into the clearing and call their dog to come to them. Honey was near the end of the line. Being a hot July day and she being a furry Newfoundland, by now Honey was hot and a bit tired. While all the other dogs were sitting and paying attention, she was sprawled out, completely relaxed, just taking it all in. So, when my daughter strode out and confidently called her name , Honey just raised her head and gave a look which clearly said, in her most gracious Southern Dogese, “Girl, I know you’ve got to be kidding. You’ve had me running around for an hour now, my feet are killing me and I’m taking a load off. Definately I’m not running out into the hot sun for some measly treat. ” (If she were a Bronx dog she would have yelled ” Forgeddabout it !” which would have totally said it all.) Well, I had just resigned myself to the idea that Honey was going to be the only dog in the entire class to fail “Run to Your Owner” when up she jumped and out she ran. And she got the measly treat– plus a lot of praise from her very nearly embarrassed owner !
Will They Come When You Call ?
The hour was up, doggies were ready to hit the lunch trail, as were owners. We stayed to talk to Beth Ann a bit and learned that she gives private training lessons for dogs as well as the group sessions. She will even travel to an owner’s home to work with a dog in its normal environment. (For anyone who is interested, learn about her certifications and contact Beth Ann through her website– www.easternshoredog.com ). After that we stayed a little bit longer to talk to Laura Vaughan about some of the great work the Barrier Island Center (www.barrierislandcenter.com) is doing to educate and inspire children here on the Shore (which in itself will be a future blog post). Laura invited all of us inside, including Honey, who promptly found an air conditioning register and plopped herself right down on it, perfectly at home. Laura’s philosophy is that people who love the Center also usually love dogs. So, the more the merrier. And that’s how Honey the Newfie became the first dog in our family to tour a real live museum. As I often say, only on the Eastern Shore !