In my perfect world, everyone would be as thoughtful, educated, and intentional as you are and this post is. Perhaps that's my pick because my dog and I got scream-howled at by a reactive intact male pit bull today, and the owner yelled that his dog was just super friendly and would calm down if my dog came over and said hi. So yes, thoughtful, educated, and intentional would be great!
And oh gosh do I hear you on that experience!! I always feel for the dogs so much in those situations. It took me years of being around dogs to realize, properly, that the expectation of always getting to greet on leash can create sooo much frustration and bubble into reactivity and become this whole terrible spiral of reactivity and stress for all
Why are you always so kind to me?! I can never say enough how I appreciate it, especially the care and thought and sense of being seen that you’ve given to me this whole (messy!) time since I moved the blog over to Substack. I really appreciate you.
How do I agree with you on every point hahhaha!!! Excellent writing & such a goldmine of articles that I can’t wait to read!
No unethical breeding is a big one for me too- backyard breeding is so common in NZ and the expense of desexing is a barrier too - let alone a rising debate I’ve noticed on whether desexing is healthy or unhealthy for dogs….. it’s all so overwhelming. It seems to me that education on ethical breeding, responsible dog ownership and animal welfare is the first necessary step, I’m just not sure where that begins - schools? Public campaigns? Media articles? At rescues and with breeders themselves? I’d love to know your thoughts 💗💗💗
Ahh thank you so much, Erin! Forever thankful to Courtney for connecting us yesterday!
Lately I’ve become increasingly passionate about community-centric efforts, beyond just education into a mix of education coupled with resource accessibility. (This is a very American perspective given that I’ve only ever lived and volunteered with rescue here, so probably some nuance to be found in many other places.) I think the idea of human and domestic animal welfare being inextricably tied can help us help people, enabling them to better help pets. I don’t think that’s the whole answer but it’s a big one for me!
YES completely agree Haley!!! Now that you mention it I worked a few free dog vaccination events here and it was incredible the community turn out - it was mostly focused on resource accessibility (free vet care), but with people able to talk to veterinarians about their pets’ health and behaviour too it was a great blend of education + resources. It also allowed vets to recommend desexing and book in free/discounted appointments!
I wonder if there’s been anything similar in your area? The scale of this must be SO much larger in America compared to nz, I can’t even imagine!!
In my perfect world, everyone would be as thoughtful, educated, and intentional as you are and this post is. Perhaps that's my pick because my dog and I got scream-howled at by a reactive intact male pit bull today, and the owner yelled that his dog was just super friendly and would calm down if my dog came over and said hi. So yes, thoughtful, educated, and intentional would be great!
And oh gosh do I hear you on that experience!! I always feel for the dogs so much in those situations. It took me years of being around dogs to realize, properly, that the expectation of always getting to greet on leash can create sooo much frustration and bubble into reactivity and become this whole terrible spiral of reactivity and stress for all
Why are you always so kind to me?! I can never say enough how I appreciate it, especially the care and thought and sense of being seen that you’ve given to me this whole (messy!) time since I moved the blog over to Substack. I really appreciate you.
How do I agree with you on every point hahhaha!!! Excellent writing & such a goldmine of articles that I can’t wait to read!
No unethical breeding is a big one for me too- backyard breeding is so common in NZ and the expense of desexing is a barrier too - let alone a rising debate I’ve noticed on whether desexing is healthy or unhealthy for dogs….. it’s all so overwhelming. It seems to me that education on ethical breeding, responsible dog ownership and animal welfare is the first necessary step, I’m just not sure where that begins - schools? Public campaigns? Media articles? At rescues and with breeders themselves? I’d love to know your thoughts 💗💗💗
Ahh thank you so much, Erin! Forever thankful to Courtney for connecting us yesterday!
Lately I’ve become increasingly passionate about community-centric efforts, beyond just education into a mix of education coupled with resource accessibility. (This is a very American perspective given that I’ve only ever lived and volunteered with rescue here, so probably some nuance to be found in many other places.) I think the idea of human and domestic animal welfare being inextricably tied can help us help people, enabling them to better help pets. I don’t think that’s the whole answer but it’s a big one for me!
YES completely agree Haley!!! Now that you mention it I worked a few free dog vaccination events here and it was incredible the community turn out - it was mostly focused on resource accessibility (free vet care), but with people able to talk to veterinarians about their pets’ health and behaviour too it was a great blend of education + resources. It also allowed vets to recommend desexing and book in free/discounted appointments!
I wonder if there’s been anything similar in your area? The scale of this must be SO much larger in America compared to nz, I can’t even imagine!!