Yappy Hour Philosophy

 I never knew such small dogs were included among the working breeds

We used to frequent local dog parks, but after our Happy bit a dog and we saw other incidents, we kind of shied away.  We let ours get with some neighbors' dogs from time to time so they have some socializing beyond their pack.

Yeah I do dog play dates but the dog park is about enough to give me an anxiety attack, so many clueless owners and dogs that should not be there for any number of reasons.  Last time DH convinced me to go, there was a bulldog running around with a super loose prong collar on his neck inside out!  So basically any dog that wanted to play with him was at risk of getting his mouth torn up or caught on a collar that had no business being on the dog.  Even the "open" times at my training center can hinge on chaos.  I think these types of groups only work as well as the people in them and I've repeatedly encountered an unbelievable lack of common sense.  I'm not one to give unsolicited advice so I just stay away.  I also couldn't care less if my dogs are 100% reliable in a wild pack of strange dogs.  We have no incidents at home and no incidents at training.  I take every one of my dogs to the pet store, numerous group style training classes (unlike Schutzhund) and any dog-friendly event I can find.  To my dogs, a strange dog is just another object like a rock on the ground, nothing to get all worked up about either way.  Among my dog friends whom I know and trust, we arrange play dates with our dogs.  When I get together with groups of dog friends our focus is on training.  There's a lot of training I can't do by myself, either because I don't have the space, the equipment, or need the other people and dogs for distraction or help.

 One reason my clients like Yappy Hour so much is that I'm there to supervise, plus comment on the dogs' behavior.  Many of them get very good at deciphering doggy body language, which is what I want for them, for when they do have doggy play dates or go to dog parks.  I know that many of them have shied away from the latter because they now know what to look for and they aren't liking what they see (too many bullies, owners who don't know normal from not normal play, etc.)

I would love to host that kind of event in my area, and it's something I've been considering doing for the summer of 2011. I want to focus though on building up a client base that is big enough to be able to hold something like that though, to gain the most benefit.

I don't do dog parks with my own dogs, and generally I do not recommend them. To be honest I think they are recipes for disaster in a lot of cases. There are exceptions I know, but at the least it teaches dogs inappropriate greetings, play behaviours, and often lack of response to handler, and at the worse extreme there are fights, frightening incidents, and mismatched play groups that leave dogs at risk. I've been around a lot of the dog parks locally to know that most of them are not places I would want my own, or my client's dogs, to go to socialize.

Two of my three dogs are not interested in *playing* with strange dogs in any shape or form. They can maintain good manners around them, and have even run offleash with groups of other dogs, but I do not care that they play with other dogs. They have each other for that, and that is most important to me. Zipper does enjoy social contact with others so we do it in appropriate settings, by way of working with my clients, doing PR stuff with the shelter, and taking him to meet certain dog-friends that he has made. But even with him I still don't do dog parks, as I don't want him to have to be forced to deal with horribly-mannered, or risky dogs. I value his amazing dog-skills, and he is actually an important part of my business as a helper, and I prefer to keep it that way. Although even now I have noticed that his play interest is less now that he is seven, so I will be keeping an eye out to ensure that he's still enjoying his adventures the way that he used to.

 I got to watch the video.  That was hilariously cute!