Bark 4 a Dog Park Newsletter

Transcription

1 ENHANCING OUR COMMUNITY THROUGH HUMAN-ANIMAL BONDING FestivalCountryK9s.Org CedarCityDogPark.Info Utah State Entity No January/February 2013 SUPPORTING We are having a fundraising event to help raise funds for our group. Along with helping the homeless animals of Iron County, we offer low cost dog training classes, seminars, demonstrations, and fun events like Responsible Dog Ownership Day and much more. DOG OBEDIENCE CLASSES EVERY WEDNESDAY AT CEDAR SKATE & FUN CENTER 912 Airport Road, Cedar City Classes are held indoors Inside this issue: 501(c)3 It s Official! 1 Dog Obedience Classes 1 Helping Lost & Found Animals 2 Tips on Selecting a Dog 3 Who Are We? 4 Our Supporters 4 Upcoming Events 4 In case you hadn t heard, our 501(c)3 Non-Profit Status IS OFFICIAL! On September 21, 2012, Friends of Festival Country K9s was notified by the IRS that we are considered a public charity and have tax exempt status dating back to March 7, In other words, all donations made to us are tax deductible. If you made a donation to our club and have not received a receipt for your donation, please call so we may give you a receipt for tax purposes. We are qualified to receive tax deductible bequests, devises, transfers and gifts and we are still looking for a location for a community dog park located in the Iron County Area. If you are interested in helping us, we look forward to speaking with you. In order for our group to be able to keep the community informed by way of these newsletters, website, newspaper ads and such, we need operating funds. Events like this is how we keep running. Our group is made up of strictly volunteers and no one is compensated. If you would like be a vendor at this event, booth space is $20.00 and you can contact Chelsie Gardner at for more information or find this event on Facebook Valentine Puppy Love Craft Fair Puppy Classes 4 to 5PM *** 6 week course is only $30.00 for members Next session begins on January 23, 2013 Basic Obedience working towards CGC (Canine Good Citizen) 5 to 6PM ***4 week class FREE to members Next session begins on January 23, 2013 Call to register for A future session of classes ***Advanced Obedience will be offered at a later date. Responsible Breeding Resource Page In addition we would like to keep our local homeless animals that are housed in shelters fed and healthy. Donations made to us in this regard will go directly to Iron County's homeless animals. Thank you, Friends of Festival Country K-9s Board Membership to Festival Country K-9s is only$20 per year for single or family membership and offers opportunities like discounted Dog Obedience Classes & so much more! Schedule of Events Located on Page 4

2 HELPING THE LOST & FOUND ANIMALS OF IRON COUNTY Our group is made up of a lot of compassionate and caring people in the community. We all have a passion for animals and enjoy volunteering our time. One of the ways we are trying to help the community is finding ways to help people find their lost pets. We have a Facebook Page (Friends of Festival Country K9s) where we post pictures of animals found by animal control or turned into the shelters by the community. We also encourage the community to post their lost pets on this page. Our group takes these pictures and information and shares it with the rest of the Facebook Community as well as Twitter, Tradio and all the Shelters. We are looking to expand our sharing network with groomers as well as veterinarians because they might know the animal s owners. We have seen tremendous success using this method of networking. In the last week of December 2012 alone,, 3 out of 4 pets were found within a day s time. Many more have been located since. Bark 4 a Dog Park Newsletter Because not everyone is on the internet and other social media, we are trying to work with the newspapers to have a section of the newspaper for this project. Our number one advice is to have identification on your pet. A name tag with your address or Even just your phone number goes a long way and your pet can get home safely much faster. Animal Control and the general public, who may have found your lost pet, doesn t want to put your pet through the trauma of going to the shelter. If your pet has a tag with your information, they can be returned quickly, it can save trauma to you and your animal Some things you should know: Shelters only have to hold an animal for 5 days before they can become adoptable or euthanized so time is of the essence. If you find an animal, you must contact the shelter within 24 hours and report it. Remember, if someone is looking for their pet, they will probably be calling the shelters to see if their pet is at the facility. ***See our resource page or website for Shelter Contact Information FestivalCountryK9s.Org If you keep the found pet longer than the 24 hour period and then wish to turn it over to the shelter, they will charge you a surrender fee. All tagged up. Identification Tags can be purchased for your pet locally at both IFA for $6.99 and at CAL Ranch for $7.99. Tags are made right in the store and you receive them immediately. They can also be purchased online. Just google pet tags. Another form of identification is Micro-chipping. All the shelters and most veterinarians have micro-chip readers. There are times when your pet may lose their collar and/or tag. A Microchip is an excellent back-up plan. Micro-chipping can be done at your veterinarians office or MVP Mobile Vet Clinic comes to IFA in Cedar City once each month and offers low cost micro-chipping. The cost is $50.00 per animal including lifetime registration. Page 2 Check with your vet as fees vary from office to office for Micro-chipping. We have a Lost & Found Pets page on our Website: This page has many resources and contact information on how to locate your pet. From newspapers, to radio(tradio), to listings of all the shelters, to recommended internet pages like KSL.Com, Craigslist, or Facebook sites as well as other internet posting suggestions. Don t wait to post your lost pet. Time is of the essence! The best results are coming from our Facebook community but in case you don t have internet access for FB, Craigslist, KSL.Com or the shelter pages, here are some recommended places to call to post your lost pet: Cedar City Animal Shelter Enoch Animal Shelter Iron County Animal Shelter Parowan Animal Shelter Tradio Iron County Today Spectrum Shopper Don t forget to call local veterinarian and groomers as well. Posting of Pictures can be done on the boards at IFA and CAL Ranch & Lin s Market.

3 Page 3 Tips on Selecting a New Dog By Susie Ward When you ve decided you d like a new dog companion, you must be willing to commit yourself for the dog s life and you don t want to be sorry who you select. Through the years, movies that include cute or smart dogs, have caused a rush on a given breed. Only later, one finds out their dog isn t like the one in the movie. Consider some important things that will make your new dog a match to you and your family. If you want a mutt, know you probably won t be able to guess his adult size, type of coat or intelligence. For instance, a scent hound crossed with a lab (a smart breed) might come up short for intelligence and trainability. Purebred dogs give you more information on what they can do, what size they will be, temperament, coat style and intelligence. Consider your energy level. A sporting breed might be up your alley if you are an on-the -go person. However he d be a disaster for an older, or low geared person. Will your new dog spend more time outside? Don t consider a Doberman, Dachshund or Boxer because they have no protection from our winter elements. The longer coat of a golden retriever or border collie will fare better. Keep in mind, the more time your dog spends with you, the more intelligent and wellbehaved he will be. He will learn your body language and have a greater understanding of words, thus being a better companion. I love a non-shed coat, but that comes with a price literally. The poodle or Bichon Friese don t shed or loose hair like many breeds but they need to be brushed out regularly. Their coat continues to grow so hair cuts are very necessary. It is an expense to be considered. Male or Female? Males are tougher mentally and typically, more sure of themselves. Females have a softer mentality and are usually more flexible and a little easier to train. Often, they are more sensitive. Spay or neuter your pet. Spayed and neutered dogs make better family pets and are much easier to train and are more focused on you. Susie Ward is a retired professional groomer who has worked extensively with dogs for over 55 years. She has two standard poodles that are therapy dogs. Susie and her dogs visit hospitals and care centers to raise the spirits of others. This is Susie and her dog Treasure speaking at our Responsible Dog Ownership Day. A library is a good source to find information on different breeds but some good internet resources to visit are: breeds_a.cfm -breeds?see-all=1 "Dogs are not our whole life but they make our lives whole Roger Caras Get in on the conversation and find out what s going on around Iron County at THANK YOU CEDAR SKATE & FUN CEN- TER AND MIKE ALLEN FOR HOSTING OUR DOG TRAINING CLASSES EVERY WEDNESDAY NIGHT. WE TRULY APPRECIATE YOU Friends of Festival Country K9s is working with Best Friends on various projects. One of these is to be able to spay and neuter all shelter animals prior to their going to their new adoptable homes helping to make our community a place with: Thank you Jeff Pedersen for volunteering to transport shelter animals to Best Friends. If you can volunteer to help transport animals to Best Friends for spay and neuter appointments, please contact Diane

4 Page 4 FestivalCountryK9s.Org or CedarCityDogPark.Info Festival Country K-9 s Logo Lindsey Peterson THANK YOU TO OUR MANY SUPPORTERS. SPECIAL THANKS TO THE FOLLOWING PEOPLE FOR THEIR TIME, EXPERTISE AND DONATIONS: WHO ARE WE? We are a non-profit 501(c)3 group organized for charitable and educational purposes committed to: Enriching our community through Human-Animal Bonding ~ Working to build a Community Dog Park ~ Providing pet related educational and training materials to the community ~ Adoption and Funding Assistance to Iron County Animal Shelters and Animal Rescues ~ Provide sponsorship of animal related events, seminars, demonstrations and classes which offer economic opportunities to local business ~ To protect and enhance the quality of life, community pride and economic vitality of local Iron County communities President Diane Gil * Vice President & Fundraising - Paul White Secretary - Lynne Brown * Treasurer - Kim Ritz Director of Communications & Fundraising Jessica Van Woeart Director of Education Gail Workman Animal Welfare Specialist Bitsy McClain * Technology Specialist Bruce Gil Mailing Address: 4891 W 1000 S, Cedar City, UT Cedar City Dog Park Logo David Joseph Upcoming Events with Festival Country K-9s 5:00 PM Obedience/Canine Good Citizen Class at Cedar Skate & Fun Center. Held inside. Classes run in 4 week increments to reserve your spot. Classes are $25 per 6 week session or FREE to existing Members. Saturday, Feb. 2nd, AM to 1PM Puppy Love Valentine Craft Fair Craft Booths, Adoptable Animals, Demonstrations, Pictures & More at the Cedar Skate & Fun Center, 912 N. Airport Road, Cedar City MVP, MOBILE VET CLINIC offers low cot vaccination and micro-chipping for pets at IFA once per month. Please visit our website for information on cost. Next Clinics will be held on: Jan 25th, Feb 22nd. March 22nd, 2013 Watch our Facebook Pages, Website, and newspapers to find out about our up-coming events Thank you to Diana Walker at Diana s Country Dog Grooming for grooming the shelter animals for free in order to help make them more adoptable. We appreciate your support. Diana is located in the CAL Ranch Store. TRAINER S CORNER Gail Workman Gail Workman is our Director of Education and has been training dogs for over 30 years. She trains and shows dogs all over the western United States. Gail offers instruction in obedience as well as various dog sports. She is also a Canine Good Citizen Evaluator for the AKC. She is offering Canine Good Citizen classes for all members of Festival Country K9s throughout the year. Membership to Festival Country K9s is $20 for a yearly membership and offers many different things for you and your dog(s). Other Discounted Classes are being offered as well. MANY THANKS TO EVERYONE WHO IS WORKING SO HARD WITHIN OUR GROUP. WE WELCOME YOUR HELP, EXPERTISE AND CONTRIBUTIONS. PLEASE CONTACT US IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO LEND YOUR SUPPORT AT: FESTIVALCOUNTYK9s@GMAIL.COM OR CALL

5 January 2013 Insert By Gail Workman Director of Education, FFCK9S If you are a breeder or considering breeding a litter of puppies, let s look at things you need to know to be responsible in your endeavors. This will also help you if you are considering buying a puppy so you can make the best choice possible in a breeder to make sure you have a healthy puppy and a breeder that will be there for you throughout your dog s life. Breeding is a huge responsibility and should not be taken lightly whether you just have 1 litter or plan to breed as a hobby or for the show ring, Regardless of what you breed, purebreds or mix breeds (designer breeds) you are responsible for bringing special lives into the world. Not only should you be responsible for the dogs you produce, but you need to make sure those puppies are not bred by someone that will not be responsible so your grand puppies, or great grand puppies do not end up in a shelter, in rescue or in a puppy mill situation. Ask yourself why you want to breed your female? Is it to make money? Well there are many expenses involved in breeding responsibly chances are more likely you will loose money. Do you want your kids to see the miracle of birth? What happens if it all goes wrong and it is not a miracle you end up spending $ to save your female because she cannot deliver the puppies, or you loose your treasured pet that the kids dearly love. What is a Responsible Breeder? The best life lesson you can teach your kids is to be a responsible pet owner. An animal has feelings, they need to be part of the human pack family. They need, proper housing love, care, training, proper diet, & exercise. Animals are not something you can dump or ignore. Take them to a shelter and show them what happens when you are not a responsible dog owner,. Allow them to volunteer at an animal shelter and see the miracle of an animal being adopted & the tears of joy for all involved. A responsible breeder should be prepared to stay in touch with the puppies once they have been sold, or given away. They should be willing to take back any puppy for any reason and be prepared to step in and help the new puppy owners when needed & throughout that dog s life. This will make sure your puppies do not add to the growing numbers of dogs in shelters. This will also keep you informed and help you grade your success in breeding. Did you make the right choices in your breeding program and did you indeed breed and raise happy healthy puppies? A responsible breeder does research on their breed to understand the weaknesses and health issues involved with the breed and then does health testing for these issues. Your goal should be to breed a better specimen of the breed. Are you prepared to breed a healthy litter in mind and body? Puppy rearing can be an amazing experience, but it does take lots of time & effort. You may need to adjust your work schedule to be there to make sure your puppies are raised in a clean environment and have the utmost they should be with the dam and littermates for a full 8-9 weeks allowing your puppies to get the best social training. No one can teach your puppies the lessons better then mom and littermates about bite inhibition. As a dog trainer that is one of the biggest problems with puppies. Many were not with the litter long enough to learn biting hurts and get the perfect timing of mom or another puppy letting them know they loose their privileges when biting hurts. Do your research understanding what can go wrong during whelping so you are prepared for any financial burden and understanding if things do not go as planned. It can be a real heart break to loose puppies or even your treasured female. Taking proper steps to make sure you are breeding the healthiest female to the healthiest male to ensure your puppies have the best chance for a full healthy life. A responsible breeder does health checks depending on the breeds weaknesses. The most common tests are for eyes, hips, knees, elbows. Some breeds it might be heart, or skin as well. There is health testing that can be done and sent to an organization. If your dog passes the testing, they will send you a certificate that shows you had the testing done and gives a rating of how your dog scored on the health test. See the following links: chicinfo.html index.cfm Get in on the conversation and find out what s going on around Iron County at Why should you breed? After all there are many dogs of your breed so what does your dog have to offer to better the breed? Responsible breeders take steps to showcase their dog to prove it is worthy of breeding. They show what it has to offer that sets it apart from others. Getting your dog involved with dog sports such as conformation, obedience, tracking, hunting, herding, earth dog, cart pulling, sledding, fly ball, Frisbee, agility, weight pulling, dock diving, tri-ball, ect.. gives you and your dog the opportunity to showcase themselves while others can see that your dog has talent, endurance, is biddable, and, most importantly, healthy. He is built in accordance to a standard that allows your dog to do what it was bred to do with proper structure. Proper structure is part of being a healthy dog through out its life. If you breed your dog and choose to take the steps to be a responsible breeder, then you know you have done everything you can to make sure you are adding to the quality of the breed and to the quality life of your puppies, You also know you have done everything you can to make sure none of your puppies will add to the number of homeless pets. Gail Workman breeds, shows and trains Cocker Spaniels. She travels all over the country with her dogs competing as well as training, judging and evaluating dogs for the AKC Canine Good Citizen. She has 30 years of experience that she is donating & sharing with our community so we can all have

6 FRIENDS OF FESTIVAL COUNTRY K9 S RESOURCE PAGE JANUARY 2013 LOCAL VETERINARIANS Cedar Veterinary Clinic Dr Steve Thinnes 533 N. Airport Road Cedar City, UT OFF LEASH DOG PARKS IN SOUTHERN UTAH Iron County does not have an off-leash dog park, but nearby Washington County has 5 to choose from. Dog Groomers in Cedar City and Enoch Cedar Bark Grooming 298 North 900 West Cedar City, UT (435) Diana s Dog Grooming 750 South Main Street, Cedar City (435) Petland (formerly Desert Reef) 390 N 2150 W, Cedar City, UT (435) Tyner's Dog Grooming 491 S Main St # 7, Cedar City, UT (435) The Hitch'n Post 4200 N. Wagon Wheel Dr. Enoch (435) hitchnup@msn.com The Groom Room 4709 N Enoch Road, Enoch The Paw Spa at Cedar City 911 N 2175 W, Cedar City, UT (435) Color Country Animal Hospital Dr. Norton Dr. Rawlinson 390 North 4050 West Cedar City, Utah Mt. View Animal Hospital Dr. Richard Bagley 2265 W. MidValley Road Cedar City, UT So. Utah Animal Hospital Dr. Kelly Esplin 1203 N. Main Street Cedar City, UT Mobile Vet Dr. Leilani K Wilson hour Emergency Clinic Southwest Animal Emergency 435 No East #11 St. George, UT Zion Veterinary Clinic Dr. Casey Wittwer 90 E State Street Hurricane, UT Indian Creek Veterinary Services Dr. Seven Yardley 1501 N Hwy 357 Beaver, UT JC Snow Park 900 South 400 East St. George, UT Firehouse Dog Park 1800 N. Dixie Downs Road St, George, UT Washington City Dog Park 300 East 400 South Washington City, UT ****This park has water features Hurricane Dog Park (west of Stout Park) 300 West 750 North Hurricane, UT Ivins Dog Park 700 North 600 West Ivins, Utah ***Address is approximate