To professional walkers, dog days are the best kind

It's no secret that in many households, dogs are more like family members than pets.

And when pet parents are away, they go to great lengths to make sure Fido is cared for and happy. The services and activities available run the spectrum from simple dog walking to luxury perks. They can take the form of day care and camps, boarding resorts, training, grooming and even concierge services.

But independent dog walkers in many ways have become like nannies, offering daytime and overnight pet sitting or more comprehensive service — some animals require insulin or have other medical needs.

Local pet owners can find all variety of such services.

For instance, Kevin Burke, owner of Dog Republic in Newport Beach, served as an escort to a pet party. He recently accompanied four of his canine clients to a "Sip N' See," a puppy shower at the Newport Beach Tennis Club thrown by Scott and Hillary Simon for their 10-week-old pug, Eloise.

For some dog walkers, it's a part-time job to supplement their income.

Kat Austin, who works full time as admissions coordinator for Toni & Guy Hairdressing Academy, juggles caring for her "fur babies" in the same way she would a family member.

The Newport Beach resident's day begins at 5:30 a.m., when she picks up a neighbor's dog, Harley, for a 30- to 40-minute walk before she goes to work. Austin then dashes home during her lunch break to tend to the pups in her care.

"I run more of a VIP service. I don't take a lot of dogs, and they have to get along with mine, a Pomeranian and long-haired Chihuahua, which is why I ask for a meet-and-greet first," she said. "My dogs go everywhere with me along with the dogs I'm sitting for. My husband and I even took the two that I was dog sitting on a recent road trip to Aspen."

Word spreads about Austin's dog-walking business as people see her out and about with extra dogs. She's also a member of Rover, an online service that provides a list of independent contractors for pet walking, sitting and boarding.

Michelle Arino, also of Newport Beach, works in real estate and as an assistant at college planning seminars when she's not staying with dogs in their homes. She prefers not to use her home because "I don't let my two Pomeranian dogs get in the way of taking care of other dogs."

Arino, who walks dogs and provides day and night care, doesn't limit her territory or clientele. She's willing to drive to San Diego or Los Angeles for overnight stays and has fed watermelon, grapes and even a platter of vegetables to other animals, such as a ferret, tortoise and chameleon. She draws the line, however, at sitting for tarantulas and snakes.

For other walkers, the business has become their livelihood.

Kim Jones began her full-time pet service, No Place Like Home, 22 years ago when she lived in south Orange County.

"No Place Like Home describes what I do," said Jones, who now lives in Costa Mesa but continues to travel to clients in Lake Forest, San Clemente and Irvine. "Everything stays the same when the dogs remain in their home. It avoids the stress, the crying or thinking they've been abandoned.

"I love my clients and I've met some great people who have become my lifelong friends," Jones added. "Animal care just makes your life fuller, and I love animals."

Jocelyn Militante has a bachelor's degree in English literature but has chosen a different path in a career where she found her passion — caring for animals. Ten years ago, she established a successful dog-walking business that she named East Meets West Pet Care — a reference to moving from New Jersey to Newport Beach six years ago.

"I can't have a bad day in this business," she said. "I could be sad when I walk into my first client's house, and when the dogs greet me with love and happiness, it makes me so happy. It's so rewarding to be with animals all day long."

Militante works seven days a week because she likes to do the walks herself. She limits her walks to one family at a time, unless a client requests a buddy walk with another dog.

"Certain dogs, like rescues, can feel insecure or intimidated in a pack situation," Militante said. "My biggest goal is to make sure the dog is happy, secure and comfortable, which is why I stay in their home for overnights. That's where they are happiest."

Dog Walkers Are Basically Texting Novels to Pet Owners

Are you ending 2018 on a very single note? Did you try to find someone this year? Were you simply unable to get a text back, no matter how middling or promising the date? Why not get a dog?

Yes, adopting a furry roommate would mean there's someone who is always excited for you to come home, and a snuggle buddy should you be the kind of person to share your couch and/or bed with your pooch. But according to the Washington Post, adopting a dog and subsequently hiring a dog walker means you'll also get lots of texts. (They can't really help you on the dating front, though.)

Dog walking can be a cutthroat gig; in 2017, The Wall Street Journal reported on the high standards services like Wag! have for potential walkers. Jenna White, the director of dog-walking operations for Rover, explained to the Post that, "Ongoing, two-way communication is actually one of the most important components to a successful walk.” The company requires walkers to complete a report card after every walk, which includes space for details like bathroom breaks, route, and interaction with other dogs. But even freelance walkers have upped the communication ante, to the point where one said troubleshooting a dog's issues and ailments with pet owners can feel like "co-parenting."

A dog walker named Christy Griffin told the Post that after each walk she "give[s] a full report that includes not only peeing and pooping but also kind of general well-being, and if the dog socialized with other dogs." Bonus: She'll send "six to eight” photos of your dog living their best doggy life, all posed expertly because Griffin holds a treat in her hand as Insta-bait.

There is a lot you could say about expecting that dog walkers, whose rates often vary, to go above and beyond for the gig. But dogs can't give verbal updates the same way children can ("Mommy, the babysitter let me watch Frozen three-and-a-half times in a row!") and caring for a dog often takes more nuance than plant-sitting (either they're alive or they're dead, there is no in-between).

Anyway, I give it between six months and two years before the New York Times vows section reports on a couple who met because one fell in love with another's text updates about Fido, details about poop and all.

Women sleep better next to dogs than other people: study

Let sleeping dogs lie!

Women sleep better next to dogs than their human partners, according to a study published this month by researchers at Canisius College in Buffalo, New York.

Of the 962 women living in the U.S. interviewed by the school, 55 percent of them shared the bed with at least one dog and 31 percent of them shared the bed with at least one cat. The study found 57 percent of the women shared the bed with a human partner. Dogs were less likely to wake their owners in the middle of the night than cats and humans, results revealed.

The study found that both cats and humans were equally disruptive to women's sleep and provided them with fewer feelings of comfort and security than dogs.

Dog owners also reported earlier sleep and wake times than cat owners and participants without pets.

"Dog ownership and its associated responsibilities may cause individuals to adhere to a stricter routine," researchers said. "Keeping to a consistent sleep schedule may be beneficial to dog owners."

Women aren't the only ones who report better sleep with dogs, according to a study published last year.

Researchers from the Mayo Clinic in Arizona conducted a study of 40 healthy adults, both male and female, and found that people who slept with a dog in the bedroom got more rest than people who didn't. Although, the Mayo study found sleeping with a dog in the bed, as opposed to another place in the bedroom, could disrupt the sleep cycle.

Dog harness or collar? The best way to control your pet revealed

It's difficult to change traditional behaviour. People get used to doing things a certain way, and even when science and logic suggest that there's a better way, old habits are hard to get rid of.

In the animal world, there's an obvious area that stands out as being stuck in the past: using collars to restrain dogs.

Of course there's a place for dog collars: they are a handy way to permanently attach an ID tag around a dog's neck. Once put in place, a light dog collar can be impossible for a dog to remove, similar to a festival-style wristband on a human.

A well-fitting dog collar can also function as a way of reminding dogs that they are with you and that you want them to stay close to you. There should be no tugging or tightening of the collar: if the collar was not there, the dog should still want to be in the same place. The collar should act in the same way as gently holding a child's hand.

But as a way of controlling a dog? There are now alternatives that are far better than dog collars.

As a well-known behaviourist said at a veterinary conference: "We call dogs 'man's best friends', then we put a noose around their necks and drag them around after us".

One of the developments in contemporary veterinary science is the recognition that animal sentience is far more like our own than we used to believe. It's now understood that if an animal displays behaviour that would mean distress, fear or pain in a human, then almost certainly, the animal is feeling distress, fear or pain too.

So when it comes to collar use, the same parallel can be made. If you'd feel uncomfortable being hauled around by a collar, a dog is likely to have just the same level of discomfort. When tightened and pulled, collars twist the neck in an uncomfortable way, and they apply pressure to the windpipe and blood vessels, causing severe discomfort. Choke collars do exactly what their name implies: they choke dogs. So-called "prong-collars" take this a level further, with metal spikes digging into the neck as the collar tightens. How did we ever think this was humane and fair? And as for electric shock collars: it's astonishing that it took until 2018 for them to be made illegal in England.

There are a number of effective, humane alternatives to dog collars. They have been around for many years, used for working animals like sledge dogs and horses, but it's only relatively recently that they have been adapted for daily use in pets.

Head collars

Head collars, similar to those used widely in horses, are now commonly used in dogs. The fabric straps fit neatly around the dog's head and muzzle, and the dog's leash clips on to a metal ring on the head collar under the dog's chin.

If you need to exert control on the dog, when you pull on the leash, the dog's head and muzzle are pulled around so that the dog is forced to look at you. This immediately removes any visual distraction which may have grabbed the dog's attention, making it easier to regain their focus. In contrast, if you pull on a traditional collar, the dog continues to look at  (and strain towards) the object that's distracting them.

Dogs need to learn to tolerate head collars: the better brands come with detailed instructions on how to do this. If this process is rushed, or done wrongly, or if the head collar is poorly fitting, it can be easy for a dog to wriggle out, and even to damage the head collar by chewing it. But when care is taken to use the products properly, they can be highly effective.

Body harnesses for dogs

Body harnesses are the latest method of dog control to become popular. In essence, they are similar to the safety harnesses that parents use to keep control of wayward toddlers when out in public. We recognise that they are the kindest way to restrain boisterous little humans, so it seems logical that they should also be appropriate for our canine companions.

There are different styles of dog harnesses, but broadly, there are two types:
 
Nylon strap harnesses

The simplest dog harnesses are almost identical to the human toddler harnesses: it can be fiddly to work out how they need to be fitted, but once you've got that sorted out, they are easy and quick to put on, and they're tolerated well by dogs. Some are designed to follow body contours and movements so that if a dog strains on the harness, the straps tighten at certain pressure points, sending the dog a message to ease back. A simple, well-fitted harness of this type is far more humane than a dog collar, and often more effective at controlling a dog, especially for smaller animals.

Webbing and buckle harnesses

A sturdier, more substantial type of harness for dogs has also become widely available in recent years. These are derived from the types of chest harnesses that have been used in horses for hundreds of years, since the time of Boudicca and the Roman Empire.

These harnesses have thicker nylon webbing, and tough plastic buckles that snap securely into place. There's often a thickened loop of webbing at the centre of the harness that functions as a handle to lift the dog comfortably (e.g. into the car), and there are other slots that can be used to allow the harness to double up when used with seat belts to restrain a dog safely for travelling in a car. They can also sometimes be used to attach directly to the car seat anchor, the metal attachment point that's used for child car safety seats.

Some types of dog harnesses have reflective strips along the side, allowing dogs to be seen in low light conditions,  and velcro-detachable strips can also be attached in these areas, allowing messages (e.g. "Sniffer dog") to be carried by the animal. Bags and panniers can sometimes be attached too; owners can use their (larger) pets to help them, by carrying shopping or other objects.

The best of these dog harnesses have been designed with the help of mobility scientists in the laboratory who have analysed the way that dogs' bodies move. They have been fitted with padding to protect the dog at pressure points, and in contrast to dog collars, they avoid placing pressure on airways, nerves and blood vessels. As with all other types of restraint, it's crucially important that these harnesses are carefully measured and fitted before being used for daily activities.

Studies have shown that far from hindering movement, they help animals move  ergonomically and comfortably, whilst still being able to be controlled by the humans working beside them.

As well as being highly effective for pet dogs in normal daily activities like walks in the park, harnesses of this type also have specific professional uses. Dog sledge teams, and people who run with dogs – the new sport called CaniCross – use special padded harnesses that are similar to the types of harnesses that are now used for pets.

Dog collars should be consigned to the past; science and new knowledge should be put into practice. Try fitting a dog harness to your dog, and you - and your pet - will appreciate the difference.

Lubbock dog in wheelchair wins in worldwide pet calendar contest

Kardi, a special needs French Bulldog from Lubbock, Texas, is one of 13 winners in a worldwide 2019 calendar contest featuring dogs in wheelchairs. Walkin' Pets by HandicappedPets.com, an e-commerce pet product company, hosts the annual calendar contest to help spread awareness of how disabled dogs can live active, happy lives.

Kardi was voted into the calendar by popular vote on the company's Facebook page out of a pool of 240 entries from 26 countries around the world. Kelsey Glen, a veterinary technician, rescued Kardi from a puppy mill when she was two years old. Two years later, Kardi became paralyzed from IVDD. The Animal Medical Center in Amarillo where Glen worked put together a secret collection to buy Kardi a Walkin' Wheels wheelchair; she's been on a roll ever since!

When Kardi first became paralyzed, Glen was living with her sister Kadie; the two of them figured out how to express Kardi's bladder and deal with her mobility challenges. Now Glen is living on her own with Kardi and another special needs rescue, a Boston Terrier named Bonnie Rose. Glen has also found the time to help Kardi become a certified therapy dog. They visit schools and nursing homes, where Glen reports that Kardi is especially good with the Alzheimer's patients.

“She is just the sweetest, most laidback little dog,” says Glen. “Kardi surprises me every day. She doesn't let her disability define her; she gets up every day and lives life to the fullest!”