11/08/2024
Do you enjoy long walks, hiking, or jogging?
DID YOU KNOW that there are hundreds of rescues and shelters across America that let you take dogs out for enrichment? Why walk alone when you could make a dog's week?!
There are some caveats. Don't just walk into your local shelter and tell them you're taking dogs on walks today 🤣😭. Most programs have an orientation or training class that volunteers must take before getting started. This may be a full foster orientation or a quick class. Either way, this class is meant to give you some skills to keep you and the dogs you take out and work with safe.
As a professional dog trainer who spends most days working on leash reactivity and aggression, please do not overcommit on the dogs you can handle. If you are inexperienced or nervous about dogs, let the staff know that you need to be paired with a dog who is easier to handle. No dogs should meet other dogs on leash unless the staff has explicitly said so! While your job is to give them a break from kennel time, we also don't want anything bad to happen to them or any other dogs or people around them.
Any break from a day of staring at kennel walls for any dog can completely change their outlook on life. Kennel neurosis is real. Dogs do get euthanized for it. Giving them just 30 minutes of outside time to sniff, explore, be touched and spoken to, and adventure can be enough to save them.
Contact your local rescues and shelters to see if they offer a program like this. You'll also enjoy company on your adventures and the benefit of knowing you're changing a dog's life. ❤️
