January 13, 2012

Just a few quick updates as we get started in the new year...

A BIG Thank You!

How big? 722 pounds big! That's how much food K9 Country Club clients donated for hungry pets in the Yakima Valley this Christmas. We thank you for your generosity and know that the seniors and their dogs also appreciate your kindness.

Valentine's Day pictures
coming soon

A note for our regular daycare dogs: Our annual Valentine's Day pictures will be taken during the week of January 16 - 20th. To get your photo, be sure your dog attends daycare during that week.

The Crate is Great!

We're seeing a big difference in our daycare dogs' behavior since we started regularly crating all dogs during the morning check-in and again in the afternoon for pick-up. We are enjoying a much calmer pack all day, and the dogs really seem to enjoy using their crates more.

After nap time we leave the crate doors open during afternoon play time and, very often, the dogs choose to hang out in their crates and watch the activities from there.

We also appreciate that the owners of the more energetic dogs are bringing them in earlier each morning. The extra time really helps these dogs settle down and get ready to have fun with the pack.

Records Check-up

We want to thank everyone who's provided updated vaccination and fecal exam records for us in the past month. If your dog still needs up-to-date records for our files, we'll slip a reminder note into your cubby this month.

Basic Obedience Contest

Dogs come here to have fun, but we also expect them to behave well and show us their good manners. We've been working very hard to teach all of our daycare dogs to wait before going through any door or gate here at K9 Country Club (because the human should always go through first). To make this fun for you at home, too, we're going to have a contest.

Dogs will earn points for waiting at each gate or doorway when we ask them to. The dog with the most points at the end of the contest will win a fabulous (yet undetermined) prize. In case of a tie, those dogs will be entered in a drawing for the top prize.

Here's how it works:

1. You approach a doorway with your dog.
2. You ask the dog to wait. (Either say "curb" or "wait." Requiring a "sit" is optional.)
3. You go through the doorway.
4. You say your dog's name and then say "OK."

Reinforcing these rules at home will help your dog be safe and successful while at daycare or any other place. In the coming months we'll also be working on basic commands such as "Sit" and "Stay," "Leave It," coming when called, and not snapping or grabbing treats.

The Wait At The Door contest will start January 16 and will run for four weeks.