Roy
“I’ve been to parks and beaches, behaved like a champ and enjoyed every moment of those experiences.”
A puppy at heart, even if he’s a senior boy. This 8-year-old, 15 lb. Jack Russell Mix has one of the purest and most loving souls you will ever encounter. He loves exploring, sleeping, restaurants, car rides and shopping for toys. Roy’s innocence teaches you to cherish the small things in life; perfect with other calm dogs and older responsible teens; Available to adopt or foster; Paws4You.org.
Proper Play
Dogs have gotten lots of love and attention these past few weeks, but what they haven’t done is socialize much, making this a good time for a quick refresher on the do’s and don’ts of dog park etiquette. Do make sure your furry family member is up to date on their registration, vaccinations and parasite control. Make sure they are wearing their collar with ID and registration tags attached. Do keep your dog on-leash until you reach the designated off-leash area (no matter how much they beg). It’s good manners and allows you to control their behavior during any new introductions to other dogs, such as bolting over to an unfamiliar animal. Do remove the dog’s leash before they join a group. It’s harder for them to communicate with their body language while on-leash. Also, playing and running around with a leash attached creates tripping, tangling and choking hazards. Do stick to the size-appropriate areas. Even the gentlest big dog can accidentally injure a smaller pal during play. A smaller dog that feels threatened or overwhelmed can easily lash out. Do be realistic when it comes to personality. Even an angel at home can be a terror in the park. A good way to tell if they’re trained and socialized enough for this outing is to ask yourself, do they always come when they’re called? That means not just at home, but also in noisy and distracting environments. You need to be confident you could call your furkid back from a game that gets out of hand or turns into a confrontation. Also, don’t bring them if they’re overexcited until they’ve had some exercise and burnt off that extra energy. And never take their favorite toy with them to the park (again, no matter how much they beg!). It could be taken away or damaged by another pet. If they’d be sad to lose it, leave it at home. This also minimizes the chance they’ll get territorial over an object. Lastly, don’t get distracted. This is the golden rule. They’re your responsibility, so pay attention at all times. You came here for your dog, not to catch up with emails, chat on the phone, or socialize with your neighbors to the exclusion of keeping an eye on your pet.
