by Nancy E. Hassel, LIPetPlace.com

Now that spring is here and many of us humans are planning summer vacations, but what about our dogs?  Are you the type of person who hates to leave your dog behind and wish you could take him with you for a getaway?  These days many dog owners don’t want to leave their beloved four legged family member behind, and luckily now you don’t have to.  Thanks to a locally run business, Canine Camp Getaway, they offer a five day fun and activity filled vacation for you and your dog.  Recently I spoke with Janice Costa the Owner and Founder of Canine Camp Getaway to find out more about the doggie vacations:

Q.  What made you decide to launch a dog vacation business?

Janice: “I have two large dogs who love to go places. Whenever I pulled out my suitcases for a business trip, they would drop their toys and bones inside, or even try to lie down in it (as if I might somehow not notice a 100-pound dog lying in the center of my suitcase trying to stow away!). They do NOT like being left behind. And honestly, I don’t like being without them, either! I work long hours, and spending time with them is one of my greatest pleasures, so it seems wrong somehow that when I get a week off to do what I love, they wouldn’t get to be a part of that.

Unfortunately, so many places aren’t dog friendly, and even the ones that claim to be dog friendly often don’t take large dogs, or don’t have anything for you to do with your dog when you get there. And why drag my dog’s hours away from home if they’re just going to be stuck in the hotel room with nothing to do?

My one dog loves swimming pools, and the other loves all dog sports…and I thought, wouldn’t it be great if there was a vacation where I could relax and have fun, and my dogs could also do their favorite things, like swimming, lure coursing, agility, etc.? I also loved the idea of having a vacation where I could meet other like minded dog people. And I was pretty sure I wasn’t the only one who felt this way — I know so many dog lovers who also view their dogs as an important part of their family, and can’t imagine leaving them behind to go on vacation.

So I thought about the things I love to do and the things my dogs love to do and created a vacation that we all could enjoy together. Canine Camp Getaway of NY is as much their vision as mine, and I’m delighted that so many other dogs and dog lovers enjoy it as much as we do!”

Q. What, exactly, does one do on a ‘dog vacation?’

Dogs swimming at Camp pool

Janice: “Our guests tell us that Canine Camp Getaway of NY is like a ‘Club Med for dogs,’ with a wide variety of activities and classes (since different dogs like different things). We have a dog-friendly swimming pool, which our Labs and Goldens seem especially fond of, and then we offer dog sport classes, including agility, Frisbee, flyball, hiking, canine freestyle dancing, lure coursing, scent detection, doggie skateboarding, rally obedience and more. I’m also a big believer in education, so we incorporate many educational activities as well, such as Canine CPR, Therapy Dog and Canine Good Citizen preparation and testing, seminars by veterinarians and dog nutrition experts, etc. For our human guests, we have horseback riding, zumba classes, karaoke, Vendor Day, country line dancing, nightly Yappy Hour in the dog-friendly bar, and even an on-site spa! Best of all, dogs are welcome everywhere — even in the dog-friendly section of the dining room or the lounge at night, so you really can “hang out with your dog” without sacrificing a fun vacation!”

Lure Coursing

Q.  So, why or what does a dog need vacation from anyway?

Janice: “Everyone jokes about how great it is to be a dog. Someone else pays for the kibble, no mortgage payments to worry about, and you can sleep all day, right? But dogs get stressed out just like people do. Dogs pick up on our moods, and when we’re stressed, they feel it, too. Dogs are also natural wanderers, so being inside a house all day long (and without thumbs to be able to control the TV remote!) can sometimes leave your pup bored, lonely or just lacking in stimulation. It’s a proven fact that dogs live longer, healthier lives when they have mental and physical stimulation (and this also leads to happier, better behaved and more relaxed dogs!). And, of course, everyone is so busy that half the time, even beloved dogs have to share their human’s attention with a job, family obligations, household chores, TV, computer time and everything else.

But a vacation…well, that opens a dog’s life up to new sights, new scents, new experiences, physical and intellectual stimulation and a chance to spend ‘fun vacation’ time with THEIR best friend…you! Just as you crave a chance to totally relax, have fun and leave life’s stresses behind, so, too, do dogs love to be the center of their owner’s universe for a week, rather than competing with ‘real life’ — jobs, bills, chores and all those other responsibilities. And a vacation with your dog is a chance for you to both do things you might not otherwise do — explore nature, meet new people and dogs, try new activities and just rediscover why the human-canine bond is so very powerful! Plus, it’s just plain fun!”

Q. Where is your vacation held?

Janice: “We hold our Getaway at the Roaring Brook Ranch in Lake George, NY. We love the location because of the stunning mountain views, scenic hiking trails and proximity to the lake. Plus, the hotel has nearly 300-acres, so there’s plenty of space for the dogs to explore! The town itself is just a few minutes away, with great outlet shopping, boating, fishing and plenty of dog-friendly shops perfect for browsing with our canine BFF.”

Q.  Is this vacation primarily for couples, or do people come by themselves?

Janice: “Both, actually! We generally get about one third couples and two thirds singles, with many people attending who don’t know anyone at all when they get there. But dog lovers are such a friendly group, and the dogs tend to make friends pretty quickly as well, so even if you attend alone, you and your dog are likely to have plenty of new friends before you leave!”

Q. Do dogs need special training to attend Canine Camp Getway?

Janice: “We have dogs of all sizes, ages and breeds. Generally, we get roughly half large dogs and half small dogs, and a good mix of pure breeds and mixed breeds ranging in age from four-month-old puppies to senior dogs. We don’t require obedience training to attend, but dogs must be good with both people and other dogs, due to the social nature of the vacation experience.”

Q.  What if someone attending has never done any of the dog activities offered? Is that a problem?

Janice: “We have a full staff of talented and highly experienced instructors, so whether their dog is new to dog sports or a seasoned pro, they can still participate in the activities. In fact, many times our human guests are surprised to find that their dogs have many hidden talents! What’s also nice is that there are so many different activities, you can try a little bit of everything and see what your dog likes best.”

So if this sounds like the type of vacation you and your dog are drooling over, for more information or an application, check out the Canine Camp Getaway website. Or you can email Janice directly at Janice@caninecampgetaway.com or call at 877-592-2674. And for updates check out their Facebook page too.

by Nancy E. Hassel, LIPetPlace.com

I have written about this before, people on Long Island assuming that you can only get a Pit Bull or Pit Bull mix at local shelters, and oh how that is NOT the case.  I can’t tell you how many times I have heard this from a misinformed person, “There are only pit bulls or pit mixes at the shelters,” and for whatever bizarre reason the person saying it always lowers their voice when saying this. Now don’t get me wrong as an owner of my own rescue Pit Bull Max, and proud one at that – I would encourage potential adopters to give a pit or pit mix a chance first – because you will be amazed at what fun loving, super smart, goofy, super loyal and fabulous dogs they truly are.  Anyone who owns a Pit Bull, (American Pit Bull Terrier/American Staffordshire Terrier), or Pit mix will surely agree with me.  But I do understand people have other breeds as their favorites or are looking for something different – I totally get it.  So why skip over your local municipal shelters because of something you heard or assume about the dogs there (and yes cats too!)?

Recently, Last Hope Inc. Animal Rescue and Rehabilitation posted pictures on their Facebook page of 3 different purebred Weimaraners ALL pulled from local Town Municipal Shelters.  They called it, and how adorably so, ‘Weim Whitman Sampler of Shelter Rescues:’ Last Hope’s puppy ‘Maggie’ comes from Hempstead Shelter, ‘Mac’ (formerly ‘Casper’) is from Babylon Shelter; ‘Mandy’ hails from Brookhaven Shelter.

Photo Credit: Last Hope

The thing is – this is not an uncommon occurrence at our local shelters.  I stopped by the Town of Islip shelter last Saturday and asked the Shelter Supervisor Joanne Daly if they had any Dobermans, she said, “not now, but we did just have a female recently that a Dobie rescue group came and pulled.” And if you check out Shelter Link’s page the Town of Islip’s all volunteer group, you are bound to see a purebred or adorable mixed breed that is waiting for his or her forever home.

Little Shelter in Northport, has a beautiful male Doberman there waiting for a home and many other breeds too like: a Mini Pin; Maltese; Chow Mix; Husky Mix; a Shepherd Mix and more.

The North Fork Animal Welfare League has a Rottweiler, Husky, Jack Russell, Beagle, Daschund and many more.

I can almost guarantee that every pet rescue group on Long Island that takes in all breeds and mixed breeds have a purebred dog or mixed bred that you will want.  And if you have your heart on a specific breed there are many breed rescue groups to choose from too.  So please don’t be dismayed by what you heard someone else say – and assume that is exactly how it is at your local animal shelter. Go to the shelters yourself and go often because the sad truth is that dogs come into the shelters daily.

Click here for a list of many of the shelters and breed rescue groups here on Long Island.

And if you want to learn more on dog ownership and training the next Free class is held on April 11 – you must RSVP for the class – find out all details here.

Fluffy: Photo Credit: Shelter Link

by Nancy E. Hassel, LIPetPlace.com

Just the other day our friends at Newsday did a nice article about the most popular breed of dog on Long Island, according to the American Kennel Club (AKC).  But I think the article was not quite accurate.  Many people who have dogs, who are AKC registry worthy, meaning they were from an official AKC dog breeder and they have ‘papers’ for the dog – doesn’t mean they actually registered their dog with the AKC.  For example, I had a beautiful Doberman who was from a fantastic Long Island Doberman breeder and I had her AKC papers (which I still have) but I never registered her because I had her spayed and never bred her.  I am sure that is the case with many pure bred dog owners here on LI.

There are also a lot of dogs adopted through rescue groups that may or may not be a pure breed dog – that are also not registered through the AKC – so they were also not accounted for in the article either.  Newsday listed, according to the AKC most registered dog breeds, the top 10 on Long Island:

1. Labrador Retriever; 2. Golden Retriever; 3. German Shepherd; 4. Bulldog; 5. Rottweiler; 6. Poodle; 7. Boxer; 8. Yorkie; 9. Shih Tzu; and the 10. Cavalier King Charles Spaniel

And while I suspect there are a ton of Labrador Retrievers,  Goldens and Bulldogs on LI – what about other really popular dog breeds like the American Pit Bull Terrier, (or for you dog fancy people, The American Staffordshire Terrier), I am pretty sure there are a lot of lucky pit bulls owned in loving homes, like my own Max on LI.  Other breeds I seem to see everywhere I go are Chihuahua’s, Shelties, Jack Russell Terriers (Parson Russell’s if you will), and Doxie’s – their not on the list either. Hmmm

So if you have a dog that is not registered in with the AKC, is a mixed breed or you have adopted – we want to know about him or her too!  Please take our 1 question survey here and tell us what kind of dog you have!  Let’s see if we can get a more accurate account of the diverse dog breeds on LI.

by Nancy E. Hassel, LIPetPlace.com

A new dog is crowned the best in show for the 136th Annual Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show, the Pekingese GCH Palacegarden Malachy and did you know the Best in Show (BIS) judge is from Long Island?  While I was cheering for Fifi the Doberman to win, (for obvious reasons) she didn’t grab the BIS title.  The Westminster Dog Show is the Superbowl of dog shows and with 2,000 dogs competing this year at Madison Square Garden, I would not want to have to pick the winner!  People come from all over the country and the world to compete or just to attend as a spectator.

After being at Westminster all day on Valentine’s day, I was reading the guide and record and it occurred to me, the 136 Annual dog show.  That’s 136 years this show has been happening, and started back in 1876, really quite remarkable.  Another piece of interesting history, for all you history buffs out there – did you know that the Westminster Kennel Club Annual Dog Show is one of only 3 tenants to have been in every one of the four different incarnations of Madison Square Garden – and Westminster started prior to the first MSG location.  MSG was originally it was called Gillmore’s Gardens and was located at 26th and Madison Avenue.  The current location of MSG is the fourth place MSG has been located.  Who knew?

The Clumber Spaniel was one of the first breeds in the early days of Westminster

As more and more dog breeds are accepted in the the American Kennel Club and now being shown at Westminster – there is a much broader scope of fans, onlookers and attendees at the show.  The show seemed a little more crowded to me this year than last and this year 6 new breeds were competing: the Cesky Terrier; Entlebucher Mountain Dog; Finnish Lapphund; Norwegian Lundehund (a dog with 6 toes on each foot); and probably the most unique looking dog the Xoloitzcuintli the national dog of Mexico – commonly called the ‘show-low’ for short.  The hairless breed was originally called the Mexican Hairless – who knows why the name was changed, but really a cool looking dog.  I do however prefer dogs with fur! And even only last year the Cane Corso, once considered a rare breed was let into Westminster and I think there were 20 dogs competing today.

Cane Corso

Dog shows in my opinion have evolved in the way of the crowd – it’s not the average dog show person that you see at the event – but every day dog owners and dog lovers.  It’s such fun way to see so many breeds in one spot and have such an enthusiastic crowd at Westminster.  You can ask the handlers questions about the dogs, get ideas if a certain dog is for you, etc. Even Pet Celebrities like Victoria Stillwell was there meeting dogs and speaking with people.

Victoria Stillwell of Animal Planet's It's Me or the Dog

And if for some reason you can’t hop on the LIRR to head into the show next year, you can join in on their social media craze.  Social Media for Westminster has taken off like wild fire in the past two years.  The Facebook Page for Westminster has over 96 thousand fans and during the two days of the show fans watching the show were tweeting with the #WKC hashtag.  Last year the day after the BIS win – their website had 10.2 million page views – amazing!

As cool as that all is – we all just want to route for our favorite breed or local owner who has a dog in the show, like Lynn the only female Harlequin Great Dane that was in the Great Dane Ring today, Lynn is from Patchogue.  There are many stories like that and many dogs from Long Island who competed the last two days at Westminster.  Do you have a dog that competed from Long Island? (more pictures below)

Sleepy girl!

English Mastiff takes a rest right in the middle of the floor!

By Nancy E. Hassel, LIPetPlace.com

The much anticipated Pre-Westminster Fashion show was a huge hit Friday, February 10, 2012 at the Pennsylvania Hotel in New York City.  Hundreds of pet celebrities, pet lovers  and lots of paws flocked from all over NYC, surrounding boroughs, New Jersey, Connecticut, Long Island, and even from Canada to celebrate the love of dogs.  This is my 3rd time in attendance – and I thought last year was it was crowded with excited dog owners, dogs dressed up and many vendors – but I think this year even more spectacular!  The theme this year was a Venetian Masquerade Pet Fashion Theme by Ada Nieves and there was almost as many dogs wearing masks as people were!

While the fashion show and festivities at Pre-Westminster is a big part of the event – the event is a fundraiser and every year it is for a different animal not-for-profit organization.  This year’s event a portion of the proceeds went to the Animal Care & Control of NYC (AC&C).  The AC&C has shelter facilities in Manhattan, Brooklyn, Staten Island, and pet receiving centers in Queens and The Bronx.  AC&C is the largest pet welfare organization in the Northeast, caring for nearly 40,000 rescued animals each year.  They have been a non-profit organization since 1995 and is contracted with NYC to manage the City’s municipal shelter system.   Here is Collen a six month old shepherd mix who was totally hamming it up with one of their many volunteers:

This furtastic event is now a well oiled machine and much of that is due to Gregg R. Oehler and his team who coordinate the show.  Gregg R. Oehler is the Chairman of the event and the Publisher of Cesar’s Way Magazine – which is one of the 3 Best in Show sponsors along with Natural Balance Pet Food, Inc. and Petzlife.  The Pre-Westminster Fashion Show is such a great way to kick of the 136th Annual Westminster Kennel Club dog show, and know that you’re helping the animals in the shelter while doing so.  In addition to the many pet vendors at the event, there was also food and drinks, many treats for the pups and let’s just say you need a good amount of muscles to carry out the gift bag they give to all attendees!  My dog Max had his head in the bag checking out all the stuff as soon as I got home.  So mark your calendars for next year, and make a point to get to this show!  You will not be disappointed!
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