Professional dog walking has never looked easy to me. For a more in-depth look at the life, visit this article about Toronto, Canada’s dog walkers:

A walker is responsible for controlling the dogs and grouping dogs is a skill, developed once you walk them and learn their temperament, says Wisenberg.

Even so, some dogs don’t make the grade and aggression will get them banished from groups and into “specialized services” – private walks at $25 for half an hour.

It takes a special personality to walk dogs, says Dianne Eibner, who has been walking dogs in Toronto for two decades.

“You need to be calm, confident, have lots of energy and the commitment to stick with it through rain and sleet and ice,” she says.

[Via : For dog walkers, the walk in the park is hard work - thestar.com.]

International Association of Canine Professionals.

Eibner founded a professional association, now the International Association of Canine Professionals:

An organization established to maintain the highest standards of professional and business practice among canine professionals.

The site has quite a bit of information, including guidelines for owners thinking of hiring a dog-walker.

In Alaska March is the month of the Iditarod race:

From Anchorage, in south central Alaska, to Nome on the western Bering Sea coast, each team of 12 to 16 dogs and their musher cover over 1150 miles in 10 to 17 days.

The race commemorates an event in 1925 that used relays of dog teams to bring urgently needed medicine from Anchorage to Nome.

As Kate Kelly explains in her article The Iditarod: Its Symbolism for All Americans:

In 127 hours (six days), twenty mushers had covered almost 700 miles in temperatures that hovered around 40 degrees below zero and winds strong enough to blow over dogs and sleds. The serum was delivered to Nome in time to slow the epidemic.

The look of sheer determination - Iditarod 2010

Now each dog team runs not a dozen or so miles to the next village, but the full 1100 miles from Anchorage to Nome.

Kelly writes more about the amazing dogs who run this massive race:

The native people of Alaska, primarily the Malemuit people who lived along the Seward Peninsula developed a particularly hardy breed of dog, now known as the Malamute. The average weight of the dogs is about 75 pounds, but they can pull the same weight as much larger horses. When running, the dogs can average speeds of 8-12 miles per hour for hundreds of miles and they can exceed twenty miles an hour for short sprints.

The spirit of the dogs, the athleticism of their build, and their racing prowess are unique and very impressive.

[Via : Kate Kelly: The Iditarod: Its Symbolism for All Americans.]

It’s a major national event that takes a couple of weeks, but the Sled Dog Action Coalition have concerns about the dogs who participate:

The Iditarod is described by the Iditarod Trail Committee and by the Alaskan media as an exciting contest of man against nature. What the descriptions do not tell us is the untold suffering of the dogs that often give their lives in this race. Dog deaths and injuries are common in the Iditarod, and when they are not racing, the dogs live under inhumane conditions.

[Via : Sled Dog Action Coalition: Iditarod Information.]

The list of Frequently asked questions makes very sobering reading, including how many dogs are killed or injured each year, notes about the race rules not requiring injured dogs to be removed from the race, and questions about how the dogs are trained.

Photo by Alaskan Dude: The look of sheer determination – Iditarod 2010.

Have you seen this race first-hand? Have you participated in it? What are your thoughts about the Iditarod as it’s run today?

Timaru is a small New Zealand coastal town, with a population of about 27,000. There are about 9,000 dogs registered in the district.

Dog Walk at Caroline Bay. Photo by Oisín Duke.

But the Council aren’t keen on giving residents the dog park they want:

Dog parks are unlikely to be established in the Timaru district because of the cost and the likelihood that they would be under-used.

… Submitters to the latest Long Term Council Community Plan asked for dog parks to be set up, similar to those in Christchurch and Dunedin .

… The cost of fencing parks, which would need to be at least 3000 square metres, was expected to be between $12,000 and $18,000. There would be additional costs associated with signs and bins and bin cleaning.

[Via : City dog parks 'too expensive' | Stuff.co.nz.]

Meanwhile, some are unhappy about dogs being allowed on Caroline Bay:

A Timaru dog owner [Roger Thompson] has spoken out against a Timaru District councillor’s proposal to let some dogs back on Caroline Bay.

… Mr Bradley would like to give permission to dog owners who pass the council’s selected owner policy to take their dogs on a leash around certain parts of the Bay, including the beach.

Current legislation allows dogs on the tidal area of Caroline Bay only between April 1 and September 30.

Mr Thompson said … “I’ve been down there and there have been up to five dogs tearing around the green area.”

[Via : Dog access plan 'impossible to police' | Stuff.co.nz.]

There have been many discussions about the benefits of exercise to dogs or to the dog’s owner, but how about the benefit to society at large? Nick Barnett explains:

Dogs and walker at the beach.

So there are positive public goods that emerge from dog ownership – when it’s responsible. …

when dogs improve people’s health, enhance their opportunities for socialising, build responsible habits, and make the streets and parks busier and friendlier, then there are benefits leaking through our whole society.

[Via : Do dogs improve the neighbourhood? | Stuff.co.nz.]

Dog parks, if well-used by dog owners, can actually be safer places than other park may be. After all, a popular place is likely safer than an isolated spot.

What do you think? Do you feel any safer (with or without your dog) in a popular park?

In Rotorua, New Zealand, locals have created a statue in remembrance of a stray dog, Harawene (photo):

Harawene, a little foxie cross, spent more than a decade living next to [Rotorua's] busiest highway.

She died last year and locals raised thousands of dollars for a proper memorial.

[Via : Rotorua stray dog immortalised in statue | NATIONAL News.]

As a familiar figure in the area Harawene had become well-loved:

Detractors have said she was “just a dog” but the compassion that emerged from the community was inspiring, for 15 years complete strangers cared for her, fed her and created a place out of the rain for her for only her benefit.  That and her endearing personality, clearly a free spirit has meant that even today you will see both individuals and whanau paying their respects to the place she once called home.

…For 15 years Rotorua dog Harawene has lived on the side of Te Ngae Rd, … near the intersection of Robinson Ave, … running away from anyone who has tried to get close.

[Via : Harawene Tribute erected | TangataWhenua.com.]

It’s good to know that statue will be there to continue to bring a smile to travellers.

Wellington, New Zealand isn’t very friendly towards dogs. There are no dedicated, fully-fenced doggy playgrounds, and dogs aren’t allowed in the central city.

In December 2009 changes to the policy have eased things slightly:

Art exhibition beside Waitangi Park in 2006.

Wellington City Councillors approved changes to the Dog Policy at today’s Council meeting. The four new off-leash exercise areas are Chelmswood Reserve in Ngaio, Vice Regal North and Alexandra Road West on the Town Belt in Newtown and Worser Bay beach (before 9am and after 7pm in summer and at all times in winter).

The extensions to the current dog exercise areas include Trelissick Park, Dorrie Leslie Park and Meekswood Reserve. … At Waitangi Park, dog owners can take their dogs on-leash around the outside, but dogs will be prohibited from the open grass area.

… dog owners can now walk their dogs on a leash through the CBD to the waterfront and other parts of the city, but they are not allowed to stop with their dog in the CBD.

[Via : Wellington.scoop.co.nz » You're now allowed to walk your dog in the CBD, but you're not allowed to stop.]

The Wellington City Council dog pages don’t seem to have been updated yet with the new details.

There’s a new dog park in Aiken, South Carolina, USA, thanks to the City and the SPCA both putting in funds, together with a donation from a local family:

Aiken dog park.

It is located at 199 Willow Run Road, behind the Willow Run Industrial Park.

Both big and small dogs are welcome at the pet playground. The facility will have a specific area for large dogs and a place for smaller dogs. It will also include a common area where any dog can roam free.

Officials with the park said it will also include a square, 30-foot by 30-foot splash pool. The pool will be 10 inches deep and will resemble a ground-level swimming pool.

[Via : Dog park prepares for next week's opening | Aiken Standard | Aiken, SC.]

The 2 acre park opens 12 December 2009.

The Aiken SPCA are calling for volunteer dog park rangers:

The Aiken SPCA Dog Park should be opening by the end of the summer and we are looking to line up volunteers interested in becoming a part of this new venture.  Rangers will monitor the park for vandalism and operating problems from sun-up to sun-down and are welcome to bring their personal pets to the park while volunteering.

In Calgary, Alberta, Canada, the local council wants dog owners to more directly fund off-leash dog parks, with extra fees:

Bowmont Offleash Park. Photo by Randy Peters.

Calgarians may have to pay a fee to use the city’s off-leash parks.

The suggestion has been put forward to a city committee as a way of dealing with the costs of adding more off-leash areas and improving safety. …

The city plans to create 15 new off-leash dog areas by 2011.

The city also needs more money to help maintain the existing off-leash parks. Some of those maintenance funds would go towards fence building, adding more waste bins or adding washrooms.

[Via : CTV Calgary- Calgarians may face fees to use off-leash parks - CTV News, Shows and Sports -- Canadian Television.]

Calgary dog information

Read more information about dogs in Calgary, including off-leash areas and surveys of dog owners.

Going through the airport in Atlanta, Georgia, USA? Now your dog has a place to rest and relax while you wait to travel:

On November 18th [2009], Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson airport opened it’s new off-leash dog park in time for the holiday season.

Hartsfield-Jackson airport accommodates thousands of canine customers every year and the new facility will cater for 2 dogs at a time. The fully fenced 1,000-square-foot dog park is part of the Ground Transportation center on the west end of the passenger terminal, and features flowers, grass, rocks, benches and “two original pieces of art to sniff and enjoy”. Biodegradable bags for pet waste are available at the dog park to help meet the needs of this growing group of passengers.

[Via : Atlanta Airport Opens Dog Park Facility | Pet and Animal News | PetPeoplesPlace.com.]

Are you looking at me? Photo by Foto Jenny.

To accommodate passengers’ pets and guide dogs, Hartsfield-Jackson has a Poochie Park located on the lower level of Terminal North outside door LN2 to the right of the building. Owners can take animals to this grassy area and allow pets to relieve themselves. Owners are expected to clean up after their animals if possible with scoopers provided on site. Pet owners whose animals experience an accident elsewhere around the terminal may use the Poochie Park scoopers and receptacles for clean-up.

There are also two other areas where pets may relieve themselves in the grassy knoll located in the Ground Transportation area on Terminal South outside of doors W1 and W2. Currently, Hartsfield-Jackson does not have pet facilities inside the secured areas. We recommend owners take advantage of the above locations if possible.

[Via : HJAIA - Pet Assistance.]

In the UK there have been some concerns about ‘cowboy dog walkers’. The response from some local Councils has been to create a Code of Conduct for dog walkers. In Brighton and Hove:

Dogs and walkers in Wellington, New Zealand.

By signing the code of conduct, dog walkers agree to clean up after their animals and keep them under proper control.

They must minimise the impact that exercising multiple dogs has on other park users and have insurance.

They also agree to transport dogs in vehicles with proper ventilation so as not to cause them distress, especially during hot weather, and to provide water as necessary.

[Via : BBC NEWS | UK | England | Sussex | Dog walkers get code of conduct.]

The Code of Conduct is voluntary, and involves inspecting vehicles, having insurance and agreeing to the terms:

Under the scheme dog walkers volunteer to undergo an inspection of any vehicles used for transporting animals, provide insurance information and sign up to a dog walker’s Code of Conduct. Companies that have signed up to the code of conduct and passed the inspection will be listed on the council’s website.

[Via : code of conduct for dog walkers - Brighton & Hove City Council.]

Where to walk your dog in Brighton and Hove

There’s an official Google Map with information about dog control areas, and any conditions.