Walking with RespectaBulls

About a month ago when Emily from Our Waldo Bungie visited Portland, I was so excited to also meet up with Sarah from Married with Dawgs.  During a very long lunch, we talked about all things dog including the Portland Pit Bull Parade which Athena, B, and I have attended twice (see here and here). Sarah told me about a relatively new dog walking group that she planned to join with her dog Hurley.

The group is called RespectaBulls and it is a no dog greeting group that works much like the dog walking groups that we admire like Chicago SociaBulls, KC Pittie Pack, and HikeABull.  RespectaBulls walks once a month in the Portland and Vancouver areas to provide a positive and supportive environment for handlers to work with their dogs.

Yesterday we joined RepectaBulls for our first walk.  As much as we love the Portland Pit Bull Parade, I felt that RepectaBulls was a much calmer environment (less than 15 dogs per walk) where Athena got to work on no dog greetings and keeping her distance from other dogs.  I think that this type of a setting will be an excellent addition to Athena's overall training.

Aside from the super cute dogs (all of whom were pitties except for one!), the owners in the group were so friendly and welcoming.  I love that many of the owners and dogs are reoccurring walkers from month to month which makes for a very supportive community.

A few of the dogs on the walk are up for adoption through the West Columbia Gorge 'No Kill' Humane Society in Washougal, WA.  Seen below in his fancy purple fleece vest (made by RespectaBulls group leader Amanda) is Barkley.  He's a two year old pittie awaiting his forever home while living in a foster home.  As you can see, he looooovvveeed the puppies!

Also up for adoption through WCGHS are Cutty (left) and Walter (right).  These handsome guys would be an amazing addition to any family!

During the walk, Athena pulled and pulled until we finally figured out that her sweet spot is walking side by side with the other dogs.  She is not fond of walking behind everyone!

We even worked in a little bit of training before the walk began.  Though, Athena made sure that she always had her eyes on her doggy friends so as not to miss out on any of the fun!

We really enjoyed walking with RespectaBulls and think that Athena enjoyed it too.  Hopefully these walks in addition to walks with the Portland Pit Bull Parade will become a part of our monthly routine!

We Joined a Dog Walking Group!

A couple of weeks ago we posted about our thoughts on joining a dog walking group.  We received some great feedback from Two Pitties in the City, Our Waldo Bungie, and Married with Dawgs about their experiences with dog walking social groups and the many great things that can come from joining one.

We decided that we would try out a dog walking group as a way to add to Athena's socialization and to work on some of her behaviors that we would like to curb (leash reactivity, crazy play when meeting new dogs, fear of new experiences, etc.).  So, yesterday we met up with the Portland Pit Bull Parade at Westmoreland Park in SE Portland for a walk and a picnic.

Upon entering the group we were greeted by the group's founders who welcomed us and shared some information about the group's history.  The parade began shortly after we arrived and B and I stayed towards the back with Athena so as not to overwhelm her with this very new experience.  This was the first time that we had ever been in one place with so many dogs around us, so we expected that Athena would display some unwanted behaviors.

It was clear throughout the entire walk that Athena was very anxious because she pulled on the leash SO HARD!  We haven't had too many issues when walking on leash since fitting her with the Gentle Leader head collar.  But, this apparatus apparently doesn't work as well when surrounded by a large pack of dogs!  B and I now sympathize with those who deal with leash pullers on a daily basis.  Wow is that a workout!

I stick my tongue out to having to walk politely!

The little puller in action

Leash pulling aside, we managed to meet so many great people in the parade.  Most of them were also attending the parade for the first time.  We enjoyed hearing their stories of how they adopted their dogs and how their dogs share similar traits and behaviors to Athena.  It felt so nice to be in a community of pit bull lovers who understand the prejudice towards the breed and are working to bring awareness to the good nature of the dogs.

Following the walk was a Bully Walkers appreciation picnic.  During this time we met even more amazing pit bull owners and their dogs.  Athena got to meet quite a few dogs (most everyone enforced the "no face-to-face" greeting rule) and she didn't show any aggression towards any of them (we had her wear a "dog reactive" red bandana during the parade just in case).

As we have mentioned before, when Athena meets a new dog she thinks it's play time.  So, every dog that she met (or even got close to) during the parade she wanted to initiate play with them.  Everyone laughed and reminisced about their dog's puppy years and their desire to always play.  These interactions were what had me thinking about Our Waldo Bungie's comment on our original post about dog walking groups:  "My favorite thing about being a part of a dog walking group is that you are able to work on your dogs' less-than-stellar behaviors in a safe environment, where you won't be judged by your fellow walkers."  We weren't judged for Athena's desire to play with every dog that she met, nor were we judged as owners for not yet having a handle on this behavior.  Even during the embarrassing moment when Athena started play mode and her leash slipped out of B's hand leaving her running around in circles around a group of a couple dogs and their owners, we were not judged.  Instead, someone quickly grabbed Athena's leash and everyone laughed off the incident.

Getting a bit of training in with distractions

B and I were very impressed with the Portland Pit Bull Parade and we plan to continue attending the monthly parades as a way to show our pride for the breed and to continue on Athena's journey towards becoming an outstanding ambassador for the breed.

Thoughts on Joining a Dog Walking Group

Lately we have been thinking about the pros and cons to joining a dog walking group.  We know that we want to be a part of a group at some point in the future, but we're just not sure when it would be the right time for Athena.

We've never been a part of a dog walking group before, nor have we seen one in action, so we are a bit apprehensive about bringing Athena to a meeting and having it be a total disaster!  B and I have multiple reasons for why we would like to be a part of a dog walking group.  For one, we want Athena to have the opportunity to socialize with other dogs.  We have also heard that it can be a great way for pooches to build their confidence, especially if they lack confidence in being around other dogs (which Athena definitely does).  The bloggers over at Two Pitties in the City shared a post with us about managing a leash reactive dog in the city-- one of the suggestions happened to be joining a dog walking group as a way to work on leash reactivity!

Leash reactivity is actually one of our concerns for joining a dog walking group at this time.  Athena REALLY wants to meet every dog that she passes.  She has had successful meetings with other dogs where it has been very uneventful.  However, she has also had some dog meetings that made her EXTREMELY excited where she jumps up and whines and wants to play with the other dog so badly.  When we see other dogs while out on a walk, Athena will pull so hard on the leash to get to the dog as quickly as possible.  We don't reward this pulling behavior and so we turn in the opposite direction.

Emily from Our Waldo Bungie helped to found the KC Pittie Pack in Kansas City, MO.  She writes about how "the best way to socialize your dog is to be social with your dog" and discusses how a dog walking group provides dogs and their owners an opportunity to practice their social skills.  B and I don't think that Athena had much socialization in her first year of life before we adopted her.  We are now trying to slowly provide her with positive socialization with other dogs-- but, it's hard to find other dogs and owners that we trust to practice with!  Maybe a dog walking group is a good way to start?

We want to give Athena the opportunity to have successful meetings with other dogs so that we can approach another dog calmly.  I just don't want Athena to be the only dog in a dog walking group that can't handle herself and interrupts all of the good behavior from the other dogs!  Another great blogger from Notes From A Dog Walker wrote a similar post to this one about dog walking social groups and how they can provide great socialization for dogs outside of the dreaded dog park.  I'm starting to think that we need to get in a dog walking social group ASAP!

Whether or not we are ready to join a dog walking group right away, we know that in the future we would like to join the Portland Pit Bull Parade.  This local dog walking group meets once a month in different locations around the city to show off the good nature of bully type breeds.  The next walk is being held on September 9th....so, 14 days from now.

B and I are also interested in attending Strut Your Mutt with the shelter that we adopted Athena from.  This dog walking event is being held on September 29th...24 days from now.  I think that this might be wishful thinking.  This event will most likely be HUGE and way too overstimulating for Athena.  But, it's definitely a goal that we would like to strive to achieve in the coming years!

Some great bully breed walking groups that we have read about include:

Chicago, IL- Chicago Sociabulls
Kansas City, MO- KC Pittie Pack and Friends
NYC, NY- Big Apple Pittie Pack
South Bay area, CA- HikeABull
Cleveland, OH- Pit Bull Zen
Phoenix, AZ- ExploraBull
Seattle, WA- WalkaBulls
Hoboken, NJ- Positive Pittie Pack
Washington DC- Pittie Trails
Toledo, OH- Lucas County Pit Crew

We would love your advice and knowledge about joining a dog walking group!  When did you know that your pooch was ready to join a dog walking group?

-A & B

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