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This
May will mark the second year that Pawsitive
Works has sponsored the ever popular
community "Mutt Strut," a 5k dog run. On May
26 at
9
a.m.
dogs and humans will take off from the
fairgrounds to run or walk along the scenic
Kootenai
River.
The
course turn around point will have water for
dogs and humans as well as at the finish
line.
After the run, make sure to stick around for
some fun doggie contests.
You
can dress your dog for the ‘best dressed’
category, perform one ‘best trick,' or if
you look like your dog then ‘dog that looks
most like his human’ is the category for
you.
There
will be fun prizes and raffles.
Registration forms can be found at the
Groove Studio or at
www.pawsitiveworks.com.
Registration starts at 8 a.m.
and the run starts at 9 a.m.
Cost is $10 dog/human team and $20 for a
family.
All proceeds go to support Pawsitive
Works, a 501c3 non-profit organization.
What
is Pawsitive Works?
When
we tell people that we pair at risk youth
with shelter dogs in a program that “Shapes
Both Ends of the Leash” – people nod and
smile – but they don’t really “get it!”
We
often compare the program to prison inmates
training dogs and people begin to get the
idea of what we do.
Youth
are referred to the program from juvenile
justice agencies, private and public
schools.
Most have problem behaviors and
benefit from learning valuable life lessons.
Youth
are assigned a dog from a community shelter
to train three times a week for five weeks.
We try to match “like” with “like.” For
example, shy dogs with shy youth. The youth
work to overcome shyness by encouraging the
dog to come out of its shell, in the process
of providing the shelter dogs much needed
enrichment and better behavior.
Youth
are every community’s future. Helping them
to learn empathy, increase self-esteem and
understand behavior modification are keys to
helping them become productive members of
society.
Many
shelters lack the staff and/or funding to
provide training or enrichment programs for
their dogs. The training, love and attention
that the dogs in the program receive are
beneficial to the mental health of the dog.
Pawsitive Works helps these overlooked and
hard to adopt dogs become more adoptable.
Each
five week program session culminates with a
graduation ceremony where the youth can hand
over their training dogs to the new adoptive
families. There is typically never a dry eye
in the room.
Pawsitive Works is operating in Sandpoint
and
Coeur
d’Alene
as well as
Spokane.
In September, 2012, the program will
be starting in
Boise.
Pawsitive Works has a heartfelt
desire to serve the youth and canines of
Boundary
County.
To
find out more about the program visit
www.pawsitiveworks.com.
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