Dogs and Babies Blog Has Moved

This is just a quick note to let everyone know that the Dogs and Babies blog has moved. The blog contains excellent articles by dog behavior consultant and dog/child relationship expert Madeline Gabriel. If you have children and dogs or are expecting a new baby with a dog in the home, we recommend that you check out the information in this blog. Here is the link to the new location: http://www.dogsandbabieslearning.com/blog/

 Here are some recent posts:

should dogs lick babies

life with baby just another day at the office

your dog is not your baby ... and thats ok

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Doggone Safe Member with Training Success Story on TV

Congratulations to Be a Tree Presenter and dog behavior consultant, Melissa Millett for her role as host and trainer on the cable TV show "Doggy House Calls". Melissa visits the homes of families to help improve the behaviour of wayward pooches. Melissa teaches the owners how to use positive reinforcement-based clicker training to teach the dog the desired behaviours. Here is a link to a show segment in which a frightened  and aggressive dog learns to be less fearful and hence non-aggressive towards other dogs.

Doggy House Calls Episode

The owner explains that it required a consistent effort and that the training and vigilance are ongoing, but the results are well-worth it to have a happy and safe dog. The owner noted that the dog is calmer and safer around kids now as well. This is a terrific side effect of the training and provides a demonstration of the fact that training leads to a safer more well-adjusted dog. We can see from this example that the dog is a much happier and calmer now that she is not frightened by other dogs.

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The Great Doggone Crazy! Give Away

To celebrate our announcement of the International Dog Bite Prevention Challenge for 2012, Doggone Safe will donate 2 cases of 6 Doggone Crazy! board games to the first 10 animal shelters, rescues, humane societies or other non-profit organizations dedicated to animal or child welfare who write on our Facebook wall making this request. Just write that you want Doggone Crazy! games and include a link to your site so that we can see that you are a charity or registered non-profit organization in Canada or the US.

You can sell these to raise funds, donate them to local schools or use them in your own programs.

Click here to visit our Facebook Wall

Click here to purchase the game from the Doggone Safe store if you do not qualify for the give-away. Makes a great Christmas gift!

If you havent heard of the The Doggone Crazy! board game, here is a video to show how it works:

Here are some testimonials about the game:

Doggone Crazy! is the first board game in a long time to keep my kids attention...they played the game so much that I wasnt allowed to touch the game for review until the week-end was over." -Alyice Edrich - Editor-in-Chief - The Dabbling Mum - National Parenting Magazine

Doggone Crazy is a fun game that teaches children how to interpret the body language and expressions of dogs. I gave the game to my grandchildren and they enjoyed it immensely. The oldest taught the dog signals and appropriate responses to her younger brothers and then proceeded to instruct her parents as well. I think that this is a wonderful contribution toward understanding dogs better and keeping kids safer.- Stanley Coren, Author of "The Intelligence of Dogs", "How to Speak Dog" and "How Dogs Think."

Doggone Crazy! is a great game and an important tool for dog bite prevention education. I will support it any way I can  Dr. Clayton MacKay - Veterinarian - Former president of the Ontario Veterinary Medical Association; Former president of the College of Veterinarians of Ontario; Former president of the American Animal Hospital Association

A must-have gift...- Melanie Deveaux - Host of Windsor Now CKLW AM 800

Everyone should go out now and buy Doggone Crazy! for their kids - Keiley Abbat - Host of Canine Companions - CHML AM 900 Radio - Hamilton ON

Its a great game! - Jack Dyson - Retired Vice President - Irwin Toys

The described and/or pictured dog postures, movement patterns and specific situations do an excellent job of teaching the child what to look for, what to avoid, and most importantly how to defuse a possibly dangerous situation. I recommend it highly without reservation.    Dr. Ed Bailey, B.S., M.S., Ph.D., Professor Emeritus, Animal Behavior University of Guelph

My grade 3 class experienced the Doggone Crazy! game first hand. They were absolutely enthused about it. The game taught them responsible behaviour to not only reduce  the chances of their being bitten, but also, it showed them how to enhance the relationship they have with their dog. I hope other children will get the chance to learn about canine safety in an interactive way by playing Doggone Crazy!    Kristina Brcic - Milton ON - Grade 3 teacher

This game should be in every school.  Retired Superindendent of Curriculum - Halton Catholic School Board

The kids are having a lot of fun with it.  Debbie Boycott - Brookville ON - Grade 2 teacher

The game is very educational and my family enjoyed playing it.   Dr. Ross Dawson -Milton ON - Veterinarian

[I] really enjoyed it (so did my niece - who played it a lot!) Dr. Sue Kilborn - Veterinarian - Ottawa ON

It was lots of fun. Christine - Age 9

My grandchildren love this game. They play it all the time. Jackie Rosart - Grandmother - Burlington ON

I think this is a great site and a great game and it is amazing that you made this game. Leanna - Age 12

I played your game and it is so cool. I think that all kids should play it to learn about what their dog is thinking. Ashley and Nicky - age 9 and 11

Since writing this book, I have been referred to many Dog Bite Prevention programs  and I must say with all honesty that I think your site and the idea of a board game to teach kids the importance of dog safety could be one of the most effective programs Ive seen. Karen Delise - Author of Fatal Dog Attacks (www.fataldogattacks.com)

I want it for Christmas. Cam - Age 8

Doggone Crazy! is an excellent game and a significant contribution to the future welfare of the dog industry . Dr. Don McKeown - Cofounder - Professional Animal Behaviour Associates - London ON

I have to tell you that your Doggone Crazy game was one of the highlights of our holidays. The girls opened a couple of things on Christmas Eve and one of them was a joint gift of Dog Gone Crazy. We played that night with their grandmother, which was a perfect inclusive and involving game to play, during that anxious evening before the big day. Since being back in Toronto, the kids have played many times and we have played as a family. We are a family who loves to play games. So, we may not have been a big part of your holidays, but you have been a big part of ours! Susan Bishop - mother - Toronto ON

The kids were thrilled to come and tell me that they did a tree on the beach and made a strange dog go away. Cathy Vanderheyden - mother - Atlanta GA

My grandchildren have insisted on playing Doggone Crazy! every day since I gave it to them as a birthday present. Barb Cooper - grandmother - Campbellville ON

The kids opened the package when they came home from summer camp yesterday.  It was in perfect condition.  They loved it!  They immediately played a game before they would even considerstarting to unpack their suitcases.  Then they spent most of the evening telling me all about what to do when an aggressive dog approaches (something about a tree) and about what Fiji is thinking at that moment based on her expressions.  Good stuff. Henry Raud - father - Pickering ON

We finally had a calm evening together last night where we were able to play it and we had a blast.Beth Wheeler - mother - Marblehead MA

Doggone Crazy! is an excellent game and a significant contribution to the future welfare of the dog industry. Dr. Don McKeown - Cofounder - Professional Animal Behaviour Associates

My grandchildren love this game. They play it all the time. - Jackie Rosart - 

Grandmother

I love your game! Its the best...my dad, my mom, my sister and I played. We all loved playing your game. It taught me a lot about dogs and how to act around them. Rachel - Age 10

This game makes it fun for children to learn how to behave toward dogs, and how to understand what dog expressions and actions mean. Its a positive and reinforcing tool for enhancing child safety, reducing bite risk, and improving the human-animal bond. - Karen Pryor, author of Dont Shoot the Dog and CEO of Karen Pryor Clickertraining

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Doggone Safe a Top 3 Finalist in the CLASSY Awards

The CLASSY Awards is the largest philanthropic awards ceremony in the USA, recognizing the most outstanding philanthropic achievements by charities, businesses and individuals nationwide.

More than 2,000 nominations were submitted to StayClassy for consideration. After a vetting process, StayClassy posted each nomination as an article on the CLASSY Awards Achievements Blog (www.stayclassy.org/stories) to put a national spotlight on amazing philanthropic stories. Doggone Safe rallied their supporters to generate at least 100 Facebook ‘Likes’ on their article to qualify them for the judging round. Out of thousands of nominations, the judges narrowed the list down to the Top 25 most inspiring and impactful in each category. Doggone Safe is a finalist in the category: Most Effective Awareness Campaign.

After a period of public voting Doggone Safe has emerged as a top 3 finalist for its efforts with the International Dog Bite Prevention Challenge. The winners will be decided on the basis of judging by a panel plus the public voting results and will be recognized live on-stage at the Oscars-style CLASSY Awards ceremony in San Diego on September 17th.

Thanks to Our Supporters!

A huge thank you goes to all our supporters who voted for us and to all the Be a Tree presenters who participated in the International Dog Bite Prevention Challenge and helped to educate over 16,000 kids in one week about safety around dogs.

A Charitable Event to Remember

The 3rd Annual CLASSY Awards competition will culminate at a red-carpet awards ceremony on Saturday, September 17 in San Diego, California. It will feature celebrity appearances, chart-topping music talent, nonprofit and technology leaders, and thousands of CLASSY Awards supporters. More than $150,000 in cash and prizes will be donated to support the charitable efforts of the 12 National CLASSY Awards Winners.

This year’s CLASSY Awards weekend will also feature the CLASSY Collaborative, a day-long networking event on Friday, September 16 at the W Hotel San Diego. Participants will have the opportunity to meet, mingle and share ideas with some of the foremost leaders in philanthropy, technology, innovation, and entertainment.

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Doggone Safe Nominated for Classy Award

Doggone Safe has been nominated for a CLASSY Award in recognition of its efforts in the running the International Dog Bite Prevention Challenge. The CLASSY Awards recognize the top philanthropic achievements by charities, businesses, fundraisers and volunteers from across the country. The winners receive national exposure and more than $150,000 in cash & prizes for their cause.

Please visit this link to read our story and click the Like button. We need 100 likes by June 29 in order to advance into the next stage of the competition.

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Doggone Safe Named as Finalist for a Classy Award!

The CLASSY Awards is the largest philanthropic awards ceremony in the USA, recognizing the most outstanding philanthropic achievements by charities, businesses and individuals nationwide.

More than 2,000 nominations were submitted to StayClassy for consideration. After a vetting process, StayClassy posted each nomination as an article on the CLASSY Awards Achievements Blog (www.stayclassy.org/stories) to put a national spotlight on amazing philanthropic stories. Doggone Safe rallied their supporters to generate at least 100 Facebook ‘Likes’ on their article to qualify them for the judging round. Out of thousands of nominations, the judges narrowed the list down to the Top 25 most inspiring and impactful in each category. Doggone Safe is a finalist in the category: Most Effective Awareness Campaign.

The Top 10 Finalists will be determined by public vote and announced on August 30th. The winners will be recognized live on-stage at the Oscars-style CLASSY Awards ceremony in San Diego on September 17th.

A Charitable Event to Remember

The 3rd Annual CLASSY Awards competition will culminate at a red-carpet awards ceremony on Saturday, September 17 in San Diego, California. It will feature celebrity appearances, chart-topping music talent, nonprofit and technology leaders, and thousands of CLASSY Awards supporters. More than $150,000 in cash and prizes will be donated to support the charitable efforts of the 12 National CLASSY Awards Winners.

This year’s CLASSY Awards weekend will also feature the CLASSY Collaborative, a day-long networking event on Friday, September 16 at the W Hotel San Diego. Participants will have the opportunity to meet, mingle and share ideas with some of the foremost leaders in philanthropy, technology, innovation, and entertainment.

How You Can Help

Doggone Safe needs your vote in order to make it into the top 10. Doggone Safe is a finalist in the category: Most Effective Awareness Campaign. You may also like to vote in some of the other categories to help support other terrific charities. There are two others who are helping Doggone Safe with promotion and we hope that you will take a look and consider giving them your vote as well. These are:

Rock to Stop Violence - Rock N Roll movement to end violence and abuse and to seek support for survivors of violence and abuse. Finalist for Best New Charity

Amanda Evrard - Amanda is the the volunteer coordinator of Helotes Humane Society, and also volunteers with Homeward Bound and San Antonio Great Dane Rescue. Finalist for Young Non-Profit Leader of the Year.

CLICK HERE to vote

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