What do people mean when they talk about their dog’s personality? I look at Charlie, my dog, and I try to define it. I’d say he’s a very social little dude. Everyone’s friend. He likes cats, not so much puppies. He’s a bit of a momma’s boy.  He’s a moderate adventure s...

You speak a language. I guess if you’re reading this, you likely speak English. Maybe you also speak Spanish? Or Mandarin? (If you speak all of these, I’m totally impressed.) What you certainly speak is Human. “Human,” in this case, basically equals verbal language - w...

For years I looked at prong collars with suspicion and disapproval. I knew they were bad. I looked at the people using them. They weren’t awful people. You could see they meant well. How could they be so wrong about the well being of their dog? Now, I understand that m...

You ever have one of those dreams where you can’t get anywhere? You walk, but you don’t move. You’re trying to catch your plane, but you keep getting stopped on your way to the gate. You get hopelessly lost on streets you know well. That was a recent Sunday for me.

I ha...

Ugh, my dog wants to sleep on top of me in bed. Here’s the thing, I love that.  It makes my morning. Well, it makes my morning stall out a little too. It makes me burrow down into my blankets. It makes my eyes roll back into sleep mode. It makes time disappear. It make...

I have changed my life, not once, but dozens of times. I have reiterated myself. I’m going through a moment of reformation now, actually. I’m becoming a dog trainer, committing to it. Just typing those words makes me uncomfortable, even embarrassed. I am embracing a ne...

Before (and during) my life with dogs, I’ve also been an actor, a stage actor.  Over the decades, I’ve been fortunate to experience the thrill of connection, that split-second fire, a mutual exchange of meaning. You reach out to the audience with your intention, or to...