In The News...
Washington Post - Friday, June 22, 2007; D02
Polite Paws
Career going to the dogs? That's the way it is for Janet Sidebottom
and other dog trainers, who work with pets and their owners to teach
good manners and how to hang out in a coffee shop or crowded downtown
street.
Sidebottom,
owner of the Potomac Dog School, has dogs with her every day, not
just on Take Your Dog to Work Day, which is today. She said she
sees about eight dogs a day (plus her two pooches, Keeper and Romeo).
She trains 150 dogs a year in one-on-one sessions.
She's been training them full-time since 2001; before that she
ran a kennel and also did breeding and grooming.
"The real world is a training room," she said, and clients
choose where to meet for lessons. Popular places are downtown Bethesda
on a Saturday morning or along the C&O Canal, so dogs learn
to handle lots of people and wildlife. Often they start at a java
joint to teach the pet how to wait patiently during a coffee chat.
"There's so much of my job that I love," she said, especially
watching the dog "develop and grow. . . . I get them ready
for the real world."
She can think of only one thing she doesn't like about her work
-- the dirty job of "scoop and poop."
-- Vickie Elmer
Recommended Reading
The
Dog Lover’s Companion to Washington, D.C. and Baltimore: The
Inside Scoop on Where to Take Your Dog – by Ann Oldenburg,
Don Oldenburg, and Phil Frank
The
Art of Raising A Puppy – by Monks of New Skete
How
to Be Your Dog’s Best Friend: The Classical Training Manual
for Dog Owners (Revised & Updated Edition) – by Monks
of New Skete
Cesar’s
Way: The Natural, Everyday Guide to Understanding and Correcting
Common Dog Problems – by Cesar Milan
