Hello 2024! And thanks, 2023. You were fun!
Wow! It’s a new year already! Where did 2023 go? Somewhere between the many wagging tails at our dog resort, and resounding sounds of “Yes!” at our dog academy, another year has flown by. Here’s a look back at what was notable about 2023, and a hint at what’s in store for 2024.
WALK WOOF WAG HIT $100,000!
In 2023, we celebrated the tenth (Wow!!!!) anniversary of Walk Woof Wag, our fundraiser for Chico Animal Shelter’s medical fund. Because of the community’s participation and generosity, we topped the $100,000 mark for total funds raised since the event’s inception!
We’re already planning for Walk Woof Wag 2024. It’s not too early to get involved! We need volunteers, sponsors, and, of course, participants. Save the date - October 19, 2024 - for this year’s fabulous event - but don’t wait till then to get involved! Our planning meetings begin in March and we invite those who would like to recruit sponsors and engage in pre-event planning to join in. It truly takes a village to support our city’s needy animals so we hope you will join us in our mission to help our City of Chico Animal Shelter. Here’s the WALK WOOF WAG website. Follow along!
WE HAD OUR OPEN HOUSE - and even SANTA came!
Speaking of events… it finally happened… the open house we had initially planned for April of 2020, a celebration of our big expansion that we completed in December 2019! We all know what happened… along came Covid and its aftermath, and so our grand reopening event was put on hold.
In December 2023, the time was right for a wonderful celebration that even Santa couldn’t miss. We were thrilled to show off our beautiful center with tours; the Bow Wow Bazaar was a showcase of local creativity and artistry; and Photos with Santa were a huge hit (and raised $1500 for Chico Animal Shelter too)! Thank you to Greenfield Pet Photography and all who helped make our event such a huge success. The full album of Santa photos can be seen on Greenfield Pet Photography’s Facebook page HERE.
Oh, and SAVE THE DATE… Santa will be back at The Canine Connection on Sunday, December 8, 2024.
WE RECEIVED CERTIFICATION AS “FEAR FREE”
In 2023, Dr. Sarah became the first in the region to become a certified “Fear Free” daycare and boarding operator. The “Fear Free” movement is dedicated to education and practice to ensure that animal professionals and businesses strive - in all their operations all the time - to reduce fear, anxiety, and stress for the animals they serve. Truth be told, this philosophy and these practices have always been the focus of our operations, ever since our doors opened for training way back in 2002. But with Fear Free certification, we’re raising the bar even higher, for our own operations and the pet care industry. Team members, Avery and Lindsay, joined Dr. Sarah in becaming Fear Free certified and other team members are currently enrolled in the Fear Free program so they can be certified too! Yay, team!
SPEAKING OF CERTIFICATION…
Our longtime team member, Ally, who has served in our training division for over 7 years, began (and will soon be completing) her dog trainer certification through the internationally acclaimed Karen Pryor Academy. We are so proud of Ally and look forward to her becoming an even more central part of our training program. Check out this fun video of her training her dog, Midge, for her certification HERE.
Also, Dr. Sarah completed over 40 hours of continuing education necessary to maintain her Certfied Dog Behavior Consultant (CDBC) status through the International Association of Animal Behavior Consultants (IAABC), the leading industry association for those treating fear, anxiety and aggression in dogs.
PET PARTNERS THERAPY PET PROGRAM WAS REVIVED!
We’re thrilled to be supporting the revival of the Pet Partners therapy animal program in Chico we first launched way back in 2005! Sadly, this program took a hit during Covid when visits were stopped and many team members retired. But in 2023, with the help of Nadene, an enthusiastic and accomplished volunteer, we began offering Pet Partner evaluations again. Under the leadership of Nadene, an official local chapter of the national Pet Partners organization has formed and our group is now growing in numbers of volunteers and acts of service. Pet Partner courses and evaluations are planned for March and September 2024. See the adjacent photo for upcoming dates. And please join the Facebook group, Pet Partner of Chico , and visit the national Pet Partners website to learn more about becoming a Pet Partner volunteer! If you and your dog (or cat or other domestic animal) love people, this valuable form of volunteerism might be for you!
WE STARTED DAY TRAINING!
Last year, we expanded both training and daycare services by bringing them together! Using a “day training” model - which means we jumpstart or maintain a dog’s training - we added opportunities for training sessions for our daycare guests. This may seem like a simple merger but we needed just the right elements to fall into place for us to do this right. We’re thrilled that many of our daycare clients enrolled their dogs in this educational program. As we go forward into 2024, we’re adding positive reinforcement board-and-train to our model. This service involves your dog staying with us for more extensive training in our core “Life Skills & Manners” curriculum. We look forward to bringing our positive, progressive approaches - those sanctioned by the American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior - to board-and-train services that will begin this spring.
WE LAUNCHED DAYCARE 3.0
We were the first in Chico - and among the first in the nation - to offer daycare for dogs. And goodness, we’ve learned an awful lot over the years. Last year was notable in that we launched “Daycare 3.0,” a model that includes private daycare, more individualized experiences, and a higher level of enrichment than ever before. All of our practices for all of our services are rooted in an understanding of dog behavior and wellness. It’s been so exciting to see research about dog behavior increase in recent years and its findings continue to inform our practices. For example, did you know that rest is just as important as activity to a dog’s wellbeing and all play and little rest does not make a dog a more sociable companion? We’ve gathered up the most recent knowledge to ensure that our daycare program is not “daycare as usual” but reflects the latest knowledge, evidence-based approaches, and an ongoing assessment of each dogs’ wellbeing to ensure we are providing your dog with the very best daycare experiences.
WE WERE VOTED “BEST PLACE FOR DOG BOARDING”
We’re proud to have been recognized, in the Chico Enterprise Record’s “Voters’ Choice Awards,” as “Best Place for Dog Boarding” in the Chico area. We think this vote of confidence reflects our desire to offer our clients and their dogs nothing but the best in care and peace of mind. With our boarding program, that means we have staff on-site, awake, and checking on the dogs 24-hours a day! Thank you, Voters! Thank you, Chico!
WE KEPT LEARNING!
While we’re mighty proud of who we are, we will never stop pushing ourselves to learn and grow. In 2023, Dr. Sarah and resort manager, Kevin, attended the Pet Boarding and Daycare Expo West in Las Vegas, a 3-day conference on best practices in our industry. We came home with many ideas for taking our daycare and boarding program to an even higher level.
DR. SARAH RETIRED FROM CHICO STATE …
AND WAS FEATURED AS ONE OF CHICO’S “COMMUNITY MEMBERS MAKING A DIFFERENCE”
After a 22-year teaching career at Chico State, Dr. Sarah officially turned in her keys. It was bittersweet as she loved her students, her colleagues, and her classes. A highlight of her teaching career was developing and teaching a course on human-animal interactions that drew students from across campus and was named as one of the most innovative campus courses.
At year end, Dr. Sarah was featured as one of Chico’s “Community Members Making A Difference” in the Chico Enterprise-Record. The embarrassingly lengthy article focused on her contributions through volunteerism and The Canine Connection to educating others seeking careers in animal services, creating employment, building better bonds between dogs and people through positive training, fundraising for Chico Animal Shelter, and contributing to animal care during the Camp Fire and other emergencies.
We’re humbled and proud.
WE SAID GOODBYE TO SOME VERY DEAR FRIENDS
Sarah’s Rhodie at the Rainbow Bridge.
Art by The Canine Connection Team Member, Frankie Thomson
The hardest part of loving dogs is saying goodbye. We feel it - sadness for loss along with gratitude for the privilege of sharing in their lives - every time a member of our Canine Connection community departs for the heavens. Dr. Sarah’s beloved boy, Rhyder, arrived at Rainbow Bridge early in 2023. As the year went on, he was joined by these remarkable souls: Otto, Rae, Biscuit, Bailey, Bernice, Buster P. Wigglebutt, Piper, Draya, Ginger, Ziva, Chase, Louie, Koa, Parsley, Rou, Darby, Kaiser, Pearl, Beulah, Beau and Abbi, Arrow, Drusa, Frankie, Teddy, Landon, Max, Chip, Two Toy Charlie, Georgie, and Loomis (we know we may have missed some names and we’re so sorry if we did - please let us know so we can update and acknowledge them). Our hearts are with every member of our Canine Connection family who has felt the sorrow of saying goodbye to their treasured animal friend. Because their spirits were so sparkly on earth, we know they are brightening the skies above. Just look up… those stars are so bright!
HERE’S TO A HAPPY 2024!
We wish all our friends - of all species - a wonderful 2024. May this year be filled with fun and friendship, love and learning, trust and teamwork, and, of course, laughter, licks, and tail wags.
