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Newsletter   
March 2013           
Letter From the Executive Director 
Greetings from the desk of your General Contractor, I mean Executive Director,

At 3:03 PM today I picked up our Certificate of Occupancy.  We did it!  We passed the inspections and are ready to welcome everyone to our new Forever Home.
 
It's not to late to sign up for Spring Break Camp which starts Monday.  We are also still accepting applications for our K9 Tots Preschool Program for children ages 3 - 5 of all abilities and our Summer Camps (two versions, one for typically developing kiddos and one for our kiddos with autism).  We have a 10,500 sq ft fenced agility field made of special artificial turf designed for use by dogs.  Agility classes coming at the end of this month.  

So many people and businesses helped make this happen.  This weekend I'll work to update the list of donors.  Watch Facebook for the link to the list of all those who made this possible.  
 
Thank You to everyone!!!
 . . . . . . . . . . . 

Come join us at our Grand Opening Gala on March 23 from 7 - 10 PM.  The event will be at our new home and will include food, drink, live music by Erin Ivey, magician Bobby Cordell, and an amazing silent auction  It's an adults only, hire a sitter and get dressed up cocktail party.  Tickets are $75 each.  A portion of each ticket will help us pay for some of the end of project expenses, our agility field equipment and our preschool classroom furniture.  Tickets available online or call us at (512) 335-7100 during office hours.  
 
Sincerely,
 Debi Krakar
Debi Krakar
Executive Director and Founder
Austin Dog Alliance
 
Grand Opening Gala - March 23
Buy Tickets & RSVP by March 10



Buy Tickets Online HERE!

 
Austin Dog Alliance Youth Association
by Jen Machajewski

Youth Association boy with dog Any given Friday night, you'll find teenagers gathered together talking, laughing, and just exhaling after a long week. Once a month, you can find this scene at the Austin Dog Alliance Youth Association (ADAYA) meetings. ADAYA members range from age 13 to 19 (and from 4' 10" to 5' 10"). Some are shy and some are outgoing; some are interested in animal careers and some are not.  But what they have in common is far greater than their differences.

 

"They are all here because they want to be. They want to work with the dogs, work with Austin Dog Alliance and want to help out," says ADAYA Leader Susan Windham-Whitcomb. She finds that these common interests make the group "very positive and nurturing" and noticeably without the clique situations that sometimes happen with teenagers.

 

Parent Alejandra Zambada has found that her son's attitude and responsibility has changed since joining ADAYA.  She used to have to cajole him to attend other groups, but "now he is the one reminding me, excited about the activities and the time he gets to spend with everybody at ADAYA."

 

Making A Difference

 

Youth Association girl exercising dog Recently ADAYA has been visiting the Lockhart Animal Shelter, a small, regional animal shelter with an estimated 50% dog adoption rate. "They get virtually no foot traffic," says Alliance Adoption Support Volunteer, Carla Elmore.  Together Elmore and ADAYA have photographed about 50 dogs over the last three months.  In addition to photographing the dogs, each dog also gets a good romp, leash walking, and loving hugs. Elmore believes, "For a dog to get to run and just be with a kind person, makes all the difference in how adoptable that dog will be."

 

Fostering Leadership

 

ADAYA members play an active role in planning their activities. They discuss all their ideas before selecting that year's projects, fundraising, social events, and service opportunities.  ADAYA members also help with many Alliance events and programs.  By participating in these activities, the youth engage with adult Alliance volunteers and learn how to lead and how to follow, both critical leadership skills.  Some recent contributions by ADAYA have been cleaning the new Alliance property and assisting with children at the Kidgits Club Book Blast at Lakeline Mall.

 

Austin Dog Alliance Director Debi Krakar and Windham-Whitcomb first developed the idea of a Youth Association when they kept encountering so many teens interested in helping. The age of the youth and their passion for animals allows them to contribute to Alliance in a very unique way. Windham-Whitcomb is confident that "the members of ADAYA will be our next round of adult volunteers and board members."

  ADAYA Group at Lockhart Shelter

Becoming a Member

 

To learn more about ADAYA membership and upcoming events, please visit the Youth Association page.  If you have any other questions, contact ADAYA Leader, Susan Windham-Whitcomb at susan@austindogalliance.org.  

 

 

 

K9 Nose Work� Seminar - April
by Jason Heng, K9 Nose Work� Instructor
 
Ron Gaunt, founder of Nose Work
Ron Gaunt, Co-Founder, National Association of Canine Scent Work
April 20-21 will be a great weekend at Austin Dog Alliance!  Ron Gaunt, Co-Founder, National Association of Canine Scent Work (NACSW), will be teaching a seminar each day.

 

Saturday, April 20 Ron will teach Introduction to K9 Nose Work� for dogs that have little or no experience in the game.  Both working and auditing spots are available.  Join us for great fun!

Sunday, April 21 will be Continued/Odor K9 Nose Work� for Exteriors and Vehicles, for experienced dogs already on target odor and having completed a previous six-week class using target odor. Both working and auditing spots are available, for dogs experienced on target odor.

Complete details and online enrollment available here.

 

Ron Gaunt has lived and worked with dogs the majority of his life. He has trained, worked and managed service dogs for more than 40 years.  Among Ron's many accomplishments are multiple national certifications in detection, in both explosives and narcotics. 

 

Atlas doing nose work with boxes If you have a dog with a nose then you have a dog for nose work.  K9 Nose Work� is the fun search and scenting activity that virtually all dogs and their people can enjoy. It starts with getting your dog excited about using his or her nose to seek out a favorite toy or treat reward hidden in one of several boxes. As your dog grows more confident, the game extends to entire rooms, exterior areas, and vehicles. Advanced nose work focuses on increasing your dog's scent discrimination skill, adding special target odors to the search, and more. 

Nose Work vehicle search The sport accommodates shy, fearful, high energy, and reactive dogs, because dogs are always crated separately and K9 Nose Work� games and searches are always conducted one dog at a time. 

 

No prior training or sport experience is required.  High energy dogs burn calories as they race around on the hunt. Aging or disabled dogs can flex their brain muscles as they puzzle out the search at their own pace. 

 

K9 Nose Work Vehicle search K9 Nose work� is also therapeutic.  Reactive dogs find focus and forget about always facing down the world. Fearful dogs build confidence and the courage to start facing more of the world. All dogs use their natural hunting instincts to play the game. 

 

It's all about positive rewards, dogs searching for their favorite toy or treat reward and getting reward for finding it.  Join us the weekend of April 20-21 on our new Austin Dog Alliance Ranch to learn more! 

  

  

     

Jason Heng Nose Work Instructor
Jason & Atlas



Congratulations to Austin Dog Alliance K9 Nose Work� instructor, Jason Heng, and his talented Shiba Inu, Atlas, for earning their K9 Nose Work 1 Title at trials in January, 2013. Great work!

 

  

  

Austin's Fittest Dogs
Alliance therapy dog, Addison 
Therapy dog Addison in action at The Clairmont 
Austin Dog Alliance therapy dog Addison was recognized as one of Austin's fittest dogs by Austin Fit Magazine this month, in their 4th Annual Austin's Fittest Dogs issue.
 
Addison's handler and "pet mom" Marissa submitted Addison's story to the magazine, illustrating the ways Addison maintains a high level of both physical and mental fitness, including regular visits as a therapy dog to sites in our community such as The Clairmont, where she is a favorite of residents.

See the full story and video on the magazine website.

Congratulations Addison and Marissa!  We're proud to have you on our team! 
A Bow Wow Reading Dog Moment
Weasie and her First Grade Client

 

Therapy dog Weasie

Robin Taylor and her dog, Weasie, are Austin Dog Alliance volunteers in the Bow Wow Reading Dog program at Pond Springs Elementary School.  Robin shared a story about their visit to the school several weeks ago:

 

"A first grade boy came in to read to Weasie. 

 

After finishing his book, he leaned in and put his head up against Weasie's, then smiled. 

 

I asked if Weasie had said something to him. He said "yes". 

 

When I asked what she told him, he said, "she said I did a very good job"".

 

 

 

Paw Print Brown on Tan 2013  
Your tax-deductible donations help fund our Bow Wow Reading Dog programs in schools and libraries.  
Thank you 
for your support!  You can help us serve more schools currently on our waiting list by donating here.
 
New Volunteer Orientation - March 12

Youth Group two girls and dog at shelter We need YOUR help in 2013 to make a difference in our community!
 
Attend an information session at our NEW Austin Dog Alliance Ranch to learn about our programs and find a match for your interests and skills.  

March orientation is scheduled for Tuesday, March 12, 6:30-8:00pm.  

Learn more and sign up to attend on our Volunteer page.
In This Issue
Grand Opening Gala March 23 - Tickets Now Available!
Youth Association
K9 Nose Work® Seminar
Therapy Dog Addison - Austin's Fittest Dogs
Bow Wow Reading Moment
Volunteer Orientation March 12
Quick Links
 




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