Helping Fido & Fifi Stay Fit AGILITY COURSES BENEFIT CANINES AND THE HUMANS THEY’VE RESCUED By Todd Pernsteiner, Pernsteiner Creative Group Pet ownership is on the rise in 2020 since people are spending more time at home. Empty animal shelters due to pet adoption is one of the few bright spots of the challenges Americans are currently facing. In April, Wired magazine ran an article about pet adoptions. They found that all over the country, from New York to Wisconsin and North Carolina to Colorado and New Mexico, animal shelters are reporting massive upswings in
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the numbers of animals they’ve been able to adopt out or place in foster homes.
Wired quoted Kitty Block, president and CEO of the Humane Society of the United States, who said the rates of fostering, in particular, have increased by 90 percent in some cities. “Folks who don’t have animals for one reasons or another, because of their work schedule or their travel schedule, that’s all changed right now,” Block said. John Sarver, director of design at Gyms at Dogs, says people and companies have become involved in promoting the health and livelihood of dogs. “Americans are recognizing how important pets are to us,” he said. “From the introduction of no-kill shelters years ago to more recently humanrated dog food and improved food options for pets in general, people realize we must make dogs more a part of our community as a positive impact.”
It’s comes as no surprise that pets offer people a great distraction from the challenges of day-to-day life. Spending time outdoors and at a dog park is a fun, healthy experience for both the furry friends and their human counterparts. For many, it’s a joy to watch how excited their best friend can be in expending their youthful energy – even when they’re in their upper senior years. With many human fitness centers closed or on limited schedules due to the pandemic, residents are taking their dogs to dog agility courses to enjoy the health benefits as well. Agility courses in parks can challenge both the dog and his or her owner. “The average dog is a better athlete than the most athletic humans on the planet. A dog’s ability to use oxygen is more efficient than most animals in the animal kingdom. This is why it is important that they are
ACCORDING TO A 201920 SURVEY BY THE THE AMERICAN PET PRODUCTS ASSOCIATION, MORE THAN 84.9 MILLION U.S. HOUSEHOLDS HAVE A PET
26 SOUTH CAROLINA Recreation and Parks • www.scrpa.org
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