Peak Pets 2021

Behavior | Training | Health | Rescue | Lifestyle

A supplement to the

June 16, 2021

Aska’s Animals Dogs and cats and this very happy pig have found refuge with Aska Langman.

See page 6.

BRADLY J. BONER / NEWS&GUIDE

2 - PEAK PETS • JACKSON HOLE NEWS&GUIDE, Wednesday, June 16, 2021

O n b e h a l f o f e v e r yo n e at

PAWS of Jackson Hole

THANK YOU FOR MAKING OUR NON-EVENT COMEDY CAMPAIGN A HUGE SUCCESS!

Peak Pets highlights favorite residents Who doesn’t have a “Peak Pet” of some kind? Dogs are everywhere, of course. The lives they live here can be varied — check out our feature on “A tail of three Jackson dogs.” Get it? A tail?

OK, but the point is, some of these are super pampered and some are just free-range.

In Victor, Aska Langman has set up an animal sanctuary, with some lucky critters who followed a tough path to wind up in her care. Dog is My Co-Pilot, started by former Jackson orthopaedic surgeon Peter Rork, just got a huge tailwind, so to speak.

One of our reporters, Billy Arnold, is a big climber and wrote a fun story about these so-called “crag dogs” who hang out at the rock pitches. He also included some climbing lingo that I, frankly, did not know how to edit. Tell me if I made a mistake here.

Dogs with anxiety, dogs with heart issues and the dog-walking business are all profiled here. This is a section everyone has some connection to — whether your own or your friends’ furry beasts.

Here’s to a summer of tummy rubs and rolling in the grass.

We look forward to seeing you NEXT YEAR on the red carpet for

— Whitney Royster

PAWS TUXES & TAILS GALA THURSDAY, JUNE 30, 2022!

Special supplement written, produced and printed by the Jackson Hole News&Guide

307-734-2441 | pawsofjh.org | info@pawsofjh.org Special thanks to our campaign sponsors, our donors, and Andrew Munz for his creative genius!

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PUBLISHER Kevin Olson ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER Adam Meyer EDITOR Johanna Love MANAGING EDITOR Rebecca Huntington SECTION EDITOR Whitney Royster LAYOUT AND DESIGN Samantha Nock CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS Bradly J. Boner, Ryan Dorgan, Kayla Renie, Kathryn Ziesig COPY EDITORS Jennifer Dorsey, Mark Huffman, Addie Henderson, Cindy Harger FEATURES Billy Arnold, Jennifer Dorsey, Tom Hallberg, Julia Hornstein, Mike Koshmrl, Evan Robinson-Johnson, Timothy J. Woods ADVERTISING SALES Karen Brennan, Tom Hall, Megan LaTorre, Katie Brierley ADVERTISING COORDINATOR Tatum Biciolis

TCPP IS LOOKING FOR NEW ANIMAL THERAPY TEAMS!

CREATIVE DIRECTOR Sarah Wilson ADVERTISING DESIGN Lydia Redzich, Luis F. Ortiz, Chelsea Robinson, Heather Haseltine PRODUCTION PRESSROOM MANAGER: Chuck Pate PRE-PRESS: Jeff Young PRESS SUPERVISOR: Dale Fjeldsted PRESSMEN Steve Livingston, Lewis Haddock, Nick Hoskins CUSTOMER SERVICE MANAGERS Lucia Perez, Rudy Perez

Does your dog or cat need a job?

Register with Pet Partners! Our programs put smiles on senior’s faces, ease hospital patients’ pain and help kids read.

Go to www.tcpetpartners.org or call Kelly at 307.690.8532 for more information.

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CIRCULATION Jeff Young ©2021 Teton Media Works Jackson Hole News&Guide P.O. Box 7445, 1225 Maple Way Jackson, WY 83002 Phone: 307-733-2047; Fax: 307-733-2138 Web: JHNewsAndGuide.com

PEAK PETS • JACKSON HOLE NEWS&GUIDE, Wednesday, June 16, 2021 - 3

BEHAVIOR & TRAINING

Where’d you go? Pets miss you — again After a year of having you working in the kitchen, dogs are now home alone.

point in time.”

Patterson and Krissi Goetz, a dog trainer with Jackson Hole Positive Training, offered several options to help dogs overcome the anxiety or distress that comes with being separated from their owners — their “pack.” Chief among them is to exercise your dog and try to wear him out a bit before you leave for work.

Toys are another good option to keep your dog occupied and happy while you’re away, the veterinarian and dog trainer said. Chewable “Kong” toys are a nice option. As Patterson noted, owners can put some sort of food or treat inside the conical toy, which will give your dog something to work on and try to get to.

By Timothy J. Woods

A

s we humans get excited about returning to some semblance of normal, including heading back to our workplaces, there are some friends who aren’t nearly as excited about it.

Man’s best friend, that is.

The amazing canine, who has spent the entire pandemic faithfully by your side, checking in on you at your home office, might not be terribly thrilled to go back to their old routine of passing the time until you come home from work.

Now that people are going back to the office, some of their pets, especially dogs, are feeling left behind and wondering why they’re now all alone.

Whether you call it “separation anxiety” or “separation distress,” it adds up to one thing: Some of our furry friends are feeling tremendously anxious without their owners’ constant attention and companionship.

“Dogs are very social creatures and are pack animals, so if it’s a single person with a single dog, then yeah, that’s a more likely situation to have a dog experience separation anxiety because their pack member is gone,” said Dr. Ernest Patterson, a veterinarian at VCA Animal Care Hospital at 70 S. Gros Ventre St. in Jackson.

“And dogs pretty much live in the moment, so it’s not like they can anticipate that you’ll be back in six hours or back in four hours or whatever. When you’re gone, you’re just sort of gone, and they don’t know necessarily that you’re coming back, so that can spark anxiety.”

A dog’s anxiety can show up in different ways, Patterson said, including being destructive — chewing on door frames, tearing up furniture, or eating your favorite pair of shoes, for example — and Patterson stressed the importance of owners keeping their cool when they come home to damage. First and foremost, he said, the dog won’t know why it’s being scolded or

“If it’s something they experience regularly, we can create a more mentally flexible dog.”

— Krissi Goetz JACKSON HOLE POSITIVE TRAINING

RYAN DORGAN / NEWS&GUIDE

After being shut out of the laundry room with her humans away, Kuni turned her restless energy on the closest door trim. The door trim lost the contest.

punished for something it did hours before because of that “live in the moment” thing, and any discipline “really needs to be tied in to when the behavior is occurring.”

“It’s true that he’s sens-

A

D - D OG V E L O

HO TE

ing that trouble is afoot in the pack, so to speak, but he’s not associating it with what you’re associating it with,” Patterson said. “So the owners can’t scold their dog because they found something chewed up — but

the dog chewed it up an hour or two ago — because he’s going to react like he’s in trouble, but he’s not going to associate it with what you’re trying to express. So it’s kind of a wasted effort to vent on the dog at that

Goetz, who in 2004 helped found the Animal Adoption Center in Jackson and has worked at Jackson Hole Positive Training since 2008, said it’s important to “set your dog up for success” and help him adapt with incremental steps to their owners being away.

“Ideally, that is what we would do, is even if you’re home all the time, manufacture time alone [for the dog] by going out to get the mail or going for a walk, or whatever, and leaving the dog home,” Goetz said.

“Because dogs learn what they live day in and day out, and if they’re with us all the time and then [you leave them alone] it’s unusual and something to be afraid of. But if it’s something they experience regularly, we can create a more mentally flexible dog.”

Goetz emphasized how imSee ANXIETY on 13

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4 - PEAK PETS • JACKSON HOLE NEWS&GUIDE, Wednesday, June 16, 2021

BUSINESS

Dog walkers find rewards and challenges Three service providers weigh in on the pros and cons of pet promenades in an increasingly lavish resort town.‌

By Evan Robinson-Johnson

T

he pandemic prompted a huge uptick in pet adoptions, but with the return to in-person work, caring for all those new companions is suddenly a more difficult proposition.

Enter the vast network of dog care, dog sitting, and dog walking services that exist not just nationally but here in Jackson. For the consumer, there’s a lot of options — from big name aggregates like Rover and Wag to locally run companies like Paws and Powder Hounds. But with costs of living skyrocketing in this and other resort towns, how do the dog service providers make a living, and is it sustainable?

The News&Guide caught up with three types of providers to try to answer that question by seeing how they run their operations — and what key pivots they’ve had to make in order to make it in Jackson.

For one of them, it meant moving to Driggs, Idaho.

Andrea La Fevers has long been the No. 1 search result for Jackson dog walkers, but a few years back she realized walking wasn’t a sustainable business. For starters, she was doing a lot more driving than walking. Unlike an urban operation, where most dogs could be picked up from a few adjacent apartment buildings, the Jackson pooches were spread out across the valley, requiring a good deal of herding before the actual walk could begin.

It was wearing the founder out. Constantly taking on new clients, especially during peak tourist season, took a ton of energy for very short-lived gain. When the visiting family moved on, the best she’d gain would be a positive recommendation. That model, she said, wasn’t going to take her anywhere other than burnout.

So, she pivoted to “petiquette,” based on a need she’d seen from a number of existing clients: These dogs were in need of some serious training. Taking a half dozen pooches for a stroll can be unwieldy and intimidating for a walker.

But doing so with untrained dogs is downright impossible.

La Fevers now has a steady “pack,” as she calls them, which trains together multiple times per week, sometimes boarding overnight. The pivot has allowed her company, Powder Hounds, to retain a consistent set of clients, which in turn lets her be more selective with whose dogs she takes on.

It might sound a bit picky, she said, but she almost never takes on tourists’ dogs anymore.

As the No. 1 Google result, she gets calls pretty often.

Most callers are looking to leave their canine companion with her while they go hike in Grand Teton National Park, which doesn’t allow dogs on any of its hiking trails. The trainer said she’s gotten quite good at saying no. But often she’ll also pass them along to another walker, Holden Bell.

Bell moved to the valley in 2019 on a whim and a dream, ditching his Cleveland butcher job to try to make it as a professional dog walker. He figured he could always join the Sweet Cheeks Meats team if need be. His dad, who lives in Kelly, thought he was crazy.

The first three months were pretty rough, Bell said. He was walking maybe 10 dogs a week for clients who wereall found through word of mouth, and he was living in a house that was actively for sale.

But he slowly built a reputation for the brand, Paws Mtn Company. It was classic stuff, making tear-away flyers, creating a bona fide website. He met with La Fevers at a coffee shop to discuss search engine optimization (how he could get his company name to the top of Google) and how he could take on clients La Fevers had passed over.

Soon the 29-year-old was walking 50 dogs a week and was able to raise his rates enough to brag to his dad when he visited Kelly.

But just as he was getting cocky, the house he was living in sold, and the buyer, who planned to raze the lot, gave him two weeks to get out.

Bell turned to the veritable hub for housing insecurity, the 22Rents Facebook page. Miraculously, there was a couple willing to rent him some space. The catch? It was over the pass in Victor.

Still, with two cats of his own, not to mention a snowmobile, motorcycle and exercise equipment, Bell knew it was his only chance of staying here and keeping the business alive. If that place hadn’t popped up, Paws Mtn Company would be no more.

Now 30, Bell said he’s psyched to be his own boss and reap the benefits of that freedom.

He does two 10-dog walks a day with clients like one family’s corgi and two enormous Newfoundlands, Dutch and Wolf.

To get everyone together he drives a retrofitted Sprinter van complete with a bolted-down sofa and a dividing net.

KAYLA RENIE / NEWS&GUIDE PHOTOS

Holden Bell, owner of Paws Mtn Company, loads his clients’ dogs in his van after a walk on Henry’s Road on Friday.

Bell’s charges get some treats before an opportunity to chase a ball during the walk on Henry’s Road. Bell does two 10-dog walks a day.

The main cabin has been peed in, pooped in and puked in, but Bell said that for the most part the pups just chill and hang tight.

On a recent Friday the Newfies joined Bell and eight other dogs at one of their favorite stomping grounds: a quiet road at the confluence of the Snake River and Flat Creek.

As soon as Bell slid the van door open, Maggie, Bowdie, Pocatella, June, Dorney and five other rambunctious dogs came tumbling out.

June instantly bolted for the Chuckit ball.

Several others took to pooping, sending Bell to his hipholstered bag supply. Two 10-dog walks a day equates to a lot of poop collection.

But for someone managing such manic energy, Bell was surprisingly calm. He strolled down the road in flat-soled loafers, sporting a camo “Got Water?” windbreaker with a neon ball-slinging baton casually slung over a shoulder.

A couple of times he gathered everyone around him for treats and a photo shoot, snapping pics on his iPhone to send to the pooches’ eager owners.

This is the lifestyle he cherishes, and for right now, he says, it’s 100% possible to make it in this industry here.

He also admits to doing a fair number of side gigs to supplement his income. Mostly that’s odd jobs for his dog walking clients, like hedge fund manager Jerry, who had Bell snowblow, create an elevated gardening bed and “nuke” his treehouse (meaning fix it up for spring).

Those hustles aren’t necessarily needed, the walker said, but they’re helping him edge closer to his long-term dream of owning his own home in Jackson. It’s a lofty goal, he admits, but as the valley becomes wealthier, clients are also willing to pay more for their pets’ excursions.

At the same time, Bell knows that mountainous wealth is putting his down payment out of reach.

Long term, it’s hard to know what is sustainable. He’d like to start franchising once Paws Mtn Company gains enough regional attention, but he also knows how difficult it is to maintain the standard of care his clients know they’re getting when they hire Holden Bell.

Would he outfit a fleet of sprinter vans to canvas the West? It’s hard enough finding a reliable assistant here in Jackson, the walker said. And housing is still the No. 1 barrier to entry.

In the meantime, he’s trying to help his part-time friends start their own initiatives.

National companies like Wag and Rover have made it possible for walkers to earn a star-rating and a reputation, then work from almost any town or city in the country, even Jackson. But there’s also a crew of independent names that work off referrals; house-sitting and adventuring whenever folks are out of town or need a day off.

One such walker, Hanna, (who declined to give her last name since she’s paid under the table) regularly takes a crew of four to six medium-size dogs for trail runs, river romps and open air drives with the windows down.

On a recent Friday she picked up Kiki, Earl, Demi and Maymay, bringing them to the Emily’s Pond Levee to let off some steam. The dogs, all coming from single-pet households, jumped at the chance to run free with new companions.

While on the trail, Hanna keeps two things in mind.

One is “poop karma,” a simple reminder to pick up bags of excrement in order to keep paths cleaner and encourage the next round of visitors to do the same. Second, she never stops selling.

Saying hello and learning the names and breeds of passing dogs is part of the deal in these kinds of settings, but if this particular walker finds a noteworthy anecdote or point of connection, she’ll use that to pump her services.

If the pup seems cute and meets her size requirement, the enterprising walker might even offer her business card.

“I just love your dog,” she told one couple on a recent Sunday. “Do you ever need a walker?”

They willingly accepted her card and agreed to keep her in mind.

On another trek she bumped into a presumed dog owner who happened to be a fellow walker. Overrun with her own growing list of clients, that walker also took her card, this time to share referrals.

Part of what makes services like dog walking work in this small town is the group chat network. Since clients can spring up on the fly, often without much advance notice, it helps to be able to refer to another service provider, which is also a nice way to feel like a community rather than isolated islands of entrepreneurs.

Even Bell, who’s technically at the top of the food chain, is happy for new walkers to join the fray.

“I’m not like, ‘omg, another dog walker,’ “ he said. “We all help each other out.”

Plus, he’s already seeing a huge spike in post-pandemic gigs. Folks are feeling safer about having sitters in their homes, and they’re taking more trips, which means someone has to watch the dog.

For Hanna, the independent, part-time work offers fantastic freedom, but she knows that model isn’t sustainable.

For one, it’s not scalable. Even though more valley residents are living with new dogs and puppies, Hanna has only so many hands and only so much space in her Honda 4x4. She can recommend other walkers, but that doesn’t help much with her own business.

If she stays with it, the future might be a more focused niche, like Powder Hounds, which would likely allow her to charge more for her services. But the path to that solution is long and winding, and in the meantime, someone has to pick up Kiki’s poop.

Contact Evan Robinson-Johnson at 732-5901 or ERJ@jhnewsandguide.com.

PEAK PETS • JACKSON HOLE NEWS&GUIDE, Wednesday, June 16, 2021 - 5

HEALTH

Grain-free food? Not so fast, vets warn Fad diets for dogs have sprung up in recent years, but some canines develop heart and gut troubles.

By Tom Hallberg

I

magine this: Your young, otherwise healthy dog slows down while on a hike.

He might be short of breath; he might cough or even faint.

Being the concerned pet parent you are, you take the pup to the vet, who listens to the dog’s heart and runs a blood test. The diagnosis? Possible dilated cardiomyopathy, a condition that can be genetic in several large dog breeds and often affects older animals.

To find the root cause, the vet asks you a question: What kind of diet is the dog on?

If you answer grain-free food, you may have just found your problem. In the past few years, vets have noticed an anecdotal association between newfangled fad diets and dilated cardiomyopathy in dogs.

“Instead of low-end cheap foods being a health issue, it has become the loving, doting, well-meaning pet parent that is targeted and falls victim to pet food marketing and feeds their pet something too expensive and too rich and unbalanced for optimal health,” said vet Maura Connolly, who owns Victor Veterinary Hospital in Teton Valley, Idaho.

Foods that fit the acronym “BEG” (boutique, exotic and grain-free) have become increasingly more common in the past decade.

That follows a similar trend in human diets as people eschew gluten. Recent research suggests up to 10% of Americans might have a gluten sensitivity, but there’s no evidence dogs have the same problem.

“Dogs don’t have the same issues as the small percentage of the human population that absolutely cannot eat grain,” said Christie Laughery, veterinarian and owner

of Home Health for Pets.

Then why have so many well-intentioned pet owners started these diets? Marketing, Laughery said. Food companies have labeled their grain-free diets as healthy alternatives to ones that include ingredients like rice, and they offer raw foods or protein-heavy options that claim to hark back to dogs’ natural diets.

“Set your dog free from grains,” Blue Buffalo says on its website, telling pet parents its grain-free food is “a healthy way to feed their best friend a grain-free diet.”

“Because there’s no grains, no animal byproduct meal, and no artificial colors, flavors or preservatives, you can be sure that inside every bag is a whole lot of what your dog loves, and nothing you don’t,” Purina writes on its website.These taglines imply that their grain-free diets eliminate unnecessary ingredients, but veterinarians say the omission of grains and the introduction of new ingredients like garbanzo beans or lentils can create nutrient imbalances. Though the specter of dilated cardiomyopathy might be enough to scare some owners off BEG diets, Connolly said her practice actually sees more gastrointestinal issues related to them.

Sometimes she sees several patients a day with gastrointestinal distress and obesity.

Being overweight can lead to other health problems, too, like orthopedic injuries.

Connolly recommends those patients switch to a different diet, one with more testing and production oversight. (See box.)

“We rarely see those patients for GI upset again,” she said. “We also see these dogs and cats get back to better body condition and have less orthopedic injuries, arthritis, diabetes and live longer lives on average.”

Despite the anecdotal evidence offered by veterinarians, there is still disagreement about the link between BEG diets and health problems. The Food and Drug Administration issued a warning in 2019 about the potential association between 16 grainfree foods and heart problems, and leading

Five Tested Foods Not all dog food companies perform rigorous tests on their food for safety and nutrition. In fact, most don’t, according to veterinarian Maura Connolly.

In her practice in Victor,

Idaho, she has written a diet recommendations sheet because she sees so many dogs with health problems she thinks are related to their diets. These five brands, which she says have many

veterinary nutritionists like Lisa Freeman at Tufts University have expanded that to BEG diets in general.

Industry groups have pushed back. A couple of prominent studies have stressed that the link hasn’t been scientifically proven through controlled clinical trials. One article also says reporting on the potential link may have created “sampling bias,” when people become more likely to look for the problem and report it.

“Asking for information in a certain way can skew data,” the article says, referring to the warning encouraging vets to report suspected cases of food-related DCM. That is true, but most prominent studies that dismiss the potential link were funded

by BSM Partners, a consulting company that represents much of the food industry.

Though a small disclaimer on the studies says the company provided the funding, the authors list no conflicts of interest, even though BSM represents at least one dog food supplier implicated in the FDA warning.

“A lot of funding for all kinds of studies comes from industry, whether it’s pet food companies or drug companies, etc,” Laughery said. “That funding has to come from somewhere. It’s not inherently evil.”

However, she said, studies from university veterinary medicine programs would avoid the potential industry bias. Laughery said pet owners should work with vets to find the

types to fit different dogs, perform their own tests.

• Hill’s Science Diet • Royal Canin • Iams • Purina Proplan • Eukanuba

right balance. Her dog is on a grain-free dry food but has a wet food with grains and a food-based supplement to ensure it has the right blend of nutrients.

At Victor Veterinary Hospital, Connolly leans on the number of pets she’s seen on BEG diets with health problems. That leads her to recommend that pet owners switch to brands that do their own trials and are certified through the Association of American Feed Control Officers.

Because the mechanisms for the health problems aren’t yet known, adding grain to a grain-free diet might not help.

“Concrete studies are still pending to confirm if the DCM cases correlate with a lack of nutrients from grain, the potential toxicity of legumes and potatoes to heart muscle [the greens of plants in the nightshade family are toxic to the heart], or if there is another factor,” Connolly said.

That means she’ll continue encouraging her clients to stick with traditional diets that have been tested and proven to provide the right balance of nutrients.

“The GI upset and obesity alone are reason enough for most veterinarians to strongly advise against grain-free diets when trying to keep our patients as healthy as possible,” she said.

Contact Tom Hallberg at 732-7079 or thallberg@jhnewsandguide.com.

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6 - PEAK PETS • JACKSON HOLE NEWS&GUIDE, Wednesday, June 16, 2021

RESCUE

BRADLY J. BONER / NEWS&GUIDE PHOTOS

Aska Langman, co-founder of Aska’s Animals, walks through her property in Victor, Idaho, with Bullet, a cattle dog who was shot six times by his previous owner, leaving him permanently blind. He follows the sounds of Langman and her husband as they go about their routine around the farm.

Aska’s offers sanctuary and education Dogs with behavior problems get help, and owners learn to be good stewards.

By Julia Hornstein

C

hanco, Percy and Wally aren’t just “roommates.”

Rescued from unsafe living environments, these three pigs eat, sleep and play alongside their caretaker Aska Langman, founder of Aska’s Animals Foundation, a nonprofit committed to temporary and long-term care for animals in need of rehoming.

Born and raised in New York City, Langman started surrounding herself with animals from a young age. Raising cats in her apartment, she had an inkling that animal care would be her life’s purpose.

“I found a way to be weird, a way to get wacky with animals even in the city,” Langman said.

After obtaining her Bachelor of Science in animal science from the University of Vermont, Langman moved to Victor, Idaho, to work with animal welfare groups, from volunteering with PAWS in town to helping out with the Animal Adoption Center’s Spay/Neuter program on the Wind River Reservation (and much more), Langman realized she wanted to start her own fostering foundation.

And so, after participating in animal rescue and sanctuary care alongside local organizations for over a decade, Langman and her husband, Will Haywood, decided to codify their passion through the creation of their own nonprofit.

Launched this past March, Aska’s Animals Foundation strives

Langman and her son, Leo, hang with Stewie, one of the resident pigs on her property.

to ensure that animals have a home.

Its mission is “to provide a progressive environment for animals through rehabilitation, adoption, education and community outreach,” according to Aska’s Animals’s website.

“We went nonprofit so we could fundraise and be able to extend our services beyond what my husband and I were personally paying for the animals,” Langman said. “I guess this is now just a more formal way of doing what I’ve always been passionate about.”

Unlike other rescue organizations, Aska’s Animals has made a concerted effort to reach out to local groups in an effort to bolster

community outreach and support for their cause.

“We fill the valley’s gap [in animal rescue] because we partner with other organizations, so we have a pretty good idea of what’s happening,” Langman said. “And we’ve put a lot of time and effort into dog training and making that resource available to the community.”

According to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, about 6.5 million animals make their way to American shelters every year. Of the 78 million dogs and 85.8 million cats owned in the United States, roughly 23% of dogs and 31% of cats are adopted, meaning millions

of animals, often ones with behavioral differences, remain in the shelter system for years.

This system, one that prefers animals from top-notch breeders and neglects those in need of rehoming, is precisely what Langman is fighting against.

“So we work with hard-to-adopt dogs — dogs with more behavioral challenges that sometimes just need a little bit more help that the average shelter may not have time nor staffing for,” Langman said.

Recognizing the dearth of information on proper training, Aska’s Animals is gearing up to launch a workshop program that will teach pet owners how to deal

with behavioral issues that often land dogs in shelters.

“We’re planning seminars so that people in the community can learn more about dog behavior, as it seems like everyone in town is buying or adopting a dog,” she said.

Langman is trying to center seminars on, as she said, “becoming a good steward for your dog.”

“We’re trying to focus on what information people wish they had before they adopted or bought a dog, and we’re not trying to target adopted dogs because a lot of people buy dogs, which eventually end up in shelters with behavioral problems,” Langman said. “We’re thinking about training things you can do to mitigate unwanted situations.”

Information regarding workshop dates and times will be available in the coming weeks. Aska’s Animals’s website (AskasAnimals. org) and Instagram (@askasanimals) will include additional information as it becomes available.

With hopes of expanding to facilities to house more than a handful of cats, dogs and pigs, Aska’s Animals needs help.

“Many of our long-term foster dogs benefit from meeting new people or spending time exploring trails or being out in the community,” Aska’s Animals’ website says.

After a decade of animal advocacy in the valley, Langman, now with her dog Bullet (her rescue who was shot in the head multiple times before Langman took him) by her side, is known by the community as a friend to all animals and has no intention to slow down.

Contact Julia Hornstein via valley@jhnewsandguide.com.

PEAK PETS • JACKSON HOLE NEWS&GUIDE, Wednesday, June 16, 2021 - 7

LIFESTYLE

Cragging with canines? Play by the rules Owners must make sure their dogs are safe, well-behaved and allowed in the climbing area.

By Billy Arnold

K

elsey Wellington thinks her 2-yearold pooch Rosie is “almost the perfect crag dog.”

She’s mellow, doesn’t bark much and doesn’t lose it when Wellington, 29, chalks up, squeezes her feet into tight climbing shoes and ascends the sport climbing walls around Jackson Hole.

Some dogs, like Wellington’s late black lab Vincent, become anxious (understandably, maybe) when they see their owners 50 feet in the air.

“I never even had to teach her ‘You stay here, I’m going to come back,’” Wellington said. “She just instinctively trusted that I would.”

The only thing that makes Rosie “almost perfect” — not outright perfect — her owner said, is that she does occasionally tangle with other dogs, and bark at new people approaching the wall.

And that, for Wellington, comes down to a question of management.

Climbing, as almost any longtime crag master can tell you, is growing more popular. Movies like “Free Solo” and “The Dawn Wall” have propelled people into the sport, though mostly in gyms.

And while the number of people climbing outdoors has remained relatively constant per the Outdoor Foundation’s 2020 Participation Report, around 4.5 million people climb outside annually.

Combine that with pet ownership data (the American Pet Products Asso-

ciation estimates roughly 48% of Americans own at least one dog), and you get an idea of how many climbers might have a canine companion.

But deciding whether — and how — to bring a furry sidekick to the crag is another story.

Some people don’t like crag dogs and don’t appreciate barking, canines’ scuffles or pooches sitting on rope and getting in the way of a belay.

So being a respectful crag dog owner requires balancing various rules and etiquette.

Rules about how to handle your pet beneath a bolted, rock face vary based on the jurisdiction.

The National Park Service, U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management all ask owners to manage their dogs differently, for example. And the park service bans them outright on any undeveloped surface.

And then there’s any number of environmental factors to consider, like whether your dog plays well with others and how hot it might be where you’re going.

Carl Pelletier, who has been climbing in the area since the late ’90s and never had a dog in that time, said he doesn’t think there’s too much of a crag dog culture in the valley.

But the valley is surrounded by worldclass climbing locations where it’s more pronounced.

“I really haven’t experienced it too much,” Pelletier said of Jackson Hole.

“I experience it more at Lander, when I go down to the Sinks or something like that.”

But Pelletier said he has had a negative experience with a dog owner in Jackson Hole, at Blacktail Butte, home

RYAN DORGAN / NEWS&GUIDE

Roosevelt, better known as Rosie, hangs out at the crag with her human, Kelsey Wellington, south of Jackson.

to the primary sport climbing walls in Grand Teton National Park.

The person, a longtime local, Pelletier said, brought their dog to the crag, disregarding the rules barring pooches from the area. And that rubbed Pelletier the wrong way.

“A disregard for the rules that are established,” he said, is what “irks” him.

Pelletier said he’s seen unleashed dogs “go crazy” on each other in Lander, and he’s sensitive about out-of-control dogs around his 5-year-old.

“It makes me a little more sensitive,” he said. “All dogs seem to just go right towards him.”

Wellington is aware of concerns — and complaints — people have about crag dogs.

80 Wyoming Dogs

She’s been at crags where dogs, as she put it, are being “a--holes,” and people start whispering things like, “Why did they bring their dog here?”

And she’s seen the comments on Mountain Project posts where people become upset about how people are managing their pets.

But the argument in her mind, as in Pelletier’s, is about following the rules.

“The argument is less over whether or not you should bring your dog to the crag,” she said, “versus whether or not you follow the rules of that crag.”

Wellington, like Pelletier, doesn’t like it when she sees people bring their dogs to Blacktail.

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8 - PEAK PETS • JACKSON HOLE NEWS&GUIDE, Wednesday, June 16, 2021

LIFES

Brooke Danahy and AJ Cargill have been friends for many years and spend their time together trail running and backcountry skiing, so their dogs, Captain and Gus, became fast buddies as w

A tail of three From trail running to steak tartare, Jacksonites run the gambit. Often their fourlegged friends join in the fun.

By Evan Robinson-Johnson

I

EVAN ROBINSON-JOHNSON / NEWS&GUIDE

Bret Mosher hangs out with his furry friend Sammy at Cowboy Coffee. The 3-year-old Pomeranian enjoys leftover porterhouse bones and trips on the family’s private jet.

n a town where there are nearly as many dogs as people, the lifestyle of those canines can be as diverse as their owners.

For the part-time homeowners, shuttling across the Intermountain West and flying private across the country, their pooches fall on the poodle side of the spectrum, enjoying sips of Bailey’s on the rocks and rides in Luis Vuitton’s finest. Then there are the ranchers, whose dogs run free, seasoned by snow, mud and livestock companions. Some see the “classic Jackson dog,” as the backcountry companion, but the truth is all sorts of canine companions call this valley home.

“Just like people, dogs qualify for the ‘different strokes for different folks’ motto,” said Jess Farr of the nonprofit PAWS. “Some dogs thrive in a mega-mansion being fed only the finest of canine kibble and never getting dirty, while others prefer the more backpacking lifestyle of being outdoors and on the move 24/7.

At the end of the day the necessity that all of these dogs have in common is the need for

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PEAK PETS • JACKSON HOLE NEWS&GUIDE, Wednesday, June 16, 2021 - 9

STYLE

BRADLY J. BONER / NEWS&GUIDE BRADLY J. BONER / NEWS&GUIDE

well.

Bullet, an aptly-named cattle dog, has been living the peaceful life on a Victor farm since he was rendered blind after being shot by a previous owner.

e Jackson dogs: To every pooch his own

ship with people.” visit some of these stories.

Pomeranian

can’t come to the phone right now, cking for a trip to Paso Robles. ht he scarfed down a porterhouse g for a selfie with the chef. It was a re for his liking, but that’s OK. He bone anyway.

ybody knows Sammy. ey don’t know us, they know Sammy.”

erywhere he goes. He’s frequently stopped by airport security, not for breaking the rules but for an impromptu photoshoot.

“He is so famous, even in Vegas,” owner Lilly Mosher said. “Everybody knows Sammy.

They don’t know us, but they know Sammy.”

Originally named Marshmallow for his allwhite fluffy fur, the spoiled Pomeranian now has a dusting of tan and a custom leather harness.

Right now he’s gracing wine galas in southern California, but he’ll be back in the Cowboy State later this month to check on the construction of his new summer home in Alpine. The lake views are everything he’s been hoping for.

He’ll still find time to hang out with his favorite baristas at Cowboy Coffee, charming locals and visitors alike.

“He makes people so happy. People just light up,” Mosher said.

— Lilly Mosher Farmer’s Fortune POMERANIAN MOM

his Instagram influencer status and rivileges, Sammy is not a millennial t a 3-year-old Pomeranian. eddy bear physique and a squishe-lolling visage, Sammy (known to @sammyhbear) is an icon nearly ev-

Living a quieter, less coddled life over the pass is Bullet, a herder rescue who has been through his share of hard knocks.

Shot six times by his former owner, the fiery young chap has made a remarkable recovery thanks to some kind-hearted humans who believed in him. He’s permanently blind, but his new home, Aska Langman’s farm, gives him plenty of room to run.

He has a reliable crew of playmates ranging from goats and pigs to Loki the pit bull.

Luckily the local horses don’t seem to mind the little guy running into things — which tends to happen a lot. Langman won’t rearrange the furniture for fear of it messing up Bullet’s navigation.

Understandably, he has a bit of a temper and will sometimes bite guests if he doesn’t know them. With his sensitive hearing he’s also a quick and ready barker. And boy can he shed.

For the most part, though, life on the farm is pretty simple. He wakes up, has his usual breakfast, then scrounges for other meals out in the pastures. Most days that means straight up poop.

“Just because he’s blind doesn’t mean he can’t do all the normal dog things,” Langman said.

One simple pleasure he and Sammy share — nighttime snuggles in their owners’ beds.

And even the most adventurous Jackson dogs start their days with queen-sized snuggles.

Dynamic Duo

Captain and Gus are best friends and adventure buddies.

The Chesapeake Bay retriever and fox red Lab, respectively, are matched in size and energy — whether on trail runs, mountain bike paths or backcountry powder.

Luckily their moms, Brooke Danahy and AJ Cargill, are also on board with the whole “getting outdoors” thing.

When Captain feels like showing off, he’ll dive for rocks in the Snake River, staying under for so long he’ll sometimes end up with an ear infection. So Danahy has Jackson Animal Hospital on speed dial.

Gus is a bit more conservative. Since Cargill’s first dog tore its ACL while out on a ski adventure, she’s tried to take things a bit slower with her current companion. But for the former free skiing world champion, a slow day is still a good 10,000 steps more than most.

“As long as you spend a lot of time with them, they pretty much tune into your lifestyle,” Cargill said.

Her 3-year-old Lab came from a sprightly local litter, born down by Game Creek. Sometimes he’ll see his brothers and sisters around town or out on the Snow King slopes.

Like other Jackson pooches, this duo loves to be out on public lands, romping alongside horses when possible. They’re a bit sad to not have access to all the trails in the national parks, but for now tearing through Cache Creek is a satisfying alternative.

Contact Evan Robinson-Johnson at 7325901 or ERJ@jhnewsandguide.com.

10 - PEAK PETS • JACKSON HOLE NEWS&GUIDE, Wednesday, June 16, 2021

ODDITIES

KATHRYN ZIESIG / NEWS&GUIDE PHOTOS

Jackson Hole Goat Yoga instructor Hannah Saunders, right center, leads the group through various stretches as pygmy goats wander through the class at Willow Bend Ranch. The business has been hosting classes since the summer of 2019, offering the unique experience of practicing yoga alongside a herd of energetic pygmy goats.

Yoga goats lead way to health, oneness Adding domestic animals makes for an amusing twist to traditional Indian practice.

By Mike Koshmrl

T

wix was friendly and food-driven, but the little fella’s real motivation for hanging out seemed to be our shadows.

It was a warm Saturday morning and the androgynous-to-me little goat (didn’t inspect the undercarriage) was panting. Time and again, Twix plopped himself down time and again in the shade cast by the contorted body of Dan D’arco, a high school pal of mine who was visiting Jackson Hole. The black-andtan goat named after a candy bar was one of about a dozen pygmies that roamed a grassy enclosure outside the Willow Bend Ranch, which sprawls out in view of majestic Beaver Mountain.

This was goat yoga.

“When I came here, I thought, ‘Jackson Hole doesn’t have goat yoga.’”

— Caroline Carpenter GOAT YOGA GURU

“We’re going to start in the cat-and-cow pose,” instructor Hannah Saunders told the group. “Just take a moment to wiggle around.”

The class of 11 yogis complied, while Caroline Carpenter discreetly walked a circle around the group, graham crackers in hand. Her goal with the snack was to engage the goats and get them to interact with the humans who were down on their hands and knees.

When the blue heeler-sized goats cooperated and hopped up onto a classmate’s back, laughter erupted.

Carpenter is Jackson Hole Goat Yoga’s owner and

A goat stands atop Kate Benning while she participates in a Jackson Hole Goat Yoga session. Benning, an Alpine resident, tried goat yoga for the first time that day. “The goats were much lighter than I expected,” Benning said after the class concluded.

founder, and she got into the game as a business opportunity. A Texan who moved to the valley a few years ago, she had previously been exposed to goat yoga, an idea pioneered in Corvallis, Oregon, five years ago. It has since swept the nation.

“When I came here, I thought, ‘Jackson Hole doesn’t have goat yoga,’” Carpenter said. “We should start it!”

And she did. Operating out of her parent’s wagyu beef cattle ranch, Carpenter raised 20 Nigerian dwarf goats, though she since then sold off half the herd.

Public classes are offered every Saturday morning for $46 throughout the summer, but most of her business is private events.

“I usually have three to four privates throughout the week,” Carpenter said. “The Girl Scouts are coming out next week.”

The venture has grown. When Jackson Hole Goat Yoga launched in 2019, a class of 10 was about typical. This summer Carpenter’s classes, capped at 30, are See GOAT YOGA on 11

PEAK PETS • JACKSON HOLE NEWS&GUIDE, Wednesday, June 16, 2021 - 11

Lisa Wood stretches her arms to the sky while goats wander through the class in search of treats and backs to jump on at Willow Bend Ranch. Jackson Hole Goat Yoga has been hosting classes since the summer of 2019, offering the unique experience of practicing yoga alongside a herd of energetic pygmy goats.

GOAT YOGA Continued from 10

selling out with some regularity.

For most people, goat yoga is all about the novelty, taking some selfies and having a good time. A majority of goat yoga practitioners, Saunders told me, are not every-week customers, but people passing through the valley to see what it’s all about. Our class was a mixed bag: a young New York couple traveling the west ahead of medical school, a Star Valley family and my high school friend from Minnesota.

Eventually the distraction of the goats waned, and I was able to get into the flow of the fairly aerobic Vinyasa practice that Saunders led us through.

In lieu of the soothing music that’s usually background noise in a yoga gym, our ears were treated to the sounds of pygmy goats munching on grass, the occasional goat cough and bird song. I found doing

yoga outdoors in the morning sun surrounded by a bunch of goofy little animals to be quite pleasant.

My past stints doing yoga have been mostly motivated by the physical benefits: stretching muscles that are otherwise sparsely used, and building core strength. But I’ve also relished what yoga does to my brain, and I always seem to walk away less stressed than I am going in.

With goat yoga I found both those benefits held true. Plus, I got to feed graham crackers to a goat named Twix — at least until another goat sniffed out and raided the stash hidden under my mat.

Before taking off, Dan and I gulped down some refreshing, complementary mimosas.

Jackson Hole Goat Yoga: 10/10, do recommend.

Contact Mike Koshmrl at 732-7067 or env@jhnewsandguide.com.

WE WILL

KATHRYN ZIESIG / NEWS&GUIDE PHOTOS

A curious pygmy goat approaches Lexi Christian as she participates in the Jackson Hole Goat Yoga class. Christian, along with her mother, Amy Christian, were visiting from Orlando, Florida, and decided to give the unique yoga class a try during their trip.

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12 - PEAK PETS • JACKSON HOLE NEWS&GUIDE, Wednesday, June 16, 2021

RESCUE

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By Jennifer Dorsey

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hings weren’t looking good for Moxie, a peppy little Texas pup who loves people but didn’t have any to call her own.

The 1-year-old, 10-pound Italian greyhound was found as a stray, and unfortunately shelters in her home state are so overcrowded that many dogs are euthanized.

Lucky for Moxie, she got a new lease on life on June 5, thanks to Dog Is My CoPilot, a rescue flight organization co-founded by former Jackson Hole orthopedist Peter Rork.

She was one of 90 dogs and cats transported from several shelters in the Dallas/Fort Worth area to nonprofits in Utah, Idaho and Wyoming, where they will be cared for until their forever homes are found.

“We only fly animals that are at risk to locations where they’d never put down a healthy animal,” Rork said.

Moxie landed at Jackson’s Animal Adoption Center, which takes animals each month from Dog Is My CoPilot flights. Some of her fellow furry passengers went to Aska’s Animal Foundation in Victor, Idaho, and the Teton Valley Community Animal Shelter in Driggs, Idaho. PAWS of Jackson Hole welcomed an older mixed-breed dog, Suzy Q, for its SeniorPaws program, and Kara Pollard of Dog Is My CoPilot fostered pit bull mixes Rolly and Polly before they headed to Montana.

Dog Is My Copilot transports about 1,000 cats and dogs a month, using volunteer pilots — including Jackson’s Dr. Brent Blue — and never charging for its services. The June 5 transport not only gave 90 animals a new

PHOTO COURTESY PETCO LOVE

Dog is My CoPilot Executive Director Kara Pollard greets Rolly, one of the pups brought to Driggs, Idaho, on a recent dog airlift.

life but also celebrated a $750,000 grant from Petco Love that will give the nonprofit additional lift as it looks to expand beyond the dozen or so western states it now serves.

“It kind of blew us away,” Rork said of the investment. ‘It really gives us legs in terms of helping us scale up.”

Chelsea Staley, director of lifesaving for Petco Love (known at one time as the Petco Foundation), said her organization funds animal welfare organizations in the United States to the tune of more than $30 million a year.

Dog Is My CoPilot stands out for the amount of the grant and for the type of work it does.

“They are really an exception in who we

CRAG DOG Continued from 7

“It really pisses me off when I see people doing it,” she said. “That’s a time when it specifically says, ‘Do not bring your dog.’”

The concern, if rules about pets aren’t followed, is that a crag could get shut down.

“There’s a million other places you can go with your dog,” she said. “Don’t ruin it for everybody.”

So Wellington does her best to be respectful. That’s as simple as picking up Rosie’s poop — her owner said humans should be more respectful with their poop at crags, too — not taking her into wildlife-dense areas, and checking the rules for wherever she’s going. It also

fund. … There are a handful of really creative organizations like Dog Is My CoPilot that are moving animals from high-risk areas to other areas,” Staley said.

Operations like Rork’s are saving animal lives, she said, and that includes the ones recently flown out of Texa. At some of the underfunded and overcrowded shelters in Texas and the South, 85% of “live outcomes” are the result of the animals traveling to other places.

“None of that is possible if there are no transports,” Chelsea said.

At the Animal Adoption Center, Moxie’s way station, demand for pets has been huge.

2020 was a historic year, with 470 adoptions

involves leashing Rosie when she’s walking past other dogs or when another dog shows up to keep her from getting snippy, which Wellington knows she can.

Sometimes she will leash Rosie in a rudimentary fashion: Sticking cams in a crack, and tying her off.

But she also tries to make sure Rosie’s comfortable.

She brings food, water and something for the dog to drink out of. And on days when it’s too hot, Rosie stays home.

“Dog owners need to be cognizant of that and provide their dog with adequate shade,” Wellington said.

“Because the walls get hot. They bake.”

Rosie mostly just “hangs out” while her dog mom climbs.

“She’s a little curious,” Wellington said. “She’ll go

versus the typical 240. As of early June, Executive Director Carrie Boynton said, there had already been about 200 adoptions in 2021.

Dog Is My CoPilot “has been a connector for us to animals that are in dire situations that are beyond our reach otherwise.”

That ensures that pet lovers in the Tetons find a selection of potential adoptees to choose from. The Texas shelters can supply a variety of canines, from big brawny types to little guys and gals like Moxie.

With the Dog Is My CoPilot transports “we are able to meet the needs of the adopters here,” Boynton said.

And those new pet owners feel good knowing they are saving cats and dogs that might have been doomed.

“Our adoptive pool likes being part of this bigger movement,” Boynton said.

In 2019 Petco Love gave Dog Is My CoPilot a $250,000 grant, a much-welcomed sum for an organization that, in Rork’s words, was “flying on a shoestring.”

The cash injection enabled the nonprofit to add another plane and enlist more volunteer pilots: “Now we’re flying 1,000 animals a month,” Rork said. “We just couldn’t do it without Petco Love.”

As Dog Is My CoPilot enters its 10th year in operation, Rork is looking to branch out to the eastern U.S., and the new grant will put some wind beneath its wings.

“Right now we do 11 or 12 western states. ... Because that’s the reach of our aircraft,” he said. “Now we are looking at basing a second aircraft in Atlanta.”

He plans a demonstration rescue mission out of Atlanta in the fall. By next spring he hopes to be flying twice as many animals each month. And he credits Petco Love’s support.

“That was a game changer,” he said.

Contact Jennifer Dorsey at jennifer@ jhnewsandguide.com or 732-5908.

sniff some things out. She’ll say ‘hi’ to other dogs. She’ll say ‘hi’ to other people, but then she’ll just lay down.”

And, despite the back and forth, and all there is to think about before she brings Rosie with her, Wellington said she thinks dogs play an important role at the crag.

“I think they’re there to help people make friends,” she said.

Rosie — and her generally calm vibes — have only been an asset at the crag, in Wellington’s mind.

“She’s actually a very popular crag dog,” she said. “Everybody just wants to pet her because she’s so chill.”

Contact Billy Arnold at 732-7063 or barnold@ jhnewsandguide.com.

Access Fund’s recommendations for cragging with canines The Access Fund has put together a list of dos and don’ts for crag dogs. Here they are.

Crag Dog Quiz: Are you and your dog ready?

•I have checked the rules and regulations ahead of time to make sure my dog is allowed at the climbing area.

• I have a leash or tether to restrain my dog if needed or if land rules require it.

• I will keep my dog out of the way of belayers, spotters, and other people’s gear.

• I have adequate food and water for my dog’s day out.

• I have plenty of poop bags and plan to clean up after my dog and pack it out.

• My dog responds consistently to verbal commands and can be controlled around other people and dogs.

• My dog shows no signs of aggression toward people or other dogs.

• My dog doesn’t bark and whine incessantly.

• My dog doesn’t dig or chase wildlife.

How do I know if my dog is allowed?

Dogs are not allowed at every

climbing area, so know the rules before you go. Do some online sleuthing and figure out who owns the climbing area. Check the area page on MountainProject.com or do a quick Google search of the area you’ll visit.

It’s also wise to know the guidelines for public lands.

National parks are the most restrictive when it comes to our fourlegged companions. Dogs are prohibited from backcountry areas (with some very rare exceptions) and are allowed in front-country areas (like developed campsites, parking lots, roads, paved paths, and scenic overlooks) only if they’re leashed or “under physical restraint” at all times.

U.S. Forest Service lands typically allow dogs in developed recreation areas and on interpretive trails, but they must be leashed at all times.

Read about what the Forest Service has to say about bringing your dog.

Bureau of Land Management lands have the least restrictive policy concerning dogs, requiring leashes only where habitat or wildlife restorations exist.

State parks and local

government lands vary widely but typically require your dog to be leashed.

Check regulations before heading out to climb with your pup.

Federally designated wilderness areas usually allow leashed pets unless the area is inside a National Park or restrictions are posted.

If you’re not sure what type of land your favorite climbing area is on and you can’t find it on the internet, it’s best to leave your dog at home.

When to leave your dog at home • If you’re climbing multipitch routes and can’t be on the ground to supervise your dog and make sure its needs are met.

• When you’re visiting a popular climbing area with lots of other climbers, confined staging areas, or known wildlife concerns (rattlesnakes, bear, bees, etc.).

• If the land manager prohibits dogs or if you can’t get a clear answer on whether they are allowed.

• If the day is hot and the approach is long. Dogs that bake in the sun typically dig down to cooler soil, creating increasing levels of erosion at climbing areas.

SOURCE: ACCESS FUND

RYAN DORGAN / NEWS&GUIDE

Roosevelt, better known as Rosie, hangs out at the crag as her human Kelsey Wellington belays a friend south of Jackson.

PEAK PETS • JACKSON HOLE NEWS&GUIDE, Wednesday, June 16, 2021 - 13

RYAN DORGAN / NEWS&GUIDE

Kuni began trying to escape through the cat door once she saw her humans leave through the garage to go skiing.

ANXIETY

Continued from 3

port it is for people to take baby steps with their dogs, taking the time to train them and acclimate them to their owners’ absence. You can’t just expect them to be able to mentally and emotionally process sudden separation when you’re suddenly gone.

“A lot of people kind of go too big too soon, where they’ll throw a dog in a crate and leave for eight hours,” Goetz said. “And that’s like a ginormous step compared to, ‘OK, I’m going to crate my dogs when they’re tired and they have something to chew on and I’m going to walk out of the room for 20 seconds and come back.’ That is the size of the steps that we need to take a lot of time.”

While Goetz said that she and others in the canine behavior field have seen an uptick in the number of calls they’ve received about distressed dogs, another interesting consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic — and one not many people

might think of — is lack of human socialization for young dogs and puppies that may have been adopted at the onset of the pandemic. Owners may have properly trained their dogs to be accustomed to the owner leaving, but many people haven’t had others over to their homes, so dogs might be jarred when suddenly there are visitors, she said.

“What we’re starting to see is a lot of dogs who are super fearful with visitors to the house, because they never had this experience, and now they’re adults and a little less flexible than puppies can be,” Goetz said. “So, I’m foreseeing that we’re going to see a lot more behavior issues where it relates to people and things that young dogs haven’t been exposed to. ...

I think we’ll probably see more of that as a fallout from COVID, compared to just time alone, though I think there’s definitely going to be some time alone issues.”

Contact Tim Woods at 732-5911 or town@jhnewsandguide.com.

Freedom & Safety for your dog.

Peace of mind for you.

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As much as we love our four-legged FUR-ENDS, national parks are not always the best place for them. A good rule of thumb is that a pet may go anywhere a car may go, including roads, road shoulders, campgrounds, picnic areas, and parking lots. Dogs are not allowed on trails, pathways, inside visitor centers, or in park waters.

For more IN-FUR-MATION about pets in the park, visit go.nps.gov/petsingrandteton or talk with a ranger.

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14 - PEAK PETS • JACKSON HOLE NEWS&GUIDE, Wednesday, June 16, 2021

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