Page 8 - Dog-Harmony Life Summer 2021 V3Q2

editor’s letter

An Important

Mission

hen I stumbled into Dog-Harmony’s first
Wlocation in Santa Rosa Beach in 2017, I wasn’t
sure what to expect. I had just moved here, and without a
job lined up, I was searching for something to fill my time
until I found the right fit for my career. It became the most
rewarding activity I’ve ever spent time on, and I’m not just
saying that because it was during this time that I met my
little bug, Finn. But, Finn’s story is a perfect example of
why Dog-Harmony, its mission and the way this magazine
helps accomplish that mission are so important.
Finn came to Dog-Harmony from another over-
crowded rescue, and almost immediately we wondered
if we’d need to send him elsewhere. He was terrified
of people. He’d back himself into corners and refuse Janie Schmidt
to be touched. As a volunteer, it was really tough to see
and frustrating to work with. Thankfully, Dog-Harmony Editor-In-Chief, Creative Director
is a rescue of a different breed, and Nancy and other editor@dog-harmonylife.org
volunteers spent hours working with him. So much so,
that when I took him home for a weekend, I decided I
wasn’t going to bring him back. He was too perfect of a
dog to not add to our family.
Unfortunately, not every dog gets a chance like Finn, Or, what if they had access to tools to help ease behavior
and that’s not the fault of other rescues or the wonderful issues, like separation anxiety, they may be facing right
volunteers and staff who work there. Shelters and rescues now? Would we be seeing this influx of returned dogs?
across the country are overcrowded, and now with That is why Dog-Harmony is here, and that is why this
reports that shelter populations are starting to rise once magazine is important to the mission. From learning
again as people return to work, Dog-Harmony’s efforts to what types of vacations you should take your dog on to
reduce this population through education continues to be working on crate training and more, I think you’ll find an
extraordinarily important. abundance of information in this issue that can make you
While I believe education can solve a number of a better pet parent. Taking the content of Dog-Harmony
our world’s current problems, it’s easy to draw a line Life to heart and implementing it into your life with your
between the education of those adopting animals and dog is a great start.
pet populations. For example, imagine if everyone Producing this issue has been an absolute honor, and
who adopted a pet at the beginning of the pandemic I’m excited to work on many more in the future. I’d love to
had fully understood they weren’t just making a hear your feedback, so please always feel free to reach out
commitment until they went back to work, they were and make a suggestion as we move forward with this new
committing to 14 plus years. arm of Dog-Harmony’s educational mission.

6 dog-harmony life • summer 2021