You may have seen them already: big and small, yellow ribbons tied to a dog’s collar or leash. No, the dog isn’t necessarily welcoming home a war veteran! The ribbon is sending you a very visible message through a simple and pretty medium! Think of a yellow stoplight telling you to go slow. The Yellow Dog Project is a global movement for parents of DINOS aka Dogs In Need Of Space. Having fostered quite a few DINOS, I know how difficult walking them through public spaces can be! For shy foster dogs, bringing them to areas with people was part of their socialization, but taking it slow as their trainer recommended wasn’t always easy. I had to always on the alert for overly friendly people who might, in their well-meaning way, bend down and try to give my fearful or shy pooch a rough pat on the head, sending them scooting behind my knees in terror. Through social media, physical awareness, as well as educational courses for kids and parents, TYDP hopes to remind people to ask before petting, to help owners of other dogs recognize a dog that’s not interested in meeting their dog, is sick, and other situations where a dog needs some extra space. “They are not necessarily aggressive dogs but more often are dogs who have issues of fear; pain from recent surgery; are a rescue or shelter dog who has not yet had sufficient training or mastered obedience; are in training for work or service; are in service; or other reasons specific to the dog.”
We’ve so happy to hear that TYDP flyers in different languages have been spotted in dog parks around the world! So how can you get flyers for your town? Flyers and tear sheets are available for free downloading at their website www.theyellowdogproject.com or you can purchase 100 pre-printed business-card-size posters, a bumper sticker, magnet, tee shirts and more. The Yellow Dog Project is a non profit organization, and all of the monies raised/donated are used to buy more material for ribbons, t-shirts for representatives, and posters for display.
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