A Chesham charity is hoping to benefit from the 5p plastic bag levy.
Tesco teamed up with Groundwork to launch its community funding scheme, which sees grants of £4,000, £2,000 and £1,000 being awarded to local community projects. Three groups in every Tesco region have been shortlisted to receive the cash award and shoppers are being invited to head along to the following Tesco stores to vote for who they think should take away the top grant: Tesco Amersham, Tesco Hill Avenue, Amersham and Tesco Express Little Chalfont read more
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Ah, May. The fresh smells of new leaves and sprouting greenery. The pinks and purples of azaleas, rhododendron and lilacs. The longer days and warmer temperatures. May is the month when the outdoors beckon and many of us seek the peaceful trails at so many of the wonderful parks throughout the region. For many of us, that also means bringing our best four-legged friends along as our trail-hiking companions. As we begin another outdoor season, however, we should remember some basic dog-walking etiquette. Nothing ruins a trek as completely or as quickly as an encounter with a canine that isn’t quite as well-behaved as its owner professes. Anyone who has walked the trails at Haley Farm or Bluff Point state parks, Barn Island Wildlife Management Area, Pachaug State Forest or other natural areas has no doubt experienced a scenario such as this: while walking quietly, with or without an accompanying leashed dog, an exuberant unleashed dog bounds around a corner from the opposite direction and a flurry of leaping and barking pursues. The owner may call the pet from a distance, but there is a delay before he or she appears and regains control of his or her pet. Then there are dog vs. dog encounters. Even friendly dogs can be aggressive when leashed. Many will seek to protect their human from approaching unleashed dogs. Many dogs also fear other dogs and fear can trigger aggressive behavior. read more Hikers and their dogs are invited to join the Pacolet Area Conservancy (PAC) and the Foothills Humane Society (FHS) on Saturday, May 13 at 10 a.m. for a 5.5-mile hike at Chestnut Ridge Heritage Preserve in Gowensville, S.C. PAC’s director of stewardship and land protection, Pam Torlina, will lead the hike from the trailhead off of Oak Grove Road to the South Pacolet River.
Participants interested in walking a shelter dog for the day are encouraged to contact FHS. This is a great opportunity to give a shelter dog a break from the shelter and allow them to enjoy a nice, socializing walk in the woods. If you are interested in walking a shelter dog, please contact Sam Austin of FHS several days before the hike for an interview and pairing with the appropriate dog. There is a limit to the number of dogs that can come, so contact Sam right away. Sam can be reached at 828-863-4444, or email [email protected]. read more Most of us know that we’re supposed to walk our dogs at least once a day, and yet studies have shown that 20 percent of us don’t even bother. If you want to start walking your dog every day it comes down to getting motivated and making it a habit. Walking isn’t just good exercise for you, it’s also important for your dog.
Here are some tips that will make your walks smoother and more enjoyable for both you and your dog. Use a front clip harness if your dog pulls on leash Dog collars and harnesses that clip on the back can promote more pulling. These harnesses actually help train your dog to ignore you and pull you because when you pull on the leash to try to gain some control, it directs the dog’s attention away from you. Getting a front clip harness is the best investment I’ve made when it comes to making walks easier. Keep in mind that the right harness won’t solve everything. You still need to devote time to training your dog to walk nicely Let your dog sniff around for mental stimulation Dog walks are about more than just physical exercise. The time you take to walk with your dog is usually the only time they get to go out and explore each day. Give them a little extra time to sniff around. If you don’t want to stop every five seconds or have your dog sniffing around in your neighbor’s yard that’s fine. You decide which areas are appropriate, and safe, for them to explore. Loosen their leash for a few minutes and give them a chance to take in all those smells. Those smells provide your dog with stimulation and information and it’s their way of keeping track of what’s going on in the neighborhood. You’d be surprised at how exhausting a nice sniffer walk can be for your dog compared to a brisk 15 minute walk around the neighborhood with no sniff breaks. We often focus on just the physical aspect of walking, but keep in mind that the extra mental stimulation your dog gets from sniffing really adds up. read more The 8th annual Amherst Animal Hospital Tails on Trails Community Dog Walk will be Saturday, May 13.
The walk's mission is to give the community a fun way to show off their dogs while raising money and awareness of Albert’s Angel Fund. Tails on Trails distances are 1K, 4K, or Lazy Dog (not walking). The walk to begins at the U.S. High Altitude Sports Center, off Continental Drive, at 10 a.m. for the 4K and 10:30 a.m. for the 1K. Preregister at www.amherstanimalhosp.com or register at the walk from 9 to 9:45 a.m. the day of. Registration fee is $10, and all proceeds go directly to Albert’s Angel Fund. A pet costume contest and a pet trick contest start at 9:30 a.m. The walk will be held rain or shine. Registered walkers will receive a goody bag with sample products and pet information. Random prize drawings are held during the event. To date, Tails on Trails has raised over $30,000 for Albert’s Angel Fund. The fund gives adoptable Butte animals a chance at a happy and healthy life by providing them with life-saving, life-changing medical care. in over 10,000 cities in all 50 states, the online platform Rover offers pet owners the ability to connect with walkers and sitters with the ease that characterizes the growing sharing economy. There are over 100,000 people who earn money by working with the platform and Rover is just one of many "pet sharing" sites.
But according to the Colorado government, people who watch pets for money are breaking the law unless if they can get licensed as a commercial kennel—a requirement that is costly and unrealistic for people working out of their homes, often as a side job. This is not simply a case of an outdated law failing to accommodate modern technology. There are more nefarious motives—those of special interests who want to protect their profits by keeping out new competition. As Americans For Tax Reform's John Kartch argues, it is time to add "Big Kennel" to the list of special interests that support ridiculous occupational licensing schemes. read more Twice a week, rain or shine, a pack of up to 30 dogs runs free through the woods alongside their owners at Guides Canins, a dog training centre in St-Lazare located among 76 acres of mixed forest. Chelsea Du Jardin, an event planner and trainer at Guides Canins, said the hour-long walks are a great way to socialize dogs and practice recall. “If you are in a group of dogs and they take off after a squirrel you are almost always assured they will come back,” said Du Jardin. While the 5km trail network is not fenced, she said the trails are set far back from the road. According to Geneviève Lachance, who has taken her 10-month-old “chug” (a chihuhua/pug mix) on the walks, the guided off-leash trail walks offer a unique alternative to city dog parks for energetic and social dogs. “It’s insane. The dogs are running everywhere and jumping on each other and playing and walking. It’s crazy,” said Lachance. “Everybody needs a nap after, including the humans.” Lachance said that although it may feel chaotic, there is a structure to the walks. While the dogs are free to run and play with each other, they always stay with their human. “Everyone looks out for each other’s dog to make sure they don’t take off, hurt each other, or leave poop behind,” she said. Trail access is free for those who are enrolled in classes at Guides Canins, and $5 per day for drop-in visitors. Monthly and annual passes are also available. The year-round guided group walks are on Tuesdays at 2 p.m. and Saturdays at 4 p.m., and are cancelled only in the event of extreme bad weather. Pet owners can choose whether to walk dogs on- or off-leash. Dog owners are also welcome to enjoy self-guided trail walks during daylight hours. The trails are also used for canicross, bikejoring and skijoring, sports that involve running, cycling or skiing behind a harnessed dog. In addition to the trails, Guides Canins offers dog boarding, grooming, agility classes, training workshops and other activities for dog-lovers. Upcoming events at the centre include a week-long agility competition from May 13 to 28, featuring obedience, traction sports, frisbee, rat sports and scent detection, and a dog breeding seminar on July 1-2. In June, Guides Canins will host a provincial dog agility competition at the Complexe Sportif St-Lazare. “Our mission is really to create a better relationship between the human and their four-legged friends,” Du Jardin said. BOURNE –Part of the fun of outdoor exploration for dog owners is having their faithful companion by their side. There are a number of dog-friendly trails around the Buzzards Bay region to take your four-legged friend for some fresh air and exercise. Just a skip away from the Cape Cod Canal, the Carter Beal Conservation Area in Bourne is a great place to take a scenic walk with your leashed dog. The mile-and-a-half loop trail is on property that protects the Herring River. The Cape Cod Canal Bikeway is also a great place for exercise for humans and dogs. Stretching for seven miles on the north side of the canal and 6.5 miles on the south side, you can walk for as long or as short as you like. Located next to the Shining Sea Bikeway in Falmouth, Wing Pond Woods features two miles of trails through the woods and around a working cranberry bog. The 22-acre Bourne Sisters Woodland is a quiet place to hike, with a hilly forest and connected loop trails. And Beebe Woods in Falmouth features traverse hilly, rocky woods on a maze of trails, which include neighboring Peterson Farm. |