PAWS of CNY was pleased to again attend the annual Advocates, Inc. summer picnic. Advocates, Inc. was established by a small group of caring families of people with developmental disabilities over twenty years ago. Today, the organization is dedicated to empowering individuals and their families to lead full and meaningful lives in their community. The organization celebrates its members annually at their summer picnic which was held on July 29 at Long Branch Park. Eight of PAWS of CNY’s therapy dog teams attended the event to give the over 300 participants in attendance an opportunity to experience the emotional benefits of pet assisted wellness services.
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On Tuesday July 28, Flo Anderson and her Shi Tzu Brutus, and Jessica Marabella from PAWS of CNY attended the Roxboro Elementary School’s Summer Fun Camp to share with the students information about PAWS of CNY’s therapy dog program.
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Thank you to all those who entered PAWS of CNY’s coloring contest. All of the submissions displayed creativity and enthusiasm. PAWS of CNY is pleased to announce our three winners:

Ethan Gargano
Category: Ages 1 – 4

Graziella Cullipher
Category: Ages 5 – 9

Hannah Spath
Category: Ages 10+

Click the gallery below to view their submissions. Thank you again to all those who entered and congratulations and thank you to Ethan, Graziella, and Hannah.

Think your dog has what it takes to be a therapy dog? We do too. Wondering if you could both benefit from a few training courses so that you ace the evaluation test? Our Therapy Dog Training Course registration is now open!
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By Danielle Basciano, CPDT-KA, CBCC-KA, ACDBC
Certified Professional Dog Trainer & Behavior Consultant
President, PAWS of CNY

Growing up we are taught that if something makes us uncomfortable, we have the right to say no. Have you ever been in a situation where you have felt uneasy or even threatened by someone invading your personal space? Likely your first instinct would be to increase distance by backing up. Maintaining personal space is so much the social norm that if a stranger were to run up to you at a park and throw his/her arms around you it wouldn’t be considered unusual if you were to scream out in alarm. More so if that stranger was much larger than you. Taking it up a notch, I can think of countless people who carry instruments of protection for events like these. Violence, to a degree, is considered acceptable by society in the face of a true threat.

So why is it, that when we are out in public with our dogs, we expect them to tolerate the very thing we have been taught to fight against? Not only do we expect our dogs to endure touching and hugging from strangers but we are utterly aghast if the dog tries to pull away or worse yet, growls and/or snaps.
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