Every year National Dog Day is celebrated on August 26th. This celebration was created in 2004 by Colleen Paige, a Pet & Family Lifestyle Expert and Animal Advocate. She created this day for all dogs to be celebrated and also to draw attention to the number of dogs in shelters and to encourage adoption to those who have yet to find a place to call home. August 26 is significant to Colleen because it is the day her family adopted her Sheltie when she was 10 years old.
Colleen also uses the day to draw attention to the multiple ways in which dogs contribute towards our society. From putting their lives on the line to helping law enforcement track down bombs or drug dealers to providing assistance for those who need it, dogs play an important role. Nowadays dogs can identify cancer in patients and maybe even more encouraging in our current COVID-ridden world is the fact that dogs can now be trained to detect the COVID virus.
With my significant involvement in the world of therapy dogs, as well as dogs in general, I cannot imagine a world without dogs. The role of working dogs is huge but, for the majority of dog owners/ lovers, it is the role that dogs play as mental support, furry therapist and giver of unconditional love that really shines through. There’s a reason dogs are known as “man’s best friend”!
- “Dogs are not our whole life, but they make our lives whole” Roger Caras
- “A dog is the only thing on earth that loves you more than he loves himself.” Josh Billings
- “Dogs have a way of finding the people who need them, and filling an emptiness we didn’t even know we had.” Thom Jones
- “As anyone who has ever been around a dog for any length of time well knows, dogs have enormous patience with the limitations of humankind.” Unknown
So, although August 26th is the official National Dog Day, in my opinion, every day gives us the opportunity to celebrate these remarkable creatures.
There is another angle to National Dog Day which you might want to consider as well. In North America as well as in a number of countries, particularly in Asia, dogs are still very poorly treated. Whether this is due to poor sanitary conditions, inadequate supply of food and drink or an uneducated approach to looking after dogs, more still needs to be done to improve the lot of these dogs. Research websites to find out how you can help those dogs that are not being allowed to live the quality of life they deserve and take action where you can.
Take a moment on August 26th to reflect on the gift of having a dog and give thanks to the joy your dog brings.
As the saying goes “In a perfect world, every dog would have a home and every home would have a dog”.
