Canine Zen. Yoga dog mat? Have you read about the new Doga movement? It is about achieving harmony with your dog while doing yoga. It is a good idea, but what about us big dogs that like to jump around a little? We need something a little more energetic I think.

So I'm thinking about starting what I like to call Cuddle Exercises or Cuddlcise. Good idea? BOL

Obesity in pets is a real problem. Often when a mom brings home a new baby, the pet gets fat according to this New Baby Means Fat Pet story on Petside.com. This city dog (me!) had a few months there (okay, six) where I was on the heavy side (ten extra LBs), but fortunately I responded quickly to a change in diet and exercise.

How did I do it? 

This is the start of National Assistance Week. Does this mean, PL will assist in my bath? Will he help me dry off? Hmmm, the answer would be...

Annie Brody founded Camp Unleashed in 2004 after successful careers in book publishing and environmental education. She has a B.S. from the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Cornell University where she studied initially with the goal of becoming a veterinarian.

Dogs have been her greatest passion since 1993 when she adopted her first dog from the NYC ASPCA--a lost golden retriever, whom she named Hero--and embarked on her ongoing journey to understand the extraordinary nature of the human-dog relationship.

In 1999 she moved from Manhattan to upstate New York so that Hero could live a more natural life including being able to run free off leash and so that Annie could invite more dogs to live with them. The delight she and Hero experienced inspired her to start Camp Unleashed so that other dogs and people would have a safe natural place to go to be together, without leashes!

What is your idea of perfect happiness? I love an early morning walk through the woods with my dogs, ending up in a pond for them to swim in. Perfection would be having someone else to wash them off afterwards.

Lisa Spector is a concert pianist, Juilliard graduate, and canine music expert. By combining her passion for music with her love of dogs, she co-created Through a Dog’s Ear, the first music clinically demonstrated to relieve anxiety issues in dogs. Lisa is the pianist on the Through a Dog’s Ear music series.

As a lifetime dog-lover, Lisa has served as a puppy raiser for Guide Dogs for the Blind and is actively involved in agility and musical canine freestyle. A co-founder of BioAcoustic Research & Development, Lisa held a principal role in the groundbreaking music and canine research conducted with 150 dogs in 2004-06. She is a pet blogger for  Care2.com, an online community of over 16 million members making a difference in animal welfare and the lives of pets, and her blogs have been seen on the front page of Digg. She also is an expert guest blogger on Positively.com and DogStarDaily. Expanding on her desire to improve the lives of dogs and their people, she recently took on a position of local director for Camp Unleashed in California. 

As a concert pianist, Lisa has won first prizes in prestigious national piano competitions and has performed in China, Poland, Spain, France, Italy and throughout the U.S. She shares her home and her heart with Sanchez and Gina, both career change Labradors from Guide Dogs for the Blind.

What is your idea of perfect happiness? Any activity in which I am truly 100% in the present moment, enjoying life. Whether I’m dancing in a Zumba class, playing the piano, hiking with my dogs, in agility practice or a class, or attending a fabulous symphony concert, if I’m present, it is perfect happiness. That’s one of the things I continually learn from my dogs, as they are masters at living in the present moment.