Week’s Review of Canine Social Media Jan #4

Welcome to the Week’s Review of Canine Social Media

Welcome to this Special Feature on the DoggieU K9 Blog for an update on this week’s dog-related social media from around the world. There are so many stories. Here we will share some of the best stories this week.

Enjoy & share them.

The First Dog of The Republic of Chile

• Meet Brownie, the mascot of Chile’s newly elected president, Gabriel Boric.
• Brownie was introduced via social media to the people of Chile.  This caused quite a stir as Brownie was introduced as the nation’s “First Dog.”
• On Instagram, Brownie said, “I assume the challenge of the position that has been entrusted to me by popular election, the First Dog. I promise not only to ensure the rights and caresses that dogs deserve, but also for all the pets of Chile.” This is the first message that was posted which had almost 300,000 followers in the first 2 days. 
• Brownie already had a Twitter account and after the election he highlighted his early plan:  “I want us to start with the animal welfare proposals!”
  
• He also initiated a video call with his ‘Argentine counterpart’, Dylan, the mascot of President Alberto Fernández. “Thank you very much, Dylan, for this conversation, we hope to advance in matters as relevant as responsible ownership and the coexistence of humans with us …”, reads the message attached to a screenshot of the call.

• Si usted puedes hablar o leer español, you can follow Brownie [here.]

Attention Gamers: There is a New World in Minecraft Marketplace. 

In Minecraft, players explore a blocky, procedurally generated 3D world with virtually infinite terrain, and may discover and extract raw materials, craft tools and items, and build structures, earthworks and simple machines.  Minecraft has been critically acclaimed, winning several awards and being cited as one of the greatest video games of all time.  It has allowed player/creators to create virtual environments for others to experience new realms, new opportunities and adventures.

The Real World of Dogs Enters the Virtual Game World

• Dogtopia, which is one of the nation’s fastest-growing dog daycare, boarding and spa franchises, announced a partnership with Razzleberries, a content creator on Minecraft Marketplace, to create a Doggie Daycare world in Minecraft.

• Doggie Daycare for Minecraft: Bedrock Edition will let players take over a realistic dog daycare. This world will test your skills in four mini-games where you hire your staff, take care of the dogs and discover 16 breeds of dogs. Now more than ever doggie daycare has become a necessity for families who adopted a pup during the pandemic as many people don’t have the luxury of working from home as often and need help with their pets.

• According to the game creators, “We hope Minecraft players get to see what it’s like and enjoy caring for a dog in this fun, interactive environment.”  Their creations have earned incredible reviews with more than 260 pieces of unique and innovative content that now includes a chance to run your own dog daycare.

• If you are a gamer and a dog lover, get ready, Doggy Daycare awaits you! If you are new to gaming, welcome, and enjoy the challenge and the fun.  [Link]

A Dog Learning New Tricks Can Present Challenges

• Aspen is 4 years old and upon arrival at the Austin Humane Society, staff discover that she is deaf and unable to respond to verbal commands.

• The ultimate goal for Aspen was adoption but being deaf can seriously diminish her chances. When prospective adopters came to visit, other dogs would make eye contact and wag their tails, but Aspen didn’t quite understand the interaction and her response was to look away or not engage the visitors.

• Some clever volunteers at AHS decided to teach Aspen sign language. So how do you teach a dog sign language?
• In taking on this challenge, the staff realized that when we train dogs we instinctively use some hand signals added to voice commands, like ‘sit’ with a hand gesture. They also realized that in getting a dogs attention, their name would be called or some training methods use a clicker as a positive reinforcement tool.  So they needed to establish a hand signal in sign language that would be the ‘clicker’ as if  to say ‘pay attention’ to what commands are next.
• It worked. For Aspen, her “clicker” was a specific hand gesture, like a thumbs up, paired with a treat to reward her for doing something good. That was the first command in a series of others, including “good girl” and a “watch me” command for Aspen to look at AHS staff and prospective adopters coming through the kennel.

• According the AHS staff, “our volunteers worked really, really hard with her to teach her sign language commands, and I think that really helped to make it easier for people to adopt her and to be able to realize, like, ‘OK, I can do this. This is pretty easy.”  Through AHS’s “Foster to Adopt” program, Aspen was able to meet and go home with several prospective owners to find the best fit for her. That perfect match came on Dec. 7, after a meet and greet with potential adopters turned into them returning the next day to formally adopt her. Everyone at AHS was excited for her, “we were just so happy that this special girl finally found her perfect match.” [Link & Video]