Dog Culture

If you saw a biker dude walking a Rottweiler with a spiked leather collar, or a Coco Chanel clone with a perfectly clipped Poodle on a Shantung silk leash, you would have little difficulty seeing how those dogs were a good reflection of their owners. But what about your own dog? What kind of portrait of you does your canine companion paint? You may not have thought about it, but the fact is that everything about your dog-its breed, size, personality, training, diet, grooming, and so on-reveals a great deal about you, for better or for worse.

Explore Old Town, the Pearl District and Downtown for a full day of doggie eats, sleeps, shops and spots in this laid-back west coast mecca.

Your breed revealed!

Owners bring their dogs here to test the dogs' instinctual behaviour on scent trails and in underground tunnels leading to quarry. They want to see if little Angus and Heidi can still do what their doggie ancestors were bred to do as early as 55 B.C.: go to ground and get rid of fox, badger, river otters, and other vermin that were wreaking havoc on their owners' land. Dogs that do well here can go on to participate in Earthdog Tests, Canadian Kennel Club (CKC)-sanctioned, non-competitive events leading to the titles Junior Earthdog, Senior Earthdog, and Master Earthdog. British Columbia held the first Canadian Earthdog Tests in 2002 and the Sea to Sky Earthdog Club now sponsors two sets of testing events each year.

Chances are, the answer is yes.

Many of the uninitiated scoff at the thought of dancing with dogs and yes, there is undeniably an element of the ridiculous to the sport, what with the inter-species dance team, tux-and-tailstype matching outfits and song choices like "Putting on the Ritz," but, as any attendee will attest, there is something both compelling and strangely moving about the performances-not to mention supremely entertaining.

Let's face it, modern dog owners are just as guilty as first-time parents when it comes to rambling on and on about their "kids." And while a good poop horror story makes for conversational common ground at any canine-centric soiree, why not show your range? The following cocktail party cheat-sheet highlights dogs that have made a significant impact on our common culture. A few minutes studying this list and you'll soon prove that it's possible to impress even the finest pedigreed pooch (and his/her sexy owner) with your best trick: speak!

Dog Weddings

Picture it. The rolling lawns of a Beverly Hills estate in California decked with tables for a posh afternoon English tea party. Chilled champagne with a plump strawberry is the drink du jour and the sounds of social chitchat and laughter are offset by a string quartet providing background mood music. Suddenly, a red convertible zooms up the driveway and out jumps a boisterous Golden Retriever barking madly. He rushes to the nearest white Iceberg rose bush and lifts his leg, narrowly missing the cellist. His pet parent, after handing her car keys to the valet, ambles over, pats her pup on the head and tells him to "go play" before heading off to greet her hostess and mingle with the other guests.

Family dynamics today are more complex than just Mom plus Dad plus two children. Many people are divorced or opt for a single lifestyle. Others remain childless, by chance or by choice. It is a lifestyle that makes close family relationships the exception rather than the norm. Into this void step our dogs, ready and willing to accept all offers of adoration and spoiling. More than simply companions, dogs are considered children in many households. So it follows that a fur kid's family tree branches out to include aunties, uncles, cousins, and, of course, the ultimate dispenser of spoiled affection-grandparents.