This month, the meeting has been cancelled. But join us on June 1 at the library for a recap of all our exhibits during May. Click the link at left for the agenda.

Take our survey

One of our objectives this year is to increase membership and involvement. In order to learn when the majority of members who want to come to our meetings can do so, we have posted a short survey on our web page.

So, if you haven't been to our page on the website lately, click on our logo above and take our short survey. We want to know what day of the month/week would be best for you to attend a meeting. You'll see the survey box on the right.

Off-Leash Day at Gumbo Jail

We submitted a proposal to St. Louis County for a dog-park-for-a-day event at the decommissioned jail on Chesterfield Airport Road. We have been informed that a soccer association currently leases the yard, but so far have been unsuccessful at discovering the name of the association that we need to contact.

If anyone reading this knows who leases the decommissioned jail and how to contact them, please email Diane Thomas.

Look for our exhibit at Bark in the Park.

West County D.O.G.S will have a table at Bark in the Park next to the Dogparks of Greater St. Louis table, for double the dog park fun. Our table will include an informational display about off-leash recreation and samples of our promotional T-shirts and our new poster.

Our efforts to locate and fund a local source for T-shirts and posters was unsuccessful, but all our merchandise will still be available at Cafe Press, so the exhibit will include directions to visitors for buying our shirts and other items through the Shop link on the D.O.G.S. website.

Carol Panter, D.O.G.S PR coordinator, reported that the landscape architecture firm of Corban and Goode, on behalf of the New Town Development in St. Charles County, has proposed that D.O.G.S. consult with them to consider where and how an OLRA will fit into the development.

Town and Country

A lively discussion took place at the Town and Country Parks and Trails meeting in April that revealed a glimpse of the attitude toward off-leash recreation by the members at the meeting.

There was disagreement about what was necessary and how the amenity could realistically be added to the Town and Country park system. The disagreements revolved around the typical topics: expense, administration, safety, maintenance, construction, design, location, etc. But the discussion was positive and the members were open to the idea, even those that were unconvinced of the necessity of off-leash recreation in Town and Country.

The discussion ended with a request to put the topic on next month's agenda, so that significant time could be devoted to a discussion of the details.

Chesterfield

The Parks, Recreation, and Arts Citizens Action Commission in Chesterfield, included an off-leash recreation area as a recommended amenity in the Chesterfield park system, but it didn’t receive as high a priority as we had hoped. Mike Casey, Chesterfield City Councilman, suggested that West County D.O.G.S. contact Public Works to request a place on their agenda in order to give a presentation on off-leash recreation.

Diane Thomas has contacted Darren Dunkle, Director of Public Works. Mr. Dunkle responded that when a meeting date and time was decided he would contact us if they can include our presentation.

Bark in the Park is the biggest dog festival in the Midwest! Each May, more than 2000 residents of greater St. Louis and their dogs converge to compete in dog contests, run an agility course, do a little shopping and, of course, take a trek through the park. Proceeds benefit the Humane Society of Missouri.

Enjoy games for kids and pets, pet photos, and pet contests. Meet Damione Lewis of the Rams. Meet Randy Grimm and his miracle dog Quentin. Randy will be signing copies of his book Miracle Dog. Support Stray Rescue of St. Louis by purchasing an autographed copy. If you already have a copy, bring it along for Randy to sign.

West County D.O.G.S. will have a table and will host the game Dunking for D.O.G.S.

Join West County D.O.G.S. for a fun day with your dog at St. Charles County Parks. Enjoy free entertainment, get free information, see exhibits by pet interest groups. Watch a demo by St. Louis Disc Dogs. Watch your dog romp and play off-leash with other dogs. Win prizes!

Carolyn Scott, a nationally known canine freestyle instructor and founding member of the Musical Dog Sport Association, will be conducting a seminar at the Tom Rose Training Academy.

Carolyn Scott and Golden Retriever Rookie are the Ginger Rogers and Fred Astaire of the Canine Freestyle world, and their partnership demonstrates a masterful combination of training, teamwork, music, and movement. One of the founders of the Musical Dog Sport Association and involved in this sport since 1996, Carolyn has been featured in Parade Magazine, Dog Training Weekly, Show Site and the books, Living With A Golden Retriever and Working Dogs. She has appeared on Good Morning America, The Jane Pauley Show, Regis & Kathie Lee, and The Howie Mandel Show.

Carolyn and Rookie are the only U.S. team to have earned the MCSI title of Musical Freestyle Dog Excellent. And despite his having turned a senior 12 years of age in January 2005, Golden Rookie continues to kick up his heels.

The seminar curriculum includes choosing music and choreography, training techniques, creating your team style, creating smooth transitions, freestyle moves and attitude, presentation, and creativity.

All West County D.O.G.S. meetings are open to the public.

Peer-to-Peer Training this month will give "An Introduction to Evaluation of Community Programs," focusing on the importance of discovering the interests of community leaders, evaluators, and funders to achieve useful evaluation data.

If you would like to prepare for the discussion, the Community Tool Box has a couple of helpful pages. Go to the Community Tool Box link, "Introduction to Evaluation," for a good overview of why groups need to check their progress through evaluation.

• Greeter. Greeters offer visitors to our table information about the benefits of off-leash recreation and the features of off-leash recreation areas, or dog parks. In addition, they represent us to the general public and encourage visitors to join our group. We have a number of experienced greeters on board already for both Bark in the Park and Pet Carnival, but if you have never volunteered for something like this before and would like to try, either event is a perfect opportunity. Both will be well-attended and newbies don't have to worry about being without an experienced partner.
  
  The Bark in the Park exhibits will be open from 8 A.M. until 1 P.M. Volunteer for at least an hour or more, if you can.
  
  
• Set up/break down greeter. We would like the first hour and the last hour greeters to help set up or break down our exhibit. If you have a little more time to spend, we would appreciate anyone who can give us a hand carrying display boards and other paraphernalia needed for our exhibits.
  
  Set up for Bark in the Park begins at 7 A.M. Break down begins at 1 P.M.
  Set up for Pet Carnival begins at 7:30 and must be completed by 9 A.M. The event starts at 10.

West County D.O.G.S. needs ongoing help in these areas:

• Municipal liasons--If you live in one of our West County communities, we could use your voice when we approach your town council or board of aldermen. A municipal liason maintains routine contact with town councils or boards of aldermen and keeps on top of decisions affecting parks and potential sites for off-leash recreation.
  
  
• Brochure distribution--We need individuals to help distribute and monitor the supply of brochures at selected locations in West County. We need one for each of the following municipalities: Ballwin, Chesterfield, Creve Coeur, Ellisville, Manchester, Town and Country.

But we do try to create thoughtful programs for committed citizens. If we keep trying and following our programs and strategies, we can change our little corner of the world. Our vision of a system of off-leash areas with a range of sizes and features that serves the needs of a diverse population can become reality.

Email: westcounty@stdogparks.org

To unsubscribe, reply to this email and put "UNSUBSCRIBE" in the subject line.