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National Shelter Dog Month, Real Conversations, and Showing Up for Dog Families
- k9HS - Carlos F Morales
- 5 days ago
- 4 min read
Picture this: You lose your job and your dog has a traumatic experience that changes their behavior, and you cannot afford professional training.
Every August 1, I celebrate DOGust. It is the “official” birthday for a lot of rescue and shelter dogs who came into our lives without a known history. If you’ve ever guessed your dog’s age, picked a birthday, or baked a slightly questionable dog cake, you get it.
DOGust, also known as Dogust 1st, was established in 2008 by North Shore Animal League America, the world’s largest no-kill animal rescue organization. It was created to honor dogs whose actual birth dates are unknown due to abandonment, neglect, or simply missing records. Giving these dogs a shared birthday might seem small, but it reflects something bigger about how we recognize and care for them.
For me, DOGust has always been more than a celebration. It is a reminder of how many families are out there doing their best without enough support.
That is exactly why I am hosting DOGust Ask the Expert every Thursday this August.
What I see every week
In my work here in Long Beach, I meet a lot of really committed dog parents. People who care deeply. People who are trying. And still, they are overwhelmed.
It is rarely about a lack of effort. It is almost always about a lack of access to the right information at the right time.
I see families struggling with leash reactivity who were told to correct it. I see new puppy guardians trying to follow five different pieces of conflicting advice. I see dogs labeled as stubborn or dominant when they are actually scared, overstimulated, or just not taught in a way that makes sense to them.
And sometimes those struggles build up.
Research backs this up. More than one million households in the U.S. rehome a pet each year, and behavior challenges are one of the most common reasons cited (Weiss et al., 2015; ASPCA, 2015). Many of those situations could have looked different with earlier, accessible support.
That is the gap I am trying to close, even in a small way.
What these sessions are really about
Every Thursday at 5:30 PM in August, I am opening up a free Zoom space where dog parents can ask whatever they are dealing with right now.
No pressure. No judgment. No expectation that you did everything perfectly.
Just real conversations about real life with your dog.
Here is how the month looks:
August 6: I will be answering general training and behavior questions. Puppies, leash walking, fear, reactivity, enrichment, all of it.
August 13: I will be joined by Stefanie Barone to talk specifically about reactivity and what actually helps.
August 20: Kaitlin Cowley-Deyoe will join us to talk about nutrition and how it connects to behavior and overall health.
August 27: Kristie Weist will walk us through how trick training can be used as meaningful enrichment.
What I hope you get out of this
If you show up, I want you to leave with something practical.
Maybe that is a clearer way to structure your walks so your dog is not constantly overwhelmed. Maybe it is a simple enrichment idea you can start the same day. Maybe it is finally understanding that your dog is not giving you a hard time, they are having a hard time.
For example, one of the most common shifts I help dog parents make is around reactivity. Instead of trying to stop the behavior in the moment, we focus on changing how the dog feels about the trigger over time. That means working at a distance where your dog can actually learn, and pairing those moments with reinforcement that matters to them. It is not flashy, but it works, and it is grounded in how learning actually happens.
An open invitation
If you have been stuck, frustrated, or just unsure what to do next, you are not alone. And you do not have to figure it out in isolation.
This is a space for dog parents to ask questions, learn something useful, and feel a little more confident moving forward.
You can submit questions ahead of time or join live and ask them there. Either way, you are welcome.
Read about the event, share and RSVP here:
References
Weiss, E., Gramann, S., Spain, C. V., & Slater, M. (2015). Goodbye to a Good Friend: An Exploration of the Re-Homing of Cats and Dogs in the U.S. Open Journal of Animal Sciences, 5, 435–456.
ASPCA. (2015). More than 1 Million Households Forced to Give Up Their Beloved Pet Each Year.
ASPCA. (2015). New Study Spotlights Need to Help People Keep Their Pets.
ASPCA. Position Statement: Keeping Pets and People Together.
About the Author
Carlos F. Morales, CPDT-KA, CDBC, is a force-free dog trainer and behavior consultant based in Long Beach, California. He helps families build safer, happier relationships with their dogs through modern, ethical, evidence-based training. He lives in a little house by the beach with his partner, three dogs—GoGo, Kiba, and Choji—and a sassy cat named Habibti.
