Dog-paddling, book-signing at Wag'en Tail Ranch

April 2, 2009 1:44:03 pm | by Diane McCartney | Wichita Paws |

Jaime Oppenheimer/Eagle file photo

The Splash Park at Wag’en Tail Ranch in Valley Center will host an open swim day for dogs and a book-signing by author and dog trainer Joel Silverman on April 11.

When author and acclaimed animal trainer Joel Silverman asks “What Color Is Your Dog?,” he’s not wondering whether it’s black or brown, yellow or red, or white with black spots.

Silverman’s new book, which he will sign copies of April 11 at Wag’en Tail Ranch in Valley Center, teaches people to train their dogs based on five canine personality types, or “colors.”

Silverman, reached on the road Tuesday on part of a 90-city book-signing tour, said “What Color Is Your Dog?” teaches, first and foremost, the importance of “taking time to develop a relationship with your dog prior to training.” Because “when a dog wants to please you, wants to make you happy, training is 100 percent easier,” he said.

The book’s first chapter, Silverman said, teaches dog owners how to identify their pet as one of five canine personalities, or “colors.”

Red is the “incredibly off-the-wall” dog, “the craziest you can imagine,” Silverman said. Orange is high-strung, jumping on guests and constantly pulling on the leash. Yellow, “what I call ‘mellow yellow,’ is the perfect dog,” Silverman said. “We’ve all seen them.” Green is apprehensive, and blue is “shy and timid, afraid of everything.”

“The whole point is that you would never train a ‘red’ dog like a ‘blue’ dog,” Silverman said. “The way you walk, the way  you talk, the way you move, the tools you use, are like night and day.”

As the dog progresses in training, the goal is for it to move toward the middle, or “yellow,” he said.

The book focuses on four behaviors — sit, stay, come and the word “no” — Silverman said, “and five ways to train that behavior.”

At the Wag’en Tail event, which starts at 10 a.m., Silverman will demonstrate training techniques with Foster, a terrier mix he rescued five years ago from the Orange County, Calif., animal shelter. “He’s just a great dog” who’s “really, really smart,” he said.

He’ll then talk about his history as a trainer, which includes 32 years of working with animals — from training killer whales at Sea World, dolphins at Magic Mountain and birds, dogs and cats at Universal Studios in California; training animals for commercials and movies (most recently “A Good Year” with Russell Crowe and a Jack Russell terrier named Sunshine); and appearances on the Animal Planet shows “Good Dog U” and “Faithful Friends.”

Silverman will then answer questions from the audience, “hopefully helping people with their pets,” he said.

He’ll also be signing copies of “What Color Is Your Dog?,” which will be available for sale for $21.95. The book will be in bookstores later this summer, Silverman said.

At 1 p.m., the Splash Park at Wag’en Tail will open to all dogs for an open swim. Free hot dogs and soft drinks also will be available.

Wag’en Tail owner Stacy Miles said she and Silverman “have been friends for a while,” and when he asked her if there were any events going on in Kansas that he might want to attend, she decided to create one.

“I’ve been wanting to do an open swim day, where people can come for free and enjoy the water park,” she said.

The indoor park includes a 16-by-20-foot zero-entry swimming pool, with fountains, whirlpool jets and a waterfall, where dogs can “exercise, play and splash,” Miles said.

It’s normally open to dogs boarded at the Wag’en Tail kennels but is also available by appointment for pooch parties and for dogs to swim for exercise.
All dogs with current vaccinations are welcome to the April 11 open swim day and book-signing, Miles said.

“You don’t have to sign up, just show up,” she said. “It’s a party you and your dog can enjoy. And it’s all free."

If you go
OPEN SWIM DAY AND BOOK-SIGNING
What: Open swim day for dogs and book-signing by author and animal trainer Joel Silverman; demonstrations by Silverman and his dog Foster. Dogs must be current on all vaccinations.

Where: Splash Park at Wag’en Tail Ranch, 6106 W. 69th St. North, Valley Center

When: 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. April 11

How much: Free. Books will be available for sale.

For more information, call 316-755-1461 or visit www.wagentail.com or www.companionsforlife.net.