The Buzz: A dog’s world

Tuesday, December 29, 2009

By Christie Koriakin

Jackson Hole, Wyoming - If Lindsay Goldring were standing on a cliff with a human teetering on the edge to one side of her, and a dog on the other, both about to fall off, who would she reach for?

“Knowing that the human would hold on longer, I would grab the paw and then reach for the human.” Goldring answered diplomatically, but notice that she reaches for the dog first.

Goldring, operations manager for the Animal Adoption Center, lives, breathes and dreams animals.

“Most of the time when I dream, I’m a dog saving another dog,” said Goldring “It’s outrageous and embarrassing.”

It’s not that Goldring isn’t a people person. She’s just an animal person to the extreme, even by the standards of Jackson Hole, a community where almost every local bank gives out dog treats as well as lollipops.

Goldring’s love affair with animals began early in her life, when she volunteered at a local shelter. From there she dabbled in ocean animals, helping to train Pacific white-sided dolphins and beluga whales and then she started a dog training service, calling the Inner Pup.

Last year she went back to her roots, focusing on the stray dogs and cats in the Jackson Hole area at the Animal Adoption Center. But her interest goes beyond just local dogs and cats and even beyond animals in this country.

In January, Goldring will travel to Pune, India, a rural town three hours outside Mumbai, to study with her dog-training idol, John Rogerson.

Rogerson is an international legend in the world of animal behavior.  Goldring calls him the “Cesar Millan of Europe.”

 “I think it’s really hard to find a mentor in dog training that you love and respect in all aspects, but he’s it for me,” Goldring said. “Learning from him will push me forward.”

In this exclusive and advanced class, Goldring will be in charge of a pack of 10 local dogs, for three intense weeks.

The pack will consist of the pets of the locals, most of which will have some type of behavior problem.

Because the class is small, Rogerson can cater the program to the individual needs of each of the participants.

“In my case, I don’t have much experience with aggression,” Goldring said, “so I asked for aggressive dogs.”

As one component of the course, the class will speak with locals about cultural aspects of dog ownership.

Goldring expects Indian dogs will have more independence than American dogs.
“An owned dog there could mean that the dog lives on the stoop in front of the house and is only fed and watered by the owner,” Goldring said. “I also know they have working dogs who work as herders or hunters.”

She wants to bring her international dog experience and her new training techniques back to the Animal Adoption Center.

Bringing this sort of outside knowledge to her staff and to the Center’s patrons is only part of a larger plan she has to expand the scope and presence of the Animal Adoption Center in Jackson.

Since taking over the position of operations manager last year, Goldring has changed the mission statement of the Center to include more community outreach.
The programs have expanded to include public seminars on dog training, and programs which involve community groups like the Brownies and C bar V.

Eventually Goldring dreams of turning her international interest in dogs into her own dog training travel television show.

But for now she is content to keep working towards creating harmony and communication between humans and animals.

“I think that we are far more connected to animals and to the Earth than we give ourselves credit for or choose to explore,” Goldring said. “If I can help people get back to those roots, then I feel like I have done my job.” JHW

Photo: Lindsay Goldring on the job with Burt, the Animal Adoption Center’s mascot. COURTESY ANIMAL ADOPTION CENTER

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