June 27, 2022
I have been meaning to post this ever since it was published at the Love,Dog site last December, but time being what it is, and often getting away from me, it’s taken me this long to get to it. Oh, and then there was that unfortunate encounter with a dog that knocked me for a loop I’m still recovering from. But that’s another story for another day. Meanwhile, do enjoy my take on the good dogs of Southern California.
The Dogs of L.A.
Besides a car, there are two required accessories for survival in L.A. (acronym for both Los Angeles and Legendary Alienation)–a therapist and a dog. I’ve had two each in the years I’ve lived here and I never questioned the efficacy of the latter.
L. A. itself has an off-leash energy. Ever since its founding, Angelenos have struggled to get it under control while quibbling over who’s going to feed and clean up after it. The result: while it has oodles of charm, it can feel all over the place. But our canines help us navigate. Dogs are our mobile comfort zones and portable neighborhoods. Wherever our dogs go, we go with greater enthusiasm, purpose and sense of adventure. And unlike our agents and editors, they almost always take our calls.
We love our dogs as much as we love ourselves. Whether it’s a rescue pit bull or a purse size chihuahua (said to be the city’s most popular breed), they are MVPs on our self-care teams and we reward them accordingly: Canine Rekei (Japanese energy healing to lower stress, ditch “emotional blockages” and “calm racing minds”) Massage, Intuitive Healing Therapy and Sound Healing (to cleanse those stinky chakras). Welcome to Doggy Lotus Land. I won’t tell you how many dog psychics and communicators I’ve met here, a popular second or third career for aspiring creatives, nor will I share, thanks to canine-client privilege, what we’ve discussed.
Personally, I would recommend sheepherding for your working dog’s racing mind. It’s offered at multiple rural locations throughout the region, but we prefer the secluded ranch in Malibu.
Our dogs remind us of the need to get out of our cars and onto the sidewalks and trails, where the winds are famously warm and the characters can be cool, but almost everyone melts to our four pawed friends.
Thank Hollywood for the dogs of our dreams. The film and television industry gave us Rin Tin Tin, Toto, Lassie, Old Yeller, Frasier’s Eddie, Marley and beyond. Human stars have fallen hard for their furry co-stars, with everyone from Judy Garland and Toto to Robert Downey, Jr. and a French bulldog co-star, asking to adopt them. Few handlers ever agree, no matter how big the star. Dogs have their careers to think of!
Angelenos love to name drop and L.A. dogs provide enough celebrity six degrees to satisfy. My late Tibetan Terrier’s groomer cared for Marlon Brando’s pup, my HOA had to ask the adult child of a celebrity to boot their problem pooch, my mini-Aussie and I did therapy visits with a famous elder activist and when we marched with the Patriotic Pups in our local Fourth of July Parade, I admit, it was as much to see the famous faces sitting curbside as it was about canine pride.
In our suburban city, where it’s easy to get used to being uncelebrated, it helps immeasurably if your dog greets you like a rock star just for making a trip to the mailbox. Dog parks here are like AA meetings were in the 90s, a place to network and socialize, and all the country club dog lovers need.
The homeless, of which the city has far too much of the nation’s share, often have dogs as companions. They can be their family, a vital form of emotional shelter, and something they have in common with the housed. It’s a reason those of us with roofs over our heads can’t look away. Dogs make all of us more visible and more human.
Just try, Brett Easton Ellis taunted with a billboard in his L.A. based novel Less than Zero, to “Disappear Here.” Even if we wanted to, our dogs won’t let us.
