Dog Training for Homeless Shelter Residents

Dog trainer Steffen Baldwin, our newest My Dog is My Home volunteer, at work with Weingart Center's shelter residents and their dogs. 

Dog trainer Steffen Baldwin, our newest My Dog is My Home volunteer, at work with Weingart Center's shelter residents and their dogs. 

To promote co-sheltering on a wider scale, we need to make sure the few programs that do accommodate animals on site are positive environments for both clients and staff. We can't ignore the worry of greater public health risk when animals and people share congregate spaces. To mitigate the chance of bites, dog fights, and other liabilities, we are encouraging the providers we work with in the Los Angeles area to invest in behavior training for shelter residents with dogs.

In late June, our Animal Care Liaison (Dana Teel) provided a Pet Care 101 overview to animal guardians residing at the PATH and Weingart Center shelters in LA. This was the foundation for a longer-term dog behavior program delivered by our volunteer trainer Steffen Baldwin of Save Them Dog Training. Follow his good work (and ours!) on Instagram: Steffen / My Dog is My Home.

Dana Teel, My Dog is My Home's Animal Care Liaison, delivering Pet Care 101 training to Weingart's residents with animals.

Dana Teel, My Dog is My Home's Animal Care Liaison, delivering Pet Care 101 training to Weingart's residents with animals.