The Central BarkerIt's a Dog's World!

We would like to thank all of you for completing our Customer Satisfaction Survey. We got a lot of great feedback, we heard your requests, and we’ve made some improvements.

We now have a second webcam in the Patio Room. You asked for it, and we got it.  Now you can see what your four-legged friend is up to from breakfast to bedtime. We also have faster refresh rates for both of our cameras.

Central Bark is mobile.  Now you can watch your dog on the go with your iPhone.  Download it here at http://www.macworld.com/appguide/app.html?id=382306&expand=false

We are expanding the grooming department. We heard how important those post-play salon treatments were so we have added more grooming and we’re now offering haircuts and full service grooming on Saturdays as well as weekdays.

Thanks again for all the helpful input.  We hope you enjoy the new services.

Join us for Central Bark’s Puppy Love Party to celebrate Valentine’s Day.

When: Sunday February 12th
Time: 1pm
Where: Central Bark – 838 Poplar Place S
Who: People and friendly leashed canines.  Valentine’s attire strongly encouraged.
What: Games, goodies, photos, & much more.

See you there!

Here’s a little video to remind us to snap out of our turkey induced coma, get up and moving, and get our dogs some exercise.  Thankfully most of us don’t have the doggie equivalent of an olympic hurdler on a caffeine high like the dog in this video, but remember that Fido still needs some action.  Of course, Central Bark is here for the best of both worlds, exercise for Rover while you remain comfortably on the couch.  Enjoy!

Alan and Ingrid of Animal Planet Photography will be here on December 4th and 5th to take beautiful animal portraits for the holiday season.  Here is some Q & A about the upcoming shoot.

What if my dog won’t hold still?  They don’t expect them too.  Their camera shoots at 1/6000 of a second.  They can capture even the briefest of poses.

How much does it cost?  The shoot is free.  You can select a single photo, multiple, or a package.  Prices depend on photo size and quantity.

How do I order?  You can see your photos as soon as they’re taken and select the ones you would like.

Can I be in it?  Absolutely.  They can do group photos with you, your dogs, and your cat if you would like.

How do I sign up?  E-mail us at info@central-bark.com or call us at 206.325.3525.

With our last training class being such a huge success, we are kicking off round two, and this time we are adding a new class into the mix!

Buddy Basics & Canine Good Citizen – This class includes all of the basic obedience cues (sit, down, off, stay, come, polite leash walking and polite dog-dog greetings) as well as prepares you to certify your dog through the American Kennel Club’s Canine Good Citizen program.  Certification is included in the cost.

Buddy Basic’s is 6 consecutive Tuesdays @ 7:30pm from 10/18 – 11/6     Cost is $130

Foundation Fido – Learn the techiques that pro sport dog trainers use to build that intense focus and stop-on-a-dime obedience that creates champion agility, flyball, weight pull, and obedience dogs.  Your dog will form a foundation of focus, self-control, and confidence that will prepare him or her for dog sports of off-leash control.  Class includes exercises like relaxed down-stays, long distance flying recalls (come!), immediate attention on cue and much more.  For specialized attention, maximum enrollment is 4 dog/handler teams.

Foundation Fido is 6 consecutive Wednesdays @ 7:30pm from 11/15 – 12/20     Cost is $120

For more questions or to enroll contact info@central-bark.com or 206.325.3525

And to see the graduates from last class click here.

Join us Saturday October 29th at 2pm for our first ever Halloween party at Central Bark!  There will be fun, games, prizes, costumes, and treats for our human and canine guests.

When: Saturday October 29th

Time: 2pm (to 4pm)

Where: Central Bark – 838 Poplar Place South, Seattle, 98144

Who: People and friendly leashed canines

What: Games, costume contests, bobbing for hot dogs, pie eating contests (for dogs), musical sit, dog and human goodies, photos, and much more!

The Seattle Humane Society’s annual Walk for the Animals and FidoFEST is fast approaching!  Here at Central Bark we are gearing up for a fun day of walking, mingling with other dog lovers, games, prizes, adoptions, shopping, sun (hopefully) and more at University Village.  Here are the details…

Date: Sunday September 25th

When: Walk is 10:00am & FidoFEST is 11:00am – 4pm

Where: University Village in Seattle

Cost: Event is free, walker registration is $30.  Proceeds go to the Seattle Humane Society.  Registration includes goodie bags with Central Bark coupons, t-shirts, and bandanas.

We hope to see you all there!

The Labrador Retriever is the most popular dog in the US for the 20th year in a row!!!

There has been a lot of talk recently about the raw diet. I personally used to feed it to my Lab, Indra, and she had a shiny coat, looked very healthy, and did nicely on it. Then I tried it with my Great Dane Truman, let’s just say, it did not agree with him, I won’t go into the gross details. So while at an event I spoke with a representative from Darwin’s Natural Pet and he offered to give Truman an opportunity to try it again, and I took him up on it despite the consequences.

The freezer box showed up with 20lbs of food and I was instructed to give Truman tripe to start out and adjust his body… I am not sure if you have ever smelled tripe, but it is the most unexplainable worst smell ever. The smell aside, Truman did not have any bad reactions. The tripe lasted a few days and then we began to start him on the meats. I had an assortment of duck, turkey, beef, buffalo, and chicken. Truman gobbled up the food immediately! My other dogs were very jealous. Truman had no stomach troubles and, as the owner of 2 dogs over 150lbs, one of the best benefits was that I picked up less poop. I am half embarrassed to say that, but it was a benefit! We encountered only one hiccup and that was when Tru began to lose a little weight, but I just upped the amount and he put the weight right back on. His coat looked nice and shiny and as a dog who is not always crazy about gobbling up his food- he couldn’t eat this fast enough.  I was very happy with this trial.

If I could afford to feed all my dogs raw I would because the benefits are great. Darwin’s has been so great and they were nice enough to offer this special to all our CB customers. Central Bark Coupon

I decided to add this little bit about Salmonella. If you have any questions comment below and I will be happy to answer based on my experience and knowledge.

There have been many pet food recalls lately for both dry and raw foods. And with the recent decision by the Delta Society to not allow dogs that eat a raw diet to be service animals there has been a lot of hype. What you need to know- no pet food is immune from salmonella. The good news is that common sense measures will help to prevent your risk of infection.  Wash your hands and bowls after every meal and do not leave raw meat out.  Do not prepare pet foods with the same utensils you use to handle human food. These instructions will help to minimize the risk for infection.