Dog yoga an unusual offering at Petstacular

Chuck Armes relaxes his 10-month-old English bulldog Diesel during a dog yoga class at the Petstacular pet fair at Rainbow Library, 3150 N. Buffalo Drive, Feb. 23. The class was led by Amy Herzlich, owner of Innovative Pet Therapy.paul bieschke jr./view Paul Bieschke Jr./ViewPamela Mears and Kashmir, a Nevada Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals rescue dog, participate in the dog yoga class at Petstacular. Advertisement

Pampered pooches had their own yoga class at the Rainbow Library on Feb. 23. That was the day the Clark County-Las Vegas Library District held its Petstacular, a canine centered event, at the 3150 N. Buffalo Drive facility.

The dog yoga and massage class was led by Amy Herzlich, owner of Innovative Pet Therapy.

Herzlich has been teaching pet yoga for about five years. This was the first time she conducted a session in a library setting. While Petstacular took over the outdoor amphitheater, the dog yoga class was held inside for a quieter atmosphere.

Herzlich began by telling the human participants to lower their own energy levels to start, then proceeded to teach them how to ask permission before beginning the massage on their canine companions.

With a life-sized stuffed animal serving as her example, she guided participants through various relaxation motions.

The canine participants, for the most part, seemed to take to it easily. Different techniques that Herzlich teaches were named the puppy pillow, which had the owners pressing their torso to the dog to breathe in unison, leash remover, which was a rhythmic rub of the back muscles, and fur striping, which involved light, feathery touches.

Also on hand at the Petstacular event were representatives of the Metropolitan Police Department's mounted horse unit, John Fredericks, weatherman on KVBC-TV, Channel 3, and his dog LJ, as well as vendors selling pet portraits, doggie treats and access ramps for the canine height-challenged.

Pamela Mears, a legal assistant, took part in the yoga session with her mixed breed dog, Kashmir, adopted from the Nevada Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA).

"His dad's a drummer, so we named him after a Led Zeppelin CD," she said.

"He gets to hear a lot of rock music at home, so he needed this soothing atmosphere today."

Connie Gutierrez, an at-home mother, brought her two golden Labrador retrievers, Scout and Sonresa. Gutierrez said it was her first time trying yoga and that her dogs were too excited to practice relaxation techniques.

"All they wanted to do was play," she said. "But when the instructor took him up front and did some techniques on him, you could tell he really enjoyed it."

Lori Wilson, a finance specialist, came with her three dogs, named Sheba, Basha and Casanova, all Shibalnu breeds.

She does yoga regularly at home and also gives her dogs special attention.

"I learned that even though I massage them at home, I'm not doing it enough," she said.

Herzlich gave Wilson more specific information after the class and said the dogs had sensitive paws.

She also showed Wilson how to lift up their front feet to relieve pressure on the spine.

No one breed, Herzlich said, is more apt to take to yoga and massage, as "each animal is emotionally different."

She added that some purebreds appear to be more prone to genetic physical ailments than mixed breeds.

For more information on Herzlich's business, visit www.iptanimalcare.org.