Kindness tour stop includes future dog run

It can be difficult traveling with pets.

Charmaine Hammond and her dog, Toby, are on the road right now promoting their Million Acts of Kindness tour. When it comes to taking care of Toby’s needs, there are specific things on the road that can make them stop or keep on driving.

On Sept. 10, she and Toby got to see the site for Humboldt’s first fenced-in dog run.

Hammond also writes and speaks about traveling with pets. When she met Humboldt Chamber of Commerce executive director, Debra Nyczai, at an economic development conference, Nyczai got talking about the new dog run.

“We started talking about some of the features of different communities that we had been to that had things like fenced-in dog runs at the visitors’ bureau, little things like that that make it easier for families traveling with pets,” Hammond said.

When Nyczai told Hammond about the future dog run, Hammond had to stop in to see it on their 15,000 kilometre tour.

“(We) wanted to come in and celebrate Humboldt becoming really dog friendly,” Hammond said.

The campground being on the main road is a very accessible feature of the city when you are traveling with pets, said  Hammond. By the time she got into the city, she still had time to take Toby for an evening walk.

Having a new dog run right by there is great, said Hammond.

“If you’re staying here for two weeks, it’s going to give the dog a chance to get socialized and feel familiar in a safe way in the environment,” she said.

Besides giving dogs a much-needed break and energy release, they can be safe in a fenced-in area while their humans check into the campground and do what they need to do.

Hammond’s road to her tour about about kindness and respect started in a very surprising place.

A correctional centre.

This is where she was motivated to bring kindness, respect and tolerance into the workplace and she noticed the change in the attitude of the inmates around her.

She took the same attitude into her next job as a  mediator in the corporate sector dealing with dispute resolution.

“I noticed the same thing, there was a lack of kindness in workplaces. It was leading to gossip and people feeling abused and harrassed,” she said.

She started public speaking about making safe and positive work places and schools.

In May 2014, she decided to take that message on the road for part one of her Million Acts tour, along with her dog, Toby. Now they go into schools and workplaces to teach their anti-bully message.

Hammond had a route in mind when the tour started out in Vancouver on the road to Toronto. Impromptu stops along the way made for a lively trip.

When Hammond took  Toby to her presentation, there was a brand new angle to the message that kids want to hear.

“They are eager to see and meet Toby. Teachers and principals tell us that the message sticks because it brings in a dog that isn’t perfect,” she said.

When Toby goes out for time outs, kids relate to that, said Hammond. They then have a discussion about making their behaviour more positive.

When Toby became obsessed with a kids blinky shoes at another presentation, Hammond and the kids found a respectful way to calm him down.

“Forty children all at the same time said, ‘Shush Toby’ and he just settled right down,” she said.

For children, this showed them how they can influence their environment, says Hammond.

Toby himself is pretty influential dog, with his own books and Twitter, Youtube and Facebook accounts.

He even has his own GoPro and the footage is rich, said Hammond.

“We’re three feet away from Toby on the other end of the leash...what we see is a completely different picture of what he experienced,” she said.

Up until Dec. 31, Hammond and Toby will be virtually visiting schools and workplaces  via Skype, live tweeting and Google Hangouts as soon as her current tour is done.

CORRECTION: In a previous version, the quote, “We started talking about some of the features of different communities that we had been to that had things like fenced-in dog runs at the visitors’ bureau, little things like that that make it easier for families traveling with pets,” was previously attributed to Debra Nyczai. Charmaine Hammond actually said it.