It’s not just humans that need time to decompress, dogs do too.
It’s one of the driving factors behind McKenzie Yerxa’s dog adventure service, Galbraith Trail Hounds, that offers off-leash hiking to trained pups out of her property, which backs up to Galbraith Mountain.
Trail Hounds is a service in Bellingham that provides an outlet for dogs to be themselves.
How it works
Trail Hounds has a roster of 40-50 dogs that hit the trails twice a day in groups of five to six.
Before a dog gets to hike with a pack, it must do a meet and greet where it’s evaluated on criteria from Trail Hounds’ list of requirements.
“One of the biggest criteria is that the dog is already trained and is a trail dog. We are not certified dog trainers,” Yerxa said.
To get your dog trail-ready is a matter of increasing their comfort with distractions they’ll see on the hike and training recall, according to dog trainer Olive Walton, owner of Bark Trek and a former co-worker of Yerxa.
Dogs can be trained personally or with the help of a trainer. Two Bellingham resources who help with training are Nosey Dog Training and Tails-a-Wagging.
After dogs get evaluated, it’s playtime.
Trail Hounds picks up dogs with its van in the mornings at the client’s convenience. The dogs are grouped by neighborhood and picked up accordingly to reduce time spent in the van. From there, they go to Yerxa’s property.
Once on the property, the hiker double-checks the dog’s non-shock GPS trackers and starts the two-hour adventure.
“My biggest tagline is that hiking is magic,” Walton said. “You will see your dog be themselves in ways that you’ve never seen them be themselves before.”
Meeting your dog’s needs
Even if you walk your dog daily, for miles on end, it might not be enough.
Here’s why: Traditional walks typically don’t meet a dog’s mental or physical enrichment needs. They don’t allow dogs to engage in species-typical behavior, calling for the importance of decompression, according to the Wisconsin Humane Society.
“Decompressing is slowing down, taking stuff in, getting the free movement, having agency, and then stopping and smelling the roses,” said Walton.
It’s particularly beneficial for dogs who suffer from anxiety and stress, according to the Wisconsin Humane Society.
In a decompressed environment, dogs primarily use their sense of smell, which is calming and serves as mental enrichment. Both are important in tiring out a dog.
Decompression walks are great, but unfortunately, it’s not in the cards for most people to take their dog on one every day.
“On the surface, it’s like, ‘Oh yeah, someone’s just lazy and can’t walk their dog.’ There’s so much more to it than that and so many reasons people need this service,” said Jenn Radford, a hiker for Trail Hounds.
Kimberly Thulin, a Trail Hounds client, has a young, energetic dog named Habanero. He’s a mix of american shepherd, blue heeler, and golden retriever and Thulin has been using Trail Hounds since 2021.
“Habanero needs exercise pretty much every single day, either a good walk or a good run, and I work full time,” said Thulin.
Those who can exercise their dog every day, still likely miss giving their animal the decompression element it needs.
On your walk, if the dog’s head is elevated and scanning the environment for stimulation, it is not calming or relaxing for them, according to the Wisconsin Humane Society.
“When they’re out in the woods, just being dogs, we are not training them,” Yerxa said. “They are away from their house, just being dogs. And that is 100% what we want.”
Ben Magnus (he/him) is a sports and recreation reporter for The Front. He is in his first year at Western, majoring in visual journalism. When he’s not taking pictures, he enjoys spending time with his dogs, running, and skiing. He can be contacted at benmagnus.thefront@gmail.com.
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