Settling Into Doga

When I bring up the idea of Doga, most dog-loving yogis express curiosity and excitement. Then, however, many quickly dive into the 101 reasons why they don't think their dog can do doga.  I hear things like:  "My dog is way too crazy." "My dog has too much energy." "My dog will be distracted the whole time."  Contrary to popular belief, these aren't reasons against bringing your dog to the mat, these are reasons for bringing your dog to the mat!

Doga is a partner practice between you and your dog. It is not about good behavior or bad behavior. It is not about struggling with your dog's wavering attention span in order to move through a seamless sequence. It is about creating a mind-body connection with each other. It is about cultivating mindfulness, letting go of expectations, accepting what is, and being present no matter what comes up. These are many of the benefits we work toward in our own yoga practice.  In doga, our pups simply help us to find them.

As the first step in your doga practice. Take some time each day this week to just be with your dog. Whether they're snuggled up on the couch, lying on the floor chewing a bone, or drinking from the toilet even after you've clearly expressed your disapproval of this action over and over again (LOLA!), just observe what comes up. Observe their experience of whatever it is they are doing. Are they wagging their tail? What is their breath like? Are they panting, licking their lips, yawning or showing other signs of agitation? Observe what their actions create in you physically and mentally. Do you tighten your belly, jaw, or fists when you observe them doing something you feel they shouldn't? What do you experience when they cuddle against you? Lick your hand, or even better, your nose? Work toward letting go of judgment and ideas of what your dog should do--both positive and negative. Just be with them in the moment.

There,  you're doing Doga! What a great team you and your pup make!

Lola happily sleeping with a secretly stolen shoe

What's Ahimsa To A Puppy?

Muse*Practice*Allay welcomes guest blogger Hannah Leatherbury! Hannah will be joining us online once a month and weekly in the studio! Welcome Hannah! Below Hannah examines how we can use the yogic principle of ahimsa to better understand and accept our furry family members.


What's Ahimsa To A Puppy?

I've known Daisy dog for all of four months and she continually amazes me. She's sweet, she's playful and she's smart. But there are two things that really unnerve me about Daisy: 1. She likes to chew on the edges of expensive rugs (sorry, slight tangent from my main point) and 2. She is EXTREMELY aggressive with her toys, especially the poor hedgehog in this video.

Reading "Inside of a Dog" right now, I am hoping to stumble upon a passage that will help me understand what the experience of destroying a feaux animal is like for Daisy so that I can reframe it as something other than pure aggression. Until I find that passage however, I am thinking of how my teacher describes ahimsa as non-judgement in addition to non-violence. It is that act of non-judgement - unconditional love - that reminds me not to expect my puppy to be a peacemaker, only to expect her to be herself.

Next on my list of things to do to better understand Daisy: doga... 

Anyone else tried it?


Hannah Leatherbury is a registered yoga teacher with the Yoga Alliance (RYT-200) and a blogger within the Yoga Journal Community. She received her training in Classical Hatha yoga in 2009 and has been teaching ever since. Her interest in movement and wellness evolved from a childhood filled with dance training in tap, jazz, ballet and modern coupled with a post-college urge to stay active and healthy. She has a B.A. in Creative Writing from Goucher College. You can contact her via her blog http://community.yogajournal.com/saturn_shows_up or at hleatherbury [at] hotmail.com