Story and photo by Kyle August, Reporter
Austin is home to runners and dog lovers alike. Combine the two and you get RuffTail Runners— a program that inspires Austinites to take shelter dogs out of their kennels and onto the trails for exercise and exposure.
“There were a lot more benefits than we realized,” Rob Hill co-founder of RuffTail Runners said.
The runners act as extra trainers, and the vast majority of the dogs are well behaved as a result.
Each month, Ruff-Tail Runners holds training sessions to teach volunteers how to properly handle the dogs. Group sessions are fairly small, and include both classroom and hands-on training.
“What we try to do is keep the runners, dogs, and public [on the trails] safe”, Hill said. “We average about 300 runs a month. All these runs, we’ve had virtually no dog fights”.
Running with the dogs is not a requirement. Many participants walk the dogs.
Hill has no statistics on the program’s effects on dog adoption rates, however he said that getting the dogs away from the stressful shelter environment results in happier, healthier, pets.
The program also allows people to spend time with the dogs without the full-time commitment of ownership.
Before each run, dogs are fitted with bright vests that read, “Adopt Me!” Hill, a native Austinite, has two adopted pets of his own— adogandacat.
“I’m a magnet for strays!” he said.
RuffTail Runners is open to the public at the Austin Pets Alive! Town Lake facility at 1156 W Cesar Chavez.
For more information, visit www. meetup.com/rufftail- runnersaustin.