The Boss: A Social Worker for Pets

December 5, 2009 by admin  
Filed under Career News and Advice

MY dad was a dog trainer and handler like his father before him. We lived in Madison, N.J., across the street from the dog kennel on the estate of Geraldine Rockefeller Dodge, a prominent dog fancier. He showed her dogs in competition — she had about 100 — and brought many of them home.

Geoff Tischman

ED SAYRES

Chief executive, American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, Manhattan

AGE 61

HIS PET Jezebel, a toy poodle

HOBBY Playing conga drums

From the time I was born, I was surrounded by golden retrievers, German shepherds and bloodhounds. My first word was “doggie.”

I helped my father feed and groom the dogs. He took me to my first dog show when I was 8. I got to see him working in the ring that day instead of just training. The golden retriever he was showing was known by a long, formal name for competition, but at home we knew him as Bouncer. Bouncer won “best in show” that day, and to me it was as if my dad had hit a grand slam.

In college I transferred from Duquesne University in Pittsburgh to Sonoma State University in northern California, …

Read the original article at NYTimes

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