The Yellow Dog Project

The yellow ribbon means to give the dog some space.

The Yellow Dog Project is a global movement for owners of dogs that need space. It hopes to educate the public and dog owners to identify dogs needing space, promote appropriate contact of dogs and assist dog parents to identify their dog as needing space.

The Yellow Dog Project seeks to educate appropriate ways to approach or make contact with a dog with permission of a dog owner only, whether or not a dog is a “yellow dog”. They also seek to promote the use of yellow ribbons to identify yellow dogs needing extra space.

The Yellow Dog Project was started by Tara Palardy; a dog trainer in the city of Red Deer, Alberta, Canada. In a statement to supporters, she said, “I started to teach owners how to deal with their yellow dogs and that’s where this whole thing started – locally.” She is also the manager of a dog daycare in the same city; volunteers every Sunday to the Central Alberta Junior K9 Club; and provides dog walking services.

Originally intended as a way to support the yellow ribbon concept to her local clients in Red Deer, Tara’s Yellow Dog Project site jumped from a group of some 250 nearby canine enthusiasts to a growth of 100 times that size in just over six months. The Yellow Dog Project on Facebook now boasts over 27,000 “Likes.”