When Debi Weldon,the creator of the CD for dogs 'Soothing Stories And Music For The Solo Dog' decided to get a puppy, she stopped working for one year to stay home and raise her newest family member. One day, while walking in the forest with a friend and her two Standard Poodles, Debi's friend told her that when she leaves the house, she turns the radio on for the dogs, and sometimes, when she returns, they are so into the music that they don't get up to greet her. Debi had an ' ah ha' moment. She had published stories for dogs in the ' Dogs In Canada Annual', and she felt that she could write stories that the dogs would understand: and so the idea for the CD was born.First, Debi listened to many hours of classical music, because classical music is very soothing for people, plants and pets. Debi decided to write stories from a dogs point of view starting with the birth of a new puppy, the food, the home, people friends, sports, the park, the beach, and many more special treats, ending with favorite nap spots. It would be a concept CD for dogs using words that they could understand. Dogs can understand over 200 words, and many of these are on the CD. The next part of the process was listening to voices and interviewing the voice actors; Debi wanted both men and women on the CD, and when a person was imitating a particular breed, such as a Portugese Water Dog, the person had to come from Portugal, not Spain. The stories were recorded and the sound mixers worked with Debi for weeks so that the beats in the stories would fall on the beats in the music. Debi created the CD to help lesssen separation anxiety in dogs. When dogs are left alone, they do not know that their owner is coming back, and this is a stressful situation; 85% of dog owners have one dog, and that dog may be alone all day. That dog may also be afraid of being in a car, and the CD helps for that too. Hearing is a very strong sense in dogs, right after the sense of smell, and dogs react favorably to classical music.They also love the stories, and perk up their ears or turn their heads at words they understand. Each track of the CD has a different person speaking, so when the CD is on replay, the dogs don't become bored. They really love it. The CD is educational for children, too; they learn all about dogs. Thsi CD us a great gift for a pet owner. It has been reviewed in the dog magazines ' Modern Dog' and 'Animal Wellness'. It has been mentioned in 'Vanity Fair' and in many newpapers including ' The Vancouver Sun', 'The Province' and The Courier'.It has also been mentioned nationally on CBC Television, CTV and Global TV. The critics and the dogs agree that this is the best CD for dogs this side of Pluto.
