OUR STORY
Photo by Keiko Swanberg
of Zen Dog Seattle
Laura Garzon began helping people live more harmoniously with their dogs in the mid aughts while pursuing a doctorate at Stanford. Although she had spent much of her childhood convincing her parents to acquire dogs for their family, the idea of working with pups started as a casual search for a fun, furry running buddy during a summer in San Francisco. She posted a Craigslist ad offering "Jogs 4 Dogs" and went from there. As fate would have it, one day in '08, Laura spotted a dashing stray bounding through Berkeley traffic. She rushed him to safety, and he swiftly charmed his way into her heart and home, nudging her back on the path to a dog-centric life.
Upon earning her master's, Laura sidestepped the chance to complete anthropological fieldwork overseas, opting instead to surround herself with dogs, stateside. Her outings and boarding service, Town Dawg, sprouted up in Oakland in '12. After several years and a move up to Washington, she apprenticed as a dog trainer and classrooom instructor at Riverdog K9 Coaching (now Jax Dog Drop) in Issaquah. In '18, Laura started teaching and training at Seattle Humane and Seattle Puppyworks. As of March '20, her in-person classes have been on hiatus while she trains and hosts from home. In everything, as always, she remains dog motivated.
Together with Jacob Zuniga, Laura is devoted to an 8-year-old Chihuahua mix and a 1-year-old Pomeranian mix. They also share infinite love for Boo Boo, Tuk Tuk, and Chaska, who crossed over the rainbow bridge in '21, '22, and '23. Talula and Theo inspire ongoing forays into frontiers of dog cognition, for the sake of their enrichment and lifelong learning, and they are the guiding light at the center of this home-away-from-home for 'fur fam' near Tiger Mountain State Forest and Olde Town Issaquah.
From this woodsy vantage, Laura has been keeping tabs on a growing global phenomena of K9s working in environmental programs, mostly in roles that leverage their powerful noses for tracking and scent detection, to study and protect endangered wildlife. She's also looking into the history of and a potential future for an extinct breed of dog that provided wool to tribes in the Pacific Northwest for many generations prior to Euro-American settlement. Delving into tales of ecodogs and woolly dogs as an aspiring comics creator, Laura is gradually drawing out deeper lessons about ecological stewardship and decolonization.
At Dartmouth Laura double-majored in anthropology and environmental studies, graduating summa cum laude in '02. She continued her inquiries from '10 to '15 as a producer and host of a live talk show, Terra Verde on KPFA Radio, out of Berkeley. She loves that placing dogs at the core of her work and life reflects Earth's most legendary bond between two species.
In their spare time, Jacob and Laura collaborate as makers, as Glyph & Mythos. With ink and paper, wood, metal, and stone, they combine the rustic with the cosmic in projects for friends, family, and the home.
♡ INTRODUCING THEODORABLE ♡ HONORING TALULA ♡
Theo joined the pack in February '23 when
he was around 5 months old. His rehoming resulted from an earthquake in Turkey -- no
fault of his own! According to Wisdom Panel,
he's 85% Pomeranian, 11% American Eskimo
Dog, 2% Papillon, and 2% Chihuahua.
The supermutt of the family is
in fact Talula, aka Little Toots.
She responds to Littlest, too.
Greatness in a small package,
this dog contains multitudes.
Her eyes are as deep as the
sea and as wide as a galaxy.
Her love is ever-expanding.
Her wisdom is boundless.
Her people are devotees.
Long live Talula!
Long
IN REMEMBRANCE
♡ the ones on the other side ♡🐾
Bhalu "Boo Boo" Zuniga Garzon
(2010-2021)
Bhalu was the superlative dogs' dog, from his days
as a pup in a pack of streetwise strays, to his youth and twilight years as a compassionate mentor and doting host.
With striking goodness and beauty, Boo Boo saw only the best in his fellow dogs and knew how best to express his admiration. He leaves a legacy of boundless fondness
and open optimism towards all his canine kinfolk.
Tucker "Tuk Tuk" Garzon Zuniga
(2012-2022)
The family found this boy named Tucker just shy
of his first birthday. They were instantly smitten.
With his endearing combo of grace and goofiness,
and with the speediness characteristic of his strides,
he made himself sparkle in their eyes. Lightning fast to initiate chase or rally for a game of flirt/tug, Tuk Tuk would likewise leap into a cuddle puddle with intense enthusiasm. In quiet and still moments, he'd evoke
princes and prophets as he'd survey his domain.
Chaska Joon of the Sun and Moon
(2008-2023)
Petaluma-born and Oakland-raised,
this golden girl heard the mountains calling.
Her destiny: to live the life of a north woods hostess.
As one, she was often gracious and more often flirtatious.
Since she was tiny, she loved fiercely and melted like butter,
though she was better known as a fetch aficionado, going
statuesque at the sight of a toy, so hopeful for her #1 joy. Buoyant and buff, she shared her warmth in winter and embodied summer. Her Incan goddess namesake
created the dawn and dusk, and she, likewise,
shared the gentlest aspects of the sun.
Blaze, the once-stray pooch who guided Laura into dogdom, circa 2008.
