Owners of anxious, nervous or hyperactive dogs know that sometimes it takes more than a Milk-Bone to calm a dog down. These owners may now opt for doga, a style of yoga designed for humans to do with their dogs.
In Costa Rica, doga is taught in the San José area by Marcela Castro, a Heredia-based yoga instructor certified by the Nosara Yoga Institute in the northwestern province of Guanacaste.
Costa Rica Doga, as the group is officially called, also works with animal welfare groups like S.O.S. Animales to promote classes and awareness about Costa Rica’s countless population of strays, by facilitating adoption, spaying and neutering, vaccinations and nutrition.
“In the end it’s more about sitting on the mat with your dog, breathing,” said Suzi Teitelman who created doga in 2002. “They sense their owner’s calmness and want to be surrounded by the feeling.”
Photos by Alberto Font.
Doga
