Dog o' Day
Fansided

David Frei on his journey with dogs and dog show insights

By Wesley Coburn

NEW YORK, NY - JANUARY 15: Director of Communications, David Frei poses with a new breed dog Rat Terrier 'Obie' at the 138th Annual Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show press conference at Madison Square Garden on January 15, 2014 in New York City. (Photo by Desiree Navarro/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NY - JANUARY 15: Director of Communications, David Frei poses with a new breed dog Rat Terrier 'Obie' at the 138th Annual Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show press conference at Madison Square Garden on January 15, 2014 in New York City. (Photo by Desiree Navarro/Getty Images) /
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NEW YORK – FEBRUARY 09: Uno, the 2008 Westminster Best in Show winner, and Westminster Kennel Club Director of Communications David Frei visit the top of the Empire State Building on February 9, 2009 in New York City. (Photo by Andrew H. Walker/Getty Images)
NEW YORK – FEBRUARY 09: Uno, the 2008 Westminster Best in Show winner, and Westminster Kennel Club Director of Communications David Frei visit the top of the Empire State Building on February 9, 2009 in New York City. (Photo by Andrew H. Walker/Getty Images) /

David Frei on his own dogs’ personalities and why therapy dogs are so important.

Dog O’Day: Could you tell us more about why you’re so passionate about therapy dogs?

David Frei: Therapy dogs change people’s lives. They get people to smile when they may not have much to smile about. They get them to talk when they may not have had anyone to talk to. They get them to think about something other than the challenges they may be facing. They may give them a lucid moment when they haven’t had any for a while. The dogs are so good at it – they are spontaneous, they live their life in the moment – as do so many of the people they visit and meet, and they are all about unconditional love, no questions asked.

Dog O’Day: You’ve written two books (Angel on a Leash and Angel by My Side) – what do you hope readers take away from them?

David Frei: I want to share the stories of dogs who are making things better for people in need. I want my readers to see what they might be able to do with their own dogs, and get out there with their dog and change people’s lives. Along the way, they will be changing their own lives, too.

Dog O’Day: Do you have a favorite breed?

David Frei: Well, I’m the dog guy, so I am not supposed to have any favorites, I love them all. But of course, after 30 years with Afghan Hounds, 20 years with Brittanys and 15 years of Cavalier King Charles Spaniels in my own world, I can admit to being a little biased for them.

Dog O’Day: What are your current dogs’ personalities like?

David Frei: Our Cavalier, Angel, is 12+ and Grace, the Brittany, is 10. They are probably pretty much like any Cavalier and Brittany. They have had interesting lives. They grew up in a high rise in Manhattan, and traveled around in Sherpa bags on NYC subways and buses.

I always tell everyone that my bird dog, Grace, defines a pigeon as a game bird, and she was always pointing them on the sidewalks. They both grew up as totally committed and involved and visiting the Ronald McDonald House in New York and a lot of other health care facilities.

Life is a little different now that we are living on the beach on the Left Coast (Cannon Beach, Oregon). Angel, 12 years old and 14 pounds, deaf and a bit arthritic, is still a pistol and runs the home, of course.

Dog O’Day: Aside from dogs, what are some of the interests or hobbies that help make David Frei who he is?

David Frei: I grew up in a football coach’s family, and I always thought that my career path was lined with Astroturf. I was a sportswriter at a young age, and then worked for the Denver Broncos and the San Francisco 49ers. But then the dogs came along and it turns out that my career path ended up being lined with wee-wee pads.

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