According to surfing dogs pioneer Chris De Aboitiz, Rama’s appearance with his pack at this weekend’s Noosa Festival of Surfing will be a farewell tour for the faithful dog who has been the star of his dog behavioural Pack Mates program.
The bittersweet farewell coincides with the launch of an ambitious video awareness campaign called Rescue, Rehab, Re-home.
As a former world tandem surfing champion, founder of Noosa Longboards and the Dog Surfing event at the Noosa Festival of Surfing, Chris has spent over 35 years working and training dogs and is often referred to as a ‘dog whisperer’.
“Rama is the second generation of my pack, and he took dog surfing to the next level with jumping on my shoulders and always answered to Lani, who was the first generation,” Chris said.
“He was my second dog teacher and now he is the grumpy old man who free ranges the paddock and knows where every food bowl is.
“He’s been an incredible friend and teacher, and that’s why we’re honouring him.”
Chris, Rama and the rest of the Pack Mates will be at Main Beach, Noosa on Saturday 15 March from 3pm for the festival’s 14th annual VetShopAustralia Surfing Dog Championships, which will be Rama’s last public appearance with the Pack Mates after nearly a decade of service and surfing, since Chris found him at Red Collar Rescue near Bundaberg.
Rama was Red Collar’s 113th rescue dog to be re-homed, joining the pack at Chris’s holiday park and dog behavioural centre The Summit at Agnes Water on Queensland’s Discovery Coast.
The four-part video series Chris calls “Triple R” has already made a splash, with its first episode telling the Rama story attracting nearly 100,000 in the first 24hrs.
Subsequent episodes portray a day in the life of the pack at The Summit, the re-homing of Koa and Molly, two more rescue dogs from Red Collar Rescue who have been nurtured at The Summit, and a look at the underlying philosophy of Rescue, Rehab, Re-home.
Meanwhile, with Rama transitioning to retirement, Jarrah is the new leader of the pack.
Chris said, “He’s strong, thinks he’s invincible, the new buck on the block. He can’t wait to jump on a surfboard and never thinks before he acts. He’s absolutely fearless and just as loyal, always wants to be by your side.”
The Molly Rescue, Rehab, Re-home story is set to be released on Thursday at 7am on 13 March.
Check out the video series on Facebook, Instagram or YouTube: www.youtube.com/@packmatestraining/playlists
