How We Make Sidewalk Dog

Sidewalk Dog has been publishing guides for dog owners since 2022. We think dog owners deserve content that's honest, useful, and specifically researched — not generic SEO filler. This page explains how we get there.

Who runs Sidewalk Dog

Sidewalk Dog is an independent publication owned and edited by Jared McKinney. There is no outside investor, parent media company, or hidden corporate sponsor. Jared is the editor of record for every article on the site and the final approver of what goes live.

How we create articles

We use modern AI tools (large language models) to help research and draft articles. Every article is then reviewed and edited by Jared before it's published. That review is what the byline means: it's the editor taking responsibility for the piece, not a claim that one person typed every word from scratch.

We disclose this here, in policy, rather than on every article. We don't publish content where AI is the final voice — only where AI helped get a draft to where a human editor can shape it into something worth reading.

Our sourcing standards

For factual claims — especially anything affecting your dog's health, safety, or rights as an owner — we cite primary sources whenever we can. We prefer, in this order:

• Government and regulatory sources (USDA, CDC, FDA, state and local ordinances).
• Veterinary associations and peer-reviewed veterinary research (AVMA, ACVIM, journal publications).
• Direct policy pages from companies we're writing about (e.g., a hotel chain's pet policy page, an airline's service-animal page).
• Major established news outlets and trusted breed registries (AKC, UKC) when primary sources don't cover the topic.

We do not write medical advice. Articles about dog health are informational — anything specific to your dog belongs in a conversation with a veterinarian, not a comments section.

Fact-checking and accuracy

Before an article publishes, we check that every specific number, policy citation, breed claim, and external link resolves to a real source. Things change — a chain's pet policy can be revised, a dog park can close, a business can change owners. When we find out, we update the article and we change the "updated" date you see at the top of the page so readers can see how fresh the information is.

Updates and corrections

If we get something wrong, we want to know. We log meaningful factual corrections on our corrections page. To report an issue, email [email protected] with the article URL and what specifically is wrong — we read every message.

For routine updates (a new dog park opens in a city guide, a hotel adjusts its pet fee), we revise the article in place and update the "Updated" date. Substantial rewrites that change the article's claims get a fresh review pass before they go live.

Affiliate and sponsorship disclosure

Sidewalk Dog uses display advertising managed through Mediavine. Some articles include affiliate links to products or services we recommend; when we do, we earn a small commission if you buy something at no extra cost to you. Affiliate links never change which products we recommend — we recommend products on their merits and disclose the relationship when it exists.

Sponsored content, when it appears, is clearly labeled as "Sponsored" or "Partner Post" at the top of the article. We don't run sponsored content disguised as editorial.

Editorial independence

Businesses listed in our city directoriesaren't there because they paid to be — they're there because they're dog-friendly. Paid placement, when it exists, is separate from organic editorial coverage and marked as such. A business's advertising relationship with us does not earn it favorable article coverage.

Contact

Editorial questions, corrections, or feedback: [email protected]. We're a small operation, but every email is read.