Birddogging sounds like a weird term, but it just means attending events with legislators and asking them about issues that you care about.  This could mean attending a debate, going to a ‘meet-and-greet’, calling into a radio program, responding to a post on Facebook, or writing a letter-to-the-editor.

Birddogging is important because we need to show the people who will be making decisions that we care about these issues.  Legislators hear from people all the time about a lot of different issues.  Consistently showing up and asking about the issues we care about will tell them that this is an important issue for their district.  Birddogging also helps educate the audience and the media that attend the forums about the issue.  If the media hears the question frequently, they are also more likely to report on it because they will know it matters their audience.  

Legislators are more likely to respond to people in their district.  They are lobbied and asked to make deals with other legislators and it is often hard to get them to pay attention to our concerns. Our goal is to get every legislator to commit to supporting our position.  Since our goal is to get them on our side, it’s very important we remain respectful. 

Steps to Birddogging - Click on the images below to learn more