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Pet rescue offers pit bull good citizen training

By DEBBIE EAGLEBARGER - Special to the DN
Red Bluff Daily News


CORNING - Connie Paul of Red Bluff said "Absolutely not," when her kids brought home a 5-month-old pit bull.
Six years later, Romeo is a pampered pooch who adores his family as much as they adore him. "I believed what I had heard about pit bulls," said Paul," but after researching the breed and seeing just how wonderful Romeo is, I wouldn't have any other dog."

Romeo entertained everyone with his goofy tricks. The biggest hit was his "sit pretty."

Second Chance Pet Rescue is working hard to restore the image of the American Pit Bull Terrier, and the canine participants and their owners who took part in a recent AKC Canine Good Citizen® test conducted at Westside Park in Corning are, too. Pam Moran of Paradise brought her two pit bulls to be certified as Canine GoodCitizens®. Meggie's time was about up and she was scheduled for euthanasia when Pam visited the shelter and fell in love. Pat adopted her just in the nick of time.

"What a wonderful dog. She gets along great with my cats."

Pam also certified Telly, who she adopted from the Corning Animal Shelter. Telly had already gone through obedience training and preparation for the AKC CanineGood Citizen® certification while he was at the shelter.

"I couldn't believe how wonderfully well the two dogs got along when I went to visit him," said Moran.

At the Corning Animal Shelter, Second Chance Pet Rescue has a Pit Bull Ambassador program called Pit Bull Promenade Showcase. We want people to see our pit bull dogs out in the community and comment, "What a fabulous dog! Where can I get a dog like that?"

At the Corning Animal Shelter there are great pit bull dogs like Telly, Romeo and Meggie waiting to be adopted by loving and loyal owners like Paul and Moran.

Good matches between adopter and dog are made when adopters learn about the breed and choose a dog that's right for| them based on their lifestyle, skills and their expectations of a canine companion.

The pit bulls entering the Corning Shelter are evaluated for a sound temperament.

Adoptable dogs are vaccinated, neutered and start obedience training and preparation for their AKC Canine Good Citizen® (CGC) test.

The training the dogs receive is a bonus for adopters and earning a Canine GoodCitizen® Certification with their new dog can often make it easier for a new dog owner to find homeowners insurance.

The CGC consists of 10 items and every dog must score 100 percent to pass the test.

These are:

Accept a friendly stranger
Sit politely for petting.
Appearance and grooming.
Out for a walk on a loose leash.
Walking through a crowd.
Sit and down on command and staying in place.
Come when called.
Reaction to another dog.
Reactions to distractions.
Supervised separation.
The AKC Canine Good Citizen® test is available free of charge to any pit bull and their owner. The AKC Canine Good Citizen® Incentive program is made possible by a grant from Animal Farm Foundation

(www.animalfarmfoundation.org) who provides a cash incentive to Second Chance Pet Rescue for each pit bull/owner team that passes.

The money earned through the CGC Incentive program is used to continue the training of Pit Bull Ambassador dogs at the Corning Animal Shelter. If you would like your pit bull to be tested for the AKC Canine Good Citizen® certificate, call Debbie Eaglebarger at 530-824-1985.

Second Chance is a non-profit organization which volunteers its time at the Corning Animal Shelter. The shelter phone number is 530-824-7054.




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