Posts Tagged ‘Gwinnett County’

I found this little guy wondering around a neighborhood off of Sugarloaf Parkway on April 21, 2010. He’s very sweet, very much a lap dog and great with our other 3 dogs and our 4 cats. I’m sure someone is looking for him. He’s not neutered and was very dirty, but he’s nice and clean now. If I don’t find his people, I’ll be looking to find him a great furever home, after we have him vaccinated and neutered. I took him to Lawrenceville Suwanee Animal Hospital to be scanned for a micro-chip and he doesn’t have one.  I’m giving it a week before I have him neutered, but after that, chop chop! Ouch, poor guy. We’re calling him Chi Chi for now, just because for some reason it fits. He looks a lot like a Westie, but also has Maltese or possibly Chihuahua features- he only weighs about 4 pounds. Below are some pictures:

“To be followed home by a stray dog is a sign of impending wealth.”-Chinese Proverb-

 

UPDATE:

A couple of days after I found him, “Chi Chi’s” mom saw our fliers that we had put up and gave me a call. After giving me a nice description on his collar and mannerisms, I gave her my address so that she could pick him up. She was very grateful to have found him; her friends were taking care of him and he escaped the friend’s back yard when the yard people left the gate open. His name is actually “Prancer” and it truly fits him well. He was happy to see his mama and little human brother and they were happy to have him home! Yay, happy ending!

I read the story below, written by Josh Green, Staff Writer at Gwinnett Daily Post and it really warmed my heart. This makes me very proud to live in Gwinnett County, as this is the first time a program like this has been supported in the state, and possibly in the country. Sheriff  Butch Conway, you deserve a medal for this one.

Dogs and humans have a special bond that I would never want to live without. I know that being around animals can soften a person, I’ve seen it a thousand times! How many of you have seen a big guy with a little dog talking sweetly and in a funny voice? Or a “macho” guy walking down the road with his big, fierce looking Rottweiler and stopping to check the dog’s paw because he thought he had noticed the dog limping. This story from the Gwinnett Daily Post is a fine example of what can happen when you get dogs and humans together and I hope it gives you a smile.

A second chance: Saved from being euthanized, inmate-trained dogs ready for adoption

LAWRENCEVILLE — Josh Terza, a tatted-up Woodstock man with a stocky build and vice-grip handshake, was sentenced recently to five years in Georgia prisons for trafficking methamphetamine. But that’s not his chief concern today. Doggie jealousy is.

Locked up in Gwinnett County Jail since April, the doldrums of confinement were weighing on Terza until he was paired with “Mick” — a 1-year-old Catahoula-Aussie mix with a salt-and-pepper face, a frenzied feather of a tail and a tipsy disposition.

They hit it off. The inner dog-trainer in Terza came out. But once Mick’s tendency to jump on laps and yap at everything subsided, Terza had to take his skills elsewhere. This time to “Ramses,” a full-blooded German shepherd named for the peace-loving Egyptian ruler.

A dog-inmate-dog triangle emerged.

“You get emotionally attached,” Terza, 30, explained Friday in a jail yard, feeding Mick “good dog” treats from a pouch wrapped around his jail jumpsuit. “I feel like I’m cheating on my dog.”

The first round of the life-saving experience that is Operation Second Chance, in the estimation of those close to it, has been a success. Experts have deemed the first five animals led through the inmate-training program — Mick and pals that include Chow, Labrador and Anatolian mixes — ready for adoption.

Each dog was scheduled to be euthanized weeks ago.

Instead, the animals have endured a sort of doggie boot camp behind bars, sleeping in cages near their inmate handlers and undergoing constant training. Leaders say the program is a win-win on all fronts, in that it literally saves the animals from death while giving inmates purpose and — perhaps — viable job training for their life on the other side.

James Wilson, a housing unit deputy, said he’s noticed a “kinder, more patient” attitude among the 28 inmates chosen from 100 applicants to reside in the dog unit. Inmates accused of violent or sex crimes are weeded out in a screening process.

“In regular pods, (the inmates) like to play games,” Wilson said. “In this pod, they actually police each other” in fear they’ll loose the privilege to stick around, he said.

Only 11 fortunate pooches can be trained at one time. The sooner those are adopted, the quicker more in the Gwinnett County Animal Control euthanasia line can be cycled in, said Sheriff’s Department spokeswoman Stacey Bourbonnais.

It’s the first jail program of its kind in Georgia — and likely the country, she said.

Professional trainers with Twelve Paws Canine Academy in Lawrenceville make volunteer visits to instruct inmates on proper training, even doling out “homework” assignments.

Adopted dogs come with built-in training worth about $1,500, said trainer Michael Louviere.

“They’re really getting the same social skills they’d be getting in a home setting,” he said.

The brainchild of dog lover Sheriff Butch Conway, the program is supported by the Society of Humane Friends of Georgia, who provide all necessary care, training, food and veterinary services for the dogs. Leaders stress that the cost to taxpayers is nil.

Society president Dennis Kronenfeld said adoption applicants are subject to a screening process that includes home visits. Candidates will be able to preview the dogs at the jail or area pet retailers, he said.

As for Terza, he hopes to be released in December, with credit for time served. He’s mulling the idea of printing up some business cards, maybe marketing his dog-training skills to pet care chains like PetSmart.

For now, his four-legged compadres are a substitute for his family, he said.

“I got two kids I ain’t been able to hug for a year,” he said. “This brings you joy.”

Dogs are not our whole life, but they make our lives whole. -Roger Caras

Best Fit Pet Sit Services helped to sponsor the Lawrenceville Trolley Tour last year and we’re happy to announce that we are one of the sponsors this year as well. We had a blast last year! This year is going to be even more fun, with even more trolley rides available and tons of free giveaways and awesome prizes! Please check out the article below for more information. I hope to see you all there!

Trolley Tour 2010

THE TROLLEY TOUR of the Lawrenceville Community is back.

This information is currently for local business owners, but please, if you have any suggestions as someone who rode the trolley last year, or with interest for this year, please let us know.

Come join us again this year as we ride through the streets and neighborhoods of the Lawrenceville Community.    This is a positive investment in Lawrenceville community involvement.  This will benefit Local Businesses, Residents and Real Estate within our community.  We are putting this event together to be proactive in this economy and not only SURVIVE this economic downturn but THRIVE in it.   The only way do this is to be proactive yourself.  We hope you will see the positive impact this idea will have in our community.  We are open to suggestion, comments and questions.    Here how it works, TENATIVELY (always subject to change)!

Starting April 4^th 2010 through June 27^th 2010, the Trolley will run Tours on Sunday’s through Lawrenceville and Scheduled Open Houses throughout our Community. That is a total of thirteen (13) consecutive Sundays.  We are very pleased to have life-long resident and Lawrenceville’s Local Honorary Historian (Awarded in 2009 by Mayor Millsaps) Mary Long as our Trolley Tour Guide.  Each tour we will highlight Lawrenceville Square, the parks, historic graveyards, the businesses and some of the rich community history.  We will have Realtors, Builders and Developers who will have their homes open for those Sunday’s as well.   All the homes will be within the City Limits of Lawrenceville.  We have two (2) Trolleys’ this year.  Each Trolley holds approximately 30 people at a time.  We would like to have 4 scheduled tours in that day.  The tours will start at 1pm and run every hour until 5pm, the last tour starting at 4pm. We have already had several local businesses, Realtors and Developers and of course the Trolley Guy ready to make this project a GO and a WIN for the Lawrenceville Community.   We have also had suggestions (which will develop) of creating events on the square specifically for the tour.  This is great opportunity for your involvement in our community and to promote your business.

The actual Tour will be FREE to those riding the Trolley each Sunday.  Each guest on the Trolley will get a “goody bag” with Local Business marketing materials, coupons, business cards, etc. when they get off the Trolley.   This will be approximately 120 goody bags each week for 13 weeks.  We will also have a banner on both sides of both Trolley’s with the “Qualified” Sponsors Logo’s displayed.   Local television media and print media already want to do stories on the positive approach to this idea.  So there is a possibility of your business getting additional exposure to other communities as well.  As we progress with the idea there will be other ways for us to market the idea and promote it with and without cost.  There are several free internet marketing and networking opportunities to get this event out to various communities.

Interested in being a sponsor?

So, you are excited now and want to know the most important thing, the cost!  Are you ready?  $10.00 per week!   That is it! If you pay for the whole 13 weeks ($130.00) up front, than you will have the opportunity of being included in the banner display on both sides of the Trolley.  The banner will be an additional expense but depending on how many “Qualified” (those who pay 13 weeks in advance) business it will be divided equally.  So, that is it!  We hope you are interested and would like to participate.

For more information or if you are interested in becoming a sponsor, please e-mail Rodney Camren – rodney@newlawrenceville.com or call him on 404-375-1496. We look forward to hearing from you!

Come and see what makes Lawrenceville such a wonderful city to be a part of. Come and experience NEW Lawrenceville! See our video from last year.

Experience New Lawrenceville