Check out a great article by Love-A-Bull’s Meghan Turner on Best Friend’s website about our Pit Bull Awareness Weekend events.
Promoting Positive Perception of Pits by Meghan Turner
http://network.bestfriends.org/golocal/texas/13597/news.aspx
Posts Tagged ‘education’
Please join Love-A-Bull in welcoming Best Friends Animal Sanctuary’s famous dog handler John Garcia to Austin on the weekend of October 24-25, 2009, to participate in a weekend of family-friendly events in Austin.
John is nationally known for working extensively to rehabilitate 22 of the 49 dogs (now affectionately referred to as the “Vicktory Dogs”) seized from the bust of the Michael Vick/Bad Newz Kennels dog fighting ring. He is best known for his work and public appearances with Georgia, a sweet, 7-year old toothless female pit bull who, despite being a victim of cruelty and abuse, responds with love to all she meets.
The weekend will feature these FREE events:
A Family Fun Day with John Garcia
October 24, 5 PM – 9 PM at Zilker Hillside Theater
Free to the public! Dogs on leash are welcome. Chairs are not permitted, but blankets or towels are encouraged.
This fun-filled evening of activities will include:
- A public screening of National Geographic Channel’s “Dog Town,” including footage of John working with the Vicktory Dogs at Best Friends (begins at 7:30 PM). Courtesy of The Alamo Drafthouse Rolling Roadshow.
- Autographs with John Garcia
- Games and crafts, including: henna tattoos, face painting, balloon animals, bandanna painting
- Under Pressure t-shirt silk screening
- Pumpkin patch photo booth
- Dunk tank (dunk “Michael Vick” for charity!)
- Raffle
- Refreshments: Amy’s Ice Cream, Aloha Sno-Cones and Waffles, Zuzu’s tacos, Solar Natural Foods, Sweet Leaf tea
- Pick the Pit Bull game, trivia, and prize giveaways
- Information and adoptable pets from Emancipet, Happy Endings, Town Lake Animal Center, Best Friends, and Reunion Rescue
- Booths featuring our trainer, Jessica Wilson and Haute Dog Magazine
A Downtown Pet Parade and Costume Contest, led by John Garcia
October 25, 2 PM at Austin City Hall
Free to the public! Bring your leashed loved ones and the whole family for this walk through downtown. Austin Java and Lofty Dog will provide rest stops, and there will be prizes for the best dog costumes! DJ Yoshi will be spinning tunes for your enjoyment. Free Parking in the City Hall Garage (entrance on Lavaca).
Sponsors
You can be a sponsor and see your company logo featured prominently here!
Love-A-Bull
www.love-a-bull.org
love-a-bull@hotmail.com
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE (PLEASE CROSS-POST)
DATE: August 28, 2009
MEDIA CONTACT: Lydia Zaidman (718) 791-5493 or training@love-a-bull.org
PIT BULL NONPROFIT GROUP OFFERING FREE TRAINING TO MEMBERS
AUSTIN, Texas — Love-A-Bull, a local nonprofit education and advocacy organization, invites pit bull owners to join the group in order to register now for free, 4-week basic skills dog training. The next session runs from Saturday, September 26th through Saturday, October 17th, from 4:30 – 5:30 pm, at Southpaws Playschool.
Love-A-Bull promotes tools for responsible pit bull ownership, and is pleased to offer this opportunity in partnership with trainer, Jessica Wilson, and Southpaws Playschool. It is the only one if its kind for pit bull owners in the Austin area.
Love-A-Bull, composed of over 400 local owners, works to share information with the public on issues such as the importance of spay/neuter, rescue and training, active advocacy against breed-specific legislation, and promotion of a more positive public image of pit bulls and pit bull mixes. The free training program started in January of 2009, with the goal of helping members’ dogs gain Canine Good Citizen (CGC) status through a rigorous evaluation conducted by the American Kennel Club for all breeds. To date, more than 80 owners have taken advantage of this free program, with 10 Love-A-Bull members’ dogs having attained the CGC distinction, and 3 dogs working as certified therapy dogs in hospitals and schools.
Members of the group who have participated in the program have found consistent improvement in their dogs’ behavior and continue to highly recommend it to other pit bull owners. To join Love-A-Bull or to learn more about the free training program, please visit www.love-a-bull.org.
About the Participants:
Love-A-Bull was organized to educate and to advocate on behalf of the American Pit Bull Terrier, the American Staffordshire Terrier, the Staffordshire Terrier, and Bull Terrier (all breeds commonly referred to as “Pit Bulls”) and Pit Bull mixes. Love-A-Bull encourages its members to serve as role models of responsible ownership and engage in activism, including support of rescue, and promotion of spay/neuter programs, and to oppose breed-specific legislation.
Southpaws Playschool is located at 2324B South Lamar; Austin, TX 78704. The mission of Southpaws Playschool for Dogs and Puppies is to provide a safe, pleasant and stimulating environment in which clients can leave their dogs and puppies with confidence during working hours. They sponsor activities at the facility and in the community that promote enhanced human/canine relationships. Southpaws Playschool believes that giving back to the community is important and sponsors activities that will benefit service animals and animal rescue organizations.
Jessica Wilson is a Certified Canine Training and Behavior Specialist through Triple Crown Dog Trainer’s Academy. She has experience with a variety of canine behavioral issues such as separation anxiety, aggression, housebreaking problems, leash pulling, fence climbing, digging, barking, and many other problems that dog owners frequently encounter. She is also well-versed in all aspects of obedience and home manners training, including preparation at the competitive level. She also has experience with footstep tracking, search and rescue, dock dog training, agility, rally, scent discrimination, and more. She currently offers training at Bobbi Colorado’s Canine Camp in Oak Hill.
Love-A-Bull, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, promotes education, advocacy and responsibility on behalf of pit bull owners, and seeks to improve the public image of pit bull-type dogs.
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Fox News interviewed Love-A-Bull’s Lydia Zaidman about the pit bull’s bad rap and about our free training classes for members! (Please allow a few seconds to load video.)
Can’t view it? Click here: Beating the Bad Rap of Pit Bulls
Two Love-A-Bull therapy dogs appeared on the news while working at the Camp Mabry Heroes Celebration.
Can’t view it? Click here: Pit Bulls Dispel Myths at Camp Mabry
Love-A-Bull
www.love-a-bull.org
Contact: Lydia Zaidman
Phone: 718-791-5493
Chain Free Austin
www.chainfreeaustin.org
Contact: Timothy Verret
Phone: 512-879-7437
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 30, 2009
CHAINING DOGS MAKES ATTACKS MORE LIKELY
Local Humane Groups Call Attention to Dangers of Chaining and Tethering Dogs
Joint Statement from Love-A-Bull and Chain Free Austin
In the wake of the tragic chained dog attack on a child in Luling, Texas, local education/advocacy organizations, Love-a-Bull and Chain Free Austin are calling on local and state officials in Luling and other communities to support a ban on the dangerous practice of chaining and tethering dogs. Austin’s anti-tethering ordinance took effect on October 1, 2007, and should be used as a model for other cities to implement.
The American Veterinary Medical Association warns “Never tether or chain your dog because this can contribute to aggressive behavior.” A study commissioned by the Centers for Disease Control found that chained dogs are 2.8 times more likely to bite.
There is no established correlation between chained dog attacks and breed. A chained dog will develop behavioral problems and become dangerously territorial, regardless of the breed.
Love-A-Bull and Chain Free Austin urge dog owners to bring their dogs inside the home to live whenever possible. Living with the family provides critical socialization for the dog, and protects the dog from severe weather and other stressful conditions.
When living indoors is not possible, dogs should be kept in a secure and humane fenced enclosure. The enclosure should be well shaded, with a ventilated doghouse and a constant supply of fresh water. The enclosure should provide plenty of space for the dog to roam and exercise. The enclosure should be sturdily built and secured with a lock so a child cannot enter unsupervised.
When a dog is kept outdoors, daily socialization and love become even more important to the dog’s well-being, and to the safety of the community.
It is imperative that responsible dog ownership involve awareness of how chaining can lead to serious accidents, and that proper supervision of any dog is crucial. Please remember: A chain will not prevent a small child from wandering too close to an unfamiliar dog. A secure fenced enclosure will.
At least 21 communities in the United States have outlawed chaining and tethering dogs, including Austin, Big Spring, Dallas, Electra, Fort Worth, Georgetown, and Irving, Texas.
For more information on Austin’s ordinance, please visit http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/news/2007/antichaining_ordinance.htm
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Love-A-Bull members went to Madisonville, TX, to protest the passage of breed-specific legislation in that city and to try to educate city leaders about safer, more effective alternative dog laws. Breed-specific legislation is not legal in Texas.
Read the coverage at these links:
KBTX Coverage
Best Friends Coverage