| Inmates, dogs get new lease on life at prison
Two Mesa women are saving dogs and improving prisoners, bringing out the human side of murderers from Alaska and Hawaii with long sentences from bloody crimes committed decades ago. Shannon Holstein, of Kokopelli Dog and Puppy Training, and Kathy Swaney, of Valley of the Sun Dog Rescue, are on a mission to save dogs from euthanasia, making less popular breeds and mutts more adoptable through extensive training by inmates at the Red Rock Correctional Center in Eloy. "It gives them purpose," Holstein said about the inmates. "It gives the dogs a second chance. These dogs in eight weeks get far more training than they would at home." .
Rusty's long trip home
SIX months on the road and he's finally made it home. Rusty, the four-year-old bull terrier-cross, was given up for dead after disappearing from his Canberra home half a year ago. But to everyone's surprise, he has "done a Lassie" and turned up alive and well – just north of Adelaide, 1200km away. Somehow Rusty travelled across state borders to Two Wells, 40km north of Adelaide, before being picked up as a "stray dog" last weekend by the RSPCA after a call from the public. So how did the four-year-old bull terrier-cross cover the huge distance – by plane, train or an automobile? "Well one thing is for sure, he didn't walk," Rusty's owner Shane Gowen, 21, said yesterday as he celebrated the return of his "best friend" after paying $400 for the dog to be flown to Canberra from Adelaide on Friday night.
Rusty's 1200km amazing journey
RUSTY, a dog given up for dead, has shocked everyone after appearing just north of Adelaide -- six months after disappearing from his backyard 1200km away in Canberra. The dog, who somehow travelled across state borders to Two Wells, yesterday received star treatment as he left Adelaide with a dog handler. Amazing journey: Click here to see a map of Rusty's 1200km journey. How did the microchipped four-year-old bull terrier-cross cover the distance? "One thing is for sure, he didn't walk," Rusty's owner, Shane Gowen, 21, said. "Maybe he met a truckie who took him for a ride?" SA RSPCA spokeswoman Aimee McKay said: "We have never picked up a dog so far from its home." Share this article What is this? .
An open letter to pit bull-defenders
All it says is "I'm stubborn enough to own a dog that is inclined to attack and sometimes requires a pry bar because its jaws lock so tight on its prey. I can't afford homeowners insurance because of this risky dog. No neighborhood will allow me in. And I owe thousands in animal-control fines." That is how pit bull owners should be perceived. Unfortunately, it's quite the opposite. Pit bulls were already glorified by rappers. Now the suspicion that Falcons quarterback Michael Vick is a heavyweight in the dog fighting world and possibly linked to as many as 55 pit bulls found at his home only fuels the cool dog perception. Watch pit bull breeders cash in on No. 7. Despite the deadly costs. Of course, not all pit bull breeders and owners are involved in dog fighting.
Dangerous dog crackdown
“I think we have the strongest dangerous dog bylaw in the city," councillor Abe Gonshor said last month.$"/>$"/>The bylaw was sparked by recent incidents where a dog named Rosco bit two residents, one this past winter and another last summer. $"/>$"/>A dangerous dog is defined in the bylaw as one that “shows a propensity to attack or injure without provocation," actually attacks a person or animal, has been trained by its owner to attack on command and is a pure or mixed pit bull, Staffordshire bull-terrier, American bull-terrier and American Staffordshire terrier.$"/>$"/>The bylaw requires owners to make sure dogs do not attack people or other animals, are kept inside or in an enclosed outside area and, when off the property, are muzzled.$"/>$"/>Owners who violate the rules must remove the dog from the town and provide proof of this within 10 days of receiving a notice.$"/>$"/>“If the owner fails to comply after receiving the notice [demanding the dog's removal from the town], the public security director may cause the dog to be captured and turned over to the SPCA or euthanized," the bylaw says.
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