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6A Daily News – Saturday, May 12, 2012 healthPetsactivities & Lost pets find help getting back home in unique program PEMBROKE PINES, Fla. (MCT) — Indi the peri- patetic Belgian Malinois was lost and found all in the space of four frantic hours. He found his way home thanks to a revolutionary program run by the Pem- broke Pines, Fla., Police Department that helps reunite lost pets with their owners. National and local organizations such as PETA and the ASPCA say the pro- gram may be the only one of its kind in the country. The program has rescued 58 dogs and four cats since late November, when it was founded by Sgt. Angela Goodwin. If the owners can't be found, Goodwin and her helpers find new homes for the animals. Teofil Talpesh was out searching for Indi last week when an officer drove up with a flier bearing the dog's photo. "I was so grateful to get him back," Talpesh said. "I was driving around the neighborhood yelling his name. It is really difficult when you have a pet you love and you feel like you're never going to see them again." That morning, Indi had jumped the fence and high- tailed it over to a nearby school. Police were called to pick him up. But instead of taking him to the county pound, their Animal Assis- tance Program kicked into gear found wandering the streets, scared, hungry and badly in need of medical care. Some have been dumped, but oth- Many of the dogs are When welcoming a new puppy into your life, you may think you are starting with a blank slate. There is a lot happening in a puppy's world, and a lot that should happen during those first weeks of life to give you the best chances of raising a valued member of your family. From birth to 12 days of age — the neonatal period, a Talking Dogs puppy can't hear or see. It can't eliminate waste by itself or regulate its body temperature. It is dependent upon its moth- er for food, warmth and survival. Daily human handling is thought to better prepare the puppy for stresses later in life. The transitional period, lasting about two weeks and MCT photo Pembroke Pines crime scene technician Christine Sasso, left, and Sgt. Angela Goodwin with two of the dogs they are trying to help in Pembroke Pines, Fla. ers are just lost, Goodwin said. The program, funded entirely by donations, is run by 60 officers, crime scene technicians and records clerks who volunteer their time between shifts to walk the dogs, take them to the groomer and vet or put up "lost dog" signs. Some take the dogs home until their owners can be found. "To me it's a labor of feel horrible that so many of these animals have been abandoned. It's the least we can do, try to get them a home." love," said Adam Feiner, a canine officer who is foster- ing Abby, a blind but gentle boxer-bulldog mix who mixes well with his dogs and two young children. "I Three more small dogs came in one day last week, dropped off by a woman who said she found them roaming the streets. She told an officer she didn't want to take them to the pound because she was afraid they'd be put down. By Sat- urday, they had all been adopted. If Goodwin has her way, the idea will catch on with other departments. Good- win has pitched the program Northern California HERO Ride For Life would like to thank all of its sponsors, riders and volunteers who made the 2012 event another great success. The event generated approximately $22,500 that was donated to the American Cancer Society. Without the support of the community this event would not be possible. 2012 Ride For Life Sponsors & Volunteers Red Bluff Round Up Mt. Lassen Trout Farms Baskin Robbins Mike & Linda Macdonald Bill & Charlene Connelly Janice Knight Holiday Ranches Tehama County Cattlewomen Hutchins Paving & Engineering Jim & Louise Johnstone Pepsi Justin Schoelen Plum Crazy NCRCHA We Shoot Ya Red Bluff Garden Center Terry & Donna Strong Red Bluff Bull & Gelding Sale Shasta Livestock Yard Gaumers Growney Motors Donna Bushnell Carrie Rohr Mike & Trisa Waelty Food Maxx A & R Meats Flannigans Western Shop Evans Silver Amy Anderson Pfizer Animal Health Judd Miller Wright Shavings Ann Howard Lopeman Sound Taco Bell Carol Enos Dilley Dalley Designs Mountain Goddess Stitch Design Gipson Realty Impressive Print Norms Printing Tyke McGuire Y Cross Herefords Kystinz Unlimited Redding Rancheria Mike & Cheryl Mitchell Dave & Denise Gamboa Amundson Physical Therapy Les Schwab Tire Center Doug & Cheryl Schreter Luigis Pizza MESA Productions Tehama County Cattlemens M & M Ranch House Arons Chiropractic Tim Weatherson - State Farm Antelope 4-H Group Jim & Penny Ferry Cowan & Son Construction Dane & Pat Cowan Brian & Paula Connelly Smith Brothers Mary Morin Crossroads Feed Julia's Fruit Stand Prarie Rose Skeet Gould Liz Mendenhall Hawes Ranch & Farm Jiffy Lube to other Florida agencies — including Plantation, Mira- mar and the Broward Sher- iff 's Office. "The success of the pro- gram has been overwhelm- ing," Goodwin said. "We're really trying to expand it to other cities. It's a great thing for the animals." The first dog taken in by the program, an 11-year-old terrier mix named Precious, is no longer a matted fleabag. When Goodwin could not find her owner, she thought to herself, "Who is going to take on an 11-year-old dog?" So Goodwin adopted her. "I figured I'd take her home and keep her — as long as she got along with my cats." beginning around the 13th day of life, is when the puppy's senses rapidly mature. Both the eyes and ears open, and the puppy learns how to walk. Humans should gently expose the puppy to all types of stimuli during this time (objects, sounds, varied surfaces, etc.) to enhance development. It is imperative that the puppy remain with its mother and litter- mates in a calm and stable environment. Around 1 month of age, the puppy enters into the first socialization period, which lasts up until the 12th week of life. During this time, social behavior and patterns are devel- oping, largely through the interaction with littermates and the mother. This is a critical time in the puppy's temperament and behavior development and greatly affects how it will behave as an adult dog. It begins to investigate its surround- ings, and gradually shifts its interaction away from its moth- er and more toward its littermates. Through play, the puppy learns not to bite too hard and the specifics of chasing, bark- ing and body posturing, including submissive postures. This is also a time when the puppy startles easily and fearful responses become much more pronounced. Exposure to dif- ferent environments, objects, sound and surfaces should con- tinue; in time, the puppy will learn to discriminate between truly dangerous situations and those that are of no concern. It is a widely accepted rule that no puppy should leave its litter until the 49th day of life. Generally speaking, the best time to bring a new puppy home is between 7 and 9 weeks of age. If your new puppy has been raised in a calm envi- ronment, with littermates and daily human handling and exposure, the job of house-training and raising the puppy should be a fairly easy task. But continued exposure to a vari- ety of people, other friendly animals, including dogs, sur- faces, noises, objects, car rides and a host of other everyday scenarios are imperative to ensure you raise a well-adjusted, temperamentally sound adult dog. Note that none of the above has anything to do with "training." How your puppy is raised and treated its first few months of life will greatly impact how easy — or difficult — the training process is. Knowing the particulars of how your puppy was raised before bringing it home is important infor- mation and should be factored in to selecting your new dog. While raising and training a puppy that has not had a good start in life — as often is the case when adopting a puppy from a shelter, or rescuing one off the street — is still possi- ble, it helps to know that it may be a far more challenging process. 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