Photo by Kitty Clark Fritz/Special to the Tribune
Charm school for shelter dogs: "No, Sadie," says Shawna Cermento as her spunky red heeler-retriever mix levitates for a little attention during an "Ask the Trainer" class at Mesa Verde Community Center. The City of Albuquerque offers the classes to people who adopt dogs from city shelters in an effort to keep pets from being returned because of behavioral problems. "We found at the shelter that a lot of people that adopt animals need behavior or training classes," said Denise Wilcox, who manages the program. "We thought, `What can we offer to the public to make adoption successful?' " |
