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Program at Mill Creek shows pet owners they can teach their dogs something new
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Rosie practices a handshake with her owners, Kriss and Janet Schueller of Boardman, during the Tricks with Your Dog program Sunday at Pioneer Pavilion in Mill Creek MetroParks.
By Sean Barron
YOUNGSTOWN
Cecilia Nackino’s 10-year-old dog, Murphy, knows a few tricks, but the trick was teaching him a few new tricks.
“He’s nervous around strangers,” the Austintown woman said about Murphy, a combination chow, Labrador retriever and basset hound. “He’s very obedient, kind and quiet.”
He also was among the dogs that took part in Sunday’s Tricks with Your Dog program in Mill Creek MetroParks’ Pioneer Pavilion.
Several dozen people brought their pets to the one-hour seminar in which Katie Costello introduced eight main tricks and assisted participants with teaching their companion animals each one.
Costello runs The Learning Dog Training & Enrichment Center LLC of Hubbard, which offers trainers to work with the animals on obedience, manners and learning new skills, among other things. Her organization also partners with the MetroParks’ MetroMutts program, which sponsored Sunday’s workshop.
The eight tricks challenged the dogs to follow commands that included lying on their sides and rolling onto their backs, walking in a circle for a reward, sitting on cue and guessing which hand held a treat.
Mary Ann Colucci’s 3-year-old mixed breed, Jeffrey, seemed at least as interested in the event’s social aspects and in adding a few tricks to his talents.
“He’s the happiest mutt there is,” said Colucci, of Boardman, a phlebotomist with Biotest Plasma Center in Youngstown. “He’s fun-loving, playful and happy, and he loves the new [Paws Town at Boardman Park] dog park.”
Colucci seemed to have some success, however, getting Jeffrey to spin a few times in a circle. Sunday’s program also gave her pet a chance to get out of the house to socialize with other dogs, she said, adding that she got Jeffrey from Animal Charity Humane Society in Boardman.
Also capitalizing on the opportunity to put their social skills to the test were Janet and Chrissy, a husky mix and a German shepherd mix, respectively. The two 4-year-old dogs came with their foster parents, Scott and Allison Felger of Poland.
Chrissy and Janet, named after characters on the popular 1970s and 1980s sitcom “Three’s Company,” have come a long way in a short time, Scott explained.
“Both of our dogs were dumped on the East Side [of Youngstown] with a few bags of food and a comforter,” Scott said, adding that he and his wife learned about the animals’ fate from a Facebook posting.
“They’re housebroken now and have adjusted to our other dogs,” Allison added.
The couple got Janet and Chrissy last November from a Youngstown-based organization called Legacy Dog Rescue, a foster-home-based organization, Allison explained, noting that she and her husband want to find a permanent home for them.
Anyone interested in adopting Janet and/or Chrissy is asked to call Paula Cipriano of Legacy Dog Rescue at 330-720-0470, Allison said.