To all of our pet owners

Hello Neighbors!
I would just like to say something to all of our pet owners in the neighborhood. Please, please, PLEASE look after your pets! Yesterday morning I encountered two pit bulls running alone on my street. Upon seeing me they run up to me barking and growling. I immediatealy stood still like a tree and folded my arms tightly behind my back. They both jumped up on me but did not knock me down. Seeing what was happening outside, my husband ran into the back yard to get their attention allowing me to escape into the house. Upon entering, I snatched up the phone and dialed 911! My husband soon joined me when he realized that I was safely inside. After we noticed that the dogs were gone, we got into our truck and went to look for them so that we could update the 911 officer. We found them around the corner on Baird St., but soon realized that there were some children playing in front of their house and had no idea about the dogs coming their way. We sped past the dogs and yelled for the kids to go into the house to which their mother quickly brought them inside and thanked us from behind her screen door. The two dogs proceeded to walk around checking things out and even circled our truck a few times. As we looked down at them, we were able to see the sadness in their eyes... they just wanted to go home! This also gave me an opportunity to realize that these dogs might belong to my neighbor across the street from us. Sure enough, as we continued to follow them, they made their way back to their home but instead of being greated by their owner, they were met by the dog catcher! They were rounded up and taken away.

There are several things I would like to point out in this story:
1) Luckily, NO ONE WAS HURT!!
2) Since we owned an American Staffordshire Terrier (a cousin of the pit bull, but a little bigger!), I knew enough not to run or make eye contact with the dogs so that I wouldn't seem threatening or give them a reason to chase me.
3) Although pit bulls (and some other big breeds such as Dobies and Rotties) have had some bad press, this is mainly due to the way their people have trained them (or lack there of) not because they are bad breeds!
4) Please be aware of your pets! No matter if they are pit bull or poodle, any dog can be aggressive to strangers! And any animal with teeth can bite!
5) Last, but not least, remember to put collars with id tags on your pets. If they become lost, this makes it easier to identify and return your pets back to you!

Please remember that pets are wonderful companions, but being a pet owner requires a lot of responsibility. There are a lot of "former pets" at the pound due to lack of responsible owners. Don't let your pet become one of them!

Your neighbor,
Kisha

PS...
Did I mention where we where going before all of this happened? We were off to Lollypop Farm to look for a new dog to bring home!

Visiting Nurses

Hello all. I received a phone call from a neighbor yesterday asking me to pass along some information. She informed me that there are some people that are posing as visiting nurses to gain access to houses and are then stealing once inside. Apparently they follow the nurses to see where they are going and then come back in a couple of days pretending to be a visiting nurse. The "nurse" asks for a urine sample and while the patient is busy, proceeds to look for items to take. According to my neighbor (who, by the way, was informed of this from her visiting nurse!) this was discovered because people noticed things were missing from their homes. They also noticed that the "nurses" were not calling ahead to confirm their appointments as the real nurses do, so people started calling the visiting nurse services office to ask questions. Although this news is disturbing, it is important to note that NO ONE WAS HURT BY THE PERSON!! If you have a visiting nurse or know someone who does, please pass this info on to them. Remember to ask to see proper identification and do not hesitate to call to verify their badges. This is also true for the meter readers (ex. RG&E), cable TV repair persons, or phone company personnel. If you see anything that looks questionable, please don't hesitate to call 911!

Your neighbor,
Kisha