Review-Mirror

By Margaret Brand The Review-Mirror Last Thursday a group of children at the Elgin Library got treated to a session to help them be safer and more confident around dogs. Andre Dubois brought his 'No Bite' workshop to the library along with his seven-year-old Welsh terrier Rufus, a trained therapy dog certified by St. John Ambulance. Dubois hopes to be offering his 'No Bite' presentation to more groups of primary chil- dren after piloting his presentation at South Crosby Public School. "Once a child has become fearful of dogs it takes a long time to turn them around. Some chil- dren are affected all their life if they have had a bad experience," said Dubois. "Contrary to what most people think, some dog bites occur not from strays but from dogs known to the victim," he said. His presentation com- bines basic dog psychol- ogy with common sense advice which could also benefit adults who also need to know why dogs bite and how to play with dogs safely. The presentation teaches how to identify a dog which might bite, how to approach a dog, and what to do when confronted by an unfriendly dog. The presence of Dubois' dog Rufus at the presentation gives chil- dren an opportunity to practice those skills and have a positive experi- ence with a dog who is child friendly. Dubois and Rufus are regular visitors at South Crosby Public School where the Welsh terrier has been a 'Paws for Reading' volunteer with a number of children who gain confidence in their reading skills by spending time with him. Rufus and Dubois' volunteer visits and those local therapy dogs also include visits to nursing homes and schools. "We go everywhere- Queen's, St Lawrence College, lots of nursing homes. I would consider the program to be highly successful. The invita- tions keep on pouring in," he said. "The key to all dogs is proper training. I would strongly recommend anyone who has a dog to take obedience classes. It makes dog owner ship all that much more reward- ing," he said. Dubois can be con- tacted at redwood@rbsinternet.co m. Dog owner looking to make dog and child interactions safer •Continued from page 1 other businesses, a prac- tice they wanted other businesses to be notified about by the village. Councillor Gerald Schwinghamer noted the surprise message from the business people was that they wanted more enforce- ment when a few months earlier it was the opposite. Schwinghamer, after some research believes that pay parking would have a positive impact on the village's coffers if some solar powered pay and display machines could be purchased for $2000 to $3000. With an estimate of 100 parking spaces available in the downtown block of Bedford-Church-Spring- Main he believes that five hours at $1 would earn $500 a day. At an average of three $500 days a week for 16 weeks the village could bring in $24,000, an amount he believes is a modest estimate. "It's a cash cow that council probably some- time will have to consider as a source of revenue. We need more ways of gener- ating revenue and this one seems to be one of the only ones that doesn't have a lot of hidden costs to it," he said. Council agreed that more effective parking enforcement, including more regular hours and consistency in enforce- ment could improve the situation. "Mandatory hours and long weekends when she should be out on the street," suggested Coun- cillor Frank Huth. Mayor Jones suggested the bylaw enforcement officer's requirements be discussed at the next coun- cil meeting in camera where it would be more appropriate to have a dis- cussion of that nature. Last year, when a small flurry of tickets were handed out, recipients were bringing them into Town Hall and making their feelings known on social media about the vil- lage needlessly harassing business owners and cus- tomers. Towns getting mixed messages on what businesses want At the Elgin library last week André Dubois shared his new presentation Staying Safe with Dogs with an enthusiastic audience who also enjoyed a visit from his seven-year-old Welsh Terrier, Rufus, a trained therapy dog. The Review-Mirror March 22, 2018 – 3 A & B FORD COLLISION CENTRE Telephone 613-267-5749 Fax: 613-264-1099 collision2@abford.com A&B Ford Sales Ltd. 37 Lanark Rd., Perth Upper Rideau Branch 542 10099 Cty. Rd. 10, Westport 613-273-3615 "Spring into Summer" Draws May 21 – Cordless Lawnmower • June 21 – Pot of Gold basket July 21 – 49" Sony 4K Ultra HD Smart TV Tickets, good for all 3 draws, are 3/$10 or 1/$5 at the Branch All proceeds to the Generator Fund. Cribbage Wednesdays, 10 am Sunday Fun Darts , 12:45 p.m. All-you-can-eat Spaghetti 3rd Friday of the month, 6 pm Sun., April 15 , 2-6 p.m. Matinee with Henry Norwood, Wade Foster & Shawn McCullough Diva Sale Sat., April 21 If you have gently used jewelry, purses, footwear and clothing, contact Trish Fransen at 613-401-3537 Lounge hours Tues. 4-7•Wed 4-7•Thurs 4-7•Fri 4-7•Sat 3-6 Celebrate your special occasion with us... Weddings, receptions, anniversaries and parties. Full catering, kitchen & bar available with plenty of parking and full handicap accessibility. Call Juanita at 613-273-8455. Bingo 7 p.m. BONANZA $1600 • JACKPOT $650 PROGRESSIVE TOONIE POT • All 55#s or less MONDAY We are the Guardians of REMEMBRANCE Follow us on Facebook for the latest on Legion 542 events Correction Painter Hillary Mustard's paintings are available at the Dancing Moon Gallery on Church Street in Westport and not at the Elgin Art Gallery. She married her husband Cristian in December 2015. Review-Mirror closed Friday The Review-Mirror will be closed Good Fri- day, March 30 and re- open Monday, April 2 at 9 a.m. The deadline for the next two editions remains the same – Mondays at 5 p.m. Revellers brave a cold but sunny day on a float in Westport's St. Patrick's Day Parade on Saturday.

• Cover