Little Kids And Big Dogs A Winning Combination

By Susan Coney

The Children’s Adventure Center and Canine Advocates, a nonprofit group that supports the Newtown animal shelter, are working together in a joint effort to raise funds for two worthy causes. What better way to attract attention than to combine small children with lovable, furry dogs.

 Children’s Adventure Center Director Rose Luizzi said, “We are having a joint fundraiser to help the littlest angels and their best friends.” The children’s center along with the Newtown Pound and Canine Advocates are working together to raise money to be used for a new piece of outdoor playground equipment for the children and a new pound for the animals. The groups will be hosting a Family Movie showing of Because of Winn Dixie at Edmond Town Hall this coming May. More details of the fundraiser will be forthcoming as the event is finalized.

Newtown residents and members of Canine Advocates Mary and Jim Wilson brought Jerry and Amber, dogs they previously adopted from the Newtown Pound, to the Children’s Adventure Center to meet with the kids and get a publicity photo for the upcoming fundraiser. Clearly it was a love, love situation between the tiny tots and the dogs.

Mary Wilson stated that she and her husband adopted Amber more than six years ago from the Newtown Pound after their family pet died. “We had lost a dog and we were looking for a pet. It was so hard because you can’t replace a dog. We found Amber at the pound and thought we would try her out. She came home and fell asleep in front of the fire and that was that,” Ms Wilson said.

About a year later they returned to the pound to look for another dog to bring home as a family pet. They fell in love with Jerry, a chow, golden retriever mix. At approximately the same time the Wilsons took in a foster child, who has been with them ever since. The mix of dogs with the child was a winning combination and their foster son is almost inseparable from Jerry. “The dogs are so good for him. He walks Jerry every year in the Labor Day Parade,” Mr Wilson said.

Now the couple are ambassadors for the Canine Advocate group, traveling around to various town groups and organizations with their beloved pets Jerry and Amber to show how much happiness can come from adopting a pet. The couple encourages anyone thinking of getting a new pet to stop by the Newtown Pound and consider adopting an older dog or cat.