May 27, 2016
Concord Pioneer • www.concordpioneer.com
P ETS
Teaching dogs to say ‘please’ leads to better behavior
ELENA BICKER
ARF NOTES
Did your parents ever tell you to say “please” when teaching you how to be polite with adults and peers. It turns out our dogs aren’t that different – they can also benefit from learning to say “please.” Some trainers call this the “No Such Thing as a Free Lunch” program, while others call it the “People Empowerment Program.” However you want to refer to it, it is widely used among dog trainers and
behaviorists to help set people and their dogs up for success. In any home, dogs are more appreciated as family members when they have good manners. Dogs are social creatures, but they live more successfully with us when they understand our rules and expectations. We can teach them by rewarding them with things they adore: affection, exercise, treats, toys – whatever makes your dog’s tail wag. To start, teach your dog a behavior or two that he can perform on cue. A simple “sit” or “down” will work. Or train the dog to look at you in response to calling his name.
Once your dog has learned a cue in a variety of conditions, you can begin to ask your dog to do this behavior on cue as a way of saying “please” before getting something he wants. Once you have given the cue, wait to give the dog what he wants until he performs the behavior. If he doesn’t do the behavior, ignore him and walk away. Then turn back toward him, be sure you have his attention and ask again. When your dog offers you the behavior, give him his reward. This way, your dog learns a polite way to interact with people. For pushy dogs who are always asking for attention, say
by nudging or barking, it allows you to use the desired attention as a reason for the dog to say “please.” Meanwhile, fearful dogs can create a sense of control of their environment, which translates to building confidence and trust in people. Start by making a list of the things your dog likes – eating meals, lying on the couch, walking through doors, opening the cookie jar, playing with a toy. From now on, ask him to say “please” for everything he wants. Elena Bicker is the Executive Director of Tony La Russa’s Animal Rescue Foundation. She can be reached at (925) 2561ARF (1273)
Toby and Akira are ARF’s stars
little bit of time to come out of his shell, but once he does, he is a very curious little man. He would love to go home with one of his brothers or his sister so that they can learn together as they grow! He is suitable for a first time cat guardian. The adoption fee for a kitten less than 6 months $125.
TOBY
4-year-old Toby is a very friendly, dashing boy who is a little shy at first. He loves walks around the neighborhood, going for errands with you and playing with his toys. Toby loves to cuddle and sleep with his humans so be ready for some big love. He will make some lucky person a best
buddy! Toby has a positive history with other dogs. We recommend Toby take a Basic Manners class where he can learn polite ways of seeking creature comforts in life. If you have small children, we recommend bringing them for a meet and greet before adopting Toby. He currently weighs
Rent Strike, from page 1 “It’s like we are living in the worst place in Concord,” she said. “But if we’re quiet, nothing will happen.” That’s why she and neighbors like Betty Gabaldon have joined with Eduardo Torres, the East Bay organizer of Tenants Together, as well as many other residents of the Virginia Lane apartments for the rent strike. PROBLEMS EXTEND BEYOND RENT HIKES
Page 15
Gabaldon is paying $1,300 for her two-bedroom, twobath apartment. At first, she saw her rent going up about $50 every other month, something she said wasn’t unreasonable. “My apartment is not bad,” she says. “Someone actually came and cleaned up some weeds around the front of the apartment. But some of my neighbors don’t have working refrigerators, they have broken toilets and pests. Even I’ve had to remove all my furniture because of bed bugs.” Steve Pinza of the Pinza Group did not return calls from the Pioneer. But Torres is listening. “We are building relationships with tenants so that they can stay in their homes,” he said. A coalition of local Catholic churches is supporting his efforts. “The conditions are pretty terrible,” he said. “We need to help them out.” He said there are four buildings on or near Virginia Lane that are part of the rent
strike: 1127 and 1120 Virginia Lane, 16 Diane Court and 1751 Diane Court. “These are owned by the Pinza Group, and there are broken windows, broken heaters … it’s intimidation by neglect.” Torres said the tenants were submitting $1,400 rent checks at the beginning of each month – an amount minus the recent rent hikes. COUNCILMAN CONFRONTS THE ISSUES
Concord City Council member Edi Birsan is also concerned about the situation. Residents say he has become a “savior” for his work trying to get the city to examine rent control and stabilization. “I’ve brought it up at council meetings, for this to go to a council committee on Housing and Economic Development Committee,” Birsan said. “At first, no one supported it. The next week, it was seconded by council member Ron Leone, but that was it.” He says that the problem, especially on Virginia Lane, is two-fold: the conditions of some of the units are “deplorable,” and the rent increases in some of those units are massive. “Some people have gone from a rent of $1,100 to $1,650-$1,750 in less than six months,” Birsan noted. He says that since many of the leases in the Virginia Lane area and other apartments in the Monument area are
AKIRA
9 pounds. The adoption fee for a dog is $250 and includes a discount on the first six-week session of a manners class. 10-week-old Akira is a beautiful boy who will make such a sweet companion for his lucky family. He takes just a
month-to-month, the prevailing attitude of the owners is “if you don’t like it, you can leave.” “The extra money that these people are being forced to pay could be used for groceries, school supplies for their kids, other necessities that are bought in the community,” he said. “That takes away from the economy of Concord and hurts the city. It’s a citywide problem.”
CITY TAKING SOME ACTION Birsan says he doesn’t understand his colleagues’ position on examining rent control, but some headway is being made. On May 10, the City Council decided to conduct a council-wide study session on the rents issue. A date has not been set. Mayor Laura Hoffmeister says rent control is a complex situation, with state regulations added in. She added that Oakland and San Francisco have various measures for rent control, but it hasn’t solved the problem of rent hikes there. Concord has begun a twoyear pilot program to encourage property owners to build small secondary units, or inlaw units, as an alternative to affordable housing. The program, which started earlier this month, offers a 50 percent reduction in “impact fees” charged by the city for these units. The units must be 640 sq. ft. or less. Besides the fee discount, the city did away with the requirement that the homeowner occupies one of the units on the property and
Meet your forever friend at Tony La Russa’s Animal Rescue Foundation, 2890 Mitchell Drive, Walnut Creek, during adoption hours: Noon to 6 pm Wednesday & Thursday, Noon to 7 pm Friday, and Noon to 6 pm Saturday & Sunday. Would you like to be part of the heroic team that saves the lives of rescued dogs and cats? Can you share your talents to connect people and animals? ARF volunteers are making a difference! For more information see our website, www.arflife.org, or call (925) 2561ARF.
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provides amnesty from penalty fees for existing secondary units that were built without city permits. It’s a start for a city that has long been seen as an attractive and affordable alternative to its more expensive neighboring suburbs, Walnut Creek and Lamorinda. But as Torres pointed out, the proximity to four BART stations is making this part of central Contra Costa County even more desirable. For the Virginia Lane residents, however, desirable means a reasonable rent in apartments that aren’t buginfested with dilapidated appliances. That’s why Chan, Gabaldon, Torres and others will continue their rent strike this June 1.
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