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Animal Samaritans Ninth Walk with the Animals |
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Written by Lauren Lunstrum
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Wednesday, 25 March 2009 |
 Saturday, March 21, 2009
Palm Desert Civic Park
Palm Desert, California
Story by Lissa Giulioni
Photos by Yvonne Scott
For more Yvonne Scott photos of the Ninth Walk with the Animals, click here.
Animal Samaritans SPCA, Inc., held its Ninth Annual Walk with the Animals fundraiser on Sat., March 21, 2009, at the Palm Desert Civic Park. Groups of friends, family and classmates formed walk teams to raise money for the Animal Samaritans shelters. Animal Samaritans in Coachella Valley has enhanced the lives of people and pets since 1978 by providing and offering affordable clinic services, including dental exams and cleanings, wellness exams, and blood chemistry test. A record 8,353 spay and neuter surgeries were performed, vaccinations increased to 24,924 (17.5%) and 787 animals were microchipped in 2008. Animal Samaritans are answering these growing demands for Coachella Valley pets.
 So many friendly faces, two-legged and four-legged alike, came out to support the fundraising efforts. Tom and Lorna Lee joined the fun with their dog Kona a one-and-a-half year-old Golden Retriever rescue dog from Animal Samaritan’s shelter. Kona recently became a therapy dog, and through all the great training and hard work, Kona put in his training program the Lee’s see a bright future for Kona working with children and the elderly alike.
 The Palm Desert K-9 Unit was also present demonstrating scenarios how dogs aid and assist to police officers in crime related situations. Officer Steve Rivera and his canine partner Van Snapp impressed the crowd with smart and controlled handler commands. Van Snapp was placed in a five-week Handler program in Riverside, has learned more than 20 commands and is learning more every week.
To top off the day’s events, Animal Samaritans included a funny and creative pet costume contest. Many kids signed up for the contest and proudly named and displayed their dogs. The winner was sweet Kalena Gottwald and her snootle pooch BeBe aka the “Bad Economy dog.
Thank you Animal Samaritans for, “IMPROVING THE LIVES OF ANIMALS AND PEOPLE “ in the Coachella Valley!
For more Yvonne Scott photos of the Ninth Walk with the Animals, click here.
For more information about Animal Samaritans, click here.
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Lauren Lunstrum |
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Last Updated ( Wednesday, 25 March 2009 )
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