Tamara Gregor: SCHS Column - A 'tail' of love: Dalia ready to give her heart to a home

Jun. 19—A sweet, young pup dashed her way into The Banner Office and the hearts of new friends Tuesday afternoon as part of Stephens County Humane Society's Take Out Tuesday program.

Dalia is around 2 years old and a mixed breed with a little pit and English Terrier mixed throughout. She dons a soft cream colored fur coat with a few brown markings.

This well-mannered pup will happily show off a few commands, like sitting and laying down. For a treat, she will attempt to roll over, but maybe just for some belly rubs.

After Dalia burst through the front door of the office, she showed off how playful she can be from chasing stuffed toys and squeaker toys.

Dalia came to The Banner by way of her foster mama. Since shelter life is a little bit noisy for our Dalia girl, she currently resides in a foster home, but she's on the look out for her permanent home.

This food motivated pup proved how much she loves bacon-flavored treats — which is almost as much as she loves Cheerios.

SCHS Executive Director Kelly Nelson said Dalia is crate-trained, house-trained and she sleeps through the night — even through storms.

One of Dalia's favorite spots to curl up is on a couch, but she will look to her human for directions.

Over the course of the afternoon, Dalia took an excursion through Main Street Duncan to show off her personality and good behavior at Think Ability Gardens and R&S Drug.

She showed how good she is around men, women and kids, but she's gets a little excited over other dogs passing by the street, so there may need to be an additional meet and greet with other dogs in the home.

While hanging around the office, Dalia found several toys to play with, such as a bouncy ball, a small soccer ball, a squeaky tennis ball and a rope toy.

She's extremely self-entertaining, but loves a good game of fetch. She's a little hunter and she often plays hard and then takes a long nap.

Dalia would thrive in an active family home with young kids.

For the felines

As summer closes in here's a few tips to help your kitty beat the heat, whether inside or outside the home.

Make sure to keep plenty of fresh, clean water in their bowl at all times. Sometimes adding a few ice cubes to the water will help to provide a little extra coolness.

If possible, try to keep your feline friends indoors during the summer heat and give them a few cool treats, like frozen chicken.

If they do go outside, provide some kind of shelter for your cat so they have somewhere to rest. Try setting up a small tent or a canopy outside for additional shaded areas.

Watch out for signs of heatstroke in your cat and keep your feline groomed during the summer and remove any loose hair.

For more kitty cat tips sponsored by Minson's Veterinary Hospital, read next week's column.

To inquire about any of the dogs or cats, or to set up an appointment, call 580-252-7387 between the Humane Society's hours of noon to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday and from noon to 6 p.m. Friday and Saturday. SCHS is open from noon to 2 p.m. on Sundays for adoptions only and closed on Monday for surgery day.

The SCHS column is sponsored by Minson's Veterinary Hospital, Tractor Supply Co. and R&S Drug Store.

For more information about SCHS or to donate, visit http://stephenscountyshelter.com/.