Bring the family and bring the dog this Saturday for Responsible Dog Ownership Day celebrations on St. John and St. Croix.
At the Marketplace on St. John from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. dog owners can bring their pets and watch them demonstrate the Canine Good Citizen test and learn if their dog is a Canine Good Citizen or needs to practice some skills first.
"It’s a 10-part elementary test for whether a dog can be considered a good citizen in the community," Paul Jordan of the St. John Animal Care Center said Thursday. The test covers various training and behavioral rules that help you and your dog get along better with your neighbors and their dogs. "
A lot of condo communities in the states actually require that dogs be certified on this test before they are allowed to live in the community," Jordan said.
There will be free health screening by Dr. Jan Perkins, educational information on what foods and household products can be dangerous to dogs, and local plants that can be hazardous to a dog’s health. Owners can also get their dogs license from the St. John ACC, so if the animal ever becomes lost and ends up at the ACC, the owner can be notified.
You can meet popular and unusual dog breeds, learn about adopting a rescue dog from the Animal Care Center, find out about keeping your dog fit and trim, and if you bring your own dog, it will get to socialize with other dogs and participate in fun events.
There will be “Doggie Dunking” where your dog can “dunk” for tennis balls in a kiddy pool of water, and specially marked balls will win special prizes. Every dog is a winner and can keep its own tennis ball. The first 20 children will get a free dog coloring book.
On St. Croix, come to the east gate of the Agriculture Fair Grounds, between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m.
"We’re going to have demonstrations by K-9 dogs from the U.S. Customs and Border Control," said Gretchen Sherrill, shelter coordinator for the St. Croix Animal Welfare Center on Thursday.
"We will have displays about responsible dog ownership," she said. "For $25 we are administering microchips, so if your dog is ever lost and brought to us, we can scan it and know right away whose dog we have. And we will be giving heartworm tests for $10 and give you certifications, positive or negative you can give your vet."
The center sees a large number of dogs coming in with heartworms, which could be prevented with a simple monthly pill, she said. But left untreated, the condition is fatal.
The Agriculture Department will have a display and information about the dangers of letting dogs just roam and form packs. Animal farmers on St. Croix say attacks by packs of dogs are one of the most serious problems they face, and the dogs are often not wild, but household pets that are allowed to roam all day and night, she said.
There will be food for sale and lots of fellow dog owners and their dogs for your pet to play with, so bring the dog and the family and make a day of it, Sherrill suggests.
Both on St. Croix and on St. John, the day is a chance for reunions of a sort between former shelter dogs and shelter staff.
A widespread event in the states now in its seventh year, more than 600 dog clubs and animal rescue organizations participate in similar celebrations in cooperation with the American Kennel Club. Responsible Dog Ownership Day comes to the Virgin Islands for the first time this year, after a bill sponsored by Sen. Craig Barshinger and passed this summer by the Legislature, was signed by Gov. John deJongh Jr.
Further information about the St. John dog day, can be obtained by calling Paul Jordan, education chair for the St. John Animal Care Center, at (340) 513-3703. On St. Croix, call the Animal Welfare Center at (340) 776-1650.
