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Andrea Contreras reads to Leonard and his handler, Pat Scott, on
Wednesday during the first day of Keene Memorial Library's Paws for
Books program.
- Tracy Buffington/Fremont Tribune
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Friendly listeners open new chapter in
library's Paws for Books program
By Janet Nitsick/Tribune Staff
Leonard didn't have much to say about "The
Mystery of Too Many Elvises."
But that's OK.
Leonard doesn't review books for a living. He's a dog. And it's his job
to sit quietly while children read books to him at Keene Memorial
Library in Fremont.
Three children took part in the new program — called Paws for Books — on
Wednesday and so far 13 youngsters have registered, said Joan Chesley,
children's librarian.
Chesley hopes the program, launched this week, will continue throughout
the school year.
The every other Wednesday program is scheduled 3:30-4:30 p.m., and a
Saturday program starts Sept. 4. It will run 2 to 3 p.m.
Andrea Contreras, 8, of Fremont read the Elvis
book to Leonard, the Rottweiler.
"I really like reading to the dog, and I love reading at school and
everywhere else," she said.
Leonard, though, was a little different than other school companions,
Andrea said, because he was really excited about being read to.
Dog handler Pat Scott rescued Leonard about seven years ago from an Iowa
dog pound, where he was ready to be euthanized. He was about a year old
at that time, she said.
Leonard has had a lot of obedience training and is registered with the
Delta Society. The nationwide society requires volunteer training and
screening of animal/handler teams so animals can visit such places as
nursing homes, hospitals and schools.
Leonard has the right temperament and training for the program, Scott
said.
Ann Stephens, library director, and Scott teamed up after Stephens had
heard about the program at library conferences and Scott read an article
about it.
Lizzie B, a Jack Russell terrier handled by Dawn Mitchell, will become
part of the program as well. The team just finished a Delta evaluation.
After three readings, the youngsters, ages 5 and older, will get a
bookmark and after six readings they get a book, Chesley said.
The paw cards have either a picture of Lizzie B or Leonard on them,
Chesley said. Children also receive a card in the shape of a bone with
the date and time of their scheduled reading after registering, she
said.
Reading with a dog helps children relax and not worry about being too
slow or not pronouncing their words correctly, Chesley said.
Rush Boehm, 7, of Ames, who read the book, "If at First You Do Not See,"
is already a fan of his new library pal.
"I would just like to get a dog just like him, because he is nice and I
can read to him whenever I want," he said.
Copyright © 2004 Fremont
Tribune
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