Our Archives page will show important items that have been displayed on our website in the past. They are stories, pets, programs, and pictures that have played a significant role in the operation and lives of the Cheat Lake Animal Hospital and its staff members.
Please click on each item listed below to view:
National Daily Points of Light Award
Construction of the New Clinic
Dr. Jesse Fallon Invited to India!
The Golden Rule Assistance Dogs have graduated and most have been placed in homes. We are very proud of them and happy to see them applying all the wonderful tasks they've learned. The program will be on hold for a while during some people training, but we hope that in a year or so we'll have more beautiful Goldens to puppy dog, watch grow, and see develop into extremely helpful dogs! Some of the recent crew of graduates are pictured below. Just click on each picture to enlarge.....
|
Assistance Dog Program | ||
|
Last Update of this article was May 2004
The staff of Cheat Lake Animal Hospital is participating in the development and implementation of an exciting new program for Morgantown. This program is based on the work of Bonita M. Bergin of the Assistance Dog Institute. Mr. Rick Yount a social worker with the Burlington United Methodist Family Services took his training at the Institute and is a Certified Assistance Dog Trainer. This unique program blends training of the dogs by high school students for handicapped people. There is a full curriculum developed for the training. The dogs learn 90 commands and depending on their size and strength can provide many of the needs of a handicapped person. The program works with at risk teens, teaching them to train puppies to become handicapped assistance dogs. The program teaches these young people responsibility, the importance of appropriate bonding, consistency, positive reinforcement (things that many of these children rarely experience) and empathy for the handicapped. The program will provide assistance dogs to individuals in West Virginia that would otherwise be unable to obtain an animal due to the cost of purchasing assistance dogs through conventional means. Additionally, the program provides a mechanism to rescue dogs that might otherwise be euthanized from local shelters and provide them with loving homes and important jobs. Currently there are 8 puppies being trained in the program. |
Rick Yount & Susan Martin with Gabe, Amber and the future Assistance Dogs The dogs began their training in February 2002. It will require over 18 months of training. Since these puppies need exposure to a variety of people, Cheat Lake Animal Hospital is hosting Puppy Petting Sessions on Tuesdays from 6:00pm - 8:00pm and on Saturdays from 10:00am to Noon. Please call prior to arriving at these sessions to be sure the pups are coming.
The puppies in training are currently housed by Mr. Yount They are transported to the Chaplin Hill Alternative Learning Center for daily training sessions Monday - Friday. The Cheat Lake Animal Hospital purchased a transport bus for this purpose.
Update as of May 14, 2004
Many of the puppies have now graduated and been placed with their new families. A two-week "boot camp" was held here in the Cheat Lake Animal Hospital's basement, where the Goldens were matched up with their respective adoptive partners. These pairs trained together for the two week period to strengthen the bond between them and to acclimate the dog's service to the need of the handicapped person.
A graduation ceremony was held at South Middle School on Saturday, April 24th with a reception held at Cheat Lake Animal Hospital. CONGRATULATIONS to all the Goldens, Rick Yount, and all the wonderful people that have helped with this program!
Keep posted for the arrival of new Golden Retriever puppies and the return of the infamous Puppy-Petting Sessions!
Bonnie Bergin with Jade
| |
Exciting Announcement: On Thursday, October 31, 2002, the Cheat Lake Animal Hospital was awarded with the National Daily Points of Light Award!
Click this link to read the article: Points of Light
Max the Chocolate Lab was hit by a fire truck after escaping a house fire in Albright, WV. He was brought in to the Cheat Lake Animal Hospital for emergency treatment. Max is doing very well. Get the story and continuous updates by clicking here.... "Max the Dog"
The Cheat Lake Animal Hospital has Moved!!!!
On Tuesday, November 18, 2003 we moved our facility to
our new location at 286 Fairchance Road, just minutes from our
old location.
Directions to the New Location: Off I-68, go North on Rt. 857
for about 1/4 mile. We are on the right hand side, directly after
Quarry Run Road.
This facility is a state-of-the-art veterinary hospital within a
10,000 square foot area. It contains a new and larger boarding
and grooming facility. The original house will be the headquarters
of the non-profit organization, The Human-Animal Bond, Inc., and will
be the location for the Read-to-Dogs Program.
The hospital side of the facility includes offices and a conference
room, plus a basement where puppy and dog training classes will
take place. An Aqua Treadmill has been installed in the
basement to be used for canine physical rehabilitation..
This facility will allow us to serve our clients and our patients,
boarders, and grooming pets to the fullest of our abilities.
Below are some pictures of the construction
(updated September 15, 2003).
The original house upon purchase. This is the center of the new facility. The boarding/grooming area and hospital area are now added to each side of the house. Click on each picture to enlarge.
A
picture of the completed construction as of June 2003. The boarding/grooming area is to the right of the original
house, the hospital area to the left.
Mr. Doug Menlove and Mr. Fritz Yuvancic, who both play a very important role in
the shaping of the facility made this sign to introduce everyone to the new
location.
The hospital reception area as you would enter through the side entrance. Many windows and skylights will make this area worth "waiting" in!
The side entrance to the hospital will be accessed through a courtyard in the front center of the facility. The entire bottom half of the building will be covered in slab stone.
The rear side view of the clinic. The stain has been placed on the wood siding and the trim painted around the windows and doors.
Some of the outdoor runs of the boarding kennel. Fencing and gates have not yet been placed. These are the outdoor portion of the indoor/outdoor runs. Dogs will access the outside run through a guillotine door.
A couple of the indoor/outdoor runs as viewed from the inside. Again no gates or fencing have been added yet, but the view of the future space for guillotine doors are present. Our boarding facility will have the ability to house many more dogs and cats than our current capacity.
The indoor kennels with their new gates and doors installed.
The outdoor kennels with gates and doors installed.
This is the center of the facility, which is the original house. This area will be home to our non-for-profit organization, Human-Animal Bond, Inc. and will be where the "Read to Dogs" program will take place.
The hospital side of the facility.
The boarding reception area. A gift shop, which will display crafts of Glass House Art will be above this reception area.
Come see this place up-close and personal....it is quite a sight to see!
