Free Republic

A California gym coach who was looking for ways to drum up motivation for the students on his cross-country running team as they went away for the summer break came up with a brilliant idea: pair them with shelter dogs. It was eight years ago when GNN first reported on it, and ever since it has become a mainstay of the training program at St. Joseph High School in Santa Maria, California. It became so much more, however, after a simple video of the kids running with the dogs went viral, causing athletic directors around the country to phone St....

Thinking of adopting another rescue, still grieving over the loss of my rescue of 12 years, she died in 1/21. She was a 45 lb. bundle of joy(hound,lab,pit mix) never barked. I still miss her, but maybe it's time to renew.

Even fried chicken couldn’t coax Legs to get down on his belly and crawl through the yellow tunnel to meet his buddy beckoning from the other end. But that was OK with John Picray. The Navy veteran, who served two deployments to Iraq and flew strikes over Afghanistan, understands fear. Besides, Picray, 26, knows how far Legs, 3, has come. This was only the third hourlong training session the two had shared. When the part-Airedale mutt started, he wouldn’t even sit and stay. Now that trick is a yawner. He heels, jumps a low obstacle and comes to Picray’s calls....