Thursday, December 28, 2006
By Linda Wilson Fuoco
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
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A tan and white dog named Chance had a very Merry Christmas and will ring in the New Year in a home with people who love him.
The same cannot be said for many dogs and cats, but Chance's story is a bit different.
Chance, a pit bull who was badly battered and abused, had the good fortune to run into so many people willing to step up and give him a second chance at a new and better life.
On Oct. 16, an Allentown bartender dispatching a load of trash was stunned to see a pair of bright blue eyes peering up from the depths of a trash bin. The eyes belonged to a spotted dog who was covered with blood and nestled amidst trash and rotting food. The dog wagged its tail.
The bartender from Longo's Bank Cafe on Warrington Avenue couldn't reach the dog, so he called 911. The dispatcher sent Pittsburgh animal control agents, who took the dog to the Animal Rescue League of Western Pennsylvania.
A business owner turned over an outdoor surveillance tape that showed a man walking with the dog. Neighbors and business owners in the Allentown section of Pittsburgh called police and animal shelters with information about the man's identity.
Pittsburgh police Officer Christine Luffey and humane agents from Animal Friends followed up every tip.
Officer Luffey picked up Reginald Coleman, 18, who said he had beaten the dog with a board and a belt and then stabbed it multiple times because it defecated in the house.
You may have seen this dog on television news reports in October. You may have read about him in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, where his story was one of the top five e-mailed stories of the day.
When the dog arrived at the Animal Rescue League, he must have been in considerable pain. But he was "docile and sweet" as veterinarians and shelter workers cleaned his wounds, said Mark Berton, communications director at the East Liberty shelter.
Shelter workers named him Chance and didn't put him in a cage or kennel with the other dogs. For two weeks, he slept on a big cushion in a quiet office.
"He has an amazing temperament, which makes what happened to him harder to stomach," Mr. Berton said.
An Allegheny County Housing Authority police officer saw the dog on television.
"We had a pit bull who died of cancer," said Lorie Payne. "Chance looked a lot like him so we called the shelter" to see about adopting the dog.
"We thought Officer Payne and her family would provide an exceptional home for Chance," Mr. Berton said.
Since early November, Chance has been in the Payne home, where he's a good and loving pet.
"His physical injuries have healed well," Ms. Payne said. "He is good with people and good with other dogs. He is a bit skittish around anything that looks like a stick."
At a preliminary hearing in City Court, Mr. Coleman was ordered to stand trial on animal cruelty charges. If convicted, the maximum penalty is two years in jail. ↓
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