Here is a great story that was in the Los Angeles Daily Breeze newspaper, about some of the fantastic help that Sit Means Sit Dog Training is providing. The trainer involved here is Luciano Aguilar from our Los Angeles Dog Training location.

Today is Sunday, November 11, 2007 Originally published Sunday, November 11, 2007 Updated Sunday, November 11, 2007

It's a dog's day Teenager celebrates life with her best friend: Kiko the dog. By Josh Grossberg Staff Writer

It was hard to tell who was having more fun in Donna Delgado's backyard on Saturday: Her daughter, Olivia, or the seven silly, happy, runny, barky, jumpy, sniffy, ball-chasing, cake-eating canines she invited over for a party.

Ostensibly, the fete was to celebrate Kiko's first birthday - Kiko being the Jack Russell terrier Olivia got a few months ago after begging and pleading with her mom for a dog.

But the celebration was really more of a coming-out party. Olivia has a rare degenerative disease called leukodystrophy. She has trouble speaking and is legally blind. The 19-year-old, who uses a wheelchair, was becoming withdrawn and keeping to herself in her bedroom.

But once her mom relented and brought home a puppy, Olivia started to come out of her shell.

"She was sad and stuff from always being in a wheelchair," Donna Delgado said. "Now she's happy again. She lives for this dog."

It wasn't long after she brought Kiko home from a shelter that Donna Delgado thought she might have made a mistake. Although sweet, Kiko was a furball of destruction. He chewed anything in sight and was was miserable on a leash.

A single mom with a full-time job, Delgado was overwhelmed.

"He's not just active, he's crazy," she said. "He was jumping on tables. I was at my wit's end."

Even a walk around the block was an ordeal.

"The first time I took him on a walk, he was everywhere. I was pushing the wheelchair, and he just started jumping up and down. I had to put Kiko on top of the wheelchair."

Enter Luciano Aguilar, a dog handler with SitMeansSit.com. Although he has a long resume and once trained animals in the Air Force, Aguilar had never worked with anybody like Olivia.

"It was the first time I worked with this handicap," he said.

But Kiko adapted quickly and has calmed down a lot.

"I can take them out together now," Donna Delgado said.

Kiko is now becoming an assistance dog. With Aguilar's help, he's learning how to come to Delgado for help if Olivia is in trouble.

So with Kiko behaving and her daughter becoming happier, Delgado decided it was time to celebrate.

"People think I'm crazy," she said. "A dog party! But that's what Olivia wanted."

And so she picked up a cake and doggie treats and let the pack of hounds loose in her spacious yard for the afternoon.

While other dogs ate their cake, Kiko hopped on Olivia's lap and yipped happily.

"He licks me and sleeps with me," Olivia said. "I like to play with him. I throw him a ball and he brings it back. He makes me so happy."

josh.grossberg@dailybreeze.com

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