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Companion Corner: Rosie at No Paws Left Behind

By Breanna SteeleiBerkshires Staff
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NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — There's a sweet girl at No Paws Left Behind who is waiting for her new family.
 
iBerkshire's Companion Corner is a weekly series spotlighting an animal in our local shelters that is ready to find a home.
 
Rosie is a 2-year-old female Labrador who has been at the shelter for about five months.
 
Shelter manager Noelle Howland introduced us to her.
 
"Rosie came to us as a stray from animal control that was never claimed. She's been here with us since August," she said.
 
Rosie is very athletic and it's recommended she has an owner that will let her go out for many adventures. But after a day of exploring, she will never leave your side and would be happy to stay cuddled up to you.
 
"She is very, very energetic. She is a extremely cuddly dog. So if you're looking for a dog that will love to cuddle with you on a couch, she would be the perfect fit for you," Howland said. "She's also very active, so definitely somebody that's willing to be very active, like going on walks, hikes."
 
Rosie is not at her best with men. If there is a man in the home it might take multiple visits to help her get used to him. Ideally, she is recommended to go to a home with a woman.
 
"If there was a male in the home, it would be with another female in the home, because she has not been the best with a lot of the men that she's met here," Howland said. "It would take a couple weeks for her to be OK with a male, with like a female in the home. I think it'd be a little different. But a single male, I think she would struggle a lot with so it would definitely take multiple meets for her to be OK."
 
Rosie could possibly live with an easy-going cat but will have to be the only dog as she can get rough. It is also recommended that she is in a home with children 12 and older.
 
"She will have to be an only dog, because she does tend to take playing with dogs a little too extreme, and she'll be perfectly content, and then the next minute, she does escalate it," Howland said. "So you she will be fine for play dates, but we would recommend no other dog in the home. She also will resource guard with other dogs."
 
A more experienced dog owner would be suitable to take Rosie home.
 
"If you're looking for a dog that will have playdates with other dogs, you definitely have to be able to understand when she's taking it too far," Howland said. "But otherwise she is a very, very sweet dog. And I think anybody that adopts her will be very lucky, because she is just overall very good dog."
 
Rosie is house broken and crate-trained. She can be destructive with her toys, like most dogs, and has chewed on the walls, but Howland thinks she will less prone to acting that way in a home as a shelter environment is very different.
 
Rosie can also get a little mouthy when she gets overwhelmed or excited. But she has been working on that as well as her basic commands like sit and place, or stay, which she is a pro at. She is learning that once you place her, she knows she needs to calm down.
 
But Rosie loves play, and she loves to chase and destroy her squeaky toys.
 
"Her favorite thing. She loves any balls, play with outdoors. She loves squeaky toys, but she is quite destructive," Howland said. "So, you have to be careful that you're watching her if you do give her a toy, she will eat them."
 
If you think Rosie might be a great fit for you contact No Paws Left Behind today and learn more about her on their website.

If you think Rosie might be a great fit for you contact No Paws Left Behind today and learn more about her on the website.


Tags: animal shelter,   dogs,   

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Clarksburg Students Write in Support of Rural School Aid

By Tammy DanielsiBerkshires Staff

Mason Langenback calculated that Clarksburg would get almost $1 million if the $60 million was allocated equally.
CLARKSBURG, Mass. — Eighth-graders at Clarksburg School took a lesson in civic advocacy this week, researching school funding and writing letters to Beacon Hill that call for fully funding rural school aid. 
 
The students focused on the hardships for small rural schools and their importance to the community — that they struggle with limited funding and teacher shortages, but offer safe and supportive spaces for learning and are a hub for community connections.
 
"They all address the main issue, the funding for rural schools, and how there's a gap, and there's the $4 million gap this year, and then it's about the $40 million next year, and that rural schools need that equitable funding," said social studies teacher Mark Karhan.
 
A rural schools report in 2022 found smaller school districts cost from nearly 17 percent to 23 percent more to operate, and recommended "at least" $60 million be appropriated annually for rural school aid. 
 
Gov. Maura Healey has filed for more Chapter 70 school aid, but that often is little help to small rural schools with declining or static enrollment. For fiscal 2027, she's budgeted $20 million for rural schools, up from around $13 million this year but still far below the hoped for $60 million. 
 
Karhan said the class was broken into four groups and the students were provided a submission letter from Rural Schools Advocacy. The students used the first paragraph, which laid out the funding facts, and then did research and wrote their own letters. 
 
They will submit those with a school picture to the governor. 
 
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