Therapy Dog in Training Learns the Ropes

Deuce (and his tongue) hanging out at the train station

Deuce and I have been taking long training walks ever since the frozen tundra thawed. He’s 8 months old now and he’s still strong as an ox and just as bull headed, but he’s really maturing into a lovely dog. That said, it’s highly unlikely he’ll take his therapy-dog test on his first birthday. He may be 13 before he’s mellow enough to pass the certification.

Deucey is able to walk past pedestrians without mauling acknowledging them. He sits when I stop and he circles me easily. We’re walking across the steel plates on the sidewalk and now he’s even willing to sit on it for a few seconds, or until I stomp my feet. He has his limits. We walked to the train station today and he watched the noisy trains pass back and forth without issue. He wanted me to reassure him, but relaxed when I patted him.

The prong collar? You noticed that? Yeah. Well. After walking Deuce without it, my left arm is permanently six inches longer than my right. I know he can’t use that for therapy. Yes, I tried the EasyWalk. I tried the Gentle Leader. I tried the standard metal training collar. No dice, people. This dog is nearly 60 pounds and STRONG and oblivious to anything but a whip and a chair.

After he settles down a bit (remind me when that will be again?) we’ll work on eliminating the kinky collar. Until then, be glad he’s not pulling me across the street so he can hitch a ride in your stroller. (Yes. That tongue lolls to the side all the time. Dang adorable, I think!)

Think Everyone Loves A Therapy Dog? Think Again.

Ace's tail wags constantly, especially when we're invited in! (photo by Rod Griola)

My friend came along on a recent therapy-dog visit at the hospital. He watched as I knocked on the door to a patient’s room, leaned in and said, “I have the therapy dog here. Would you like to meet him?”  My friend said, “Like anyone is ever going to say no to Ace!” Um…you’d be surprised.

Once I was answered with, “NO! What’s this stupid hospital trying to do to us? Dogs in a hospital! Absurd.”

Another time I got a more succinct (but loud) response, “GO AWAY!”

Some people don’t like dogs — or human visitors, for that matter. I get that. I also understand that sick people aren’t always nice and that illness can make us behave differently. I know that these folks are interrupted over and over, day and night. That doesn’t mean you should be rude. Sometimes it’s tough to smile, wish them well and move on, but we always do it.

I really wanted to say, “Well, I’m a volunteer. I am not being paid. I am essentially giving you my Tuesday morning like a gift. In fact, I’m paying someone to care for my children so I can be here with you and try to make you feel better. I want my money and my time back.”

But then, just down the hall, I always meet a gracious dog lover who falls in love with Ace and thanks us for coming. Those little words go a long, long way. Please remember to thank the next volunteer you encounter. Chances are, some other guy wasn’t so kind.

Has anyone ever been rude to you when you were volunteering? 

We Love That Max

Puppy the fish is still breathing, fortunately!

When my real-life friend Ellen prepared to leave town for a much-deserved family trip, she asked me two questions. “Would you please write a guest post for the blog?” and “Could you take care of Puppy while we’re away?”

Both got enthusiastic yeses. The guest post on her wonderful blog Love That Max, about the differences between therapy dogs and service dogs, can be found here.

When I found out that Puppy is a fish, I decided to mess with Dear Spouse…just a little. I told him Puppy is a St. Bernard. The scary part is that he just shook his head and said OK.

Please remember that we have two large dogs, a kindergartener, a preschooler and Frank and Beans (the frogs) in our cozy house. Could it be that he’s just so used to my hair-brained schemes that adding a St. Bernard to the mix is par for the course?

Thanks, Ellen for letting me borrow your podium for a minute so I could share this important message about therapy dogs. You’re a good person, too.

Remission Accomplished! (Once More, With Feeling.)

Ace's sweet face has aged this year, but he's still so darned lovable!

A couple of weeks ago Ace’s canine lymphoma returned. I check his lymph nodes 10 times a day now, with every cuddle and every pat, and there they were. Grape-sized lumps in his neck make me cringe, but  now they’re gone again! Our marvelous oncology vet delivered a one-two punch with a rescue protocol of chemotherapy and big doses of Prednisone and achieved the second remission we never thought we’d get.

Actually, we never thought we’d pursue a second remission. We knew it probably wouldn’t last as long as the first (seven months) and we’d been told horror stories about waiting too long and compromising Ace’s quality of life. Because Ace tolerated the chemo so well the first time, we decided to give it another go. He’s healthy and strong and 96% normal so we’re so glad we did.

Tomorrow he’s having his third dose of Doxorubicin. It’s a big, powerful drug that can damage his heart muscle if we give it more than five times. He’s also taking Prednisone twice a day, which is a major pain in the butt for the two-legged beings with whom Ace cohabitates. It makes him hungry so he swipes food from the kids, plus he’s so thirsty that he begs for ice cubes all day long. It’s a small price to pay to have a mostly healthy dog for a few more months.

He’s still taking walks and playing and begging to sleep on our bed. He’s still a working therapy dog — visiting patients, making new friends and making us smile every day.

What more could we ask?

NiteSweatz Pant-Tee Set – A Must For Travelers

NiteSweatz has agreed to offer Therapy Dogs Heal readers a 40% discount…and they’re contributing proceeds to cover therapy dogs’ out-of-paw expenses. They’re just that nice! I figured I can share a product a day while the promotion is running! To get a 40% discount on all regularly priced items on the NiteSweatz website AND contribute cold hard cash to therapy dogs’ work, enter the code “FRIENDSOK” before 3/18/11. The dogs thank you!

The Pant-Tee Set Is A Must-Have!

When I did international PR for a living I traveled the world. I always packed black yoga pants and a black fleece. NiteSweatz has a terrific Pant-Tee set that easily replaces my well-worn wardrobe staples.

Overnight flights require comfy pants that look nice when it’s noon where you landed, but your butt still thinks it’s 3am. NiteSweatz’ moisture-wicking fabric never looks wrinkled or stretched out. I underestimated Stockholm’s ability to freeze travelers to death and ended up wearing yoga pants under a long skirt for a January business dinner. If anyone thought it was weird, I’d just say I was Canadian.

The Pant-Tee set has a flattering, never-too-tight tee shirt that can be dressed up or down and washed out in the hotel-room sink. Throw it under a blazer with a big necklace and you’re ready to add a day of tourism to your trip!

Have You Discovered Boy Shortz Yet?

NiteSweatz Boy Shortz come in 18 colors!

NiteSweatz, the gorgeous line of moisture-wicking sleepwear isn’t just about PJs. Check out the Boy Shortz!

I was late to the party on Boy Shortz, but boy-howdy…I’m never going back! They are cute and comfy in a “Sporty Spice” kind of way. They come in 18 gorgeous colors (crazy talk!) from basic-beige Mocha to hotsy-totsy Hibiscus.

To get a 40% discount on all regularly priced items on the NiteSweatz website AND contribute cold hard cash to therapy dogs’ work, enter the code “FRIENDSOK” before 3/18/11. The dogs thank you!

Dost Thou Complain Too Much?

Sweet-Faced Boy

It seems that the longest, snowiest winter in history just won’t leave, and almost everybody’s complaining about it. I’m a culprit too. I try to pick one season to gripe about because you can’t have it both ways, and this is it. It’s easy to moan when you’re updating your Facebook status from the warmth of your kitchen, but a recent patient visit adjusted my attitude a bit.

 

Walking into a patient’s room with an 80-pound dog can feel a bit like walking into church with your skirt tucked into your pantyhose – awkward! When I saw that a patient was reading the hospital’s menu for the day, I made an oh-so-clever, ice-breaking quip about ordering the surf-n-turf. He smiled and said, “It’s just so nice to have hot food three times a day!”

Here he was in the hospital, feeling crappy, in a situation that I’d say totally warrants whining and complaining, but he was grateful to be there. He had a warm bed and healthy food and people taking care of him. He was glad Ace visited and he thanked me for bringing him by.

Now I’m keeping him in mind when I dole out the whining. It’s a good example of how much we gain from meeting the patients, staff and families when we volunteer.

 

Remembering Ranger, a Special Therapy Dog

Ranger and Lorraine and the cake they brought for their first day of volunteering in the cardiac unit.

Lorraine is a firecracker, an RN and a dog lover. She’s just the person you’d want to champion your cause, and her cause is therapy dogs. Lorraine is the holistic nurse coordinator at the hospital where Ace and I volunteer and she made the whole program happen. Like a dog with a bone, Lorraine clamped on and got the therapy dogs authorized to visit hundreds of cardiac patients every year.

Lorraine’s two therapy dogs, Ranger and Trooper were regulars at the hospital and Ranger will always be remembered as the dog who started the therapy-dog program in the cardiac unit. I can’t even imagine how many tail wags and canine cuddles Lorraine’s dogs provided in their many visits over the years. Countless patients have held them, petted them and received their special breed of medical care.

Sadly, X-rays for an unrelated issue revealed that Ranger had aggressive cancer on his spleen. He died on December 19 at 3:00pm.

I hope Lorraine and her family realize that they aren’t the only ones who will miss Ranger. He was a special dog who did so much good and was loved by many.

Regal Ranger the therapy dog

Water-Cooler Conversations – The Terrifying Dog Dish

Ace bravely investigates the terrifying new water dish.

Our two dogs are in constant motion. They wrestle like Olympic athletes then gorge themselves on water until one dog barfs. Good times. We have two elevated feeders with two water dishes and I’m still filling them up four times per day.  I decided to pick up an office-style water-cooler dish so they always have fresh water. (I recently learned that my grandmother, who died when I was little, was emphatic about fresh water for pets. I think of her every time I check on their water.)

Who knew the new dish would be absolutely terrifying to my 80-pound therapy dog, Ace?

Ace isn’t a brave dog. He barks at anything strange, like the bicycle I put in the back yard one day. I thought the water cooler wouldn’t be a big issue, but I forgot that it GURGLES when they drink! Horrors.

Fear is an important factor in therapy-dog evaluations. The dogs are tested around walkers, canes, crutches and wheel chairs. Patients sometimes make strange noises or erratic movements, so most tests include rough petting (insert frat-party joke here) or role-playing volunteers who make some really odd sounds. If the dogs can cuddle with someone who behaves strangely and walk alongside a wheel chair, they’re going to pass with flying colors.

As I write, Ace is pacing around the kitchen, growling and moaning at me and barking at the dish, head hanging low, tail wagging pensively. If dogs have a “WTF” look, this is it. Ace and I practiced walking with crutches before his therapy-dog test. He didn’t like them at all, especially after I accidentally whacked him with one, but he quickly got used to having them around. He passed the equipment portion of the therapy-dog exam easily.

The puppy, Deuce is all over the terrifying new dish. He’s constantly thirsty and fearless in a dumb-puppy way. Maybe he’ll be an even better therapy-dog candidate than Ace!

What scares the puppy pants off your dog?

Five Ways You Can Help Service Dogs

 

Ray and Mojo, his Seeing Eye dog

 

 

Ray Kornman of The Seeing Eye Inc. is blind. He relies on his Seeing Eye dog, Mojo (an adorable handful of Labrador love) to get to work, the grocery store, and everywhere else sighted people go. Here’s what Ray says about how the rest of the world can make their lives easier.

In the eyes of the law, service animals are not pets, they are not all dogs and they are not just for blind people. By definition, a service dog performs a service that a person with a disability cannot do for himself. The tips below refer to Seeing Eye dogs, but are relevant to any service animal.

It’s OK to offer to help.

Never reach for the dog, his harness, a white cane or the handler. Mojo is much better at guiding Ray than you are. However, if Ray and Mojo are waiting for the bus, for example, it’s OK to say, “The ‘A’ bus is coming.” Otherwise, he has to ask the driver which bus it is. Though most sighted people know to never interrupt a guide dog while it’s working, the blind handler can still speak!

Keep the sidewalk clear.

Ray says that before he got a Seeing Eye dog, trash day was a nightmare. He had to navigate through an obstacle course of cans and lids on his own sidewalk, with his cane, on his own street, twice a week. It’s easier with the dog in charge, but he still has to walk on the grass and work around things blocking his path.

Pick up the lids, clear away a fallen branch, and put away your kid’s trike. It looks tacky anyway.

Tell the handler that your dog is nearby.

Even if your dog is the most popular guy on the block, don’t let him visit with a service dog. Tell the handler, “I have my dog here. He’s friendly and he’s on a leash. I’m going to let you pass.”

Service dogs are exceptionally well trained, but your dog…well…maybe not so much. Every year dozens of working service dogs are attacked by other dogs. Can you imagine being blind, standing on the sidewalk relying on your dog to keep you safe, when suddenly there’s a dog fight going on two feet from your arm? It’s terrifying.

Keep your pet dog on a leash close to your side. Don’t tie him outside the coffee shop, even for a minute. Your dog doesn’t know the difference between a service dog’s butt and a pet dog’s butt, and you know he’s going to check them both out.

Allow service dogs and service dogs in training to enter your business.

The Americans with Disabilities Act requires that all service dogs be granted access to all public places. This includes restaurants, doctors’ offices, taxi cabs and schools. These rules do not apply to therapy dogs or other pet dogs.

Not only is it against the law to deny a service dog access to your fabulous Frenchy-French restaurant, it’s embarrassing…for you! Get a clue, people. These dogs are cleaner and more polite than many of your two-legged patrons.

On the same note, service dogs in training should be granted access. Otherwise, how will they learn to handle different situations when they’re working?

Don’t misrepresent your pet dog as a service dog.

Yes. I know. Your dog is The Best Dog In The World, but he doesn’t have the training Mojo has. Mojo was bred to be small enough to curl up under the table or under the seat in front of you on the airplane. He knows to disappear and make himself scarce so he doesn’t wear out his welcome.

Bear in mind that Ray tries not to attract attention (OK…usually) when he’s out with Mojo. Most people who schlep their pet Yorkies to the gynecologist are clamoring for it. It’s not just about your dog’s behavior, either. If you put up a fight and ask the maitre ‘d to bring FiFi some Champagne, you’re making it harder for a service-dog handler to feel welcome at that establishment.

Not only is it impolite, it is actually illegal to represent your pet dog as a service dog when he’s not. While a pet dog must obey businesses’ “no-pets” policies, all service animals are welcome.