Jillie's maturing a therapy dog
Jillie is 8 now and has been a therapy dog since she was 1. While she's not the PERFECT therapy dog -- one that likes to cuddle with patients -- she makes up for it by entertaining: She does lots of tricks.
Her 30-minute trick routine delights the kids we visit in pediatrics and adolescent mental health. They're amazed that such a little dog can be so smart.
But as a therapy dog handler going on my 10th year -- my first therapy dog, Eddie, recently retired -- I've always wished my dogs could provide the kind of comfort other therapy dogs do. Just being there. Loving being petted. Instinctively knowing that the person doing the petting needs some extra affection.
Today we had an unexpectedly moving visit that makes me think Jillie is getting there. It was after an hour's worth of visits in the mental health department -- 20-minute trick routines before two groups of adolescents and a third visit with adults. I was asked if we could visit an elderly patient who loves dogs.
Elderly patients have never been Jillie's forte. I've found they don't always appreciate her tricks the way the kids do. They just want a dog they can pet. So that's how we started today. I knelt beside the bed and held Jillie as close as I could get her. The woman, perhaps 80-something, gingerly raised her hand and petted Jillie behind the ears. As I started to go into our "routine" and tell stories about Jillie, I saw something happen. My stories and Jillie's touch seemed to spark memories.
As the woman gazed at Jillie and stroked her fur, I saw her eyes light up with memory. She told me of a Weimaraner she once owned, and her words seemed to bring the dog to life. She told of the time she took the Weim to a beach for the first time. She remembers diving headlong into a giant wave and having her dog dive in after her just to make sure she was safe.
I neglected to ask her how long ago this was, but I would presume it must have been a significant amount of time since this now 80-year-old woman dove into a giant wave for the last time. But the detail in her story made me think it was yesterday.
While Jillie has been known to get fidgety if I hold her in one place for too long, she was perfectly content allowing this woman to scratch her behind the ears as she told her stories.
The woman then related a story of how the Weimaraner reacted to a horse for the first time, and again the details were vivid. Her dog was initially fearful of the horse, but it rose up on its hind legs and went nose-to-nose with the beast to make sure it had no ill intentions toward its owner. As I looked into the woman's bright eyes, even I could see the long, lean Weimaraner doing this.
At one point, the woman's eyes welled up with tears as she told of the dog's passing. I reminded her that every dog we own stays alive for eternity in the hearts and minds of those who loved them. I thanked her for giving that dog such a magnificent life, and gradually the tears went away.
I ended the visit after about a half hour, but as the woman continued to pet Jillie and gaze, I had no doubt she was seeing her beloved 80-pound Weimaraner in 5-pound Jillie's eyes.
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