Bess, the Therapy Dog

Following the November Presidential election, I considered Barack Obama’s call for Americans to become engaged in volunteer activities. I wondered how I might combine that with my weight loss goals for exercise. Through luck, we stumbled across Therapy Dogs, a national volunteer program where dogs and their owners are certified to visit hospitals, nursing homes, Alzheimer’s units, etc. I decided to give it a try with Bess.

At just under 70 pounds, Bess is much less dog than her brother Harry. Harry is 100 pounds of pure muscle and sweetness. However, he is so big and strong that he is very hard for me to manage. Bess is cuddly, goofy, playful, and sort of on the flaky side, which I think makes her a great temperament for Therapy Dogs.

We made our first observation visit to a school for children with disabilities. Bess managed the wheelchairs, walkers, and children approaching her from all sides without any problems. I have to admit that she was more interested in the other dogs there than the children, but she is getting the idea.

There are so many new experiences for her in these visits – being around children, the chance to be away from her more dominant brother, longer rides in the car, rides on elevators, the chance to spend time one-on-one with me. And meeting dogs, dogs, and more dogs of every size, breed, and description.

Two days ago we attended a spring safety event at one of our state university campuses. College kids were just the right size for Bess. I was amazed how quickly she fell into the behavior I expected from her. For once, she didn’t jump on anyone new. And, halfway through the visit, pizzas were delivered for the students to snack on. Needless to say, no pizza crust went to waste, thanks to the 6 dogs in attendance.

Last night we successfully completed our 3rd and final observation at Shriners Hospital for Children here in Greenville. We visited about 20 patient rooms. Dogs climbed up on chairs to be near tiny patients; one or two immediately jumped up on the beds in order to be within petting distance. Bess, however, preferred the child who followed us in a wheelchair, especially after she found that he was supplied with a stash of Teddy Grahams. I learned the hard way that I will need to wear lace-up walking shoes from now on. Bess was so enthusiastic that she nearly pulled me out of my comfortable slip-ons. I envisioned myself flying around the halls of the hospital like a kite, pulled by a big blonde Labradoodle who seemed to take very little notice of the human attached to the other end of her leash.

I’ve noticed Bess go into the closet off my office several times today, to see if her special leash and collar for Therapy Dogs are still hanging there. They are right where we can both keep an eye on them and, as soon as our credentials come to us from the national office, we’ll be using them to make more visits.

And, in the meantime, I’m going to get some private training lessons with Harry. He is so empathetic and so smart that I know he needs to experience this, too.