Training animals has always been a passion of mine. I always felt a connection to every furry and non furry friend. When I was a child, I was hospitalized, and that is where I met my first working dog, Spencer, from Canine Assistance. It changed my life. The following is a short essay I wrote to Canine Assistance when I applied to voulenteer there.
When I was a kid, I was sick at Children's Healthcare of Atlanta. I underwent multiple spinal taps at age 6 and was in and out of the hospital/clinics for years. I had been in the hospital for a few months when a woman popped into the doorway of my room with this BEAUTIFUL dog. She asked where my parents were and if I wanted to play with the dog. My heart stopped and I was nodding my head so hard I thought it was going to fall off. I had been so sick, but for the first time in forever, I had more energy and determination to see that dog than I had for anything in weeks. I sat in bed feeling so anxious that my parents were off in the other room talking to doctors and that I was going to miss the opportunity to visit with this dog. After a few minutes, which felt like hours, the woman came back into the room with my mom and dad trailing behind her. The dog, without any hesitation, ran to my right side of the bed. I remember seeing the long fur on the end of his tail swishing back and forth as he made his way over to me. With a big thud that only Golden Retrievers can do, he thumped his front two paws onto my arm with my IV, knocking off my heart monitor in the process. It hurt, but I was so elated by the presence of the dog that I didn't even notice the pain. I laughed as I pet his long soft ears with my non-IVed hand. A few minutes later, a concerned nurse flew through the door. Since the dog had removed my heart monitor by mistake I guess they thought I was crashing. She had a laugh seeing me sitting up in bed petting the dog and came around to re-attach the monitor. From that day forward, I got better, a little bit every day. It was probably the right combination of medication that the doctors came up with, but I have always thought that it was Spencer the Golden Retriever that saved me. He gave me the mental strength I needed to get out of there. Without Spencer, I felt as though I would never would have gotten out of there.
Little did I know that Spencer the Therapy Dog would have such an impact on my life that I ended up working with dogs and cats to help people understand how to communicate with their pet, and helping train both Service Animals and Therapy Dogs.
