Dogs find foster homes

The stay at home directive by Governor Larry Hogan has been an unusual gift to the Queen Anne’s County Animal Services shelter in Queenstown. Animal Services has been asking people to consider fostering a pet while they are staying home to comply with the efforts to prevent the spread of COVID-19, and the fostering promotion has paid off big for the pets.

As of Wednesday, April 22, the shelter has fostered out 21 dogs over the past five weeks with only four dogs remaining at the shelter. Two of those are beagles that recently came into the shelter.

The third is a 6-month-old Lab mix puppy that was found as stray. Attempts have been made to find its owner, but if no one is found, the pup will be available of fostering or adoption.

The fourth dog is an older Shar-Pei mix female named Gemma. Gemma is described as “50 pounds, a big ball of wrinkles. Loves stuffed doll animals. She’s a ‘couch potato’ and adores her couch bed surrounded by her stuffed toy animals. She likes to be ‘the queen of attention.’” The only negative about Gemma, she suffers from separation anxiety, so she needs to be with someone all the times and doesn’t like other dogs. She will need to go to a home where she is the only animal.

“The foster push has definitely helped,” said Animal Services Director Ramon Villatoro. “In the time I’ve been working here, we’ve never had this low in numbers of dogs in the shelter. I want to thank everyone who has stepped forward to help with having a pet at home with them during the time period.”

Adoption and Communications Director Brittany Fox added, “Those who have fostered these dogs are improving the lives of our pets.”

As the number of dogs in the shelter has dropped, kitten season has started, and there are currently 45 cats at the shelter, the majority of those deemed “barn cats,” Fox said. “A barn cat is not a couch cat inside your home. It needs — wants — a job. A barn cat lives inside the barn, brewery, place of business, and works for its food, catching mice and other rodents. All of our cats are neutered/spayed and fully vaccinated.”

Many options for foster care are available with no obligation to adopt. There are also short-term overnight and weekend fostering arrangements. Free pet food, bedding and veterinary services for fostered pets as needed.

Working dog trains

The 30th Security Forces Squadron Military Working Dog Flight conducted a roadway detection training April 15 at Vandenberg Air Force Base.

During the training, the squadron’s military working dog and handler teams faced a test of endurance and readiness as they rucked approximately 2 miles from the kennels toward Wall Beach and back.

“The ruck helps handlers understand the dog’s fatigue level,” said Staff Sgt. Stephen Sanchez, who also works as a trainer. “Handlers can be dispatched at any moment to a threat and need to know how long their dog can effectively work before needing to take a break.”

Before the ruck, each handler geared up with equipment vests, helmets, water, for both them and their dog, an arrangement of leashes, a thermometer to check their dog’s temperature, a muzzle and toys. With the dogs prepared and equipment in hand, the teams began their journey.

Once teams reached the halfway point, they were faced with a simulated roadway training exercise, where six training explosive ordinance devices were buried for the teams to find. Each team was evaluated on its ability to efficiently detect the roadside explosives.

“You never know what you’ll be tasked to do,” said Senior Airman Ricky Wilson, who also works as a handler. “The rucks keep us prepared for a deployment, as well as being able to work as a team under difficult circumstances where the stakes are raised.”

In order to maintain their mission-readiness, each training is designed to simulate situations that might occur at home station, while deployed, or when supporting Secret Service missions, according to Sanchez. During these situations, the team’s ability to come together is vital for the success of the mission and to save lives.

“A dog doesn’t understand that what he’s practicing for could save his handler’s life, or possibly others’ lives,” Sanchez said. “He knows that if he finds an odor, he gets rewarded, but big picture is he’s saving lives.”

Schools are choosing therapy dogs

The pilot program putting fuzzy, four-legged counselors in Hamilton County schools is in talks with “several” other schools about expanding the program for the 2020-2021 school year, despite uncertainty about in-person instruction in the fall.

Currently, the Hamilton County Education Service Center and Circle Tail have placed six therapy dogs in schools, where they work as interns until the school decides to pick up the bill by hiring the dog.

Golden retriever Zooey has a regular spot in the Lakota Schools newsletter and an email address that students can write to for advice. She gives them tips to stay calm and healthy, according to the HCESC.

A pup named Cyngi makes regular Zoom appearances for students in HCESC’s Pathways to Employment program. She’s practicing manners and service skills and working on a video to show students how she is adapting to her “new normal.”

Even though students aren’t walking the halls of St. Xavier High School, 2-year-old golden retriever Evan still makes appearances on its social media pages and had a daily “Where’s Evan?” challenge.

Days before schools started the shift to remote learning because of the COVID-19 pandemic, WCPO wanted to learn more about the pilot program and the training behind it.

Evan started his training like all the others do — down a gravel road in rural Warren County.

Circle Trail in Pleasant Plain was established in 1997. Executive director Marlys Staley left a life as a physical therapist to start the organization.

“What I’ve learned is, you never know everything,” Staley told WCPO. “Dogs are as individual as people, even within a litter. You have to always work with the dog in front of you. There’s no ‘cookbook’ dog training.”

Evan was a little different from the get-go.

“Everywhere he went, everybody loved Evan,” Staley said.

“He is so beautiful and he just lights up the room when you see him,” said volunteer Leslie Kreines. “He has this ‘Evan smile.’ He has a way of lifting his head back and putting on this beautiful smile that just makes everyone want to come to him.”

Kreines coordinates Circle Tail’s partnership with the HCESC to place dogs in schools, which began in January. Circle Tail sponsors the dog by paying for everything, including food and crates. “What we’re seeing in the schools now is obviously the stress level,” Kreines said. “What we’re finding is how magical these dogs are.”

Back when schools were still open, St. Xavier senior Alex Nielsen spent time with Evan every day. They’ve been pals since the golden retriever started walking the halls in Finneytown.

“I see him every day. I have a streak with him — I call it a streak, at least,” Nielsen said.

But Evan almost wasn’t hired for the job.

“At first, I was a little skeptical,” assistant principal Jason Ahlers told WCPO. “You hear of people just sort of putting a therapy vest on a dog and saying, ‘We have a therapy dog.'”

That was until he met the folks at Circle Tail and talked to the Hamilton County ESC.

“We read the data, we saw studies that talk about how a therapy dog can help someone in crisis calm down more quickly,” Ahlers said.

Much of that research forms a scientific, physiological argument in favor of the “paws-itive” effects of a therapy dog in the classroom.

Evan mostly stays in St. Xavier’s counseling offices, but there’s no research needed to see the effect he has had on the Bombers.

“I think dogs are able to just access everyone’s emotions, no matter what they are,” Nielsen said.

Dogs at Circle Tail start training young.

Sisters Drew and Meg — named after Barrymore and Ryan — were 9 weeks old when we met them. They spend their time in a play room with different toys and surfaces.

“They stay here until at least four months or so, and then they’ll rotate into our prison program and then come out and rotate into a foster family,” Staley said. “Eventually around one year of age, they start doing some of their service and therapy skills.”

Circle Tail started its prison program in 1998 and now works in the Ohio Reformatory for Women and the Dayton Correctional Institute.

Evan started on his training track to be a service dog helping those with special needs. But when he began visiting the Ohio Reformatory for Women, it became clear that his talents were more intuitive.

“He almost would sense which people needed him,” Staley said. “The ladies would walk him around the prison and there was a woman off to the side crying, and he stopped and wouldn’t go with his handler, like ‘Nope, we’ve got to go check her out.'”

Circle Tail’s service dogs are well-rounded — they can open doors and drawers and turn light switches on and off, among other things.

But Evan was clearly best suited for therapy work.

“When you’re doing some of the training, they’re like, ‘Seriously, you’ve already dropped that pen twice, you can get it yourself,'” Staley said. “Their work ethic is not like some of the labs that are just always ready to do stuff for you.”

It’s not just work ethic. A therapy dog also has to have superior social skills.

“They love the next person that’s holding the leash, and the next person that’s holding the leash and the next person,” Staley said.

Walk the halls of St. Xavier High School (whenever it is safe for students and their golden guidance counselor to return) and you’ll see Evan’s appeal.

Service dogs are needed

During the stay-at-home orders, more and more retired veterans that are suffering mental and physical disabilities are looking for service dogs. For retired veterans dealing with PTSD and or physical injuries, COVID-19 is bringing up memories they didn’t know they had. Memories they tucked away in a dark place.

That’s why the local nonprofit, Veterans Moving Forward, which trains service dogs for veterans, is refusing to shut down during this crisis.

Lori Sittner, Director of Operations says, “Some of our veterans who haven’t been able to leave their house or they were on 13, 14 medications. They were afraid to leave their house, their lives were stopped.”

During the coronavirus pandemic, emotional support dogs for veterans dealing with mental and physical challenges are still being trained.

Head trainer Katie Poulson says, “Breeders are telling me that they are getting more calls now than they’ve ever seen before. 15 a day is nothing and we are getting more applications because it has increased a lot of veterans’ PTSD. Having to go through the scare and the isolation, you’re seeing N95 masks everywhere and also I’ve seen respirators out there.”

The K9s are being raised and trained by the organization based out of Sterling, Virginia. The training starts at around 8 weeks old and will last about 2 years.

The dogs can do everything from fetch medication, turn on bathroom lights and open and shut doors to moving quickly on a seizure response.

Life-changing assistance by four-legged friends is vital especially during social distancing and home isolation.

Sittner says, “Verbiage that we are hearing is that this is a war that we are fighting. It’s bringing up bad memories.”

Purina stepped up and donated several pallets of dog food but the reality is this nonprofit is solely based on donations and volunteers. Over 15 fundraiser events have been canceled and volunteers aren’t coming in. The staff says they are doing their best they can on limited resources.

Pet Policies vs. Companion Animals

HUD has issued new rules clarifying the responsibilities landlords shoulder regarding companion animals in rental properties.

The newly released a “Notice on Service Animals and Assistance Animals for People with Disabilities in Housing and HUD-Funded Programs discusses how the Fair Housing Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) intersect regarding the use of service or assistance animals by persons with disabilities.

The Fair Housing Act prohibits landlords from discriminating based on disability, race, color, national origin, religion, sex, and familial status. The ADA prohibits discrimination against people with disabilities in employment, transportation, public accommodations, communications, and state and local government activities.

Both laws contain provisions which address the use of service or assistance animals by people with disabilities. While the Fair Housing Act covers nearly all types of housing, some types of housing, such as public housing, are covered by both laws.

HUD Assistant Secretary for Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity, says a “Disability-related complaints, including those that involve assistance animals, are the most common discrimination complaint we receive.”

HUD„¢s new notice explains housing providers obligations under the Fair Housing Act, including the requirement to provide reasonable accommodations to people with disabilities who require assistance animals. Pet restrictions cannot be used to deny or limit housing to people with disabilities who require the use of an assistance animal because of their disability. Housing providers must grant reasonable accommodations in such instances, in accordance with the law.

According to the notice, two threshold questions must be addressed when a tenant asks for a companion animal:

1. Does the person seeking to use and live with the animal have a disability ” i.e., a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities?

2. Does the person making the request have a disability-related need for an assistance animal? In other words, does the animal work, provide assistance, perform tasks or services for the benefit of a person with a disability, or provide emotional support that alleviates one or more of the identified symptoms or effects of a person’s existing disability?

If the answer to question (1) or (2) is “no,” then the law does not require a modification of an existing “no pets” policy, and the reasonable accommodation request may be denied.

However, if the answer to these questions is “yes”, the landlord must modify or provide an exception to a “no pets” policy to permit a person with a disability to live with and use an assistance animal(s) in all areas of the premises where persons are normally allowed to go, unless doing so would impose an undue financial and administrative burden or would fundamentally alter the nature of the housing provider’s services.

A request for companion animal also may be denied if: (1) the specific assistance animal in question poses a direct threat to the health or safety of others that cannot be reduced or eliminated by another reasonable accommodation, or (2) the specific assistance animal in question would cause substantial physical damage to the property of others that cannot be reduced or eliminated by another reasonable accommodation. Breed, size, and weight limitations may not be applied to an assistance animal.

A determination that an assistance animal poses a direct threat of harm to others or would cause substantial physical damage to the property of others must be based on an individualized assessment that relies on objective evidence about the specific animal’s actual conduct ” not on mere speculation or fear about the types of harm or damage an animal may cause and not on evidence about harm or damage that other animals have caused. Conditions and restrictions that housing providers apply to pets may not be applied to assistance animals. For example, while housing providers may require applicants or residents to pay a pet deposit, those rules cannot be applied to companion animals.

Landlord cannot deny a reasonable accommodation request because they’re not certain whether the person seeking the accommodation has a disability or a disability-related need for an assistance animal. Housing providers may ask individuals who have disabilities that are not readily apparent or known to the provider to submit reliable documentation of a disability and their disability-related need for an assistance animal.

If the disability is readily apparent or known but the disability-related need for the assistance animal is not, the housing provider may ask the individual to provide documentation of the disability-related need for an assistance animal. For example, the housing provider may ask persons who are seeking a reasonable accommodation for an assistance animal to provides emotional support to provide documentation from a physician, psychiatrist, social worker, or other mental health professional that the animal provides emotional support that alleviates one or more of the identified symptoms or effects of an existing disability. Such documentation is sufficient if it establishes that an individual has a disability and that the animal in question will provide some type of disability-related assistance or emotional support.

However, a landlord may not ask a tenant or applicant to provide documentation showing the disability or disability-related need for an assistance animal if the disability or disability-related need is readily apparent or already known to the provider.

A housing provider also may not ask an applicant or tenant to provide access to medical records or medical providers or provide detailed or extensive information or documentation of a person’s physical or mental impairments.

While HUD makes it clear that private landlords have a legal duty under the Fair Housing Act to accept any qualifying companion animal into a rental property, the Department of Justice has narrowed its definition of service animals allowed into government and educational facilities under the ADA, to “any dog that is individually trained to do work or perform tasks for the benefit of an individual with a disability, including a physical, sensory, psychiatric, intellectual, or other mental disability. Emotional support animals are expressly precluded.

For more information, current forms or help regarding your Service Dog or ESA, please visit: www.tsdag.com

 

HUD Issues New Guidance On Reasonable Accommodations For Assistance Animals

 

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development released guidance today that clarifies how housing providers can comply with the Fair Housing Act when assessing a request from a person with a disability to have an assistance animal.

The federal Fair Housing Act prohibits discrimination in housing against individuals who have disabilities that affect a major life activity. Under the law, a disability is defined as a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities. The act requires housing providers to permit a change or exception to a rule, policy, practice or service that might be necessary to provide people with disabilities equal opportunity to use and enjoy their homes. In most circumstances, a refusal to make such a change or exception, known as a reasonable accommodation, is unlawful.

A common reasonable accommodation is an exception to a no-pet policy. A person with a disability that affects a major life activity may require the assistance of an animal that does work, performs tasks or provides therapeutic emotional support because of the disability. Housing providers may confirm, if it is not apparent, whether the requested accommodation is needed because of a disability that affects a major life activity and is a reasonable request.

A 2019 survey by the American Pet Products Association found that 67 percent of U.S. households own at least one pet, an estimated 84.9 million homes. The assistance animal notice is designed to help housing providers by offering a step-by-step set of best practices for complying with the Fair Housing Act when assessing accommodation requests involving animals and information that a person may need to provide about his or her disability-related need for the requested accommodation, including supporting information from a health care professional.

The new guidance provides information on the types of animals that typically may be appropriate and best practices for when the requested animal is one that is not traditionally kept in the home. It also provides information for housing providers and people with disabilities regarding the reliability of documentation of a disability or disability-related need for an animal that is obtained from third parties, including internet-based services offering animal certifications or registrations for purchase. A host of dubious and predatory service and emotional support animal registries have developed over the years for assistance animal certifications. Landlords and property managers are entitled to reliable verification of a tenant’s need for an assistance animal and can require documents other than an online certification.

“Countless Americans rely on assistance animals to fill a void, providing individuals with disabilities with the means to have a home that supports their quality of life,” stated HUD Secretary Ben Carson. “In my many discussions with housing providers and residents impacted by the need for assistance, I recognized the necessity for further clarity regarding support animals to provide peace of mind to individuals with disabilities while also taking into account the concerns of housing providers. Today’s announcement responds to the ambiguity surrounding proper documentation for assistance animals with clarity and compassion to provide an equal opportunity for a person living with a disability to use and enjoy their home.”

The National Multifamily Housing Council (NMHC) and the National Apartment Association (NAA) released the following statement on HUD’s new animal assistance guidance:

“The apartment industry strongly supports the rights of persons with disabilities to make reasonable accommodation requests so they may have equal opportunity to use and enjoy a dwelling. However, a lack of clarity in the law currently governing emotional support animals allows for abuse and imposes an unfair burden on property owners. This undermines the intent of the Fair Housing Act to help those truly in need of an emotional support animal. NMHC and NAA believe the new guidance is a step in the right direction toward providing a clearer understanding of emotional support animal rules.

“Prior to the issuance of this new guidance, it was often difficult for owners and operators to determine legitimate requests from illegitimate ones. HUD’s guidance will help rental housing providers mitigate abuse, ensure better compliance with fair housing laws, and, vitally, improve the ability of owners and operators to protect the rights of disabled persons to live with their service animals and emotional support animals.”

Anna Maria Farías, HUD’s assistant secretary for Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity pointed out that HUD has recognized for decades the rights of individuals with disabilities to keep an assistance animal in the home where it is a reasonable accommodation.

“Housing is unique, and a person with a disability that affects a major life activity might need an animal that provides support in ways that is not readily apparent to housing providers,” said Farías. “For example, veterans or senior citizens may need the assistance or therapeutic support of an animal to help them cope with the symptoms of a disability that affects a major life activity. This guidance will help housing providers to recognize the important way assistance animals can improve the lives of persons with disabilities and to meet their obligation to grant such accommodations.”

HUD General Counsel Paul Compton added, “With the Assistance Animals Notice, both housing providers and individuals with disabilities will better understand their rights and obligations under the Fair Housing Act regarding assistance animals, particularly emotional support animals. For housing providers, this is a tool that can be used to help them lawfully navigate various sets of sometimes complex circumstances to ensure that reasonable accommodations are provided where required so that persons with a disability-related need for an assistance animal have an equal opportunity to use and enjoy their housing. The guidance will help ensure that these important legal rights are asserted only in appropriate circumstances.”

Persons who believe they have experienced housing discrimination can file a complaint of discrimination by contacting HUD’s Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity at 800- 669-9777 or file a complaint online.

 

U.S. Department of Transportation Issues Final Statement of Enforcement Priorities Regarding Service Animals on Flights

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) today issued a Final Statement of Enforcement Priorities Regarding Service Animals that provides greater clarity to passengers, airlines, and other stakeholders about the DOT’s interpretation and enforcement of the existing service animal rules.

In this Final Statement, the Department’s Enforcement Office announced that it does not intend to take action against an airline for asking users of any type of service animal to provide documentation related to vaccination, training, or behavior so long as it is reasonable to believe that the documentation would assist the airline in making a determination as to whether an animal poses a direct threat to the health or safety of others.  The Enforcement Office will monitor airlines’ animal documentation requirements to ensure that they are reasonable.

The Final Statement also addresses a number of other issues, such as species limitations, containment, advance notice, and check-in requirements for Emotional Support and Psychiatric Service Animals.

The Department remains committed to ensuring that our air transportation system is safe and accessible for everyone.  As such, the Enforcement Office will focus its enforcement efforts on clear violations of the current rule and will continue to investigate all complaints alleging violations of the Air Carrier Access Act.

Separately, DOT plans to issue a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on Service Animals later this year.

The final statement can be found at regulations.gov, docket number DOT-OST-2018-0067.  It is effective upon publication in the Federal Register.  Airlines are expected to review their policies and revise them, if necessary, to comply with the Department’s disability regulation.

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Final Statement of Enforcement Priorities Regarding Service Animals – Summary

• Species Limitations:  The Department’s disability regulation has a broad definition of service animals. Priority will be placed on ensuring that the most commonly recognized service animals (dogs, cats and miniature horses) are accepted for transport.  Nevertheless, airlines are still subject to enforcement action if they categorically refuse to transport other species that they are required to transport under the current rule.

• Breed/Species Restrictions:  The Department’s Enforcement Office views a limitation based exclusively on breed of the service animal to not be allowed under its service animal regulation.  The Enforcement Office intends to use available resources to ensure that dogs as a species are accepted for transport.  Airlines are permitted to find that any specific animal, regardless of breed, poses a direct threat.

• Documentation Requirements:  The Department’s disability regulation permits airlines to determine, in advance of flight, whether any service animal poses a direct threat, but the rule does not clearly indicate how airlines must make that assessment.  The Department’s Enforcement Office does not intend to take action against an airline for asking users of any type of service animal to present documentation related to the service animal’s vaccination, training or behavior so long as it is reasonable to believe that the documentation would assist the airline in making a determination as to whether an animal poses a direct threat to the health or safety of others. The Enforcement Office will monitor the airlines’ animal documentation requirements to ensure that they are not being used to unduly restrict passengers with disabilities from traveling with their service animals.

• Containment:  The Department’s disability regulation contains no explicit requirements or prohibitions with respect to containment of service animals in the cabin.  The Department’s Enforcement Office will consider containment issues for all service animals on a case-by-case basis, with a focus on reasonableness.  In general, tethering and similar means of controlling an animal that are permitted in the Americans with Disabilities Act context would be reasonable in the context of controlling service animals in the aircraft cabin.

• Advance Notice:  The Department’s disability regulation prohibits airlines from requiring advance notice for passengers traveling with service animals, other than emotional support animals (ESAs) and psychiatric support animals (PSAs). Enforcement resources will be focused on ensuring that airlines do not require advance notice for passengers with traditional service animals as advance notice may significantly harm passengers with disabilities as it prevents them from making last minute travel plans that may be necessary for work or family emergencies.

• Check-In Requirements:  The Department’s Enforcement Office does not view it to be violation of the Department’s disability regulation if airlines require lobby check-in for ESAs and PSAs because the regulation permits airlines to require ESA and PSA users to check in one hour before the check-in time for the general public.

• Proof that an Animal is a Service Animal:  The Department’s Enforcement Office has long interpreted existing law as permitting airlines to seek credible verbal assurance that a passenger is an individual with a disability and the animal is a service animal.  If a passenger’s disability is not clear, airlines may ask questions to determine the passenger’s need for the animal even if the animal has other indicia of a service animal such as a harness, vest or tag.

• Number of Service Animals Per Passenger:  The Department’s disability regulation is not clear as to how many service animals may travel with a passenger with a disability. Enforcement efforts will generally focus on ensuring that airlines are not restricting passengers from traveling with one ESA and a total of three service animals if needed.  Generally, one ESA should be sufficient for emotional support, but a passenger may reasonably need more than one task-trained service animal.

• Number of Service Animals per Aircraft:  The Department’s disability regulation does not allow airlines to deny transport to a service animal accompanying a passenger with a disability because of a limit on the total number of service animals that can be on any flight.  The Department’s Enforcement Office would thus view denial of transport to an ESA because of other ESAs in the cabin of aircraft to violate its regulation as ESAs are considered service animals under the existing rule.

• Weight Restrictions: Under the Department’s disability regulation, airlines may deny transport to a service animal that is too large or too heavy to be accommodated in the cabin.  The Department’s Enforcement Office views a categorical ban on animals over a certain weight limit, regardless of the type of aircraft for the flight, to be inconsistent with the regulation.

• Age Restrictions:  The Department’s disability regulation does not address the minimum age of a service animal.  However, all service animals (including ESAs) are expected to be trained to behave in public.  As a general matter, the Department’s Enforcement Office would not view it to be a violation for an airline to prohibit the transport of service animals younger than four months as some airlines have done.

• Flight-Length Restrictions:  The Department’s disability regulation provides that airlines may require passengers using a service animal on flights scheduled to take eight hours or more to provide documentation that the animal will not need to relieve itself on the flight or that it can do so in a way that does not create a health or sanitation issue on the flight.  The Department’s Enforcement Office intends to use its available resources to ensure that airlines comply with the existing regulations with respect to this issue and do not automatically prohibit service animals (including ESAs) on flights lasting eight or more hours.

• Mental Health Professional Form:  Under the Department’s disability regulation, airlines are not required to transport ESAs or PSAs unless the passenger provides medical documentation of their need for the animal as specified in the rule.  The Department’s Enforcement Office would view it to be a violation for an airline to reject a medical form or letter that meets the criteria found in the rule because of an airline’s preference that the passenger use the airline’s form.

For information on updated Travel Forms for your ESA or Service Dog visit: www.tsdag.com 

Therapy dog, ‘Dogtor Loki’, delivers ‘Hero Healing Kits’ to health care workers

Therapy dog, ‘Dogtor Loki’, delivers ‘Hero Healing Kits’ to health care workers

When I’m Stressed or Anxious, My Guinea Pig, Helps Me Calm Down

I’m a happily married mom of two boys. On any given day, I am called to be a chauffeur, cook, referee, accountant, or nurse for my family. And for the most part, I juggle it all well. But sometimes my anxiety and depression get the better of me, and for that I turn to Dewey. Who’s he? Dewey is my cream-colored, brown-spotted, pink-nosed guinea pig. Yes, I consider my guinea pig an emotional support rodent.

I grew up in a pet-loving family. Throughout the years, there was always a dog I could cuddle, a parakeet I could chirp to, or a goldfish I could tap at. It should also be known that I was a very anxious child, and that I quickly found solace in these pets. One of my earliest pet-related memories is sitting in the backyard with my dog, Baxter, whispering into her ear all the worries I had about school and friends. I was about 11. Even then, I realized how much this furry companion meant to me.

She didn’t judge. She didn’t talk back. She just listened and gave me unconditional love all in exchange for a few pets. She died when I was in high school, and it hit me hard. So hard that I tried to never get as attached to another pet like that ever again. But sometimes those furry little faces get you, and just when you need them the most, they show up.

We didn’t intend to get a guinea pig. In fact, a guinea pig was never a pet I had ever considered. But my son’s school needed someone to watch their class pet during holiday break — a gigantic guinea pig by the name of Pepito. Our whole family got used to him over the break — and it was quite lonely when we had to return him back to the classroom — so we decided to get one of our own. Off we went to the local pet shop. One look at Dewey and we knew he was destined to be a member of our family.

Eventually the excitement of the new pet started to wear off on the other members of the family, but it didn’t dwindle for me. There wasn’t a day that passed where I didn’t take him out of his cage and pet him. He would be on my lap when I read a book, watched television, or talked on the phone. The funny thing is, I think he can tell when I need him the most. He crawls up to my shoulder, and nuzzles in for a snooze. I can feel his soft snores and the warmth of his furry little body. When I’m spending time with Dewey, it’s like my stress melts away.

It’s true when they say that animals can reduce a person’s stress. According to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America, nearly 80 million American households have some form of pet. And in their recent survey of pet owners, 74 percent of pet owners reported mental-health improvements from pet ownership. I can definitely vouch for that number.

When people think about getting emotional support from an animal, cats or dogs usually come to mind. But, not for me. I’m happy with my guinea pig. Sure, I might get strange looks when I tell people about him, but who cares. Dewey is the best support I could ask for.

Softening the Virus’s Bite with Cuteness Overload

Millions of pet owners breathed a collective sigh of relief in early March when Hong Kong researchers announced that dogs and cats can’t transmit the coronavirus to humans. For animal lovers quarantined at home and social-distancing from humans, their furry family members provide emotional solace as well as entertainment and comic relief.

Few things are as comforting as a picture of a cute dog — except, of course, lots of pictures of cute dogs. Research has shown that gazing into your dog’s eyes elevates levels of the bonding hormone oxytocin for both of you, just as gazing into your child’s eyes does. Now, with the coronavirus pandemic raging, people are turning to online pet groups to reproduce that cuddly feeling, over and over.

Focusing on our pets allows us to return to a simpler time, when the activities of daily living didn’t pose enormous risk, and keeps our minds off our own plight, says Randy Faerber, a psychoanalyst in New York City and alumna of Bard College. “Animals don’t know what’s going on,” Faerber says. “They’re just being animals. If you’re with that animal, you can identify with that animal. It’s another way to feel that everything’s okay.”

That need for normalcy is on display on the four-year-old site Hudson Valley Pets in Pictures, whose 5,500-odd members (up 200 in the past month alone) have been cranking out as many as 130 posts on some days during the pandemic.

The group’s preoccupation during this time has been the convalescence from herniated disc surgery of a particularly impish-looking wire-haired terrier mix named Tyson. Every post from Tyson’s “dad,” Chris Hawks, a Millbrook farmer, generates hundreds of likes and comments: compliments on Tyson’s progress, encouragement, and heart emojis.

A recent picture of Tyson sitting on a mound of hay surrounded by cows with the heading “helping dad feed the girls” racked up more than 300 likes and 55 comments, including, “He looks like he’s back to his old critter chasing self” from Verne Carter of Lake Peekskill.

Even the most mundane Tyson posts—“Peed…now back to the house for a treat or two” with a video of Tyson slowly and unsteadily navigating a brick walkway after his surgery—are cause for celebration (173 likes, many of them from women who seem as enamored of the farmer as they are of the dog).

“I think it’s lifting spirits a little bit from what’s going on,” Hawks says. “There seem to be a lot more people joining in the last couple of weeks. I get a lot of people making remarks that the best way to start the day off is with a smile from Tyson.”

The much larger Cool Dog Group, founded in New Zealand in 2012, now has about 784,000 members—so many, that it has capped membership in an effort to improve quality control.

“The general purpose of the group is to recreate that feeling you got as a kid when a dog turned up at school,” says a Cool Dog Group administrator who wanted to remain anonymous. “Excitement, joy—everyone remembers a day like that. It’s the talk of the school for days.”

Although Cool Dog has members all over the world, most are in New Zealand and Australia, which is facing the double whammy of raging bush fires followed by the coronavirus. “Our group is a place to escape things that might seem scary or stressful that appear elsewhere on social media,” the administrator says.

 

The site specifically asks members not to post about the coronavirus and sternly warns, “DO NOT WASTE PPE BY PUTTING IT ON YOUR DOG FOR THE SAKE OF LIKES ON THE INTERNET. This is an INCREDIBLY SELFISH thing to do and we will not hesitate to ban you from the group permanently if you attempt to post pictures or videos of your dog in PPE here.”

But there are no limits on adorable puppy videos, like the one of nine-week-old Labrador-golden retriever mix Winnie quizzically pawing a blueberry, which elicited about 100 gleeful comments. “What dis?? Toy? Food? Enemy?” a member posted. Other members rhapsodized about the puppy’s “little nose scrunch” and even her paws. Her owner responded, “I knowwwww. Her paws are my favorite thing in the world.”

A Cool Dog post by Sean McVey of Basking Ridge, New Jersey, with the heading “he’s a cancer survivor” and a picture of a dog missing his left front leg garnered nearly 4,300 likes along with comments proclaiming the dog a “miracle” and a “champion.”

“They’re really projecting onto the animal all their wishes for themselves,” Faerber says. “We want a miracle. We want a champion. We want to be saved. If we can fix this dog, if we can fix this situation, we can be fixed.”

The unconditional love dogs offer, which is even more important during times of stress and isolation, is another compelling factor. A 14-month-old group, I Love Dogs Forever, added 1,271 new members in the first week of April to its total of about 117,000. The six-month-old I Love Dogs group recently added 70 new members in just 24 hours, bringing its total to nearly 5,300. “My dog is the only person who consistently loves me all the time,” posted new I Love Dogs member John Giovanni of Brooklyn, along with a pic of his Havanese, Jasper.

Hudson Valley Pets member Chris Gerhardt of Beacon has been posting several updates a day on her schipperke, Lulu, whose tendency to rouse her mom early for her morning walk and seek out the sunniest spot on the couch amuse her many followers. “This site brings me so much joy,” Gerhardt says. “It’s a connection to the world because I feel like we’re all cut off, and it’s a little bit of normalcy. I know these people are still there and waiting to see Lulu.”

The site is also a great place to see pictures of a bearded dragon named Rocky perched on the steering wheel of his mom’s car; an unusually photogenic ferret, Dave, pausing for a furry close-up; and Paco the parrot stealing pizza from his family’s dining-room table.

Hudson Valley Pets allows members to mention the pandemic, and many note that the ability to spend time with their pets makes quarantine tolerable. “Sheltering in place with my Shelty,” Robert Jones wrote. “Not minding quarantine so much,” posted Paco’s mom, Teri Trotta of Wappingers Falls, above a pic of the parrot perched on her shoulder.