Therapy dogs spread cheer through virtual volunteering
An English mastiff named Duke doesn’t understand social distancing. The 3-year-old dog is used to volunteering nearly every day at schools and assisted living facilities as a therapy dog with his handler, Tiger Maynard-White.
“He loves people,” Maynard-White, 56, told TODAY. “He is the biggest baby.”
The New London, Connecticut-based team has volunteered for the past two years with the nonprofit Pet Partners, spreading comfort and cheer in their community. Maynard-White said they both miss offering face-to-face visits; she’s particularly worried about senior citizens in nursing homes who are unable to visit with their families during the coronavirus pandemic.
“That’s why I came up with the idea of window-to-window visits,” she said.
Duke visits residents at Harbor Village Rehabilitation and Nursing Center — from outside. Though residents can’t run their fingers through his fur, they still light up in delight while peering out the windows at the happy dog. Maynard-White waves a sign that reads, “Duke sends his love.”
On one visit, a typically withdrawn woman urged a member of the staff to help her rise from her wheelchair to get a closer look. Others pressed their hands to the window in gratitude.
“Each of our hands are touching both sides of the windows,” she said. “I was in tears.”
Volunteer therapy dog teams across the country are finding creative ways to spread comfort in these unprecedented times when stress, isolation and anxiety are on the rise.
Elisabeth Van Every, communications and outreach coordinator at Pet Partners, which currently has around 13,000 registered therapy animal teams across America and abroad, said she is not surprised.
“Most of our volunteers really love what they do,” she told TODAY. “They find it very rewarding to be able to share their pets with people who can benefit, and to see the difference they’re making in people’s lives.”
Some teams are holding video chats with students or hospital patients; others are sharing daily photos on social media. Since therapy animals can’t currently promote children’s literacy with visits at classrooms and libraries, Pet Partners plans to launch a “Read With Me” initiative soon.
“We are going to be asking kids to read to their pets at home and share photos or videos of that with us so that we can make sure they’re still maintaining that connection and those opportunities to read,” she said. “We’re glad we have an opportunity to do that thanks to the available technology.”
Jill Baker, 59, works at the University of South Florida Health Libraries. Her golden retriever, Snitch, a Pet Partners therapy dog, is the Library Ambassador and has been a hit with students since she started volunteering in 2014.
Now that medical students are working remotely and potentially feeling additional anxiety about their chosen field, Snitch is helping remind them of ways to access the journals and data they need in social media posts and on the library website. She’s also appearing in cute photos to offer stress relief.
How To Clip Black Nails
This is our lovely little Yorkie, Patty. Patty has all black nails. Black nails are obviously the hardest to clip because it is not possible to locate the quick before trimming the nail. In this video we show you how to properly and safely achieve a nail clip when all of the nails are black. Thank you for watching. Enjoy the video!
Dog grooming for beginners
This is a how to video on “how to groom a dog”. if you are a beginner then this video is for you.
How To Potty Train A Puppy Fast & Easy
The Potty Training Puppy Apartment has taken all the benefits of the most popular potty training methods and combined them into one magical device and potty training system. This device and system has revolutionized how modern puppies are potty trained. Potty training a puppy is just a click away. Potty training your puppy or dog has never been cleaner, faster or easier!
Dogs could get extreme separation anxiety when quarantine ends
Fido may get frantic when the coronavirus quarantining ends.
While isolated humans can’t wait until the end of work-from-home culture, canine experts say that lifting shelter-in-place restrictions could conversely cause “extreme separation anxiety” in the millions of dogs who’ve grown accustomed to their owners’ constant companionship during lockdown.
“With such an overload of quality time with their families, dogs are building up a huge reservoir of over-dependency,” animal psychology expert Roger Mugford tells the Times. Mugford, who’s known for training Queen Elizabeth’s corgis, adds that the pampered pooches could “suffer when mums and dads suddenly return to work and the children go back to school.”
Dr. Karen Sueda, a veterinary behaviorist added in a statement to Insider, “Dogs thrive on consistency and predictability, as we all do, so any time there’s an abrupt change, it can cause stress.”
The mental whiplash could cause formerly doted-upon doggies to engage in a range of erratic behaviors, including defecating, urinating, howling, chewing or trying to escape, reports the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. Some panicky pups could even practice coprophagia, where they defecate and then consume their own feces.
“Put a webcam on your dog, and you’ll see howling and pacing and other distress signs,” Mugford tells the Times.
Separation anxiety isn’t just psychologically damaging. The ASPCA reports stressed pets could attempt “to dig and chew through doors or windows, which could result in self-injury, such as broken teeth, cut and scraped front paws and damaged nails.”
It’s a frightening proposition as approximately 20% to 40% of dogs referred to animal behavior practices in North America are diagnosed with separation anxiety, even when not isolating with their owners, according to the American Veterinary Medical Association.
While there is no remedy for canine conniptions, dog experts do advise acclimating pooches to separation prior to the end of lockdown, à la conditioning applied by famed researcher Ivan Pavlov.
“Allow your pet to have some alone time,” says Sueda. “You have your space, and they have theirs.” For those who live in cramped quarters with their canine companions, the ASPCA prescribes training your dog to perform out-of-sight “stays” by an inside door in the home, such as the bathroom.
Separation anxiety specialist Malena DeMartini-Price tells Insider, “It’s a gradual process of using small absences that start to teach the dog that absences are safe.” Still, abandoning one’s fur babies for even short periods could prove a tall order for the millions who are relying on — and even buying — dogs to keep themselves sane during lockdown. Especially when Fluffy’s so happy to see their master that he sprain their tail from wagging it so much.
That’s why canine specialists also advise keeping man’s best friend engaged via enrichment activities such as crate training, interactive toys and more, the ASPCA reports.
Dog-appeasing pheromone (DAP), white noise and medications such as Zylkene or Anxitane might also help Lassie avoid separation anxiety, according to Sueda.
Pandemic Puppies
What’s the ultimate cure for this recent heaviness? Puppies, of course.
In the past few weeks, families have been using the forced time at home to finally say yes to the question they’ve been asked for months/years: “Can we get a puppy . . . Pleeeaaassseeee???”
“For years, my kids have asked—daily—for a dog,” says Jessica Klaitman. Slowly, she and her husband’s firm “no” had started to soften. “Not that we ever told the kids that,” jokes Klaitman, who lives in Towson. Then quarantine hit.
As she walked her kids home from school on March 13th, the last day that schools were open, a dog was the last thing on her mind.
“A week later though, as the reality of our collective situation started to sink in, and the tears and frustration started showing,” Klaitman says, “we realized that we needed an infusion of happiness—right now.” Her kids were so surprised when they brought Pepper home, that her daughter asked, “Is that a real dog?”
Josie Moon joined the Siegal-Andorsky family on March 23rd, the day Governor Larry Hogan‘s executive order that only essential services remain open in the state went into effect.
The family had been considering getting a dog for about a year, but was hesitant to do so with their busy lifestyle. Their middle child was the one who had been consistently and persistently asking for a dog. She pointed out that this—meaning the pandemic—was the best opportunity to be home with a puppy. “I’ve literally been waiting 10 years for this day to come,” says 10-year old, Nava.
Since the children’s school—Krieger Schechter Day School—had moved to an online learning environment, mom Rachel Siegal had been exploring the pet possibility with renewed vigor.
“When I heard the essential-services-only executive order was coming into effect at 5 p.m., I told myself it was now or never,” Siegal says. “I went and met the puppy by myself at 1:30, leaving the kids at home with my husband, Sam.” (She had learned her lesson from a previous puppy encounter earlier in the week, when they all went and the kids left brokenhearted when she decided that particular dog wasn’t right for them.)
“When I met this puppy I had a sense that she was the one,” says Siegal. After meeting the entire family later that afternoon, the new pup was settled in her new home before the executive order went into effect that night.
“We borrowed some puppy supplies from neighbors, did a curbside pick up order from Petco, found Joy Freedman, a trainer who was willing to do online virtual trainings with us as a family, and we were off and running,” she says.
The Sandhu Potter family had been talking about a puppy for a while, given that their last rescue, Freddie, is 17. “We thought we’d do it after she passes,” says Kiran Sandhu. “But since she’s still going pretty strong and we are all home now, we decided to take advantage of the time.”
Hodja, a “probably” collie/corgi mix, is named after Nasreddin Hodja, a Turkish satirist from the 13th century. “We used to read his stories to the kids when they were little,” says Sandhu.
Another big motivating factor for the family was giving the kids something to focus on that isn’t a screen.
“It’s been great having the time to dedicate to a puppy,” says Sandhu, an ESOL educational associate with Baltimore City Public Schools. “I’m not sure how we could have done it with our normal schedules.”
Klaitman agrees it’s a wonderful distraction and way to fill time. “Pepper has been such a wonderful diversion for us,” she says. “And yes, she has succeeded in increasing our happiness exponentially.”
The same is true in the Siegal-Andorsky household. The first day, they filled up a wall in their hallway with Post-It notes covered in possible names for their puppy. Over the course of the second day, they eliminated some names as her personality started to emerge.
Their 13-year old son, Yoni, wanted a nature-based name, like Storm or Ash, reflective of Josie’s merle coat. “We didn’t want to do a name that was anything reminiscent of coronavirus or of this terrible time for our world,” says Siegal.
After day two it became clear that Josie Moon was the name that best suited her chill personality.
“I like to think of her as an old hippie come to our family to help chill us all out,” jokes Siegal. “It’s also been great to have her around for those 15 minutes here and there when the kids have breaks between their Zoom classes. Rather than watch one more YouTube video, they’re coming downstairs to the kitchen to play with the puppy,” she says, mentioning, “That’s not to say they’re not watching hours and hours of YouTube and Netflix—which they are—while Sam and I try to continue to work.”
Says Klaitman, “The kids call her their ‘emotional support dog.’ To be honest, so do the adults. We love our ‘pandemic puppy’ and know that she will help imprint some delightful memories from a difficult time.”
DON’T GET SCAMMED BY FAKE ESA LETTERS
After reading and searching online you discover the fact that you are qualified to have an emotional support animal and feel that an ESA will help you with conditions like anxiety, depression or other mental issues. So after much searching online, you decide to purchase a consultation with an organization for your ESA Letter Online.
Now that you have received your documents you discover the airline you are booking your holiday travel with denies your letter. This happens all the time. We get calls every day from people that purchased cheap ESA documents online. For example, we get calls from customer of Waggy.pet and ExpressPetCertify where their documents are denied every day. If you go the cheap route online you are going to end up paying more in the end. You know the old saying if it sounds to good to be true it probably is, there isn’t a Dr or Therapist in the U.S. that is going to write a letter for $22 ….bottom line. Check out the reviews of Waggy, this is from their own site but they had to take it down after so many bad reviews ExpressPetCertify is under investigation by the BBB because they are offering unlicensed letter recommendations.
There are many good organizations online just be careful if the offer is less than what a Dr or Therapist appointment would charge, most likely they are fake documents from unlicensed therapists or simply fake letters that don’t work.
We are very passionate about Emotional Support Animal rights and believe in the benefits an ESA can provide to it’s handler. It simply breaks our hearts when we have calls from distraught travelers or someone receiving eviction papers from their landlord due to purchasing fake papers. Be careful and check the reviews of the product, if the website doesn’t have verified purchase reviews like you would find on Amazon when you buy a product it is because they don’t have happy customers. We are here to help you so let us know if you have any questions in the comments below after reading this article. Our network of licensed therapists are standing by to help you with your emotional support animal needs.
Therapy dog sends love
The Del Sol Medical Center therapy dog Coco and her handler (dad) Rodd Garcia are not visiting patients due to COVID-19 and the limit of visitors to keep patients safe.
Coco and Garcia can’t wait to get back to work and want to express their thanks to the Del Sol healthcare workers and let them know they are missed.
Coronavirus and pets: can my dog or cat spread the disease?
The number of people worldwide infected with the new coronavirus has exceeded 100,000 and the disease is continuing to spread, but what role do pets – if any – have in the outbreak?
After a dog in Hong Kong reportedly tested ‘weak positive’ for coronavirus, causing some alarm among pet owners, the Guardian’s Helen Davidson answers some of the most pressing questions surrounding domestic animals and coronavirus
Need a way to exercise? Get out and walk the dog
April Bowling is a former competitive triathlete, endurance coach, and assistant professor of public health at Merrimack College.
But as the mother of two energetic teenagers, the Essex resident knows how hard it is to keep fit now that school and sporting events are suspended due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“We walk the dog about 20 times a day, alone and together, go hiking and running outside,” said Bowling, a member of Merrimack’s COVID-19 task force. “We avoid places with lots of other people.”
While Bowling endorses the statewide order to shutter large gatherings, she said adhering to a fitness regimen — one that includes cardiovascular and resistance training — is important to maintain overall health.
“Find a way of working out that you like and can stick to,” she said. “It doesn’t really matter what you choose to do. You don’t need to go out and buy weights to use at home. Body weight strength training works too.”
The current rules regarding self-isolation and social distancing, despite their necessity, “are really challenging,” Bowling acknowledged. To avoid claustrophobia, Bowling and her family get outside.
“We’re outside, every day, rain or shine, cold or warm, but we stick to places that don’t have a lot of other folks,” she said.
Bowling, her husband, Peter Phippen, and their teenage son and daughter also keep active with a home gym featuring bikes on windtrainers, TRX training equipment, a treadmill, yoga mats, and free weights. They also employ remote workouts and workout apps available online.
“We have the workout studio in our house running full speed,” she said. “I believe strongly in supporting local businesses — your local yoga studio is more than likely holding virtual classes. Same with local YMCAs and gyms.
“It’s a win-win situation,” said Bowling. “You get an online class — usually very cheap, as in $5 or less — while helping your local businesses stay afloat during challenging times.”
General fitness standards — proper sleep, exercise, nutrition, and hydration — all have an impact on our immune systems, said Bowling.
“Physical activity is critical to stress management and self-care,” she said. “It’s also clear that regular, moderate exercise helps boost immunity in general, which can help prevent infection and minimize severity of illness.”
Just don’t overdo it.
“Folks may also want to consider modifying their training to avoid long bouts of intense exercise, particularly if they are in a high-risk category, such as over the age of 60,” Bowling said.
Finally, Bowling encouraged people who are looking for accurate information on the pandemic to visit the Centers for Disease Control website (cdc.gov/coronavirus).
“We’re seeing tons of misinformation out there,” she said.
