Therapy Dog Zoey

It’s impossible not to smile when you see 11-week-old Zoey.

She is training to be a therapy dog at Gate House, a homeless shelter near Danville.

Gate House Program Director Cindy Powers had the idea to bring a dog to the shelter when she saw two therapy dogs at nearby Danville State Hospital. She immediately knew they needed one here.

The Go Team Earns Award

For the first time ever, a team is being awarded the American Kennel Club Paw of Courage Award.

“Mostly, it’s been going to military dogs, service dogs, working dogs,” said Nancy Trepagnier, Executive Director and Founder of the Go Team Therapy Crisis and Airport Dogs.

The Go Team Therapy Crisis and Airport Dogs initially started as a team of two dogs back in 2012, during the Waldo Canyon Fire.

“One of the firefighters asked me what the name of our team was, had to think of a name real quick. So, I came up with the Go Team,” Trepagnier said.

Since then, the nonprofit has grown to more than 600 teams across the U.S., Italy and South Korea.

“We’re not your typical therapy dog team. Most of the therapy dog teams go through like about a 20-minute course, or a testing. With the Go Team, it’s two days, it’s over 20 hours, and you actually have to be referred to our team,” Trepagnier said.

With dogs of all different breeds and sizes, you’re sure to find the perfect one to help ease your nerves.

“Most people, they pet a dog, they’re going to smile. It really helps relax them, a good stress reliever, unconditional love,” said Lori Schlonski, Director of Administration and Regional Coordinator for the nonprofit.

Typically, teams volunteer at schools, assisted living facilities, military bases, and more, but the coronavirus pandemic has made the group change course.

“We haven’t been able to volunteer and I’ve been in touch with several of the nurses where we normally go to the hospital and they said this is when they need the dogs more than ever, because they’re understaffed, they’re overworked, and they’re not having the dogs there. And that’s all they’re talking about every day, is they need the dogs back,”

“They bring down stress in them, they make them happy, blood pressure comes down. You know, all you gotta do is pet them,” said Kim Musgrove, a volunteer team member.

At nearly 14 years old, Tabor, who helped launch the nonprofit, is looking forward to spreading joy in person again.

“Usually, he rides around in a wagon, which is really great when do special education classes because you’ll have the kids in the wheelchairs and they’ll see him in a wagon. And it makes them feel like, ‘here’s a dog that’s just like me,’” Trepagnier said.

“It’s all different for people. Some need it because they’re sad, some need it just because it just makes them feel joy. It’s just a good thing,” Schlonski said.

National Dog Day

Today is National Dog Day,  a day to celebrate man’s best friend and all the love and affection they bring to our lives.

Meet a very special dog in the Clarksville-Montgomery County community, named Orson IV.

Orson IV is a 9-year-old Labrador and Golden Retriever mix, who works as a facility dog at the 19^th Judicial District Office of the District Attorney. Orson is trained and certified by Canine Companions for Independence as a service dog and specializes in the care and comfort of children who have been victimized and are going through the criminal justice process.  Orson attends forensic interviews and accompanies children to court. His handler is Kimberly Lund, assistant district attorney.

When he is not at work, he enjoys laying around and eating an occasional banana, Lund said.

The Clarksville Police Department also uses K-9 to further serve and protect.  Meet the Clarksville Police Departments K-9 Heroes.

National Dog Day started in 2004 by Animal Welfare Advocate and Pet Lifestyle Expert, Colleen Paige, and celebrates all breeds, mixed and pure, and serves to help galvanize the public to recognize the number of dogs that need to be rescued each year, either from public shelters, rescues and pure breed rescues, according to NationalDogDay.com.

National Dog Day honors family dogs and dogs that work selflessly to save lives, keep us safe and bring comfort.

Dogs put their lives on the line every day – protecting our families and homes, for their law enforcement partner, for their blind companion, for the disabled, for our freedom and safety by detecting bombs and drugs and helping to locate and rescue victims of accidents and tragedy, according to National Dog Day.

Therapy Dog Award

As voting continues for the 2020 American Humane Hero Dog of the Year, a crew from the Hallmark Channel came to Jefferson City last week to record Olive’s acceptance as the therapy dog winner.

Olive, a poodle mix who gained notoriety as a volunteer Court Appointed Special Advocate, seemed nonplussed as she sat in a Cole County courtroom under the bright lights Thursday afternoon.

She sat on a child’s lap as Circuit Judge Jon Beetem explained on camera how Olive calms and distracts children from the drama they find themselves thrust into within the court system. “We’ve worked with Olive for a number of years,” Beetem said. “She is a part of our CASA program — Court Appointed Special Advocates — for our kids in juvenile court.”

CASA is a volunteer-oriented organization made up of a network of people from all walks of life (and one dog) who believe society has a fundamental obligation to make sure children thrive and are treated with dignity and are kept safe. Its volunteers, appointed by judges, watch over and advocate for abused and neglected children. They try to make certain the children don’t get lost in legal and social service systems or languish in inappropriate group or foster homes.

Television people have a distinct idea of what courts look like, Beetem told the crew.

Their views aren’t really reflected in a real courtroom, he continued.

When Olive sits on their laps, she’s usually in a basket.

“That way, she’s comfortable and not worried about falling down,” he said. “Because little kids — they don’t have very big laps.”

Coming into court is among the most traumatic things a child has to do, Beetem said.

“By the time they get to court, their lives have been sort of turned upside down. And they don’t have anywhere to look to for comfort,” Beetem said. “One of the things Olive does — and most of her work is actually done in the hallway — is checking on kids, giving them something to focus on and helping them to relax a little bit while they wait for their turn in court.”

Having Olive in the courtroom is almost like having a Teddy bear.

Olive is there.

She has no agenda.

She’s ready to be held and loved, Beetem said.

“It helps the children relax before they get to court, which is not relaxing,” he said. “They have a lot of anxiety. By the time we get them in here, sit them down and have Olive on their lap, they’ve relaxed a little bit,” he said. “Then we’re able to have a conversation. That’s the only way I learn what these kids are thinking.”

Therapy Pet Visits

Police K9 Unit

The Moody Police Department has added a member to its ranks.

Suzi is the new K9 for the department’s Narcotics Unit. She was donated by iK9 and the 1st Foundation in memory of the late Lt. Stephen Williams. The news was announced last month on the department’s Facebook page.

Williams was a 23-year veteran and night sergeant for the Moody Police Department who passed away June 2 while in the line of duty. He was promoted posthumously.

“Every time you look at Suzie, you see Suzie around, you think, ‘You know, that’s a part of Stephen that’s with us today,’” said Moody Chief of Police Thomas Hunt

Suzie was named after Williams’ Suzuki motorcycle by his wife, Michelle Williams. Suzi, a golden retriever, is the second K9 unit at the Moody Police Department, joining the agency’s therapy dog, Izzy, who is a black labradoodle.

“Having a therapeutic dog and a narcotics dog in the department, both have been very instrumental to us. Izzy will be involved in our school system, of course, where the narcotics dog, Suzie, will be on patrol with Officer Burns,” said Hunt

Hunt believes having Suzie will allow for his department to be more effective in getting drugs off of the streets because dogs have a much stronger sense of smell and have the ability to locate illegal drugs much better than humans alone can.

“Having Suzie is going to be very instrumental for patrol. We’ve had a K9 in the past. Back in the mid-2000s to late 2000s, we had a black labrador named Nemo, and its handler was an assistant chief, Rusty Freeman,” said Hunt.

“Nemo, back in his day, was an exceptional dog. Our dog park is named after Nemo. He found just lots of drugs and, you know, took them off the interstate in our streets here in Moody, so bringing Suzie on board is just a continuation of what Nemo did for us here at Moody Police Department.”

Suzie is finishing training with her handler, Officer Austin Burns, and will soon be on duty with Burns to help get drugs off of the streets.

Burns said he has enjoyed working with Suzie and training with her, and believes she will play a key role in anything drug related.

“It’s been tons of fun (working with Suzie). Even with her just riding around with me is a lot of fun,” said Burns

Burns said having Suzie donated in memory of Williams also meant a lot to him.

“[Williams] was my training officer when I first started here. Me and him were super close. He was my sergeant and he meant a lot to me,” said Burns.

Paws In The Park

Tails are wagging for the 18th annual “Paws in the Park” fundraising event, which the Rhode Island Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals will hold Sept. 26.

The walk was set to take place at an East Providence park but has now morphed into a virtual extravaganza, as restrictions on crowd sizes remain in place due to the coronavirus pandemic.

But Connie Kile, who is the director of development and community relations for RISPCA, told NBC 10 News that they have some new ways to raise funds and awareness for shelter animals and are asking participants to register online as soon as possible.

“We always had the idea in our heads that if something happened, we’d have to pull this back to a virtual event, so we’ve been brainstorming new ideas and fun things we can do,” Kile said during a phone interview Monday.

RISPCA President Joe Warzycha agreed. He said while it wasn’t an easy decision, it was necessary.

“After closely reviewing the State COVID-19 Control Plan for outdoor events, it became more apparent that the logistics required to safely and effectively host this event would be far too challenging with our available resources,” Warzycha noted in a press release.

“We had further concerns that the number of required restrictions would potentially inhibit our attendees from the ability to fully enjoy the event and take advantage of all the opportunities presented,” Warzycha added.

Instead, they will be having fundraising contests online each week leading up to the big day.

As opposed to a raffle, they will be holding interactive games on Facebook and Instagram and giving away prizes to the top winners.

“We’re planning on heavily relying on social media,” Kile said. “People can record themselves and post an Instagram story of them doing the game and then enter to win.”

On the day of the event, they will host a live stream at the shelter through their website at RISPCA.COM, as well on their Facebook page.

“We’re going to have a bunch of activities that we’re going to do at the shelter,” Kile said. “Some of it will be live and interactive.”

The live events include demonstrations with the Rhode Island State Police, as well as the shelter’s annual Halloween costume contest.

“We’re going to set up a page on Facebook and whoever gets the most likes wins,” Kile said. “And then we’re going to do a parade for them.”

Melissa Marszalek, who is a volunteer for RISPCA, as well as Providence Animal Control, will also be on-hand with her dog, Willow, a 5-year-old therapy dog from Riverside.

Since then, she has been helping to raise awareness and funds for the cause.

Through a recent photo contest that RISPCA held online, Willow helped raise $4,428 for the non-profit organization.

In total, contestants raised more than $14,000, with participants donating $1 per vote.

Now, Willow is helping RISPCA promote all the virtual events.

“This is what Willow was born to do,” Marszalek said. “She loves being around people and to her, it’s not just going to be one day. It’s going to be six weeks of doing different things each week and meeting people in small group settings. There’s going to be so much fun stuff. Willow and I make a great team and whatever they ask of us, we’ll do.”

Willow is a therapy dog, receiving her certification from Paws From the Heart. She is a member of the PVD Pups Program at T.F. Green Airport in Warwick, with her presence helping to calm and soothe passengers.

But Marszalek said she understands that not all dogs are as social as Willow and that’s why virtual events will give all pets and their owners an opportunity to enjoy themselves in the comfort of their own homes.

“I like the fact that everyone can participate,” she said. “Sometimes, that setting is too much for some dogs. All dogs are different. Willow happens to do well, but my other dog, Ivy, would just melt away and be so upset if I brought her to an environment with so many people and dogs. This gives them a chance to do something fun with their community that’s not in a large group setting.”

Kile added that they are hoping to reach a goal of $30,000 after raising $20,000 in 2019. Funds help support its critical community programs and services including pet adoption, animal cruelty investigations and rescue and safety-net community programs such as hardship boarding, emergency pet food distribution and medical assistance.

In the meantime, she is encouraging people to register online.

“We’re really trying to get people to register right now so we can start running some of the contests,” Kile said.

Life-Changing Business

People find hidden gems in life both figuratively and literally. Good ideas can spring up out of nowhere and sometimes you’re forced to take it and run.

Bubba and Wendy Griffin found a gem of idea 14 years ago when their special needs child, Brody, needed a service dog. To raise money for the dog, Bubba decided to start making personalized jewelry, which would eventually become Lucky Buck Jewelry. The name sake of the business comes from the Griffins’ dogs – Lucky and Buck. 

It all started in Lewisburg, Tennessee when the Griffins were not only raising a special needs child, but also running their own business.

“We owned a hair salon called CW Cuts for many years in Tennessee,” Wendy said. “Bubba stepped away from work to help Brody full time. We quickly realized that we were going to need extra help and a service dog made the most sense.”

The Griffins’s son Brody was diagnosed with Fragile X syndrome and autism at an early age. The Griffins’s said Brody couldn’t be left alone for more than two minutes before using a service dog.

“The total cost of getting the service dog was $6,000,” Wendy said. “Bubba was able to raise all of the funds just by selling his jewelry. Milo was Brody’s service dog and was absolutely wonderful. Milo was able to stay with and keep Brody safe for long periods of time if needed. It was a true blessing.”

As happy as the Griffins were to have Milo, they were also intrigued at the possible business they’d stumbled upon. The couple was also familiar with Marshall County from camping trips at Mountain Lakes in Guntersville. They decided to move to Guntersville in 2010 after selling the salon. 

“It started out as just earrings and we sold them inside Wendy’s shop back in Tennessee,” Bubba said. “They really took off, so I decided to start making several other kinds of jewelry. It’s become extremely therapeutic for me to sit and design this kind of jewelry.”

The Griffin team works like a well-oiled machine. Wendy shops for gems, beads and other items needed to make the jewelry, and Bubba dishes out the final product. From a backroom shop in his garage, Bubba churns out items that are being purchased near and far.

“We’ve been selling our products online through Facebook Live and it’s been very successful,” Wendy said. “The pandemic has obviously made us have to do that, but we were actually prepared. In March of 2019, we had an showcase get ruined by weather. So, we just started selling products online and it really took off.”

Lucky Buck Jewelry holds showcases every Wednesday and Sunday night beginning at 7 p.m. Wednesdays are “Wednesdays with Wendy” and Sundays are “Bubba’s Roadshow.”

Lucky Buck Jewelry offers everything from necklaces to earrings and bracelets. The Griffins said they’ve sold products to people in the Virgin Islands, Texas, Pennsylvania and many other locations. 

“Just this year we’ve sold a little over 8,000 pieces,” Wendy said. “It’s really been incredible to see. It all goes through Bubba who is so humble and so talented at the same time.”

Bubba admits his interest in art hasn’t always been present. However, in the past 14 years he’s found it to be a passion.

“I can spend a solid two hours working on jewelry,” he said. “I’ve learned how to just by watching videos and reading articles. It’s so relaxing to create something and just think about what I could do next. I’m just happy people have enjoyed it so much.”

The Griffin’s now have four children and the family is “all in” on the jewelry business. 

“We’re looking to expand our shop space soon and grow the business as we see fit,” Wendy said. “This is something we’re all very proud of. It’s a business that came out of necessity and I’m just so thankful we’ve had this kind of success.”

Golden Age Of Heroes

With a three-legged hop and a skip, 6-year-old Ari, aka Hero No. 1651, knows how to work a crowd. Giving his amputated limb the cold-shoulder, the Golden Retriever with the soft, friendly eyes can’t wait to cheer up anyone who needs a dose of happy.

His specialty? Hospice patients, nonverbal people, children using wheelchairs, and those with special needs.

Ari’s owner, Sue Cowan, says he has a knack for knowing who needs him. “Minutes before we drive up to a group home, his tail starts swishing, and I know he’s excited. But two years ago, Ari did something unusual,” she remembers. “I opened the car door to lift him out, and he made a beeline for the facility.”

On that day, what propelled this certified therapy tripod to run like lightning?

A girl having a full-blown meltdown.

“No one could soothe her, but when Ari pressed his head into her chest, she calmed down,” says Cowan, of Carver, Massachusetts. “I never trained him to give a hug with the right amount of comfort, but it worked.”

The child reached to touch Ari’s lustrous coat but lacked coordination.

“When I gently placed her palms on his head, she smiled,” recalls Cowan.

In the past five years, Cowan and Ari, an AKC Canine Good Citizen and Therapy Dog Excellent, have frequented nursing homes. They recently added elementary schools to open conversations about bullying.

“I’ll say to the kids, ‘Look at Ari. He was born with a badly twisted leg requiring amputation,’ ” Cowan says. “Ari looks different than other dogs with four legs, but he found a way to walk and run that works for him.”

She tells children to not to feel sorry for him. “He’s loving and kind, and that’s what important.”

Cowan says she can’t identify who most needs the Golden’s touch, but this dog with the 14-karat heart does.

“He zeroed in on the kids who were hurting and knew that a goodbye hug for them could mean the world,” Cowan says.

Such is the healing power of a Golden Retriever.

The gold standard of therapy, sporting, and companion dogs, the breed is well-known for its go-all-out-to-please-you personality.

Mary Margaret Callahan is the chief mission officer of Pet Partners, which registers therapy dogs for animal-assisted interventions. She notes that 1,400 Goldens hold the top spot of registered breeds on their list of 12,200 canine teams.

With a double coat ranging from liquid amber to a light red, these butterscotch beauties project an intelligent, understanding, up-for-anything attitude.

They serve as guide dogs, search-and-rescue workers, and four-footed comfort responders for communities in crisis.

They check the box as avid hikers and swimmers and eager dog-sport competitors. In the field, they are standouts among other retrievers for their soft mouths. Their prized trait of picking up and transporting game without tearing it to pieces endears them as hunting companions.

Come nighttime at home, they’ll demand the sofa and hog the bed.

It’s no wonder that of 195 recognized breeds, Goldens rank third in AKC breed popularity and have been in the top-10 rankings since 1976.

Now, they are taking a leading role at the forefront of scientific research.

Such is the healing power of a Golden Retriever.

The gold standard of therapy, sporting, and companion dogs, the breed is well-known for its go-all-out-to-please-you personality.

Mary Margaret Callahan is the chief mission officer of Pet Partners, which registers therapy Dogs for animal-assisted interventions. She notes that 1,400 Goldens hold the top spot of registered breeds on their list of 12,200 canine teams.

With a double coat ranging from liquid amber to a light red, these butterscotch beauties project an intelligent, understanding, up-for-anything attitude.

They serve as guide dogs, search-and-rescue workers, and four-footed comfort responders for communities in crisis.

They check the box as avid hikers and swimmers and eager dog-sport competitors. In the field, they are standouts among other retrievers for their soft mouths. Their prized trait of picking up and transporting game without tearing it to pieces endears them as hunting companions.

Come nighttime at home, they’ll demand the sofa and hog the bed.

It’s no wonder that of 195 recognized breeds, Goldens rank third in AKC breed popularity and have been in the top-10 rankings since 1976.

Now, they are taking a leading role at the forefront of scientific research.

Assistance Dogs

A Canberra woman is taking two Blue Mountains accommodation providers to the Australian Human Rights Commission for breaching the Disability Discrimination Act.