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Category: Therapy Animals

This photo shows crisis dog Tikva, a Keeshond, with responders at Ground Zero.
Service dogs for first responders

Service dogs for first responders

In light of Wednesday’s post, here’s a video about service dogs for first responders.  Thank goodness, leadership in some areas has begun to cut through the “tough-guy” culture in many agencies. It’s high time we recognize the huge impact of stress on first responders. When more than twice as many police officers die by suicide than in the line of duty, something is seriously wrong! Anyone who’s followed this blog for a while knows I’ve posted about service dogs many times before. I’ve featured dogs who help calm child…

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Three dogs hug their humans.
Could it be love?

Could it be love?

Does your dog love you? Or are you just projecting? Scientists try very hard to avoid anthropomorphizing their animal study subjects. Emotions are difficult to measure. But now we’re finally getting closer to answering the question, “could it be love?” This is the third and final (for now) post in a series about dog cognition. In case you missed them, click: “Dogs: verbal virtuosos?” and “How much does your dog understand?” I’ve also previously written about working dogs on this blog–a post that touched…

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Fernie the labrador retriever and his person demonstrate he's a verbal virtuoso who can read and obey commands.
Dogs: verbal virtuosos?

Dogs: verbal virtuosos?

Could our dogs be verbal virtuosos? Perhaps more than we may think! This is the second post in a series about dog cognition. In case you missed the first one, click: “How much does your dog understand?” I’ve also written about working dogs on this blog. That post touched on dog cognition, but didn’t go into as much depth. This series started when I wrote a guest post on dog cognition for Booker T’s Farm,  a blog devoted to books and dogs (a great…

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this graphic shows where dogs look on dog or human faces to get clues about the other individual's emotions.
Dog cognition: how much does your dog understand?

Dog cognition: how much does your dog understand?

Back in August, I wrote a guest post on dog cognition for Booker T’s Farm. That blog also later posted a very nice review of What’s Bred in the Bone. Booker T’s style, however, didn’t include the hyperlinks to my sources that I’d suggested. Because science doesn’t stand still, there’s also some updated information to add. I’ve previously written about working dogs on this blog. So I’ve decided to expand on my August post. How much do dogs really understand? Have you ever wondered how much your…

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Service

Service

Please accept my apologies. This was scheduled to go live Wednesday, 12/5/18. It failed to publish for reasons I don’t understand. Like many people around the world, I was touched by this photo of President George H. W. Bush’s service dog Sully by his casket this weekend. The late President George H.W. Bush’s service dog Sully helped him with “a list that’s two pages long” of tasks, after his wife Barbara passed away earlier this year. Photo by Evan Sisley. I’ve written about service…

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So, I wrote this book . . . the saga continues.

So, I wrote this book . . . the saga continues.

Anyone who’s been reading this blog periodically may have stumbled onto a mention or three about the science fiction novel I’ve been working on. To be fair, it’s a science fiction universe I’ve been creating, the physical setting and milieu for a whole series of novels. Any blog posts I’ve written about future trends, such as last year’s series on automation, the DIY Space Station series, first responders, and/or police K-9s, MWDs, or service animals, all have been directly inspired by research aimed at making my fictional world seem more real. The book’s still not…

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For Companion Animals

For Companion Animals

Day Six: Gratitude for Companion Animals When placed up there next to some of the other massive issues (yesterday I was talking about global food security, for example), the blessing of having a companion animal in one’s home at first doesn’t seem to be in exactly the same league. But human-animal bonds are ancient and strong. I have argued on this blog in the past that the history and development of humans would have been considerably different without domesticated animals–especially dogs (dogs are my ultimate…

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Dogs teaching kids how to read

Dogs teaching kids how to read

The Artdog Images of Interest My Images of Interest this month spotlight creative and unconventional approaches to teaching that have been gaining traction in schools, libraries, and other places devoted to teaching–including our own homes, if we share them with children. Literacy dogs: By now, the science is pretty well settled: reading to a calm, accepting dog (or other animal) really does help children learn to read better. Here’s a video that covers most of the important things about kids reading to dogs. My first…

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A “pawsitive” difference for Hospice patients

A “pawsitive” difference for Hospice patients

The Artdog Image(s) of Interest This week’s “making a positive difference” (perhaps I should say a “Pawsitive” difference) Image of Interest is drawn from a video. Anyone who has followed this blog for a while has undoubtedly picked up on my love and respect for service animals of all types, but this week’s image is important to me for several reasons. First, I have a family member whose certified Emotional Support dog has recently become a crucial part of winning…

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Yet more evidence that dogs are wonderful

Yet more evidence that dogs are wonderful

The other day I came upon what I think is a wonderful story from the Denver, Colorado area. I’ve shared stories about a variety of service dogs on this blog, but this is the first “facility dog” I’ve encountered.  This is one way that Pella helps comfort child witnesses, out of sight of the jury. This program in Colorado was born of the persistent vision and efforts of criminal investigator Amber Urban, who got the idea from the Courthouse Dogs program in…

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