NEWSLETTER 43 MARCH 2005
BENEFITS OF
BEING AN ASSISTANCE DOG
…as told by
As I relax here in the Canine Helpers’
office, I like to reflect back over the past 14 fulfilling years of my
life. I was a rebel child in my younger
days. By the time I was 7 months old, I
was in lock up at the SPCA as an uncontrollable wild child. Fortunately,
After lots of TLC and obedience training,
even I realized I wasn’t just a silly blond; I was going to become a career
girl! I was trained as a Service Dog for
a person with disabilities. I got to
spend 24/7 with my loving partner; I got to go everywhere with her, even on
airplane trips. I picked up things,
opened doors, sat her up when she fell sideways in her wheelchair, turned on
lights, pressed emergency buttons, and many, many more things. I should stop there because all this talk of
work is making me a little sleepy.
Speaking of which, I had a very special cedar bed of my own. Although I must admit, I often did sleep on
the big bed…umm…of course just to share my body heat with my partner (ha,
ha). We would go for walks, play fetch,
and even go to the beach together. You
name it, we did it.
After many wonderful years, I began to slow
down and unfortunately, my loving partner passed away. I returned to Beverly and Canine
Helpers. It was such a loving and safe
place in my younger days; I knew I was in good hands and that I would get all
the love and care that I needed. I
receive excellent care for my aging needs and even get home cooked meals for my
special dietary needs. And Dr. Cindy
Lankenau works her alternative veterinary magic on all of us. Boy, do I feel good after a visit with her!
I am now the official greeter in the
office. So many humans need a golden
smile and a caring pooch to stroke. It’s
very therapeutic for them and I certainly enjoy it too. I’m also a good role model for those young
whipper snapper pups. They can be a
handful, but they do bring back sweet memories of my puppy hood days.
Well, the sun is shining just right through
the window, and my clean puffy bed is SO comfortable…I think I’ll just doze off
for a little bit.
Ahh...life’s been good. I couldn’t ask for anything more.
Zzzzzzz
* * * *
Meet
Our President
Hello. My name is Jon Nelson, President of the board
of Directors for Canine Helpers for the Handicapped, Inc. for 2005. I am a rather new member of the board, since
July 2003, and have been involved with Canine Helpers for at least four
years. What brought our family to CHH you
ask? Since my wife, Celeste of 40 years,
had many health problems, our daughter suggested to her Mom that maybe a
Service Dog may be a help to her.
After a short time Celeste
warmed up to the idea and called Canine Helpers to set up an interview with
Bev. With my allergies to dog and cat
dander, we wanted a Standard Poodle because I could tolerate that breed better
than any other. A long time friend heard
about our search for a Standard Poodle for a Service Dog and immediately called
us. Well, to make a long story short,
most of you remember the Standard Poodle Gibson who just recently graduated at
the December open house. When Gibson and
Celeste began training together, it was obvious that he was too much dog for
her. So she started to work with Kenji who was much calmer. It wasn’t long after that Celeste was called
home, and would never have her Service Dog.
I have always been awe struck
at the many demo’s I have seen and have decided to get more involved with
Canine Helpers. I have dedicated myself
to our mission statement and a reaffirmation to retired dogs and their quality
of life.
I look forward to meeting you
at our upcoming events.
Jon
* * * *
Thank You!
to
Diane Drew and our awesome friends at Washington Mutual Bank in Albion, NY for
donating their time to fold and label this edition of CHH’s newsletter!
* * * *
Linda Rupert & “Gibson”, Service Dog, Standard
Poodle,
I
would like to start by thanking everyone who has been involved in Gibson’s life
and has helped bring him to me. I was
very honored to have met the people that had Gibson before he came to Canine
Helpers, and to meet the very special husband whose wife was supposed to get
Gibson. The Staff at Canine Helpers is
just awesome to work with, and a BIG special THANK YOU to
Gibson
has adjusted very well. We find
somewhere to go every day. He loves it
when my nurses com; he knows he is going to get attention from them. All the people that have met Gibson have
fallen in love with him. He is just so
loveable, and handsome! He has made my
life expand so much since I got him home with me. We go to church Sunday mornings, go to
dinners Wednesday nights and go to my aunt’s house where Gibson can run in her
yard.
This
past week my legs have been swollen, which normally would confine me to a
wheelchair since I am unable to get into my leg braces. I would normally be petrified of falling and
not being able to get help, or dropping something of importance and not being
able to pick it up. But thanks to
Gibson, I am walking and still doing things that need to be done.
It
seems so awesome to go to bed at night and not worry about having to go
somewhere the next day by myself. Now I
go to bed knowing I will be okay when I go out.
Gibson reassured me of this Christmas night when I was outside and lost
my balance. Gibson darted to my side and
snuggled into me so I kept my balance and did not fall. By helping me, however, Gibson fell, landed
in a bush, struggled to get up on all fours, and walked very cautiously as we
approached the door.
Gibson
means more to me than my words can ever express. I would like to THANK ALL the people who have
walked this path with me and continue to do so.
God Bless!
Love,
Linda & Gibson
* * * *
Joan Smeaton-O’Brien & “Ivan”, Service Dog, Golden
Retriever,
Donated by Beth and T. J. Thomas…
Hi!
My name is Joan Smeaton-Obrien. Even
though I was born with Spina Bifida Occulta and Tethered Cord Syndrome, it
wasn’t discovered until I was 28 years old.
After several surgeries and lots of (continuing) physical therapy, I am
so blessed to be walking with only the aide of a leg brace and cane, sometimes
a walker, and a wheelchair if any distance is involved.
Over the last few years, the more difficult it became for
me to get out and about, the more I’ve stayed home. When winter arrives, I tend to become a
hermit. With the help of my Service Dog
Ivan, I’m getting out more and going places I’ve been avoiding. I’m able to do so now with a true sense of
security and safety. Ivan provides me with
better balance and stability and I hope to fall less often. When I do fall, Ivan can even brace for me
and help me get up and/or get the pone for me.
Ivan will be a huge help in maintaining my independence and allowing me
to safely live alone. Also, by taking
care of his needs, I’m feeling needed again – something I’ve really
missed. When you’re often the one who
needs help, it’s wonderful to be the helper!
Ivan and I have been living together only seven days and
already I’m overwhelmed at the love and appreciation I feel for him. He works so hard to keep an eye on me and
follow my commands. In such a short
time, he’s become invaluable to me.
Ivan picks up dropped objects for me. My cane is always falling when I lean it on
something to free up my hands, and Ivan retrieves it for me. If I drop his leash (even when he’s wearing
it) he can pick it up and give it to me.
He is learning to take the telephone off its base on the table and bring
it to me. Actually, he already knows how
to do that, it’s training me to ask him properly that keeps Rich so busy at
this point! Ivan can also pick up my
keys, a pen, a coin, even a piece of paper, and bring them to me.
At first I wasn’t sure I’d utilize this skill much,
figuring the bending is good for me. But
I’m finding the more I let Ivan help, the more energy I have left for doing the
things that are important to me. He’s
even learning to carry my grocery bag!
Amazing!! Also, with his back
pack, Ivan can help me bring in my groceries from the car.
I’m currently fund raising to help offset the cost of
raising and training my Service Dog, both prior to our partnership and then
custom-training for my specific needs.
There are also substantial costs involved in the extensive training used
in teaching me to be the best, most effective partner I can be for Ivan. Our training takes place both at Canine
Helpers’
I can’t begin to express the deep admiration and respect I
have for each and every one at Canine Helpers.
What an amazing group of caring, compassionate people! They have been so accommodating to my
particular needs and have made me feel welcomed into their extended
family. They all work so hard to provide
loving, professional care and training for all the animals and clients
at the
Come on Ivan, let’s go.
You’re going to help me get back into the world and live a happy and
productive life!
Joan
P.S. If you would
like to help sponsor the training of Ivan and me, would you please send your tax
deductible donation payable directly to Canine Helpers for the Handicapped,
Inc. Please indicate that your donation
is toward “Ivan and Joan’s training”. If
you have any questions, please call CHH.
Thank you all so very much!
* * * *
“Kelli’s” Story, by Suzi Behun…
When my first Hearing Ear Dog, Nicki passed away in 1994, I was
devastated. I decided not to have
another dog because Nicki had been everything to me. How could I ever replace her? But a few months later I met Kelli at Canine
Helpers, and it was love at first sight.
We both were drawn to each other like magnets. I knew I could never replace Nicki, but felt
so connected to Kelli. I decided to
adopt Kelli as my second Hearing Ear Dog.
She gave me a wonderful eleven years.
I gained even more independence and confidence. When I student taught in
The following year I enrolled in
After I finished my degree I started to work for
Kelli passed away in January of 2005. I will miss her forever. She was my angel.
* * * *
Name
Change!
We are
re-naming our $ 500 giving level to “DOG & CLIENT TRAINING SPONSORSHIP”
rather than “Puppy Sponsorship” since we currently have enough puppies and dogs
to work with. If you would like to give
to this special category, please indicate so on the last page of our
newsletter. Thanks!
* * * *
|Canine Helpers’
Pathway to the Future |
and Renewing
Gardens
Are
you looking for a unique Easter Gift for someone special?
Would
you like to honor or pay tribute to a loved one or a pet?
Would
you like to help support the future work of Canine Helpers for the Handicapped?
You
can do all of the above by purchasing a beautifully engraved granite stone or
red brick to be placed in our renewing garden.
Contact
us today so we can have yours ready to display at our summer open house.
For additional information,
please call our office at 433-4035.
* * * *
~
Just Chocolate~
at
Prince of
2311 George Urban
Boulevard
Heavenly Dessert
Sampling
Chocolate Basket Raffle
Bring a friend and indulge!
Tickets are on sale now
$8.00 presale or $10.00
at the door
* * * *
O Tops’ Tape Saver Grand Finale
O
On behalf of
the Canine Helpers’ crew, dogs and myself, I would like to say an extra BIG
THANK YOU to all of our loyal Tops’ Tape Savers. I always looked forward to the little notes
that were sometimes included and already miss getting the tapes ready to turn
in.
The last
month was fantastic – with boxes, bags and envelopes of tapes being delivered
to the Center each day. Some were
already cut and added. With your help,
we turned in over $1,750,078.00 worth of register tapes for the month of
December. And I had the pleasure of
opening the final Tops’ Tape Program envelope to find a check in the amount of
$2,916.80 for all our collective effort ~ WOW!
Once
again, thank you for your part in this fund raising project over the
years. We couldn’t have done it without your
help and we will miss hearing from you.
Please keep in touch.
Wishing
you all a wonderful year, and hope to see you at Open House!
* * * *
Please mark your calendars for our
Summer Open House
Assistance
Dog Demos
Basket
Raffle ~ Craft
Homemade
Bake Goods
Refreshments
and more!
* * * *
Doggie
Boutique
Paws
& Licks
4
Holiday Neckerchiefs $15
Easter, Fourth of July, Halloween, and Christmas
Fleece
dog/cat mats $15
Embroidered name, machine washable, choice of four colors
Thermal
dog or cat blanket $15
Bath
Towel $10
Mini
“wet paws” towel $5
Call (716)685-1819 and ask
for
All proceeds go directly
to CHH
Caring Canine Retirement
Fund
* * * *
Building Fund
We are pleased to announce that we are ¾
of the way toward reaching our
$16,000 Building Fund goal. THANKS to ALL
for your support and to A.E.S.
Somerset!
We’ll keep you posted…
* * * *
Please
Remember
Heartworm
checkups and preventatives
for
your pets!
* * * *