March 2018 – Me and the Doods.com

Gus, My Personal Stress Buster

Last week, Gus and his buddy Tommy were back on duty as stress busters at UCLA Powell Library. The dynamic duo have been helping students get through exams since 2016 (Who Ya Gonna Call? Stress Busters!).

ELBEE Despite the fact that I am qualified to teach meditation and yoga, I have never been asked to help.

You can feel the mood lighten as the dogs walk though the door. Within seconds they’re surrounded by laughing, chatting students who take a brief break from anxiety…and studying.

It seems there’s always one moment that stands out. This time it was a girl cuddling with Gus and crying. With tears rolling down her face, she assured me, “I keep crying but these are happy tears.”

A few days later I needed a stress buster. It was time for Gus to test for his two year recertification with Pet Partners. The test is straight forward, part obedience and part aptitude. The examiner, with five or six people helping, sets up scenarios that are very much like what we encounter in the hospital. There are no surprises or trick questions.

Nevertheless, and despite the fact that between the three Doods I’ve taken the test probably eight or nine times, I still have issues. The dog and the handler are scored separately so theoretically the dog can get a higher score. Can you imagine if that happened and the daughters got hold of the information? Not to mention, I have test anxiety.

ELBEE No kidding. Last time, she made me so nervous I almost threw up.

Gus, on the other hand, doesn’t seem to know the meaning of anxiety. He breezed though the exercises as if he was at a party. His tail never stopped wagging and I swear he had a smile on his face. When three or four people were petting him at the same time, it was like the more the merrier. I’m proud to say, he finished with a perfect score.

ELBEE Over achiever. And Pack Leader’s score??

After we finished our test, I had the unusual opportunity of watching Gus go through it again. Carol, honorary “aunt” to the Doods and all around great assistant to PAC, went though the certification process with him. She very often helps out with Gus and Elbee at special events so this way it would be official.

I have helped with testing in the past and have watched other people’s dogs. I’ve never had the chance to observe one of my own. It was kind of like going to my daughters’ games when they were playing soccer or basketball but this time I had to cool it with the screaming from the sidelines.

ELBEE Wonder if they can red card her out of testing.

It was fascinating to see the little guy work with Carol. Again, Gus wagged his way through all of the exercises. As someone commented after he finished the second evaluation, he was a “rock star.” I think Carol would agree that he made us both look good!

Wanted: Mellow Male Doodle

ELBEE I am so glad to see the word “mellow” in the title of this post. I certainly don’t need a competing diva in the house. Do you remember when Mariah and Nicki Minaj were on a judging panel together? It was a disaster.

Over the past year since Charley’s been gone, friends have been assuring me that he’d find me another dog.

ELBEE Did she honestly think it was just going to show up and ring the doorbell?

I guess I was hoping for that kind of a miracle. Instead, as I wrote last week, I was in the mountains standing under “Charley’s tree” when I suddenly felt that he wanted me to start the search.

ELBEE I’m totally on board with this. I’m actually looking for a personal assistant.

For the record, I immediately checked rescues, even Doodle rescues, and couldn’t find the right dog. I read stories and looked at countless photos but none of them spoke to me. So, despite the Jewish guilt, which my friend told me is a bad as Catholic guilt, I started researching puppies.

Since then I’ve been a woman on a mission. I don’t think I put this much thought into it when I was having children (sorry daughters). What makes it especially difficult is that I’m really hoping to find my next therapy dog, a very pampered pet with a job. I’ve been so incredibly fortunate with the Doods. Can it possibly happen again?

Today I spoke to a head hunter for a large corporation to see if I could hire him. Just kidding. Elbee, Gus and I were visiting my friend Roberta, who continues her courageous fight against cancer, and I tried to get some free advice from her husband Ira. He doesn’t work with dogs.

ELBEE AND GUS That was embarrassing.

The oldest daughter, the most “just get it done” of the three, told me I was making too big a deal out of it. She said that I should go on line, find a puppy and order it, kind of like shoes. To make her point she sent me photos of two of the cutest Goldendoodle puppies I’ve ever seen. When I asked her where they were from she said she thought they were from some place in Alabama. By sheer coincidence, it turns out they were from the same breeder as Gus. Is that a sign?

In my usual spirit of honesty and oversharing, I admit that I’m obsessing about finding the right dog. At people’s suggestions, I looked at Sheepadoodles and Bernadoodles but I drew the line at Schnoodles. It made me realize that I have a soft spot for Goldendoodles although I have been tempted by some very cute Labradoodles.

This morning while I was walking the dogs, I had one of those brief but meaningful encounters that I have from time to time. An absolutely charming woman, kind of Mary Poppins-ish, stopped to admire them and told me that she had four Pekinese. As we chatted, of course I shared my dilemma. She totally got it. She crossed her fingers, gave me a knowing smile and said “good luck.” It was as if Charley had sent her.

ELBEE Oy vey!

The Moods of March

For me, the month of March is an emotional cocktail of highs and lows.

ELBEE Oh no. Here she goes oversharing again.

Last year I wrote a post for my beloved, funny brother Stan, the unofficial Jewish dog whisperer. His birthday was March third. Sadly, he passed away at 47 but I did inherit Larry, his brilliant Border Collie/Aussie mix.

ELBEE I’m not sure if that last sentence is appropriate.

GUS I think it’s sweet that Larry helped her.

Somehow I had forgotten that my dad passed away in March. It was a long time ago when I was a senior in high school. The other night, as I was lighting a candle for him, I realized that even after all these years, he’s a big part of my March emotions.

It’s hard to believe that it’s been a year since my gentle giant Charley left us on a March morning, so suddenly but with such grace. The student athlete event that he worked the night before his death is coming up again.

On the bright side, Elbee, Gus and Riley, our Golden Retriever and senior pack member, all celebrate birthdays this month. Elbee even shares a birthday with my son-in-law Jay.

ELBEE That’s ironic. As you may know, Jay is a cat person.

Yesterday I was up in the Santa Monica Mountains for a “mental health” hike,” appreciating how beautiful it is this time of year. Side note to the daughters, I saw a bumper sticker that said, “Wandering does not mean you’re lost.” Back to the mountains. It was breezy and cool. The summer heat hadn’t set it. The rattle snakes without issues were still sleeping. The first blooms of the wild flowers were peeking their heads out.

I was totally at peace, enjoying the views and the tranquility. Thinking about my hikes with Charley, I headed down a short steep hill that reminds me of him. He would always stand at the top, under the same tree, before following me down.

Call me crazy, but over the past year so many people have told me that Charley would somehow find me the right dog that I kept waiting for a sign. More than once, it drew me to that spot in the mountains where I would stand and look out at the ocean and hope for that sign.

Yesterday, resting in the shade of “his” tree, I knew with certainty that it was time to start the search for another dog. Maybe that was Charley’s message, a message of new beginnings.

Elbee and Gus are doing amazing things so how wonderful would it be to have another one learn from them. Although at ten Elbee continues to be a hard working diva, I know he can use some back up.

The thought of finding the right dog, a dog that will learn from and help Elbee and Gus, is overwhelming but exciting at the same time. It won’t be a replacement for Charley since he can never be replaced. Instead, I hope that it will continue to honor the memory of Charley and all of the other beautiful therapy dogs that will never be forgotten.

Elbee is an Event

ELBEE Finally a good title. I like where this is going.

Wednesday when I was getting ready to go to UCLA, I hadn’t quite decided whom to take with me. Apparently Elbee had, because he started stalking me around the house.

ELBEE I wouldn’t call it stalking, well maybe a little, but I was ready to go to work. Is it so wrong that I enjoy the extra attention. Besides, I was still hurt that Gus had gone without me on Valentines Day.

We all know that Elbee is a diva. The thing is that when you give a diva an audience, magic can happen. The dog who bugs everyone at the groomer with his barking, is suddenly a star. This week he was at the top of his game.

Elbee didn’t just walk into the neuropsych units, he made an entrance. I’m sure he considers the therapists and the patients to be his fan base. I will admit that he has an uncanny ability to remember people he’s met.

Elbee and Gus generally visit with groups, starting with the kids under 12 and working their way up to adults. Whereas Gus is great with groups, he seems to thrive on one on one visits, I think Elbee gets bored.

ELBEE Excuse my A.D.D. And I think we know someone else with the same issue.

He loves the groups, especially groups of teenagers. When they gather around him on the floor, he enthusiastically flops into their laps. This week, one boy was particularly taken with Elbee. The teen was sweet and friendly. Laughing, he applauded all the tricks.

I later learned that the patient had been difficult and unhappy. Elbee’s obvious joy and total lack of judgement had drawn the young man away from his problems.

ELBEE It’s a gift. I wonder if I should do a podcast.

Speaking of gifts, as were leaving, we received the most beautiful post-Valentine presents. The patients, along with the therapists, had made dog biscuits and cards just to say thank you.

ELBEE By the way, the biscuits were fabulous. Pack Leader should get the recipe. Oh wait, she doesn’t bake.

After we left the neuropsych floor, the “Elbee show” continued in the lobby. A teenage girl, who remembered Elbee from the times that she had been in the hospital, came running over to hug him. She asked if he could please do some of his tricks. When I said “sure” she called her friends to come over and watch. Before I knew it, we were surrounded by families, visitors and staff as the diva did a command performance.

Last week I wrote about the ripple effect of the dogs. This made me think about it in another way. Because of one girl who remembered a therapy dog that had been special to her, there was a crowd of smiling people. Elbee had made their day.