When we told the physical therapists working with Tom’s mom about Lilly being able to roll a therapy ball around like a circus dog, they were excited to see it. So, on Monday, we took Lilly down to the residential physical therapy place so that she could visit her Grandma, see some of the residents, and show off. It went really well.
Lilly was a little excited and nervous. She tends to be less focused when Tom goes with us anywhere. She is so used to training and even being out in the world as a two-girl-only event. She works hard to give both of us her attention (as noted before in the Daddy Factor), and that makes my job as handler MUCH harder.
But, she settled down, and I think she had a good time. She showed off her various tricks, including:
She let several people pet her, even though she isn’t one of those pet-me, pet-me kind of dogs. Some of people seemed sad to be at the facility and away from their own dogs, so her visit perked them up. (For privacy reasons, I did NOT take photos that show any of the people in therapy.)
She had no real issues with the walkers, canes, and wheelchairs. There were may be 10-12 people in the room — some coming and going, all moving in some fashion as they did their therapy. A couple times, someone even slammed a metal laundry lid, and Lilly handled it OK. She startled, but she was OK. She truly did remarkably well.
I think it helped that the double, automatic front doors here (compared to those at the facility where my mom lives) open side-to-side, which is something we’ve conditioned much more.
After therapy, Lilly had to navigate the crowded halls. It wasn’t her best WALK STEADY moment, but she didn’t make a scene.
She even got so comfy on Grandma’s bed that she sacked out. Of course, as soon as she heard the camera click on, she woke up, but you can see her little drool spot on the bedspread.
The only thing that made her bark was when one of the nursing assistants came in to check Grandma’s vitals. She was pulling along one of those rolling blood pressure machines, and the wheels sounded a bit like a skateboard.
We later heard that Lilly’s visit was the bit talk among facility residents for the rest of the day.
That’s pretty impressive. I wonder if Java will ever settle down that much.
Ah, that’s wonderful. Reading about Lilly bringing a smile to others brought a smile to my face too.
I wonder if Lilly has a calling as a therapy dog???
It’s so interesting how different fearful dogs are. Gigi and I spent an hour with K, trying, among other things, to get her to play with an exercise ball. We finally got her to nose it lightly, so it would roll a tiny bit, but then she’d jump back like she’d possibly caused an earthquake or something terrible.
And, Lilly, has no fear of exercise balls. So, unique, they are.
I’m so glad that the visit was a romping success!
“We later heard that Lilly’s visit was the bit talk among facility residents for the rest of the day.”
I love being reminded of the influence animals can have on us. I’m so glad Lilly handled the visit well. And to be the talk of the town on top of it-now that was a successful visit. Way to go Team Champion-of-my-Heart.
You know, as fearful as she is about performing in social situations, especially RE agility and other dogs, she really does blossom when the time is right. It is so nice to hear about her being mostly at ease while putting a smile on the faces of others.
Well, that’s the good news … After 2+ months away, Lilly’s grandma is home now. So, Lilly can visit her there.
You must be so proud of Lilly! Will you take her for visits to Grandma in the future?