Its a four !!!

I heard Minal reading a few lines out of a book she had found interesting - " The Human Half of Dog Training" by Rise Van Fleet. " Dogs live with people. Dogs depend on people. Like it or not, for the overwhelming majority of dogs, this is the reality. Some people train their dogs to live comfortably in the human world; others simply expect dogs to figure out on their own." She told me how people sometime go wrong in establishing good communication with their pets, even if their intentions are good. She told me how lucky I was to have such a loving and understanding family. An ideal pet-owner relation is the one where there is good communication - both ways. I may just whine or bark, wag my tail or lower my eye and my human mom or my best friend Minal understands me. I do the same for them. I have met people who wonder, who are surprised at the level of understanding between us. But when you know how to communicate, it does not matter if there is one dog of four dogs in the family.

Minal told me of one such family in Pune, our own extended family of Animal Angels team which boasts of two senior therapy dogs and two in the making. It is one of those families with more dogs than human!! I am talking about the Chaterjee Family from Pune who have three Golden Retrievers and one Labrador. Here is what the head dog  Kiara had to say about her family when i asked her about how they all get along together. She talks about the joys of motherhood and how being a good pet and a good therapy dog are possible along with having fun!

One Golden Retriever is a lot of fun. Two a bonus indeed. Not for the Chatterjee family though. They have three Golden Retrievers (Kiara the mom, Houdini aka Lea the daughter and Thele aka Skipper the son) and one Labrador (retired therapy dog Krunk), all of whom are therapy dogs! Straining at their leashes, (for various reasons), this trio takes Sudhindra Nath Chatterjee for a long walk every morning. “Houdini is looking forward to catching other dogs unawares, Thele is interested in people and I am simply waiting for the walk to end,” sighs their mother Kiara as she flops down next to Krunk the Labrador, a retired therapy dog.

Back from playing ball, Kiara watches them let their hair down and says quite proudly that most of her babies-now over a year old- and scattered across the state are on their way to becoming therapy dogs. “Houdini and Thele are lucky since they have uncle Krunk and me to learn from. Pepe, who has taken over from Goldie is my pup too. Houdini has joined the Animal Angels clan and Thele is set to follow suit,” she wags.
Hoping to inspire others, Kiara, a veteran therapy dog herself tells us what it takes to be super mom, therapy canine and perfect pet.

From right, Kiara, Thele, Pepe Minal and Houdini 

Four of you must run riot at home: The kids by and large leave Krunk alone, choosing me to spar with instead coz they know he is old. At times, we get scolded sweetly by Rakhi, especially when Houdini and Thele dig up the lawn and eat up the plants, but it’s too much fun to resist. We all like our early morning walks and then the time we play ball. The rest of the morning is to sleep and to recoup. Lunch in the afternoon is another highpoint of the day. Krunk insists on eating first and often needs to be hand fed. Thele and Houdini always eat together from one bowl – a childhood habit I guess. I am the proverbial vacuum cleaner, I eat last and clean out all leftovers. 

What does Krunk think of all the mischief around him? The word that springs to my mind when I see Krunk’s interaction with them is “avuncular”. He watches them joust with each other, with a tolerant “kids will be kids” look on his face. They, on the other hand, make time for him, nuzzling up to him, licking his face, etc. So many mornings, I have gotten up to find Thele cuddled up next to Krunk. There is some male bonding happening there! To your question of favourite, I do think he favours Houdini though it is Thele who spends more time with Krunk. 

The Gang!

How are Houdini and Thele as kids and now as working dogs: Despite Houdini’s rambunctious nature, she seems to have taken to her role as a therapy dog very well. The videos show that she has been happy to interact with the autistic child undergoing therapy with her. Overall, she acts far more mature there than she does at home. Thele on the other hand, has not yet jumped into the hurly-burly of therapy dog life and generally spends most of his time looking and acting extremely chilled out at home!
I am like a big lady at home and outside as well. Being generally happy and mature works well for becoming a good therapy dog as Minal tells me. I have been talking to Houdini – when I can get her to lie beside me- and to Thele about this. They have my name and Krunk’s to live upto!

Houdini at work with Minal at the Animal Angels Therapy Center

What is the scene like, When you have visitors : The larger question is how the guests will react to us - four large dogs is a bit overwhelming especially when we have a very in-your-face attitude (literally!) Whenever anyone visits, Houdini is the lead dog, barking her head off. Standing with her front paws on the main door grill, she puts anybody who doesn’t know her off. Thele takes after me and generally doesn’t bark. Krunk, is hard of hearing and when he realizes Houdini is barking, he generally barks his head off without a clue why he is! We are locked up in a bedroom if the guests are scared of dogs, though loveable we are. Sometimes we bark our heads off in protest, but Rakhi comes and tails between our legs, we have to listen. 

Seeing us all together it is difficult to picture us as docile therapy dogs!
What do all of you dislike the most? It would be bath times for Thele and Houdini who turn up their noses and would like to roll in the mud instead. Krunk and I enjoy bath time. All of us dislike being segregated or incarcerated in a room. The humans think we dislike being separated from them, which is true. A day or two is ok but more than that has us worrying. Not a day goes by when we do not discuss something about them when they go on vacation. 

What are you scared of? For Thele and Houdini, anything unknown is scary. To some extent they take after me. I am petrified of crackers and cower under the table with teeth chattering like castanets all the while. But now with Minal working with us, she has taught us to deal with new sights, sounds and touch. And that has made us more calm and apt to handle strange sounds and touch.

What qualities make you all a cut above the rest and great therapy dogs? It has to be our temperament, our loving and gregarious nature, energy levels and our enjoyment of interacting with everybody.

Therapy dog Kiara with her owner Rakhi Chaterjee at a special  program for pediatric Cancer Patients at Ruby Hall Cancer Center, Pune.

Did you want the pups to be therapy dogs as well? Well, yes. I know they can bring joy or sunshine in people’s lives. With me and Scott as parents, its in there genes. 

Do you feel the pressure at work? We do sometimes. But mostly, since we can gauge the changes in reactions and actions of the child or the adult we interact with, we know what is likely to happen next. Besides, genetically we are meant for therapy and so quite look forward to our sessions! To see humans recovering automatically puts a woof on our lips and a spring in our steps.
Whats your advice to pups who are thinking about therapy as a career? Jump right into it. Seeing the humans happy is the most satisfying thing for us dogs. Just encourage them every step of the way.
See you at work!



Blog inputs: Uma Karve and, Sudindra Nath and Rakhi Chaterjee, Minal Kavishwar

To know more about me and my work, log on to www.animalangels.org.in

Mom I want to be a therapy dog when I grow up! - Pepe interviewing her idol Goldie

As the first face and mascot of Animal Angels I will be passing the baton on to Pepe, one of gorgeous young and promising therapy dogs in training. A one year old golden retriever, she is born to therapy dogs blond mom Kiara and dad Scotty. As Pepe starts to walk in my shoes, she has so many questions running through her head. She shoots some off to me and I try and answer them patiently. Excerpts:

You are my hero Goldie. How long have you been a therapy dog?

It will be seven years in March 2013! I began training with Minal when I was two month old. It seems like such a long time ago, but I remember it like yesterday when she first took me to the special child and taught me how to work with him.

Me and little Pepe

What is the training process like? How long does it go on?

Depending on how quick you are to learn, the training takes approximately a year if you start as a pup. As a puppy you have to learn to enjoy being with new people, in new places, being petting by strangers, playing gently without hurting people etc. You also learn about obedience and communication. It’s not as tough as it sounds. It only means you should learn to talk and understand your handler. Coz many times when you are actually working with a patient, you don’t have time for the commands and signals. It just takes a look for me to understand what my handlers –Aakash or Minal- want and for them to understand what I want. It is this communication and understanding that is key to being a successful therapy dog.  

After that you start your training on field. You learn about children who are different in the way they talk, walk, look and understand and you learn to be compassionate with all. You meet people who are sad or sick and you learn to cheer them up. You may not get all of it at first but you should learn to rely on your senses to help.

Any particular incident from your work that has stuck with you?

I remember when I was still in training, I had accompanied my hero, therapy dog Kutty, to a programme where we met people who had survived or lost their loved ones in a train blast. The scenario was very new for me. Till then I had mostly worked with children. Kutty went into the room first, calm, confident, greeting everyone with a tail wag, letting everyone pet her at their own pace.  When I entered, the room it felt so emotionally charged up, it seemed like people had been crying. I was nervous, didn’t know how to react. Plus I had never been with so many people. But I followed Kutty’s and Minal’s lead. I learned that even though the people were sad and grieving, they were very happy to see us. Our wagging tails gave them a reason to smile. I learned to relax, to understand that our touch and our wags were helping heal their sorrow. That really made me grow.....as a therapy dog.

Do you think I can become a very good therapy dog? What qualities do I have that suit it?

I can tell, you are already on the path, that’s why Minal and Aakash have already started taking you for visits. You are gentle, obedient and patient. You are learning to observe the humans around you and to respond to their emotions. Most of the times, humans don’t even realize what emotion they are going through. It is our role to make them realize it and help them through it. All these qualities are a must because as therapy dogs, we work with children and adults who are ill or hurt or sad. Just being there quietly, letting them pet us or read to us and wagging our tails makes a world of difference to these humans.

Pepe in training

Don’t you feel like running with the children? Barking in delight and jumping when the child reacts as you want him/her to?

When you see people in trouble, doesn’t your heart just melt? Mine does. I know I have to wait and be patient when a child takes forever to try and pick up a ball or trying to show me something. I recognize the trouble some kids have in reading which I don’t criticize. I also know when adults and children have been hurt and I know it is my job to pep them all up, to build confidence, to show love and to make them care about themselves.  So yes, I do feel like whooping in joy when the treat comes to me from the scared little hesitant hands and I do so want to encourage and lick some children who have shown remarkable progress but I know it can scare them and that would be a disaster. So I let them take the lead and follow them happily.  That’s what training teaches you.

We do feel like jumping and barking sometimes. It’s not what many people think that therapy dogs can’t have fun, that they are not allowed to jump, bark, beg and misbehave. We can be spoilt and pampered pets who roll in the mud or jump in excitement when we see our loved ones. It’s just that we know the difference in being rough with our owners and being gentle with the patients. We are professionals and can switch our roles from being a pet to being a thera-pet.

Is working with children different from working with adults?

Not very much except that adults listen lesser than children. Often, adults take longer to unwind as compared to children. The good bit here is that neither can pretend to be somebody or something else with us. If they are sad they let it show as they d when they are happy. Our job is always to pep them up. 

What is your secret to success?

Like I said, it is all about getting into the mood.  At home or at work, it is very important to put everything that’s in your head aside and to just stay calm.

What do you enjoy most about your work?

I love to meet children and to see the smiles on their faces when I just wag my tail. I love to see them squeal in excitement when I catch a ball in mid air. And these are children who may not get a chance to smile or play like other normal children. I feel that my presence makes their life better.

It’s tough to say what I enjoy most....but it would be the fact that like everybody at home has a job, I have many: I guard my home and love the people there as well as take care of so many others across Mumbai! 

What do you do to relax?

I like a good massage and brushing from my mom, Meenu Srivastav. I also like to sleep in my balcony among the plants, watching pigeons. 

Does exercise and eating a healthy diet help?

You must eat healthy and exercise regularly for your mind and body. I have a healthy amount of protein in my diet along with fruits and vegetables. I love to eat coconut and pomegranate, carrots, cucumber and apples along with a good meal made by Meenu Srivastava. I go for walks in the morning with my mom or dad. Walking and running together with your owner is the best exercise. It helps both to remain fit. We also go on the hill for a small trek sometimes.

Can I also recruit? What qualities should I look for in my friends so that I know they are capable of joining Animal Angels?

Of course you can and in fact Pepe you must. We need more angels to spread the cheer!

We need dogs who are:

• Confident
• Friendly
• Obedient
• Not scared of strangers or new places
• Non-aggressive
• And most importantly CUTE! (naa, just kidding)

You can be of any breed, any size and any age (above one year) as long as you are confidant, compassionate and obedient.

What message would you give out to budding therapy dogs like me?

Keep spreading the love, one wag at a time.

Written by Uma Karve (with inputs from Minal Kavishwar, Meena Srivastav and Aakash Lonkar)To know more about animal assisted therapy log on to www.animalangels.org.in

A FRIEND IN NEED

Being a dog is not easy. Our senses are much more heightened then you humans. We can not only smell and hear more than you, we can also sense things that human experience. We can sense changes in your emotions, changes in your body, changes in you moods...sometimes much before you can experience it. This ability makes it possible for us to help our humans by sensing any kind of trouble or danger to their mind or body. I have known cats who can sense head ache in their human and make them feel better by licking them. I can also sense tension in my human and make her feel better better by hugging and licking her. But one of my buddy, a Labrador named Coco is a master when is comes to sensing pain and healing it. He is our Therapy Dog from Mumbai team of Animal Angels Foundation and besides doing great work for children in need, he has also been of tremendous help to his human, Meghna. Meghna and Coco are now inseparable, he is not just her baby, but a very important to her health as well. Here is Coco's very inspiring story....

"Hi to all doggies, dog lovers and not so much dog lover....

My name is Coco and I'm here to share a few moments from my life....though I'm only 3 years old but I thought it would be great to bark (blog) like my other doggy friends who have shared their stories.

I was just 2 months old when I first met Atul and yes I remember it was 6-1-2009. Among my many siblings Atul choose me, well I could say we had a bond an unbreakable sort of connection, though Atul later came to know that I was the only one who among my many sibling, came from my mothers womb leg out.

Well I made my journey and though it was a long ride from Pune to Mumbai it felt all love and warm, because I was so small and scared but all the while I kept my head under Atul's one hand while he drove us both with the other to our way back home. When we reached there, I was received by Meghna and she was the one who called me 'Coco', well I liked the name. Once in, I was all into exploration, by that very night I knew I was home.

Coco with Meghna

Few months passed by and I kept Meghna on toes as being naughty I would love to take garlic, or socks or napkins and run and make her chase me, though I wanted her to play with me, I wondered why would she mostly lie down all day long and not play as much as I wanted her to.

Then one fine day I met Aakash, he came to see me, at first I thought it was some sort of a school that Atul wanted me to go and learn but it was so much fun. I was being trained to be a Therapy dog with Animal Angels Foundation. I didn't know what it meant, but Aakash was very patient and gentle in teaching me all the new things. Among the many basic commands like sit and stay he actually trained me to be a bit more patient, a bit more gentle and adding to the natural flare that all dogs posses that is to 'LOVE', I was now a therapy dog, well that is what they addressed me.

I remember I was six months old and I went with Atul and Meghna along with other volunteers of Animal Angels Foundation to a school for children who were a little different from the other children i had seen. It was amazing, there were almost 40 kids and oh! boy I loved it. They would come and pet me, I would lie down and they would keep their head on my stomach and sleep, they would tell me poems and laugh and giggle. There were some who were scared of me but I knew I was too charming for them too withhold back, some of them would start shouting but since Aakash had taught me to be more gentle and patient and not jump in time they too came and petted me. Then I went to that same school a couple of times and met kids on a personal small group session, I knew I could be all naughty and run around in the house but here I was all ears to what those kids wanted to share and I could see that there were many shy kids but they too opened up and had something to share, they would touch my ears, tail, face and I would let them do and they would be so happy. I came to know later that they were called special kids, but if you would ask me I really don't know what is meant by special kids, it's just that I felt they were more open to receive my Love and I too was happy to be with them.

Coco with Aakash

As time went by I grew and had a better understanding, I could sense that though I wanted to be the center of everything in my house and make sure that Atul and Meghna played with me all day long, I could sense that Meghna was in pain. I could never see that, I wanted her to be fine and to play with me more but I knew I had to be patient. When we all three would go for walks Atul and I would be on a faster pace and she would be walking behind, I would stop and wait till she joined us, I didn't mind walking slow as I wanted to be with her. Though she would call me her 'Babishhhh', one of my many nicknames, I knew I could be her baby all the time but I had to help her out of this pain.

Atul has always been my alpha but with Meghna I shared some beautiful moments; once she was in too much pain and Atul was out working, I couldn't see when she broke in tears, I went and licked her tears that maybe she would feel good, she smiled and said ok Coco don't worry I'm fine, but I just couldn't let go and I kept checking her eyes for 45minutes or so until I was convinced she was fine. Once it was 5 in the evening and Meghna had to take me for my walk but I knew she is in too much pain, I didn't cry and pushed her, I was just sitting by her side, when Atul came from office in the night she told Atul to take me out, but I just couldn't leave her as I knew I can still hold on even if I had not done my business but I wanted to be sure she is fine. Till the time elevator came I kept checking on her through the door...many a times I've seen Atul helping her to walk from one room to the other and I would just keep circling her and stand on my two feet lick her to make her fine.I even come to know if her pain is goona shoot up as I can sense it in her left leg, I start licking her leg so that my love can make her pain go away as I don't like to see her lying down for days or months, but having me around I can see that the time she now spends on the bed is getting lesser as she now knows that when I warn her by licking her left leg she needs to slow down.



I would see her sketching and painting, I guess she likes to do that,I would just keep watching her, I like to see her this way, I would never step on her paper or colors, and though I know she at times gets her pain episode, she has me and I've been with her even when she was on a wheelchair and then it would be that we would walk for 5mins and I would wrap up my business and slowly those 5mins would again be stretched to 20mins of walk to at times 30mins. It doesn't matter if I walk 5mins or 20 mins as long as I can see her getting back on her toes. And yes I mentioned earlier I came out of my mothers womb leg out so I have always been very curious and love to run and explore and the days when I know Meghna is not in so bad pain I let my naughty side out and run around and make her chase me.

I have even accompanied Meghna to Kala Ghoda, the annual art festival in Mumbai, where she show cased her art work, I know it was not easy for her to travel but she said having me around she could 'DO IT' follow her dream that she couldn't do so for 9 years of chronic back pain and even when Meghna commands me to sit and stay I do that while she is talking with a viewer about her work. She has been showcasing her work since last 2years and I am by her side and I love it in spite of this art fair being so crowded, like thousands of people visit, I patiently wait and let them come and pet me, I greet them and there are many who may have their initial dog fear but I let them be and they feel relaxed and shoot pics with me and leave. There were many people whom I had met last year and they recognized me, they said we know you Coco and I had even overheard someone telling Meghna that there are more pictures of me on FB then artwork and people actually come again and again to pet me and I love it.

Coco at Kala Ghoda with Meghna and Atul

I would love if Meghna again has a show next time and all I would do is keep motivating her and even if she would be bedridden I will Lick her and Love her so much making her push her boundaries that she and I would be doing Many more shows in the future.

As of now Meghna has told me we will be going to a remand home for juvenile kids and work with animal angel foundation and I'm all eager to do so, for I had heard somewhere that God couldn't be everywhere and so He made us dog's and poured all that ' UNCONDITIONAL LOVE' in us for isn't GOD spelled back becomes DOG.

So ciao to all and till we meet again keep licking, wagging, and loving....

Coco

To know more about me and my team's work, log on to our website www.animalangels.org.in

Inputs by Meghna Loke, Uma Karve and Minal Kavishwar