Whew was I nervous! Heart pounding, shallow breathing, the whole nine yards. Chelsea being the intuitive soul that she is clearly picked up on my nervousness and was not nearly as obedient as usual.
Me: "Chelsea, sit".
Chelsea: "Piss off mummy, ask me again when you're normal".
Nevertheless, WE PASSED! There were four dog/handler pairs tested. Chelsea and I were third in line to get our results, and with a simple "congratulations" all of the tension just melted away and I realized that I hadn't drawn a normal breath for the entire two hour test! I am so, so proud of Chelsea. She's truly got a gift and I am thrilled that we'll have a chance to share it with people who would otherwise have minimal contact with "the outside world", and almost no contact with animals. Sometimes I wonder what my life would be like if I couldn't have pets due to illness or age or because I was no longer able to live independently. For me, it's unthinkable. If that day comes (and I somehow manage to refrain from throwing myself off a bridge) a visit from a therapy animal will mean the world to me.
Those who are intimately familiar with my little zoo know that when I got Kiera as a puppy my intention was to mold her in to a dog that could do therapy work. We've worked really, really hard, but as it turns out the most realistic goal we could set was helping her be a happy, confident, friendly dog. Chelsea, on the other hand, came in to my life by chance or fate or both. My only intention in adopting her was to find a great addition to our "family". I haven't put nearly the time or effort in to her training as I did with Kiera's because she's naturally such a well-behaved, well-balanced dog. As it turns out Kiera has other gifts to share, and no amount of training or socialization would have made her a candidate for this type of work. To be honest I really don't think she'd enjoy it either. Chelsea, on the other hand, is such a natural and has such a gift for relating to people that it seems like this is the job she was meant to do. I'm so grateful to be blessed with such a special little zoo. And such amazing friends! I deeply appreciate the words of encouragement and support leading up to the test. Tuesday night we'll be celebrating this milestone so if you're free and in the area pop in for a drink - it will be "Chelsea's passing party" :-)
Me: "Chelsea, sit".
Chelsea: "Piss off mummy, ask me again when you're normal".
Nevertheless, WE PASSED! There were four dog/handler pairs tested. Chelsea and I were third in line to get our results, and with a simple "congratulations" all of the tension just melted away and I realized that I hadn't drawn a normal breath for the entire two hour test! I am so, so proud of Chelsea. She's truly got a gift and I am thrilled that we'll have a chance to share it with people who would otherwise have minimal contact with "the outside world", and almost no contact with animals. Sometimes I wonder what my life would be like if I couldn't have pets due to illness or age or because I was no longer able to live independently. For me, it's unthinkable. If that day comes (and I somehow manage to refrain from throwing myself off a bridge) a visit from a therapy animal will mean the world to me.
Those who are intimately familiar with my little zoo know that when I got Kiera as a puppy my intention was to mold her in to a dog that could do therapy work. We've worked really, really hard, but as it turns out the most realistic goal we could set was helping her be a happy, confident, friendly dog. Chelsea, on the other hand, came in to my life by chance or fate or both. My only intention in adopting her was to find a great addition to our "family". I haven't put nearly the time or effort in to her training as I did with Kiera's because she's naturally such a well-behaved, well-balanced dog. As it turns out Kiera has other gifts to share, and no amount of training or socialization would have made her a candidate for this type of work. To be honest I really don't think she'd enjoy it either. Chelsea, on the other hand, is such a natural and has such a gift for relating to people that it seems like this is the job she was meant to do. I'm so grateful to be blessed with such a special little zoo. And such amazing friends! I deeply appreciate the words of encouragement and support leading up to the test. Tuesday night we'll be celebrating this milestone so if you're free and in the area pop in for a drink - it will be "Chelsea's passing party" :-)
2 comments:
I knew she'd pass....I had absolutely no doubts what-so-ever!
Congrats to Chelsea and her momma!
xoxoxo
lovely dogs. the only good thing i can say about laura is she likes dog. shes upset tonight because robin is in a kentucky prison tonight.
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