|
Shiloh??™s Social Call made me decide dogs should be a
mandatory requirement in nursing home facilities!
Recently I visited a friend, Marvene,
who has been in a nursing home for several years. At one
time
she was my mother??™s roomy in the home,
and I still stay in touch with her. Lakepoint Nursing Home
is in a small town in Kansas. Although I live in Texas,
when I??™m here seeing my Dad I always make time to visit
Marvene.
I knew the home allowed pets to visit
so last week Shiloh (my black and silver Schnauzer)
accompanied me. So as not to cause too much commotion we
entered through the backdoor which is very close to
Marvene??™s
room.
Well, Marvene lit up like a candle when we arrived. She had
always had pets and adores them. Shiloh
is not a trained therapy dog so I was
pleasantly surprised that she was very quiet and behaved
like a lady. Schnauzers do tend to be a bit yappy and can
be quite rowdy. But, as for seeing ???people??? I knew that was
not about to be an issue.
Within a few minutes Marvene??™s room was
filling up! Aides were bringing people in their
wheelchairs, the residents that are ambulatory were popping
in, as well as some staff members coming on their own.
Shiloh certainly knew she was center
stage and greeted each visitor with delight. After sneaking
in the back way I have no idea how word spread so quickly
that there was a ???critter??? in the house. Word had spread
like a Kansas tornado! The evening turned into an all-out
party for these folks!
I couldn??™t have been more pleased
knowing Shiloh had brought such joy to them, even if only
for a short while.
Each one could hardly wait to get their
hands on Shiloh. They were all smiling ear to ear and many
had
tears in their eyes as they told of the
pets they ???used??? to have. One lady came in and was
obviously confused with a far away look in her eye. The
minute she saw Shiloh she was transformed before my very
eyes, and spoke as lucidly as you and
I.
I truly think Shiloh knew she was
helping these folks. Once the traffic ceased, Shiloh lay in
my lap with her head on the arm of the chair and her eyes
FIXED on the door. Doesn??™t anyone else ???need??? to see me?
I do believe she felt the love these
strangers had for her, and she knew they felt uplifted after
petting and loving on her.
I have often read about the positive
results therapy dogs have on the elderly in nursing
facilities. After seeing it for myself I would urge anyone
with a ???well behaved??? pet to give it a try. Seeing the joy
Shiloh brought still has me ecstatic. And, yes, we will be
visiting again??¦??¦??¦??¦??¦.because so little, brought so much, into
so many lives.
?© 2004 Kathy Baker
I was
born in Augusta, Kansas which is only a few
miles outside of Wichita. My childhood was spent growing up
in the country. After marrying a native Texan he moved me
to Dallas in 1978. A large city has a lot to offer, but I
miss the simple life and slower pace. Pets have always
played a huge part in my life and I cannot imagine a home
without them. My hobbies are varied, but cross-stitching is
by far my favorite. Quite to my surprise, I've had stories
or poems featured by Petwarmers, Storytime Tapestry, and
Starfish in the past year.
I have stepchildren, but none of my own. Possibly that is
why I have such an attachment to animals. I've always felt
my mission in life was giving love and a home to these dear
animals God has provided for us to enjoy.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
To read archived stories, click on this link:
http://archives.zinester.com/9516/2004
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Blessings to you today
Bob Johnston
|
