Animals Are Smarter Than You Think

Last week I read this on Facebook “The real reason animals don't talk, is because they understand so much.” The quote really resonated for me because during the wonderful years we had Toby, our Chesapeake Bay retriever we learned so much from him.  We learned early on that this dog was a lot smarter than we gave him credit for, and once we figured that out, life got a little easier. Toby’s ability to “read” his environment was uncanny, this became particularly evident during his hospital visits, he visited as a pet assisted therapy dog with Chimo - http://www.chimoproject.ca/chimo/ and was placed at Alberta Hospital Edmonton. He seemed to know exactly what the patients needed from him and acted in such a way that built trust with them.

In a recent discussion with Susan Sutcliffe (K9 Body Worker and expert dog behaviourist) on my PAWsitive Radio with Charmaine, we discussed the ways in which animals communicate (non verbally, through their behaviours, routines and so forth). Susan provided some incredible tips to increase our ability to communicate with and understand our pets. You can listen to the show here: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/chammond/2012/03/10/guest-susan-sutcliffe

Georgina Bradley also shared some helpful perspectives about how smart animals really are. Georgina trained dogs for Hollywood movies, the Olympics, and for families and pet owners, like you and I. http://www.blogtalkradio.com/chammond/2012/02/25/guest-georgina-bradley

How fun it would have been to have Susan and Georgina meet Toby, I would have loved to hear what they thought he was saying.  J

Until next time… remember, our pets understand a lot more than we think they do! 

Are Dogs Healers?

I believe that many are!  Our dog Toby was a pet assisted therapy dog through a local organization, http://www.chimoproject.ca/chimo/, for over four years. He volunteered every Wednesday with patients at Alberta Hospital Edmonton. Wednesdays were clearly the highlight of Toby’s week, and also for many of the patients he worked with.

Some of the impacts we observed with patients included:

• Increased desire and willingness to socialize with other patients and staff, and of course Toby and I
• A general improvement in the mood of the patients
• Patients overcoming their fear of dogs through building a relationship and trust with Toby 
• An increase in physical activity as patients would go for walks because Toby needed a walk or outdoor break
•  An interest in caring for Toby (made him dog treats, helped with brushing him on visits, and made him birthday and anniversary cards.
•  Reduction in stress and anxiety

Toby in many ways was a stress relief and a healer for those he met.

There are also dogs (and other animals) that volunteer in reading and literacy programs, group homes, counseling programs, seniors’ facilities to name a few. Animals have the ability to provide love, comfort, joy and unconditional love which can deeply impact a person’s healing and wellness.

To hear me talk about this, listen to http://www.blogtalkradio.com/consciousdiscussions/2012/04/08/dog-rescue-therapy-dogs

And

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/thebodymindandspiritnetwork/2012/03/23/living-with-hope

and watch Toby at:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I0eEpYp0UjE&feature=g-all-u&context=G234743dFAAAAAAAASAA    as CHIMO staff Danielle talks about Toby and his job.

Good books are for sharing- you can read about Toby’s pet assisted therapy in his books:  To buy a copy of On Toby’s Terms, visit