Dogs who leave PAWprints on Hearts!

Shortly after our precious dog Toby passed away, a friend sent me this poem. I have read it many times since. The author, Beth Norman Harris,  has done a beautiful job of capturing what our furry friends communicate to us in many ways.

Our Toby left pawprints on hearts around the world. He presented with me to 10,000 students across North America, raised thousands for charity, volunteered as a pet assisted therapy dog for 4 1/2 years, is the star of several books and a soon to be motion picture(check this out: http://www.indiegogo.com/On-Tobys-Terms-The-movie.

But most importantly, he left a pawprint on my heart....one that is with me forever.

Toby... big pawprints of love

Here it is (thank you to the author Beth Norman Harris who wrote this beautiful poem):


Treat me kindly, my beloved friend, for no heart in all the world is


more grateful for kindness than the loving heart in me.


Do not break my spirit with a stick, for though I might lick your hand

between blows, your patience and understanding will more quickly

teach me the things you would have me learn.


Speak to me often because your voice is the world's sweetest music,

as you must know by the fierce wagging of my tail when your

footsteps fall upon my waiting ear.


Please take me inside when it is cold and wet. I am a domesticated

animal, no longer accustomed to bitter elements. I ask no greater

glory then the privilege of sitting at your feet beside the hearth.


Keep my pan filled with fresh water, for I cannot tell you

When I thirst.


Feed me clean food that I may stay well, to romp and play and

do the bidding, to walk by your side, and stand ready, willing

and able to protect you with my life, should your life be in danger.


And, my friend, when I am very old, and no longer enjoy good health, hearing,

and sight, do not make heroic efforts to keep me going. I am not having fun.

Please see that my trusting life is taken gently.


I shall leave this earth knowing with the last breath I draw

that my fate always safest in your hands.

A Dog's Friend

Listen to two fantastic guests, Lisa Litwinski and Keri Lake as they talk about how animals communicate, the animal human bond, and how we can ensure our adopted animals become part of our forever (or should i say FURever!) family.

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/chammond/2012/05/05/guest-lisa-litwinski
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/chammond/2012/04/21/guest-kerri-lake
 
               

From The Doghouse to the Big Screen

Dogs inspire us!  I now know and believe that animals, just like people, show up in our life when we need them most (even when we don't know we need them). That's how it was for us and Toby. This gorgeous Chesapeake Bay retriever showed up in our life, when we needed some change. Not only did he shake up our world and toss it around, he inspired a lot of growth and change (and some new renovations to the parts of the house he destroyed).

Toby looking very proud after he emptied the closet.

His turnaround from the dog that rearranged furniture, emptied our closets, broke toilet tank lids to the dog that brought joy and laughter to those in the hospital (as a pet assisted therapy dog) was so inspiring to me I wrote a story called Volunteering from the Heart for Chicken Soup for the Soul (It is Story number 72).

Going on book tours with Toby, and our continued lessons of love, life and purpose inspired me to write On Toby's Terms, which is in development to become a major motion picture!  How exciting is this!! Literally, Toby has gone from the doghouse to the big screen!  Our journey with him has not only inspired us, but has impacted thousands of children and adults around the world. 

To find out more about the movie On Toby's Terms, and how you can get involved, visit:

http://www.indiegogo.com/On-Tobys-Terms-The-movie

To learn more about how Toby inspired me to write, check out this blog with Beachbound Books:

http://www.beachboundbooks.com/charmaine-hammond.html