Fate is a natural therapy dog. She was wonderful in her debut this afternoon, she did every single thing I hoped for, and went far beyond my expectations.  The staff and residents adored her.

In my life, and her life, this is a profound and significant thing.

But today was bittersweet at best.

I suppose I should have expected how emotional the experiment was for me and perhaps for others. I felt a wave of guilt and sadness when Fate and I left for the Mansion to see if she might become a therapy dog.

Red, struggling to see, was sitting at the door looking out as I left. Ouch.

He almost always comes with me, I think he was confused and uncertain at being left behind.

Maria was excited, but also anxious, I could feel it, she was worried I might take Fate over in some way, that she might lose all or a part of the dog she loved so very much. That will not happen.

Then there was me. Beyond leaving Red behind, I worried about bringing Fate into the Mansion. This work is very important to me, I have very strong feelings about how it should be done, I have no tolerance for mistakes of any kind with my dogs. We are there to lift people up, not to cause them any harm.

Therapy dog for me is not about walking through an assisted care facility or hospital ward, it is deeply spiritual experience meant to bring joy, comfort, life and memory to people struggling on the edge of life.

This work cannot really be taught, it takes a special kind of spirit to connect with others in the way Red did, or the best therapy dogs do.

The Mansion residents adore Red, he has brightened so many of their days.

Kassi, the Mansion Director, told me just this morning that the people who live in the Mansion would be devastated by the loss of Red, she hoped he could come as long and as often as was possible.

I promised her he would keep coming, but I also couldn’t lie to  her, or to the residents. He is faltering, and on warm days like today, he shouldn’t be going out to the Mansion or anywhere else.

And I really didn’t know how many times he can come to continue this work. He will be present for sure on July 9, when the Mansion’s new Memory Care Unit will be dedicated to the Army Of Good.

From the minute we walked into the Mansion around 12:30 – it was for my weekly reading to the residents – Fate seemed to know what to do, she was right at  home. I had her on a leash for the first hour, then took it off. It was not necessary.

I read for an hour, and Fate was wonderful for every minute. I didn’t know she had an attention span like that, I should have, she sits with Maria for hours when Maria does her studio work.

Fate has a great love for people, and I saw that people have a great love for her, as strong as their love for Red, yet in a different way. Fate is more emotional, more demonstrative, she loves to press her head against people’s hearts and foreheads and just connect.

The Mansion aides loved  her, they loved her blue eye, her eager spirit, her sense of engagement. She loved each one back, eye to eye, heart to heart. She only jumped up slightly on  Becky, and came off when I swatted her lightly on the butt with a rolled up magazine, and said “off,” horrifying Becky, who said I should never swat her again.

I won’t, I promised, unless she jumps up on somebody again.

Fate got it, she didn’t do it again. She went from person to person, like Red avoiding those who didn’t wish to be close to her, she hopped up next to the residents when I asked her too, she brought so much joy to the faces of these people I wanted to cry.

She also used her agility to great effect, jumping up  when someone needed that, but doing so carefully and without harm.

That is the point after all, to bring joy where there is little, love when it is needed, comfort when it is appropriate, and a sense of emotional connection. Fate scored big on every one.

She was more restless than Red, who after a few minutes would lie still. Fate would get up every few minutes and go say hello to a different person, and each one loved it, hugged her, talked to her and smiled, like Georgina in the photo above.

I want to write more about this tonight, put up a few more photos. My heart is full of different things.

Sadness, a fear of betraying Red, a sense of relief and joy. It was hard to do this work with a different dog, even one I know and love.

I have been worried about not being able to do this work, it is not simple to find a dog like Red. Fate is so intense about her life, she is so full of excitement and energy, I really doubted she could focus on people calmly and for long periods of time.

I was wrong, I learned a lot about myself and the growth I need to continue working on. Dogs do makes us better humans if we give them the chance, learn to trust, and open up to their own potential and purpose.

I’m embarrassed to say that Fate is not the dog I thought she was. I always loved her, but did not grasp what an empathetic and loving spirit she can be to others. I get it now and will set about training her.

She had some confusion at first about what she was supposed to be doing, but that cleared up. The border collies are always looking for work. I’ll write more about this tonight.