Home for Life believes our at risk animals can help at risk people. We believe that the uncondiitonal acceptance and love provided by a dog can heal and enhance the lives of the people we touch through our innovative,model community outreach programs. Home for Life animals like Dodi are ambassadors for our mission; anyone who meets one of our special needs animals through our outreach programs can never again dismiss them as unworthy of life just because they couldn't live in a conventional adoptive home.
Dodi came to Home for Life as an 18 month old young dog who was facing euthanasia due to uncontrolled epilepsy and separation anxiety. She routinely ran away from home at any opportunity. She had already been in three homes, an animal control facility and Great Dane rescue by the time she came to Home for Life. Frankly , we were not enthused about accepting Dodi at Home for Life with all her problems,but couldn't see a dog of barely one year of age being put to sleep without at least trying our best to help her. It turned out that Dodi's epilepsy was not controlled because she was not reliably receiving her medications. At Home for Life, Dodi has never had a seizure. What's more she has never tried to run away. She loves the sanctuary and her dog friends. Once she settled in to life at the sanctuary we enrolled her in our Renaissance Program,where, working with a student from Boys' Totem Town, she learned basic obedience and worked on developing the skills to pass her test for certification as a therapy dog. After successfully graduating from the Renaissance Program, Dodi met Deb who visited Home for Life during one of our open houses. They soon began working together to attain certification as a therapy dog team through Therapy Dog, Inc. and have become a welcome, well recognized and well loved presence at the University Hospitals ever since.
Every other week Deb meets Dodi( she is driven in from Home for Life in Star Prairie WI by our staff to meet Deb at the hospital in Minneapolis) at the University of Minnesota Hospitals to visit each and every patient who wants to meet them as well as family, doctors,nurses and even a celebrity or two
( see photo of Minnesota Vikings Center John Sullivan with Dodi below;he was visiting patients while Dodi was there and was thrilled to meet her!) The candid photos,taken by Deb and included with this blog post are just some of the patients Deb and Dodi have met during their every other weekly visits;the joy they bring to the children and adults they meet is evident.
Deb and Dodi are also featured in the video below: Paying it Forward: Home for Life Animals Give Back to Kids
Follow Deb on Twitter @italiangirlmpls
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“She’s so BEAUTIFUL”! I’ve heard that phrase hundreds of times.
Before questioning the size of my ego, I should explain, that those words are describing Dodi, Home for Life’s Harlequin Great Dane, upon meeting her adoring public. Quite often, the next words I hear are “how much does she weigh”?
Dodi is a registered therapy dog who regularly visits the
University of Minnesota Amplatz Children’s Hospital as part of Home for Life’s Sit*Stay*Heal Program.
Dodi’s beauty was captured in a portrait painted by artist
Paul Sansale of Rescue Dog Art (rescuedogart.com). Dodi was featured as the November dog in the
2013 Rescued Heroes Calendar, which
highlights and celebrates rescue dogs who are now therapy dogs (and 1 dog that is
a service dog for an Iraq war veteran who suffers from post-traumatic stress
disorder). I wish I could take photos of the faces of passersby when Dodi enters through the hospital doors --starting with the valet parking attendants, to the information desk staff, and the security guard–every face lights up when Dodi arrives. The children walking through the lobby are so surprised to see a dog in the hospital, especially one the size of Dodi.
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| Dodi greets Zachary, at a visit at Amplatz children's Hospital, Minneapolis See Zachary's Facebook page |
On a visit shortly before Christmas 2012, Dodi and I had
just walked through the main entrance at Amplatz when we were stopped by a
woman who asked if she could say hello to Dodi.
I responded “of course, this is Dodi, a therapy dog who is here to visit
patients.” As she patted Dodi on the head,
and then hugged her tightly, I noticed tears in her eyes. She told me that she had been at the hospital
for over two weeks with her daughter, and that she missed her two Bassett
hounds that were at home on the East Coast.
Her daughter was a patient in the bone marrow transplant unit, which is
an isolation unit, and visitors are not allowed. Even though her moments with Dodi brought
tears to her eyes, I know this Mom’s tears were because of her daughter’s
condition, but also missing the comfort of her own “furry kids.” And that is exactly what a therapy dog’s job
is—to provide comfort, to elicit a smile, a moment of pure joy—in the hospital
environment.
Dodi and I went on our way to the hospital floors. On the fifth floor, the staff at the nurse’s
desk greeted Dodi with big smiles, as usual.
We always stop at the nurse’s station to check-in with the charge nurse
to see if there are any special requests by patients wishing to visit with a
therapy dog, or a patient who they think would benefit from a visit. Some of the patients at Amplatz have been
hospitalized for many weeks or months.
The nurses often know their patients’ backgrounds, and if they have a
pet at home, and those patients are especially happy to visit with Dodi.
Dodi and I went on our way to the hospital floors. On the fifth floor, the staff at the nurse’s
desk greeted Dodi with big smiles, as usual.
We always stop at the nurse’s station to check-in with the charge nurse
to see if there are any special requests by patients wishing to visit with a
therapy dog, or a patient who they think would benefit from a visit. Some of the patients at Amplatz have been
hospitalized for many weeks or months.
The nurses often know their patients’ backgrounds, and if they have a
pet at home, and those patients are especially happy to visit with Dodi.Dodi and I started our room visits, and after I knocked on the door, Dodi marched in, anxious to see who was inside. Dodi usually stops at the first person she encounters once in the room. The first lucky recipient to see Dodi’s sweet face in that room was a young doctor. He smiled at Dodi and asked if hospital staff were allowed a “little therapy” from this visitor?
I know that the hospital staff also enjoy visiting with Dodi, and their smiles belie this fact.
Paying it Forward: Home for Life animals give back to kids featuring Deb & Dodi!
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| Dodi with Chloe at Amplatz |
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| Dodi with an adult patient at the University of Minnesota Hospital, Main Campus, Minneapolis |
We often consider something as easy as a smile to be simply a facial movement. I have lost track of the number of times a parent has thanked me for visiting with Dodi because they have not seen their child smile in a long time, until Dodi came to visit. It may seem insignificant to some, but to the parent of a child who is hospitalized--seeing their child do something as small as smile at big dog--that little smile means the world to them.
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| Summer in the big meadow at Home for Life |
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| Winter in her pony coat at HFL |
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| Dodi with John Sullivan , Center for the Minnesota Vikings, and his wife Ashley,at Amplatz |
As I was writing this blog, its theme presented itself to me—a smile. And I thought of the song Smile, by the inimitable Nat King Cole, a favorite of my parents. The words may be simplistic, but are relevant, and timeless.
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| Dodi with two of the MN Vikings cheerleaders |
Smile, though your heart is aching,
Smile, even though it’s breaking
When there are clouds in the sky, you’ll get by
If you smile, through your fear and sorrow
Smile, and maybe tomorrow
You’ll see the sun come shining through for you
Hide every trace of sadness
Although a tear may be ever so near
That’s the time you must keep on trying
Smile, what’s the use of crying?
You’ll find that life is still worthwhile
If you just SMILE
