Beyond Words--The Gifts of Connection
This week, Pip and I indulged in some serious backyard blackberry picking. I plucked huge ripe ones at my height and she delicately deberried at hers. Every so often I would rest a hand on her sun-warmed back and she would pause, glancing up with an open-mouthed canine grin, saying in every way I could understand, “Yeah, this is great, isn’t it.” Then, with a quick wag from her and smile from me, we’d both go back to our happy task in quiet communion.
Dog lovers know all about such moments, though the details change from pair to pair. What many people haven’t witnessed is just how much a dog can offer, when they have the education that allows them to do so. Dogs routinely go beyond their training to do what is needed be it on a sheep farm, in the rubble of a disaster, next to a hospice bed or, in the video below, in the life of a child.
This piece from Canine Companions for Independence shows a dog named Ilia who goes beyond any “command”, and in so doing, frees his friend, Cole, in a way no human ever could.
For me, training a dog is a gift we give our dogs. It is about giving freedom to our companions, a freedom they cannot achieve without us. But this video reminds me how much freedom this relationship can give to us, whether it is freedom in our hearts or, for young people like Cole, a long list of freedoms he could not achieve without his dog. Enjoy this video but, fair warning, you may want to get a tissue first:
Here are lists of books about Service Dogs and The Human/Animal Bond.
--Sarah Wilson, MySmartPuppy.com
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Sarah Wilson is a pet behavior specialist, author, media personality, and a regular contributor to Wag Reflex. Pre-order Sarah's new book, "Dogology: What Your Relationship with Your Dog Reveals about You", out this fall.
Kathy Nies on August 18, 2008 at 06:07 PM
We purchased our Shetland Sheepdog when our 7 year old daughter was having serious health problems...and he did what we hoped. He gave her lots and lots of love during a couple of difficult years. At 11 our daughter's health is now fine, and we still have our Sheltie who is the love of her life; in fact we now have two shelties!
This video so powerfully illustrates the bond between human and canine! It brought tears to my eyes!