Ants never had a chance while Pumpkin was a puppy. But one day he bit a bee and the bee bit back. Pumpkin from that day forward never tasted or wanted to taste another ant. It had a profound impact on Pumpkin the rest of his life. He would hide if he ever heard a fly or a bee again.
Now Pumpkin is learning everyday how to be a mascot at our clinic, spa. He is doing so well we decide to send him to school for further training.
First he is placed with an obedience trainer, named Bill Oliver. Bill trains prison dogs, search and rescue dogs and dogs for the sightless .
First day, Pumpkin works with Bill as if they have known each other for ever. Bill never had to give commands and Pumpkin would follow his gestures and body language. He was such a smart dog.
As he was taking his obedience classes, we decided to sign him up for training to be a Therapy Dog. We contacted a trainer who was a Registered nurse and he started learning everything necessary to become a Certified Therapy Dog.
He learned how to walk up and down steps, walking next to people with walkers, canes and wheelchairs. He was a natural. He picked up all of his training quickly and was a top in the class student.
Now we certify him with the agency who does his paperwork for Therapy Dog. We get his vest, his certification id, and his lease. He’s ready to go.
While at are clinic-spa, he becomes our Certified Therapy Dog. So well behaved. His demeanor is perfect for being at a massage clinic-spa.
Now the real test. We give out cookies to clients getting spa packages. Pumpkin’s nose zero’s in on the butter cookies with unwavering attention. We set up a small table where we are able to put, hot tea, and cookies on for our spa clients.
Picture this: Pumpkin with his head resting on the table staring at the cookies. He doesn’t grab for them. He just sits there with his head on the table staring at the cookies.
What a precious site. Some clients would share their cookies with him but only if they chose to. We finally got to the point where we had to insist on Clients not giving him cookies and treats, because our Therapy dog was gaining too much weight. That was a hardship he struggled with. But he never became assertive in getting a hold of those cookies, but boy did he want them.
Another situation continued to give us discomfort at first. When Pumpkin was a puppy, we would have him stand between our legs and he would love to have his ears twirled. He became hypnotized and was so relaxed as his ears were twirled. Now that’s no problem, right? Well, Pumpkin started greeting customers at the door and walking up and putting his head between our females legs. Completely innocent but was extremely uncomfortable for our lady clients. Many adapted to his need to having his ears rubbed, others SLOWLY adjusted most of the time. We made sure everyone was told why Pumpkin would do this and it just was a regular ocurence. Pumpkin didn’t mind at all and never thought once about it. We all had to adjust to Pumpkin’s loving affection, especially our shorter women clients, even if it was with his head between their legs…..
Happy memories of Pumpkin going to the door to meet our clients with a toy in his mouth. Smiles filled the room and relaxation started to take over without the massage therapist even touching our guests.
It wasn’t the same, if Pumpkin was off getting his spa day in or doctor’s appointments. We had to step up our greetings to fill the missing Therapy Dog’s introduction. We got through it.