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Standard Poodle
Every
year, the American Kennel Club
presents its Award for
Canine Excellence to
dogs who
"enrich, inspire or contribute to the lives of individuals and
communities".
Awards
are given out in 5 categories: Exemplary Companion Dog (ECD),
Law Enforcement (LAW), Search and Rescue (SAR),
Service (S), and Therapy (T)
Two Standard Poodles have received these awards. Here are their stories:
Noodle
2005
T
Noodle now works with the school's students in both group settings and on an individual basis. She is the catalyst for the children to open up about their own lives and issues. They sense that she is non-judgmental and her experiences, real or imagined, can be just the key the school's psychologists need to get the children to open up. It is much less threatening for them to talk about how Noodle feels about issues like leaving her mother or what emotions she experiences when doing something wrong.
The students and staff have fallen in love with Noodle and together they submitted multiple nominations for the ACE awards. Numerous written testimonials were received, many of them from the children in their own words. Others just drew pictures of their beloved dog, Noodle, who can always be counted on to provide encouragement to all the children in her life.
Cara
2002
T
Bridgewater,
New Jersey Cara
was a happy-go-lucky pet and obedience dog until she was diagnosed with
osteosarcoma and had a front leg amputated. As her nominators wrote in
their letter to the ACE committee, "Cara's life changed forever,
but her positive attitude endured. She survived by all odds and began
spreading cheer by example."
A therapy dog for eight years, Cara has an uncanny knack for reaching
people previously thought unreachable. Her thick file of success stories
includes the case of a veteran in a VA home who, after a visit from
Cara, uttered his first words after years of silence; and a deeply
unresponsive autistic boy who was moved to gleeful gesturing after some
quality time with the 11-year-old Poodle.
Hospital patients respond to this big-hearted cancer survivor with
empathetic delight. "Cara is large and awkward," write her
nominators, "but by sheer force of will she gets around admirably.
At work, there are always obstacles, but nothing deters her from her
mission. She has faced the worst and survived. With extraordinary good
humor, she lives the life she has been dealt." Cara has had some of
her finest moments at a summer camp for children with cancer. The kids
seem more willing to discuss their own experiences and fears when in the
presence of their three-legged fellow patient.
The dog-and-owner team has worked at every venue conceivable for therapy
dogs-nursing homes, hospitals, day-care centers, schools-and are regular
visitors to the Matheny School and Hospital in Far Hills, New Jersey, a
residential facility for severely retarded children and young adults.
Cara is the star of a therapy-dog training video, promoting the benefits
of animal-assisted therapy and inspiring others to pursue this valuable
public service.
Her nominating letter concludes, "With her courage in the face of
adversity and her generous spirit, she is an inspiration to all."
