I instinctively knew when I’d had the strained phonecall to come to the park, that nothing normal or ordinary would follow.
If only there hadn’t been a heavy downpour that day? Or if I’d taken her out myself instead of arranging to be somewhere else? I’d have done anything if it meant I could have had a couple more years with her. I expected that she’d probably live for twelve to fifteen years, not ten.
I was greeted by my husband’s friend – swollen eyed from crying – and I suspected that nothing would be the same after this. A small crowd had gathered: people I had never seen before were hugging my husband and each other. I also recognised our friends’ daughter with her family – she had her face in her hands and was visibly upset.
And then I saw her – our beautiful tall, yellow labradoodle lying on her side on a flower bed next to a tarmac path in the park. My husband and a few others had tears running down their faces. The sun was now shining and the rain had gone, the birds were singing – but for a few terrible moments I was in a silent film.
Our beautiful therapy dog who had brought so much love and empathy to so many people had died. I knew neither of us would ever get over such a huge loss. This wasn’t ‘just a dog’, but our best friend who had given us unconditional love.
Dora the ‘reading dog’
Her name was Dora. As a therapy dog for many years, Dora’s main role was as a ‘reading dog’ in a local primary school. This meant that she and my husband would be in the school library along with a young pupil who was deemed to be a reluctant reader. In the normal class environment, the child would not be keen to read out loud. However, they would be more than happy to read to Dora.
When Dora had finished her exuberant bonding, she would lie down ready to listen to the child reading to her. She really looked interested in what was being read. Of course, she had no idea what the words meant, but nevertheless she would tilt her head to one side as if she was intrigued by the story. From then on the child would be motivated to read.
If the young reader had a tendency to read in a very low voice then I would ask them to speak up because Dora was finding it difficult to hear what was being said. At the end of the reading session the child and Dora would have time to play together. Dora had a variety of tricks that the pupil would get her to do. A favourite would be for the pupil to hide a treat and ask Dora to find it. To the excitement of the child Dora always sniffed it out no matter where it was hidden.
Sometimes, during the reading session, other children would come into the library to look for a book. This happened quite often. After a few weeks we discovered that pupils from all different classes had the ploy of asking their teacher if they could go to the library to find a book that they needed. Of course, the fact was that they just wanted the opportunity to interact with Dora, which they often did.
So Dora became a celebrity in the school. Everyone wanted to be her friend. A teaching assistant at the school created Dora’s own embroidered tabard with the school crest on. Sometimes when we walked Dora in the town we would hear children shouting out Dora’s name or talking about her to their parents.
Care home therapy
Dora also went into care homes. We were told that some of the residents waited for at least half an hour before her expected visit, because they were so keen to see her. Dora would go up to each person in turn and she would drop the ball in their laps so that they could roll the ball along the floor for her to fetch. Often the more mobile residents would tell her to “Stay” and then they would go and hide treats around the room for her to find them. She always found them – and she always “stayed” until she was told to “Find it!”
The most incredible moment was when a resident who had been so depressed that he had not spoken for two years, started speaking in full sentences to Dora, telling her how much he loved her. Dogs can certainly alleviate the sadness in life…
We were invited to the summer fetes and events. Dora really loved going there, because she loved people. Dora had passed the Gold Standard (the highest level) in the Kennel Club dog exams.
A privilege
Being a dog owner has been a privilege. Those who own dogs will understand. It was no surprise that at the park it was two people who’d had dogs, that carried our dog onto the backseat of the car. They knew how we felt.
Never again would she sit on the back seat of the car and put her long nose between us when we sat in the front of the car and then lick our hands to show us how much she loved us – and not just us but everyone.
But it’s the longing for her that’s the worst – and especially to hug her. She’s no longer in her place on the sofa and I must remember that I don’t need to ask her to go into the garden late at night before she goes to bed.
In every single aspect of our lives she will be missed – because she was always with us – with her beautiful large brown eyes, saying nothing and seeing everything.
Friends and family have been wonderful – meeting us at the vets when we had to take her body, making us endless cups of tea and showing us sympathy. Beautiful poems and photos have been sent; gifts have been sent through the post. Tragically it won’t bring her back, but it does restore some of my faith in humanity when we have been shown so much love and kindness.
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