Adult Daycare Keeps Me on My Toes!

This morning Toby and I made our monthly pilgrimage to the adult daycare center. We had to skip it last month when I discovered that our flea medication wasn't working. There is no greater sin in therapy animal work than taking an animal with parasites into a nursing facility. I have always used Frontline on my dogs and cats, but since moving to Colfax, it hasn't done the job. Last fall I had to take a hiatus in my therapy work for more than two months until a hard frost killed off the flea population in town. When Frontline failed again this year, I was determined to find a cure before I had to bug bomb our house (we did it three times last summer, to no avail -- though it did prove to be effective on the spiders, thank goodness!).

I did some Internet research, and decided that K-9 Advantix (dogs) and Advantage II (cats) were the things to try. I ordered some from Petco.com, which seemed to be very reasonable, along with a box of Capstar as a boost, just in case. It arrived very quickly, and I dosed the whole menagerie (dog, puppy, and four cats). The results were nearly immediate. Trooper, the pup, had some lingering fleas, so he got a couple of doses of Capstar (you can safely give it every day if you need to), and all got their second monthly application this week. At last, something that actually KILLS fleas! (I don't work for any drug company -- just letting you know what worked for us, in case you have the same problem.)

I also took a tip from some of Trooper's littermates' adoptive moms, and sprinkled diatomaceous earth (ground up fossils) in the area of my yard used by the dogs. It kills fleas by slicing through their exoskeletons. Sounds awful, but I have no pity for the teeny varmints. Doesn't hurt mammals, but is deadly to bugs. Works on anthills, too, if anyone has a problem with those guys.

But I digress. The adult daycare is a bit different from my other care facility clients. The folks there are all alert and active, and expect more from us than a quick "pet my dog" session. So I always give them a short program of some sort. I've had to rack my brain a couple of times to come up with something entertaining, but so far I've always managed to think of something to do. They are a wonderful audience to audition new programs and tricks for, always encouraging and offering suggestions and questions that I might not have considered before. Senior citizens have a wealth of knowledge to share, and an inspiring curiosity as well.

Earlier this summer I was asked to do a "dog and pony show" -- minus the pony -- for a group of children at a library. The librarian asked me to bring both Toby and Trooper, because kids love puppies. Within just a few days I had to come up with a routine involving obedience demonstrations and tricks, something that would entertain a large room full of wiggly children. Luckily, my visit to the adult daycare was scheduled a few days before my library gig, and I had a chance to try out my program on the folks there. They were great, and helped me figure out where the dogs needed more practice before the children's program. When we finally did it "for real," the kids were enthralled, and Toby chased his tail in a record number of circles as they counted.

I didn't know until about 9:00 just what I was going to do for the program at 10:30 this morning. Dog or cat? Subject matter? I kept coming up empty. Then I happened to glance at the materials I'd used for the festival booth, and realized Toby and I could piggyback on them to present a program about some of the jobs that therapy animals can do. I explained our work in general, then focused particularly upon the Reading Education Assistance Dog (R.E.A.D.) program. To help them understand the program from a child's point of view, I read them the children's storybook I've written, Ben and the Reading Dog, featuring Toby, and then answered questions afterward. I was a bit embarrassed when they asked me to sign a copy of the little book I gave them. I've signed autographs for singing and acting before, but never for writing.

We also had a great discussion about other kinds of therapy animals, particularly the rabbits that this daycare had several years ago. I learned a lot, too, about how sensitive a rabbit actually can be to a person's emotions. One of their rabbits jumped into the lap of a very upset little lady one day, rested its paws on her chest, and nuzzled her in the neck. What a lovely, comforting experience!

A variety of species of obedient, calm, and people-loving animals can be registered as therapy animals. The most common are dogs, followed by cats. I've also heard of llamas, rats, guinea pigs, hamsters, birds (usually parrots), bunnies, burros, horses and miniature horses becoming therapy animals. Reptiles and exotics are not allowed, for obvious reasons. Perhaps that will change in the future, but for now it is limited to "common" pet mammals and birds. I still get some surprised responses when I tell people that I have therapy cats, too, so I can just imagine their reaction if I offered to bring a llama to their bedside!