John1
Very helpful member
- Joined
- Feb 25, 2006
- Messages
- 1,055
- Diagnosis
- 10/2000
- Country
- CA
- State
- NL
- City
- Newfoundland
Building on Zaphoon's Schnoodle thread, there seem to be a lot of PALS and CALS here who find pets an important part of their lives. I suggest we begin a thread on the subject of "Pets as therapists" and describe our pets and how they enrich our lives with ALS. Maybe a photo gallery of our "therapists" would help here. I'll kick it off with a description of my dog, why I got him and post some photos of him. I invite others to do the same.
When my last dog died of cancer 6 years ago, I felt I had lost my best friend. Facing my life with ALS and no dog I had either to consider anti-depressants or get another one although I thought Angus would be impossible to replace, and of course he was; all animals are unique. After nearly two years without him though and realizing I could still manage a dog, I began my search. Angus was a mutt but likely a terrier-poodle mix of some sort so I began looking for Schnoodles. My daughter came across a new breed, or at least a breed under development, called the Ganaraskan, named after a river in Ontario, not far from where Glen lives, where the breed was developed over the past 25+ years. The aim was to build a therapy dog that was intelligent, very friendly, enthusiastic but calm and hypoallergenic. The foundation breeds were the Miniature Schnauzer, Poodle, Bichon Frise and Cocker Spaniel. For the past 10-15 years the dogs have been breeding true although there is a great range of colours.
I acquired mine 4 1/2 years ago when he was 3 months old and named him Chewbacca because when walking on his hind legs, which he does a lot, he reminded me of the Wookie in miniature. He also looks a lot like Chico. He has become my constant companion and has visited Labrador, Arizona, California, New England and Mexico and many places in between. He is a perfect traveller. His size, 15 lbs, makes him large enough to be fully dog-like but small enough to be really interactive. He rarely barks and doesn't shed so he is welcome in many motels. He comes to my office in the afternoons and has a more friends come by to visit him than I do. Because he is a therapy dog, my employer has waived the no animal policy.
Most days I take him for a two mile run using my large scooter. He loves it and so do I. It gets me out almost every day unless the snow has not been adequately plowed or it's raining cats and Schnoodles. I watch the seasons change and since I live in a rural area, there are lots of birds, plants and animals to see and I've got to know more of my neighbours by far than I would have without him. On weekends, with more time, I take him down to a place called Middle Cove which is about 3 miles round-trip from my home to meet other dogs and people and where we often see whales, icebergs and sea birds according to the season.
Here are a few snaps to introduce him.
When my last dog died of cancer 6 years ago, I felt I had lost my best friend. Facing my life with ALS and no dog I had either to consider anti-depressants or get another one although I thought Angus would be impossible to replace, and of course he was; all animals are unique. After nearly two years without him though and realizing I could still manage a dog, I began my search. Angus was a mutt but likely a terrier-poodle mix of some sort so I began looking for Schnoodles. My daughter came across a new breed, or at least a breed under development, called the Ganaraskan, named after a river in Ontario, not far from where Glen lives, where the breed was developed over the past 25+ years. The aim was to build a therapy dog that was intelligent, very friendly, enthusiastic but calm and hypoallergenic. The foundation breeds were the Miniature Schnauzer, Poodle, Bichon Frise and Cocker Spaniel. For the past 10-15 years the dogs have been breeding true although there is a great range of colours.
I acquired mine 4 1/2 years ago when he was 3 months old and named him Chewbacca because when walking on his hind legs, which he does a lot, he reminded me of the Wookie in miniature. He also looks a lot like Chico. He has become my constant companion and has visited Labrador, Arizona, California, New England and Mexico and many places in between. He is a perfect traveller. His size, 15 lbs, makes him large enough to be fully dog-like but small enough to be really interactive. He rarely barks and doesn't shed so he is welcome in many motels. He comes to my office in the afternoons and has a more friends come by to visit him than I do. Because he is a therapy dog, my employer has waived the no animal policy.
Most days I take him for a two mile run using my large scooter. He loves it and so do I. It gets me out almost every day unless the snow has not been adequately plowed or it's raining cats and Schnoodles. I watch the seasons change and since I live in a rural area, there are lots of birds, plants and animals to see and I've got to know more of my neighbours by far than I would have without him. On weekends, with more time, I take him down to a place called Middle Cove which is about 3 miles round-trip from my home to meet other dogs and people and where we often see whales, icebergs and sea birds according to the season.
Here are a few snaps to introduce him.
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