Day 164

10/25/22

A day in the life of "Ranger the Therapy Dog":

6:00 The alarm goes off and the all four pups start to stir.

6:01 Ranger approaches for his wake-up scratches.

6:05 The entourage heads down the stairs

6:06 Out the doggy door to explore and detect any night visitors
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6:10 Eat...finally! Next, peanut butter bones for clean teeth!

7:00 First walk goes out: Gus; Second walk: Sam; Third walk: Lilly and Ranger. (Everyone gets groomed before their walk.)

9:00 Ranger waits while Lilly runs over to Walker Senior Residence for a special visit.

10:00 Ranger hops into the car and heads to Mercy Hospital.

10:15 We arrive at the Main Entrance and are bombarded with welcoming cries of "Ranger" from staff. Patients start lining up.

10:30 Head up to a special event on 2 Heart/Respiratory Therapy. Ranger enters the lounge and hearts melt. (This staff has had challenges over the last couple of years...to say the least!)

11:00 Saunter up to 4 Heart to sit with the wife of a patient undergoing open-heart surgery.

11:30 Make an appearance in Administration. Ranger is adored by all! There are a plethora of treats and he even gets to "hang" with the top doctors at the hospital. One day, he even joined a ZOOM meeting in progress!

11:45 Trotted around to floors, waiting rooms, AND a long line of staff receiving their Covid and Flu shots. He was quite the rock star in that setting...lowering blood pressure as he worked the crowd!

12:15 Up to 6th floor to co-teach a class about the benefits of animals in our lives. He never disappoints! He showered the group with love.

1:00 Starting to make our way to Volunteer Services to log out. Met SO MANY people along the way who needed a Therapy Dog.

1:25 Home, water, couch, sleep! Murmurs of "Good dog...what a special boy...we love you."

It is such a privilege to watch the impact Ranger (and Lilly) have on everyone they meet. Smiles, photo shoots, staff and visitors down on the floor with our boy, sweet, sweet boy, comments about how special he is, and parting with a thank you to us for doing what we do.

We never know how we touch the lives of those around us, but with the Therapy Dogs...we know. Angels on earth indeed.