There is a resident in my home who seems to be much more in charge than I would ever be willing to acknowledge. Her name is J.C. Sara adopted this toy poodle a number of years ago. She'd been found in a grader ditch in Lucas County, more than likely discarded from a puppy mill after her productive years were over. She came to the house in horrible shape. She didn't know how to take a walk, or have a toy of her own, and medically was a mess. Slowly, but surely, Sara worked with her and on her to take care of all her needs. J. C. had to have all but five teeth removed and takes daily medication for seizures. It was a lot of work and commitment but Sara did it all.
In the middle of the whole thing a very interesting thing happened. J.C. took charge. Not in an evil overpowering way, she just has a subtle way of letting us all know exactly what her expectations are. I initially thought she was just not very smart, but now I recognize it for the true stubborn, committed behavior it was. She had things she wanted to accomplish and set about doing it.
Somewhere along the line, I was struck by a very powerful thought. I remember thinking about people referring to animals as "dumb animals." What struck me was the realization about the people, not the animals. The only people who thought that had never been around animals. The rest of us know with certainty they aren't dumb.
I thought back to some of the personalities we had in horses when we were growing up. A perfect example was Big Red. He was a quarter horse we all showed at horse shows. The thing that made him stand out was his behavior if we didn't get back to Grandpa and Grandma's place until after dark. Typically he would be left out in the corral next to the barn. If we were late getting home, he unlatched the gate to the upper paddock and then to make sure we knew, he turned on the yard light at the top of the hill. If we drove in and the yard light was on, we knew Red had decided we were late and needed light to get home.
Then there was Tillie. Tillie was part of my grandfather's chariot team. Yes, I said chariot. The full team was Millie and Tillie and Art. Just for clarification, Art was my Grandfather. Anyway, Millie had a quiet temperament and would do about anything you asked of her. Tillie, on the other hand, although not mean at all, had no intention of ever being fully controlled. This was pointed out the day one of my cousins decided it was time to ride her. Although a good horseman, maybe better called a cowboy, he had no chance of making this happen. He got bucked off a bunch of times. Even after he thought Tillie was getting used to being ridden, she waited for her moment and then bucked him off again. He finally gave up.
The other thing I have been hearing over and over again lately is how helpful animals are with people with a myriad of behavioral issues. I can not even begin to think of all of the newspaper articles in the last couple of years about animals helping humans. A lot of this seems to be around veterans coming home and working to move back into society here. It seems like time and again , the pivotal moment for people getting better involves an animal. Colleges and universities allow therapy animals. I think back to some of the students I watched fail at Drake and wonder if they would have done better and had a higher chance of success if they'd been allowed to have a pet.
So, tonight when I get home from the gym, and there is a small grey toy poodle sitting in the middle of the living room looking at me, I will know without question it is time for a treat. It's one of the things she trained me to accomplish in the time she has been in the house. Dumb animals ... right!
