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I have never attempted a book review before but go and buy the 4 star worthy book Angels on a Leash by David Frei. Then make a cup of coffee, tea or hot chocolate and get a big box of tissues and skip some of the crazy holiday shopping and curl up on the couch with your furry buddy. This book is what the season is suppose to be about. You may have heard about David Frei as he is known for being the voice of The Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show that takes place in Madison Square Garden every year. He founded the “Angel on a Leash” organization where he trains and brings therapy dogs to the Ronald McDonald House in NYC as well as the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, the New York Presbyterian Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital as well as other locations. Because of the success of the “Angel on a Leash” program, other facilities have become “angel partners,” reaching into many other states. There are now therapy dogs going to extended care, correctional and hospice care facilities. Mr. Frei’s many stories of the patients who have benefited from the visits of these dogs is truly heartwarming. I could only read a few pages at a time because I would have to stop and wipe my eyes from tears. The pure joy that these dogs, especially, give to children that have cancer...what they and their parents go through for the treatments...but to be able to hug and pet a dog, something that we take for granted...brings a smile on the face of a child who hasn’t smiled for weeks at a time. Children that are in for physical therapy get very motivated to walk if they can also hold the leash! Mr. Frei works closely with the staffs at these institutions to find out who needs and is able to visit with a therapy dog. Just petting a dog can make your blood pressure and stress level go down. When a dog walks into a hospital room, the patient is, even if it’s only for a brief time, distracted from their physical pain. If permitted, the dog will sometimes be allowed to jump right up onto the bed to be given a “proper hug.” Many times the dog curls up on the bed with the child or adult. Mr. Frei has a wonderful collection of photos of his dogs with the patients. Mr. Frei has brought his own dogs, Brittany Spaniels, Teigh and Belle as well as former Westminster Kennel winners, like “Uno” the beagle who won in 2008, who now work as therapy dogs. If you are wondering if your dog would make a good therapy dog, remember that you need to be trained too. The best handlers learn to guide and not push their dog. You must protect the safety and health of your dog. Do some research on your own but one suggestion is the website http://www.petpartners.org/. To all the earth bound angels out there and the animal angels too, thank you for the gift of your time and unconditional love! And when you want to thank your own pet for all that they do for you, please check out our website at www.buydoggybeds.com and see all that we have in dog beds, doggy bed sofas, along with our plush crate pads too. (Cat lovers are always welcome too!) Let a sleeping dog or cat lie...in comfort!
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