Angel on a Leash (8 page)

Eventually, Karen said, “Well, I suppose I should let you get to some other patients.”

“You aren't holding us against our will,” I said, laughing. She smiled, too. What a difference from when we had walked into the room. I lifted Teigh from her bed and set him on the floor. He pushed his face back to Karen on the bed, and she gave him one last two-handed pet and a big smile.

“Thanks so much. I can't tell you how much this did for me,” she said, probably more to Teigh than to me. This was a powerful visit, as powerful as any I had ever done.

“We visit here once a week,” I told her as we gathered up to leave, giving my usual close for this unusual visit. “Teigh and I loved meeting you and our time together, but I hope that we never see you here again. Go home, be well, Godspeed.”

Teigh seemed reluctant to leave the room. We gave Karen one last glance and smile and stepped out of the room.

Tara was waiting for Teigh and me at the nurses' station. “How'd it go?”

“I am exhausted,” I told her. “When we walked in the door, she was crying and in pain. When we walked out, she was still crying and in pain, but she was smiling. And so was I. Teigh loved her; he was wonderful. I'm going to call that a great visit for all of us.”

“That's a nice start,” Tara said. “Let's see who's next on the list.”

“Let me catch my breath a bit,” I said. “This was very intense. I'll go anywhere and do anything for Karen and others like her; that's why we do this. But as rewarding as it is, Teigh and I can't do more than a couple of visits that intense in one night, or we'll burn out very quickly.”

Teigh was lying on the floor, accepting attention and pets from a couple of the nurses.

“I thought she would be a special challenge,” Tara said. “That's why we started you with her.”

Welcome to Sloan-Kettering. And Sloan-Kettering, welcome to the world of therapy dogs.

One of the rules for therapy dog work is that you visit in the moment, and you don't take it home with you. That means that you have no further contact with your patients beyond the hospital, outside your visit(s).

I really was curious to find out what happened to Karen. I wanted some assurance that she had made it home and that she went on with her life after her major surgery, but as therapy dog volunteers, we just have to have faith that good things happen, that the surgeries or the treatments were successful, and that the patients go home to good lives.

That's what I did in Karen's case. It's what I hope for with everyone, before and after Karen, through the years. I say a little prayer for all of them. In Karen's case, maybe because she was our very first patient at MSK and because it was such a great visit, I really found myself wanting to know. But it wasn't supposed to happen.

So we were underway at the world-famous Sloan-Kettering, visiting once a week and doing things for people in need. After the initial six months of the pilot program, we expanded into other areas of the hospital.

And then…

In February 2009, I was part of a television show on CNBC called
American Originals: The Westminster Dog Show.
As spokesperson for the club and the “Voice of the Westminster Kennel Club,” I was on camera several times, talking about the club, our show, and our history, and about dogs in general. It aired on February 8, the night before our 2009 dog show began.

A week later, while I was going through my post-Westminster email, I came across this:

From: Karen
Sent: Monday, February 16, 2009 12:41 PM
To: David
Subject: Karen—Patient of Sloan-Kettering—Thank you.

David,

I am writing to you, as I have finally learned of your name through a CNBC television program that aired Feb. 8 about the Westminster Dog Show.

I am a patient of Sloan-Kettering in NY, and I was the first patient to have a pet at my side for the introduction of your pet-patient program. You brought a sweet doggie to me on that day in October of 2007 who sat by my side…and I just cried…still trying to deal with my cancer surgery and pain. I could not remember your name but always remembered your face…today I saw you on TV and got your name.

Thank you for taking time to volunteer. The time that you and your doggie spent by my side is a memory that will last for me a lifetime.

Bless you for making my situation just a bit more tolerable.

Karen

Sometimes on my visits, the topic of Westminster comes up. Sometimes, the canvasser will have told patients about what I do in my “other” life, and they will want to talk about the show or their own dogs. Or perhaps someone has watched Westminster or the National Dog Show and seen me on the telecast. I don't believe that was the case with my visit with Karen. It never came up, I never mentioned it; she just came across me on the CNBC show and figured out how to reach me, a year and a half after we had met at the hospital. I am so glad that she did. To have her thank me was nice, but it was more important to me just to hear that she was all right and living her life. I wrote her back:

Karen: Wow. You were the very first patient that Teigh and I visited at MSK after spending most of our previous time as volunteers at the Ronald McDonald House working with kids.

Our visit with you was very emotional. I remember you crying and being in physical pain, and my guess was that you were within 24 hours of having had your surgery. I wanted to do more, but it was obvious that Teigh was taking care of things. At the end of our visit, I saw that you were still crying and still in pain, but you were smiling. Me, too (the crying and the smiling part, plus a little pain in my heart for you).

I have always wondered what happened to you, but I am not allowed to do that. But I did wonder anyway. It means so much to hear from you.

I am so honored and flattered that you took the time to find me and to write. God bless you.
Win the battle; whatever we can do to help, let me know. You're in our hearts and prayers.

Best,

David

That says it all. I was indeed honored and flattered to hear from her. We get lots of thank-yous and wonderful praise when we are visiting, but most of the time that's the end of it. To hear such kind words later lets us know that we really have helped someone.

David,

What a nice surprise and delight getting your email early this morning before work.

I go back to Sloan for my first CAT scan since the operation Friday March 13th. I am hoping for a good outcome. After the scan I will have a break in the day and I would love for another visit from you and Teigh—if you can…?

Please let me know if a visit of this type (not inpatient) will work for you and Teigh on this day. Perhaps you could meet me and my mother at the MSK Rockefeller Outpatient Pavilion on 53rd Street. Let me know what works for you.

I send frequent prayers thanking Teigh for the gift of love and compassion—it is overwhelming.

All smiles and a very heartfelt thank you,

Karen

I was thinking of a great line from Ghostbusters when Bill Murray's character, Dr. Venkman, wanted to break a rule that he had just quoted. “Actually, it's more of a guideline than a rule,” he shrugged.

Karen: That works for us. I can bring Teigh, he is now 12 ½ and getting blinder every day, God love him. He doesn't visit much anymore, but I know he will want to see you again.

Best,

David

So, I met Karen, her mother, and her friends. She brought a bag of cookies for Teigh and a bag of cookies for me. Pictures and tears and hugs all around. Wow.

Hi David,

I wanted to send a note of thanks to you and Teigh—my angel on a leash. It really was my pleasure in having the chance to meet you under very different circumstances. I am all smiles when I have the opportunity to tell my story, and even get to say how we are invited as your guests to the Westminster—what an honor, and so exciting.

I wanted to share with you the picture from that day, and I threw in two more pictures…I don't have pups, but two wonderful kitties (18+ and 22+ lbs) named Mendel and Watson. I can only hope their pictures will bring a smile to you, as they do for me every day.

Many, many thanks for your kindness and generosity of your time. I am so very happy knowing there really are wonderful people and their pets doing great things for others—just because.

With kindness and health to you and Teigh,

Warm wishes,

Karen

My response:

Karen: Great to hear from you. I am sorry that I have not already written you to tell you what a wonderful moment it was for both Teigh and me to get to see you again. And we both enjoyed our cookies (I won't tell you whose were gone first).

Thanks for the photos. Your therapy kitties did make me smile, too—it's great what our animals bring to us each and every day.

Best,

David

Sadly, my next email to Karen was to tell her of Teigh's passing in January of 2010. She wrote back:

David,

I am heartbroken. My Teigh was there at a very difficult time in my life, and I only wish I could have returned the favor. What Teigh meant to me:

• Hope and comfort
  
• Love and smiles
  
• Warmth and kindness
  
• Caring and understanding
  
• Health and wellness
  

I have a loving memory of Teigh at my bedside while I was in great pain and so scared. Teigh helped me—a memory and feeling only the two of us will share, and for that I am beyond grateful.

Teigh will always be my forever companion.

I will miss you Teigh, and thank you for such a special memory. David, I am sorry for the loss of your family member. My heart goes out to you.

Karen

Then I got this email right after Westminster 2011:

David,

Wonderful Westminster!!

I think of you often—in fact, your name, Teigh's name, your organization, and our story have become a part of who I am. It is comforting to know that someone who I had never met came to my bedside with a wonderful pet Angel who for no other reason was there for me. It is amazing! They say “everything happens for a reason”… it is not hard to believe in that saying anymore. Teigh and the reason … the reason to believe … maybe I will have a real second chance at life … another chapter of sorts. I keep my eye on the goal—5 yrs or more.

Stay well and keep doing what you are doing … you too are an Angel.

Sincerely,

Karen

“Keep doing what you are doing.”

This is why I do what I do.

Angels for Everyone

A
ngel On A Leash was a big hit from the beginning. It began modestly enough—as a charitable activity for the Westminster Kennel Club at the NewYork-Presbyterian Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital. We were able to share all of it—the patients, the dogs, the handlers, the medical professionals, and the administrators—with the Westminster audience live at the Garden and also live on television, starting in 2005.

The response was huge. We got rousing ovations at the Garden and hundreds of phone calls and emails after the show. People wanted to be part of it; they wanted to get trained, registered, and visiting with their dogs, doing something for people in need in their communities. And the media loved Angel On A Leash, too, doing follow-up stories after the show. Angel On A Leash was truly helping us emphasize that the Westminster Dog Show is indeed a celebration of the dogs in our lives.

After Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital, Ronald McDonald House New York, and Providence Medical Center in Portland, Oregon, more facilities came to be Angel partners, including Hackensack University Medical Center, New Jersey; Children's Hospital of Wisconsin; New Milford Hospital, Connecticut; St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital, Memphis; Ronald McDonald House of Milwaukee; New Alternatives for Children, New York; Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York; and the Fisher House at Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center, Houston. Ronald McDonald House of Memphis (at St. Jude's); the Children's Hospital at Montefiore, the Bronx, New York; Mid South Therapy Dogs, Memphis; Reading Education Assistance Dogs (R.E.A.D.), Salt Lake City; and the Animal Medical Center, New York, also joined us.