Hair stylist Joy Davies is happiest when she can work with her dog, Zachery, a 5-year-old Papillon, by her side at Drama Hair Studio in West Reading.
His black doggie bed adorned with a cheetah lining is a few steps away from her styling station, and a photo of the pair is framed in front of her mirror. When he’s not curled up on a client’s lap, he often scampers behind Davies, acting like her mini bodyguard as she heads to the washing bowls or hair dryers.
“I feel at ease when he’s here,” says Davies, who lives in Temple. “He just saved my life in so many ways. He helped me cope with the loss of Julianna [her first Papillon] and the loss of my dad six months later. He fills a void in my life. I always say, ‘You don’t know love unless you know the love of an animal.’”
Whether you have a pet turtle or cat, love to watch Animal Planet, or simply find it relaxing to stroll through the zoo, the bond between humans and animals is indescribable.
Maybe that’s because animals offer so much more than stomping hoofs, wagging tails and floppy ears. They provide guidance for the blind, comfort to the elderly, encouragement for children with special needs. And, for many people like Davies, a fun BFF that showers you with unconditional love and never passes judgment.
“[Animals] give people a reason to get up in the morning,” explains Marcy Tocker, who created the Animal Rescue League’s Grey Muzzle Program, which places senior dogs in foster homes. “They love you all the time, no matter what. In their eyes, you’re the best person in the whole entire world."
STRESS RELIEVER
Tocker, a Shillington resident, recalls how her pet hamsters helped her feel comfortable in a new environment when she first moved to the Berks County area as a child. “They were my friends,” she says. “The difference that animals have made in my life, I have to share that with other people. It’s too amazing.”
She now has three dogs, plus a foster dog, a cat and a horse. “They help me with stress,” says Tocker, who works three jobs and is studying for her master’s degree in counseling psychology. She would like to eventually own a practice that specializes in animal-assisted psychotherapy. “They’re happy to see me. They’re funny, and they make me laugh.”
GIDDY UP
Tiny miracles happen every time a child with special needs meets a therapy horse at Shady Hollow Assisted Riding in Birdsboro. “I think it’s magical. I don’t think you can define it,” says Michele Cooper, program director. “It’s something only the kids and horses know.”
When 8-year-old Ethan Kalejta, who has autism, first came to Shady Hollow, the Pottstown boy was slightly shy. Careful not to get too close to the horses, he stood far away, says his instructor, Melissa O’Brien of Blandon. When he finally did get on a horse, he repeatedly attempted to slide off.
With each hands-on lesson, Ethan’s uneasiness has faded, and he no longer needs cajoling to saddle up, O’Brien says. He’s excited and focused during lessons, she adds, and his steady development means he’s able to learn new skills like steering and trotting. “To see his growth from the beginning, I feel very proud of him,” she says.
Shady Hollow’s assisted riding program includes 30-minute lessons (offered April through October) that include learning commands, riding trails and completing obstacle courses, among other activities. As a more intensive option, the organization offers hippotherapy – customized therapeutic horseback riding, working one-on-one with a trained therapist.
“You see improvement very quickly,” says Cooper, adding that Shady Hollow also has able-body lessons. “One of the greatest things I’ve seen is when kids who are nonverbal go into the barn, and after a while, they’re saying the horse’s name or trying to say it.”
EASING THE PAIN
For Lori Prange of Bowers, the best medicine she can take to ease her chronic pain is a dose of love from her 6-year-old chocolate toy poodle, Sophie.
Every day, Prange suffers from lower back pain, the result of a car accident several years ago, and from fibromyalgia, which affects one of her cranial nerves. “It’s like having an ice cream headache times 50 on the left side of my face,” she says. “Some days, I can’t get out of bed.”
In those moments, Sophie is able to soothe Prange, she says. “When I cry, she licks the tears off my face. She gets my mind off of the pain. She makes me laugh, which creates endorphins. She’ll snuggle up with me and that just helps so much.”
Having Sophie nearby also keeps Prange relaxed during tense situations, including having dental work completed or taking long drives. “She is amazing,” says Prange, who also has another dog, Sadie, and four cats. “She makes me smile.”
COMFORTING A LOSS
Elizabeth ‘Betty’ Vella, 86, is nursing a different type of pain – the loss of her husband of 65 years, Harry, who died in February 2011. Wanting a companion, she turned to the ARL’s Grey Muzzle Program for a pet and is now fostering a gentle Shih Tzu named Scooter.
Caring for Scooter has been a much-needed blessing for Vella, who lives in Pittsfield, Mass., but often visits her daughter and son-in-law, Karen and Alan Marsdale, in Oley Township. Vella says she most enjoys bringing Scooter to Sunday morning church service, where they share a pew.
“It doesn’t matter where I go; he’s right there. He follows you around like he’s your shadow,” she says. “I just don’t know what I would do without him. He gives me so much comfort and love."
LITERARY HOUNDS
In the READ program, dogs become literary sidekicks. Elementary school children, particularly those behind in their reading levels or uncomfortable reading aloud, will practice by grabbing a book and nestling with a READ dog.
“Dogs are incredible listeners, and by nature they love to be talked to. They nod their heads. They put their paw on the book, and sometimes they try to help turn the page. To children, it looks magical and encourages them to keep on reading,” says Beth Ann Siteman, whose three therapy dogs participate in the READ program at Holy Guardian Angels in Laureldale, where her children are enrolled.
Teachers and parents often comment about the positive impact the program has on youngsters, who are able to improve their skills, partly due to the encouragement the READ dogs continually provide, Siteman says.
“It can be a fun, relaxing, non-judgmental time for kids,” says Siteman, a Richmond Township resident. “It’s their chance to read aloud without being embarrassed or hear snickering. The dogs are sort of like little mascots. For many kids, it’s just a wonderful motivator.”
BFFs
Back at Drama Hair Studio, Davies beams like a proud mama as she shows off Zachery’s Christmas photo to her client Chelsea Carl of Robesonia, who is holding the dog. She points out his perfect pose and stylish tie, and a round of “awws” ring out.
Ever watchful, Zachery peeks over the salon chair to make sure Davies hasn’t strayed too far from her station. “He has his own way of letting me know that it’s okay, that it will all work out,” Davies says. “You’re never alone. He’s always there. I love that.”
BY KRISTIN BOYD | PHOTOS BY CATARA CARRELL PHOTOGRAPHY
