Chris and Kirby
Chris is a retired schoolteacher. She taught in the public education system for 31 years. In 1985, she was diagnosed with the auto-immune disease, Scleroderma. The disease results in joint problems and has affected Chris’ hands. As a result, Chris finds it difficult to walk and has trouble picking things up that may have fallen to the floor.
Chris had considered getting a dog to be a companion but her sister suggested she find a dog that could be both a companion and provide assistance. One of Chris’ friends in a Scleroderma support group recommended she contact Summit Assistance Dogs. Within a few months, Chris and a friend were packing their bags and visiting Summit in Anacortes on a mini vacation to learn more about the organization and to meet some of the dogs.
Kirby and her sister had both been donated to Summit. Although their mother is a yellow Labrador, Kirby, her sister and their 5 siblings all have black fur. It didn’t take long to identify their father as the black dog lying nonchalantly on the neighbor’s lawn! Chris felt an immediate bond with Kirby and could barely contain her excitement waiting until Summit contacted her to confirm that she’d been matched with Kirby.
Chris can’t now imagine life without Kirby. It’s a bonus that Kirby can retrieve objects that Chris may have dropped on the floor or open doors for her but the benefits go beyond this. Chris has renewed confidence having Kirby by her side and perhaps most importantly, Kirby keeps Chris happy. Chris jokes that Kirby was not named principally after a mountain like the other Summit dogs but after the brand of vacuum cleaner; even though she’s trained to pick things up, Kirby who’s very food motivated, has often picked an object up before Chris has time to ask her to do it. Kirby knows that, in dog rules, each good deed deserves a cookie.
|
