Wally
Please Note: The dog in the accompanying photograph is the subject of the story, but the child or teenager pictured is probably not the patient in the story.Wally gets stopped on the street every day. “What kind of dog is that?” someone always asks. I’m not 100% sure, but my vet says he’s an American Bulldog. “Your dog is so beautiful,” another will say. I respond “thank you”, but feel awkward since I had nothing to do with that --- unlike a parent who at least contributes DNA to his child. With all the joy and smiles my dog was eliciting on the streets of Los Angeles, it occurred to me that we could be useful in other ways. Thus began our adventures with Love On 4 Paws.
One day, Wally and I entered the hospital room of a 12-year-old girl who was moments away from enduring a series of very painful tests and procedures. A single look at Wally and for some precious minutes, this girl wasn’t thinking of the future. I literally saw her anticipatory worries disappear as her hands reached out to Wally’s eager face. It was humbling.
And while our visits to Children’s Hospital have always been rewarding, I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention two other places we frequent. At the Frances Blend school, Wally is greeted by children who cannot see. It always amazes me to watch these kids experience him through their senses of touch and smell; their faces light up when Wally surprises them with kisses. Angela, in particular, is crazy about Wally, and she’s got the pictures to prove it. And then, high in the hills of Bel Air, Wally and I have made trips to the Sisters of St. Joseph, a home for retired nuns. Visits there are eagerly anticipated, and in a single community room, these charming women lavish large amounts of praise on my dog. Wally always seems to inspire happy memories of days gone by and dogs once loved.
And through it all, through every visit, an immutable truth emerges: simply that a dog is the great equalizer. To a dog, no one is sick, no one is blind, and no one is old. For Wally and all the dogs in LO4P, each person visited is just someone new to be loved by, and someone new to love.
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