Comfort Canines For Christ
"It's Not About The Dogs"
Canine Ambassador
Goose
“Silly GOOSE” is a 65 pound white Standard Poodle rescued at an early age by John and Cindy. They researched breeds that possessed the ideal characteristics for therapy dog environments. The Standard Poodle met every one of those to include, high intelligence, eagerness to learn, ease of training, engaging personality, large breed, no shedding, no drooling, hypo-allergenic, high intuition, and a sense of humor. After that, they searched for the “SPoo” with the ideal temperament and Goose was the one.
Born on 6 Sep 2008, Goose, at over 15 years 7 months, is still an active geriatric therapy dog. He now has over 1,310 visits during his long and interesting career. Concerning therapy dog training, Goose completed all obedience training through advanced, completed therapy dog training, and completed the requirements for the American Kennel Club Canine Good Citizen course. In his younger days, Goose competed in rally obedience and trained up to the intermediate levels in a variety of canine sports just for fun. John and Cindy adapted these sports into therapy dog activities. Even as a geriatric dog, Goose still enjoys formal and informal classes, the most recent being PetSmart’s Brain Games class when he was nearly 13. After that, Goose learned how to paint with his friends and to play old school schoolyard games with them. Goose has mastered all 13 of the weekly activity themes John and Cindy do with him and their friends during group visits. Currently, his favorite activity themes are shell games, puzzles, and scenting, all which showcase his sense of smell. He also loves being a reading
support dog. John and Cindy strongly believe that training is for life. It strengthens the human-canine bond, provides mental stimulation for the dog, and provides different exercise challenges.
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Weekly Activity Themes
1. Obedience 5. Puzzles 9. Old School Schoolyard Games
2. Rally 6. Scenting 10. Cavaletti (Cones & Noodles)
3. Tricks 7. Hula Hoops 11. Brain Games
4. Shell Games 8. Tunnels 12. Painting with the Pups
Goose’s transition from his senior to his geriatric years has been an amazing blessing and a true inspiration for John and Cindy, and especially for friends in long term healthcare facilities. Team Goose’s calling is to those having intellectual and developmental disabilities; and those residing in memory care, 24/7 skilled nursing care, and rehabilitative care facilities. In 2016, John, Cindy, Goose, and Gandy were honored by the Florida Health Care Association as its Group Volunteer of the Year.
Goose is known as a mentor to dogs wishing to become therapy dogs and to new therapy dogs. He has a presence that evokes attention from other dogs. Dogs in training and other therapy dogs view Goose with respect as he demonstrates various tasks and behaviors. He has been so valuable in helping prospective teams and new teams learn, including the handlers.
Goose is one of those rare therapy dogs that simply does not want to retire. He lives to see “his” people. With that said, John and Cindy carefully manage his number of visits, his conduct of activities, and his length of visits to ensure successful therapy dog encounters for all.