Jane Miller - Healing Companions: Ordinary Dogs and Their Extraordinary Power to Transform Lives

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Table of Contents

Praise for Healing Companions

This book should be required reading for everybody who
is considering getting a psychiatric service dog or is working
on training them. I really liked its emphasis on choosing the
right dog to fit the needs of each persons personality and
life. The chapter on assuring that the dog does not become
stressed and is treated in an ethical manner is especially helpful.
The use of psychiatric service dogs is relatively new compared
to other types of service dogs such as guide dogs for
the blind, rescue dogs or dogs to help people who use wheel
chairs. The combination of both the right dog coupled with
positive training methods can further strengthen the human
animal bond and help the field of psychiatric service dogs to
develop.

Temple Grandin, author of Animals in Translation
and Animals Make us Human

Animals are more complete than people. They are wonderful
teachers, therapists and role models for us all. Read
Healing Companions and learn about their ability to guide
and heal us all.

Bernie Siegel, MD, author of Smudge Bunny

Those of us who have seen the miracles that Assistance
Dogs perform are still often amazed when we see many of
the new tasks that they perform. Assistance dogs pull people
in wheel chairs, pick up dropped objects, turn on/off light
switches, assist in dressing and undressing and open doors,
but they also enhance the socio/emotional life of the handler
Assistance dogs make it possible for a young disabled
person to have a friend who is always there, to bridge the
social gap when someone ignores or looks the other way.
We all know about these benefits, but we are just beginning
to learn how highly skilled and loyal assistance dogs serve
in other significant ways; for example the psycho-emotional
value of an assistance is just beginning to be recognized. In
many ways it is just starting, dogs are just beginning to serve,
stay tuned.

Corey Hudson, Chief Executive Officer, Canine
Companions for Independence

Dedication

This book is dedicated to Umaya. She was the catalyst and inspiration in discovering my lifes work and passion. This book is a tribute to Umaya and all the dogs that have changed our lives with unconditional love and commitment. Thanks, Umaya, for leading the way.

A portion of the proceeds from this book will be donated to the Umaya Fund, which was established to help cover the costs of healthcare for assistance dogs for those without financial resources at Lakewood Animal Hospital in Lakewood, Ohio. Donations to the Umaya fund may be sent to:

Lakewood Animal Hospital

ATTN: The Umaya Fund 14587 Madison Ave.

Lakewood, Ohio 44107

Umaya, who started the healing journey, shares a peaceful moment with Jane in their private oasis. This book is dedicated to Umaya; her stoicism, wisdom, and gentle loving spirit touched so many lives that can live on through her legacy in this book.

Acknowledgments

This book would not exist if Umaya and I had not been blessed by the extraordinary healthcare professionals that saved both of our lives. We are both indebted to the loving, knowledgeable, caring support we received from Robert Barney, DVM, Neal Sivula, DVM, Allen Schoen, DVM, MS, and Victor Fazio, MD (The Cleveland Clinic Foundation). They not only provided exceptional care, but assisted Umaya and me in exploring complementary modalities of healing to maximize quality of life. I am grateful to Dr. Fazio for believing in my resilience and stoicism, and providing me with the opportunity to learn to enjoy each and every moment.

This book has been a dream of mine for years. It has been a long journey filled with sadness and joy, but most of all an accomplishment filled with the love, support, and generous caring of so many. I owe this book to all of the contributors who shared their personal stories so freely. I am also grateful to Gloria Gilbert Stoga, President of Puppies Behind Bars, for her support, feedback, and commitment to improving the lives of our wounded warriors with PTSD. At NEADS, Sheila OBrien, former CEO, and John Moon, Chief Communications Officer, were always available to provide suggestions, feedback, and resources. Micky Niego provided the wisdom of her years of working in the field as well as knowledge, insights, and tremendous support throughout this process.

I am indebted to Alan Beck (Purdue University, School of Veterinary Medicine, Director, Center of The Human Animal Bond), Toni Eames (IAADP Board member and Treasurer), and Ed Eames (IAADP Board member and President), Corey Hudson, (Chief Executive Officer, Canine Companions for Independence), and Dr. Stephen Porges, PhD (Univ. Of Illinois, Director Brain-Body Center) for discussing their research and providing their knowledge in this field to enhance the accuracy of the information presented in this book.

I would like to acknowledge as well Joan Froling, IAADP, Chairperson and Editor of Partners Forum for her dedication, commitment, generosity, and meticulous reading of the manuscript. She shared her experience, wisdom, and expertise in the field of assistance dogs, and went over and above in providing feedback and input. Joan is a renowned authority in the assistance dog field, and I am honored that she agreed to write the Foreword and provided the extremely useful task lists included in the appendix of the book.

Thanks to Mary Basu, photographer extraordinaire (see www.furinfocus.com) for formatting the photos and capturing the beautiful bonds between a contributor and her PSDs and the authors headshot with her two co-therapists. With deepest gratitude to Tim Paxton at The Copyshop, Oberlin, Ohio, for his help in formatting the manuscript.

I am deeply appreciative of the endorsements provided by Bonnie Bergin, Temple Grandin, Corey Hudson, Belleruth Naparstek, Allen Schoen, and Bernie Siegel.

They say it takes a village, and I discovered that as I wrote this book the support of friends, family, and individuals I barely knew exceeded my expectations. Bob Miller, my brother, and Jennifer Josephy, my stepmother, graciously provided me with professional guidance about publishing throughout this process. My mother instilled in me from a young age the importance and value of standing up for what you believe in. She modeled for me the value of activism and power of education, both of which contributed to my motivation for writing this book. I would also like to acknowledge my dear friend of more than 20 years, Kerry Langan. A fellow author and editor of a number of anthologies, Kerry generously devoted her time to reading and rereading every chapter even while writing her own book.

Words cant adequately express the depths of gratitude to my agent, Deirdre Mullane, who believed in this book and my deep commitment to educate others about the healing power of dogs from the first day we spoke. She worked day and night with me on this book, always available and willing to provide her wisdom, feedback, and knowledge without hesitation. All of the staff at New Page Books have been steadfastly supportive and wonderful to work with.

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