Welcome to another edition of Big Barker's interview series, Sit, Stay, Speak, where we get to know our favorite internet friends and their dogs! This week we had the honor of interviewing Cathy, Harley, and Jaxson! Read more about her and her adorable Golden Doodles below!
1. Tell us about your dogs: Harley is 13.5 years old and Jaxson is 7.5 years old. They are both Goldendoodles (F1 – first generation) but with different breeders.
2. How did they join your family? Harley was born in a puppy mill – came to me at 9 weeks old and was very sick. The four months it took to get his strength back and rid his tiny body from parasites really intensified our bond. He is what I call my “heart dog.” Jaxson joined my family when he was 9 weeks old from a Breeder.
3. How would you describe Harley and Jaxson?
🐶 Harley is very intuitive and understands the human language. His superb communication skills through looks, glares, and antics makes it very easy to know what he wants. A master at telling time, Harley keeps me on schedule for his meals, snacks, and potty breaks.
🐶 Jaxson is my whirling dervish, and he has a very different personality from Harley. Jaxson goes non-stop all day until 9pm. At 9 o’clock he falls down and he’s snoring by 9:15. Jax is an active Doodle who loves the water and thinks that he’s part dolphin. He adores Harley and allows him to win the wrestling matches even though he outweighs him by more then 20 lbs.
4. What are their favorite activities? Harley is the only Doodle I know that doesn’t care for the beach much and will not jump in a pool. He has only chased a ball about four times in his life, and his version of fun is wrestling with Jaxson, hanging out with me, and riding in the car. Jaxson on the other hand is obsessed with balls, and really anything that moves!
5. What do Jaxson and Harley do as Therapy Dogs?
When Harley first started as a Therapy Dog, he was only two years old. Although Harley demonstrated great stillness with the elderly population, navigating around walkers, canes and wheelchairs when we were visiting my mother, I quickly found out he was also wonderful with pediatric patients before and after surgery. He would ride many gurneys into the pre-op units and remain with a child until he/she was sedated. We would then come back out and reassure the parents that their child was now fast asleep and wasn’t afraid. Harley is somewhat retired now after almost 11 years of therapy work, although he comes into work with me on occasion and I make sure he doesn’t stay too long.
Jaxson, is utilized more for therapeutic intervention. He partners with physicians and physical/occupational/speech therapists to help patients with health and recovery goals.
6. What is the most rewarding part of having a Therapy Dog? Watching your dog impact a total strangers life at one of the most frightening moments of their lives. Therapy dogs not only relieve stress and anxiety, but they also combat depression, lower blood pressure and eradicate loneliness. They take a void and fill it with unconditional love and empathy in a way that no human can. I have had to learn how to understand and interpret their body language as my family pet AND as a Therapy Dog. They are entrusting their safety, normalcy and care with me at all times. We are truly connected in an extremely deep way. 🥰
7. What's your favorite thing to do with your dogs in your free time? I love to watch them relax together, play, and have fun as family pets do. Living in Charleston SC affords my husband (aka Doodle Dad) and I the ability to take them everywhere we go. So our weekends are pretty much the four of us just hanging out together.
8. Do your dogs have a secret talent? I get asked that question all the time, and my corny canned response is “making people smile.” After the pandemic subsided and the Therapy Dogs were allowed back into the hospital, the nurses would often cry when they saw us walking down the hall. They thought the teams weren’t coming back and they rely on the dogs themselves for emotional support. One nurse sat down in a chair to catch her composure and Jax leaped up, placed his front paws on her shoulders and tucked his head in her neck. We now coin that with the command “give her/him a hug” and he nails it every time! 🤗
9. How did you hear about Big Barker? I heard about these amazing beds from social media and a few friends who have purchased them. Between Harley’s aging limbs and Jaxson working more hours with me, I thought the 28 day test would be a really great blog series to write about!
10. What are some things you think it's important that every big dog owner should know? Start early in their life (like Jaxson at seven years old) making sure they are receiving the proper supplements for their hips and joints and that they are sleeping in the proper beds!
A big thank you to Cathy & her pups for being such great supporters of Big Barker! 🐾 Be sure to keep up with them on their website, Facebook, YouTube and Instagram for lots of fun dog content!
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