Golden retriever does the laundry
Trained dog helps woman with crippling disease
Some dog owners wouldn’t dream of their canines doing household chores — but J.R. the golden retriever can do the washing. The mobility dog has completely changed owner Gay Henderson’s life.
In 2007, Henderson was diagnosed with myotonic dystrophy, a disease that slowly takes away the strength in your muscles.
Since then, her muscles have become increasingly weak — almost to the point where they are nonexistent.
J.R., like other mobility dogs, was specially trained for several months by prisoners. Each dog is trained to cater for different needs. Some learn how to turn lights on and off and open and close doors.
J.R.’s training including helping to load and empty the washing machine. On Henderson’s command, he grabs the items in bunches with his mouth and puts them into the machine.
He even puts his head in the machine to search for runaway socks.
J.R. also helps Henderson to stand and get out of bed, by tensing his legs.
If she has a fall, J.R. barks until help arrives.
“I needed a bracing dog, one that I could use to help me stand up if I had fallen over among other things,” she said.
When she goes for a walk, Henderson mounts a brace on J.R.’s back which she holds on to for balance.
Henderson joked that nowadays J.R. takes her for walks, instead of the other way around.
But J.R. is an expensive dog — each mobility dog incurs costs of around $50,000.
The Mobility Assistance Dogs Trust raises money to give the animals to people who need them.
“It’s not a loan — it is a permanent placement,” Mobility Dogs general manager Jody Wilson explained.
“The dogs are placed with their partner for the lifetime of the partnership.
“We receive no government funding and are totally reliant on the philanthropic communities of New Zealand. Quite simply, without funding we are not able to place more dogs in the community.”
It took about a year of processing for Henderson to acquire J.R. and after a couple of home checks to see if living conditions were suitable, J.R. arrived to change her life.
“When I was diagnosed, my life changed overnight. I was getting older very quickly and I was very conscious of what people thought.”
J.R. has given Henderson her freedom again and became something of a celebrity at the same time.
“People look at the dog and I become insignificant, people no longer think, ‘ Look at that funny woman walking,’ but focus on the dog and it’s great. He was a perfect fit for my life.”