佚名/Anonymous
For Holly and me, it started with a stray kitten. Abandoned in the harsh winter weather, she huddled in a ball on the front steps of our building, an elementary school for emotionally disturbed children where I provided therapy three days a week.
That morning, I kept the kitten in my offce while the principal fgured out where to take it.
It started as the children soberly traipsed into my offce that day for their therapy. When they spotted the kitten, their faces suddenly brightened. Their reticence and tenseness seemed to melt away as they petted the stray, and our sessions were relaxed and open. The kitten‘s effect was astounding and, by the end of the day, I was hatching a plan. My dog, Holly, was a gentle, gregarious, well-behaved seven-year-old of mixed parentage. Couldn’t she have the same relaxing effect on the children I counseled?Enthused, I began paperworkrequesting permission to bring Holly to school with me, providing documentation of the benefts of companion animals.
The project was approved, but my supervisor clearly let me know that Holly and I were on trial. The responsibility for any problems with the“dog experiment”would land squarely on my shoulders.
Optimistic nonetheless, I smiled at the signs pasted on my offce door as I unlocked it on Hollys frst morning with me at school.“Holly is happy to be here，”the children had carefully stenciled. Already the children were responding positively to the idea of a dog counselor. Holly sniffed out my offce, and we settled in for a day of work.
A small boy entered, and he and Holly stared at each other warily.“Does that dog bite?”
“No，”I assured him.“Why dont you give her a treat?”I handed him a bag of multicolored doggie treats.“Pick any color you like，”I said. The boy chose a red treat and tentatively held it out to Holly. She neatly and gently took the treat, swallowed it quickly and licked the boy‘s hand. The boy smiled. Holly’s critical debut had been a success.