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Jon Dehler and his mobility dog Raki getting their dose of mountain medicine up on Mt Hutt skifield. PHOTO SUSAN SANDYS 220620-SS-100
Skiing all in a day’s work for Raki By Susan Sandys
susan.s@theguardian.co.nz
INSIDE
Getting pats from skiers on Mt Hutt is all in a hard day’s work for Raki the Australian shepherd cross. The blue-eyed canine is a mobility dog for his Methven owner Jon Dehler, and as such finds himself the centre of attention every time the pair get out on the slopes. Dehler is an incomplete paraplegic after complications returned from a spinal cord injury he suffered in a dirt bike accident in 1999. He has some walking ability, and while he cannot use the Mt Hutt chair-
lifts, he finds trudging up slopes in ski boots, which offer reinforcement and support, and then skiing down again, is good for building strength in his legs. Dehler said as soon as he got Raki as a puppy, he found he was a great help in his summer job of building, and would retrieve tools for him. Then as he started to go to Mt Hutt, Raki did not mind waiting in the carpark for his owner to return from skiing, as long as he got a run in the snow at the end of the day. “If he gets out in the snow for a play he loves it, then he’s happy.” Being in the snow was already an
addiction for his owner, who has been working in ski shops ever since he left school, and it soon became an addiction for Raki as well. Thanks to Mt Hutt, Dehler was able to take Raki skiing with him, and Raki carries items Dehler needs in a pack, and helps retrieve ski gear. Dehler calls Mt Hutt his “daily dose of mountain medicine”, and he and Raki visit a few times each week, getting in two to three hours each time. “He’s quite a social dog, and loves getting pats from people, it’s nice to have that interaction with people too,” Dehler said.
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