The Woofer
Credit union awards $1,000 to Therapaws
September 2018
Welcome new members
Delia Laing & Bella Jennifer Haft & Reggie Jolynn and Alexandra Montgomery & Mazy
One-time event opportunities available
Community Financial Credit Union presented a $1,000 check to Therapaws on Aug. 31 for its work throughout Washtenaw County. Therapaws member Tami Carlone, who volunteers with her dog Luna, nominated the organization. Credit union representatives presented the check to Therapaws board members Karen OConnor and Jared Wadley.
With September’s arrival, more opportunities become available for one-time events. Please consider participating when you get the emails involving SignUp Genius. Thank you for your time and consideration of these outreach and visit opportunities.
Therapaws joins “Bark” effort to fight cancer
INSIDE
Therapaws often attends dog-related events that address certain causes. One of the favorite events is the American Cancer Society Bark For Life, which was held at The Farm at St. Joe’s in Ypsilanti. The 5K/ 1 Mile Fun Run and Walk event for dogs and their owners raises money and awareness in efforts to fight against cancer. Participants had fun with the various activities and games, despite the continuous rain.
Up, up and away with Dreams and Wings, which allows children and their families to fly in airplanes. -- Page 2
Member spotlight: Kathy Davis and Sunny brighten others’ days with therapy visits. -- Page 2
Man’s best friend: A
study offers a deeper understanding of evolution for dogs and humans.
-- Page 3
Member Spotlight Up...
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and away Children’s spirits soar at Mott Hospital’s annual Dreams & Wings
Many families visited the Ann Arbor Airport to ride in airplanes during C.S. Mott Hospital’s annual Dreams & Wings. As part of the event, children met with several therapy dogs, including a few instances in which they reconnected with the same canines during their hospital stay.
Forecast is always Sunny when people meet this therapy dog How long have you done pet therapy? We started in July 2017. What prompted you to volunteer? My youngest Golden, Sunny, that I currently volunteer with, is an ex-service dog. She was in a training program where prisoners train service dogs. She was asked to leave the program when she was 18 months old because she was “too affectionate.” I was lucky enough to add her to my family at that point. I have never had such a sweet, well-behaved dog and she has the most attentive and tender hearted face and eyes. I thought she would be perfect for therapy work, and she is in fact a superstar at looking at and attending to people that she interacts with. And oh so affectionate! What facilities do you visit? We visit Mott PACU every week and 7 East Oncology twice a month, as well as any requested visits on antepartum or infusion. It’s a good fit for us to be at Mott. I have a doctoral degree in nursing and have been a nurse practitioner in Pediatrics for more than 40 years. Pediatrics is where my heart is. We also try to go to the Adult Medical Short Stay Unit in Old Mott every week, as time permits. What challenges have you encountered with pet therapy? Mostly related to where to park, but I was helped by a fellow volunteer who gave me some suggestions! Do you have a special moment that resonates with you? Our visit with Lily age 3 who was close to the end of her journey. Her mother requested Sunny come and snuggle near her and her mother took Lily’s hand and stroked Sunny’s head. She passed away soon after. Those moments break my heart, but also remind me of why I do this.
“She is in fact a superstar at looking at and attending to people that she interacts with.’’ --- Kathy Davis
In case you missed it
What Makes Dogs Man’s Best Friend? A comparison of dog and wolf DNA reveals interesting genetics behind domestication. The new study is a step toward a deeper understanding of evolution for dogs and humans alike. ANN ARBOR--From pugs to labradoodles to huskies, dogs are our faithful companions. They live with us, play with us and even sleep with us. But how did a once nocturnal, fearsome wolf-like animal evolve over tens of thousands of years to become beloved members of our family? And what can dogs tell us about human health? Through the power of genomics, scientists have been comparing dog and wolf DNA to try and identify the genes involved in domestication. Amanda Pendleton, Ph.D., a postdoctoral research fellow in the Michigan Medicine Department of Human Genetics, has been reviewing current domestication research and noticed something peculiar about the DNA of modern dogs: at some places it didn’t appear to match DNA from ancient dogs. Pendleton and her colleagues in assistant professor Jeffrey Kidd, Ph.D.’s laboratory are working to understand the dog genome to answer questions in genome biology, evolution and disease. Three-quarters of the world’s dogs are so-called village dogs, who roam, scavenge for food near human populations and are able to mate freely. In order to get a fuller picture of the genetic changes at play in dog evolution, the team looked at 43 village dogs from places such as India, Portugal and Vietnam. Armed with DNA from village dogs, ancient dogs found at burial sites from around 5,000 years ago, and wolves, they used statistical methods to tease out genetic changes that resulted from humans’ first efforts at domestication from those associated with the development of specific breeds. This new genetic review revealed 246 candidate domestication sites, most of them identified for the first time by their lab. Now that they’d identified the candidate genes the question remained: What do those genes do? ‘A good entry point’ Upon closer inspection, the researchers noticed that these genes influenced brain function, development and behavior. Moreover, the genes they found appeared to support what is known as the neural crest hypothesis of domestication. “The neural crest hypothesis posits that the phenotypes we see in domesticated animals over and over again, such as floppy ears, changes to the jaw, coloration, tame behavior, can be explained by genetic changes that act in a certain type of cell during development called neural crest cells, which are incredibly important and contribute to all kinds of adult tissues,” explains Pendleton. Many of the genetic sites they identified contained genes that are active in the development and migration of neural crest cells. One gene in particular stuck out, called RAI1, which was the study’s highest ranked gene. In a different lab within the Department of Human Genetics, Michigan Medicine assistant professor of human genetics Shigeki Iwase, Ph.D. has been studying this gene’s function and role in neurodevelopmental disorders. He notes that in humans, changes to the RAI1 gene result in one of two syndromes: Smith-Magensis syndrome if RAI1 is missing or Potocki-Lupski syndrome if RAI1 is duplicated. In dogs, changes to this gene may help explain why domesticated dogs are awake during the day rather than nocturnal like most wolves. Other genes Kidd’s lab identified in dogs have overlap with human syndromes resulting from improper development of neural crest cells, including facial deformities and hypersociability. These parallels between dogs and humans are what make understanding dog genetics valuable. Source: Michigan Medicine https://www.uofmhealth.org/news/archive/201806/what-makes-dogs-man’s-best-friend
September board meeting
The next Therapaws board meeting is 6:30 p.m. September 4. Any member who is interested in attendng should send an email to info@therapaws.org for the location in Dexter.
U-M students take a de-stressing break with dogs
Therapaws of Michigan, Inc., a canine-assisted therapy program, promotes and fosters the human-animal bond in therapeutic and educational settings. Board of Directors Officers Karen OConnor, president Bobbi O’Hara, vice president Lana Berry, treasurer Lisa Jevens, secretary Directors Jessica Biondo Sue Zieske Jared Wadley Email:
info@therapaws.org
Website:
http://www.therapaws.org
Facebook:
Therapaws of Michigan
University of Michigan students -- mostly freshmen -- enrolled in summer classes spent some time in the Diag with therapy dogs before taking their exams.
Registered or certified? Alliance of Therapy Dogs updates Mission Statement In the past, ATD has only used and permitted use of the term registration when referring to handler/dog teams, avoiding use of the term certification. The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines certify as “to recognize as having met special qualifications in a field.” With that in mind, we reviewed our standards and processes and feel that the quality of our testing process and the services we offer our members support the use of the term certification (as defined above). This is now reflected in our mission statement below and will be incorporated into our website and 2019 handbooks that will be distributed later in the year. While the rule changes in the handbooks don’t take effect until 2019, the change in the mission statement is effective immediately. Thanks to you and your special dogs for inspiring this mission statement change to recognize the hard work our teams and tester/observers invest in being part of the ATD family. Alliance of Therapy Dogs Mission Statement Alliance of Therapy Dogs (ATD) is an international registry of certified therapy dog teams. We provide testing, certification, registration, support and insurance for members who volunteer with their dogs in animal assisted activities. Our objective is to form a network of caring individuals and their special dogs who share smiles and joy with people, young and old alike.
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