A Short Tale about Murphette and Kindness at VVDAC
By Kate Hennessey
I didn’t know that I would ever have another puppy.
My heart broke when our beloved, healthy, and strong golden retriever, Murphy, passed away suddenly at 7 years old from an aggressive blood cancer. I, too, had battled cancer at age 32 and learned that life comes with no guarantees.
While on a trip to visit my parents in Ohio, I spotted a photo of newborn golden retrievers not far away. I took a detour. The twelve pups frolicked and cuddled, and, in the center, was a puppy sound asleep on her back with all four paws in the air, just like Murphy used to do.
Murphette.
It seemed my heart had love left to give after all.
When Murphette was 16 weeks old, I started looking for puppy classes, and I called Verde Valley Dog Agility Club. At 7:30 a.m. the next morning, I found myself on a bright green field surrounded by towering trees, playing recall games with Murphette and Jan. Those recall games are still some of Murphette’s favorites, and whenever she sees Jan, she gets very excited!
We continued in obedience classes, and Jan patiently answered all of my questions and brought me additional resources on golden retrievers. I asked about the pet therapy classes. I soon found myself watching a poodle named Pumpkin bring smiles to patients in a nursing home, as Jan coached her team of five dogs and their owners.
In obedience class, we met Lori Hickey and her puppy, Nikki, who is the same age as Murphette. They loved to play together, and we joined Lori’s beginner agility class. She welcomed us to the sport with great enthusiasm and helped Murphette overcome her fear of large objects. She taught us lots of fun games and introduced us to Susan Garrett’s inspiring training approach.
In the spring, we were thrilled to join Cynde Leshin’s beginner nosework class. Her expertise in the sport, positive energy, and attention to detail were impressive from the first class, and we enjoyed each Wednesday afternoon getting to learn with a welcoming group of accomplished trainers. Cynde posted videos on her website with a wealth of resources for us and listened carefully to the progress of each dog and owner at class each week.
Pam Holmes invited us to attend the Saturday fun matches, where I was awed to see dogs and their trainers at such high levels in action. People were so friendly. Stacey explained how Rally and Obedience work and shared great links to training videos and online classes. Deb shared amazing tips on how to teach dogs to be calm when greeting people. Nosework classmates Jan and Pam offered detailed directions on places for dogs to swim. Everyone has been kind and supportive as Murphette learns to be calm around people and other dogs and hopefully compete someday too.
For us, complete beginners, the Verde Valley Dog Agility Club has been a wonderful, welcoming place to learn about dog sports and meet great people who love their dogs. Thank you to the Jochim family for allowing the club to practice on their beautiful property. Thank you to all of the trainers and members of the club for providing this fun opportunity to learn, grow, and enjoy life with our dogs.
Life’s unexpected detours and the kindness of dogs and their people seem to have brought us to exactly where we should be. No guarantee needed.
“Dogs come into our lives to teach us about love. They depart to teach us about loss. A new dog never replaces an old dog. It merely expands the heart.”
-Author Unknown
By Kate Hennessey
I didn’t know that I would ever have another puppy.
My heart broke when our beloved, healthy, and strong golden retriever, Murphy, passed away suddenly at 7 years old from an aggressive blood cancer. I, too, had battled cancer at age 32 and learned that life comes with no guarantees.
While on a trip to visit my parents in Ohio, I spotted a photo of newborn golden retrievers not far away. I took a detour. The twelve pups frolicked and cuddled, and, in the center, was a puppy sound asleep on her back with all four paws in the air, just like Murphy used to do.
Murphette.
It seemed my heart had love left to give after all.
When Murphette was 16 weeks old, I started looking for puppy classes, and I called Verde Valley Dog Agility Club. At 7:30 a.m. the next morning, I found myself on a bright green field surrounded by towering trees, playing recall games with Murphette and Jan. Those recall games are still some of Murphette’s favorites, and whenever she sees Jan, she gets very excited!
We continued in obedience classes, and Jan patiently answered all of my questions and brought me additional resources on golden retrievers. I asked about the pet therapy classes. I soon found myself watching a poodle named Pumpkin bring smiles to patients in a nursing home, as Jan coached her team of five dogs and their owners.
In obedience class, we met Lori Hickey and her puppy, Nikki, who is the same age as Murphette. They loved to play together, and we joined Lori’s beginner agility class. She welcomed us to the sport with great enthusiasm and helped Murphette overcome her fear of large objects. She taught us lots of fun games and introduced us to Susan Garrett’s inspiring training approach.
In the spring, we were thrilled to join Cynde Leshin’s beginner nosework class. Her expertise in the sport, positive energy, and attention to detail were impressive from the first class, and we enjoyed each Wednesday afternoon getting to learn with a welcoming group of accomplished trainers. Cynde posted videos on her website with a wealth of resources for us and listened carefully to the progress of each dog and owner at class each week.
Pam Holmes invited us to attend the Saturday fun matches, where I was awed to see dogs and their trainers at such high levels in action. People were so friendly. Stacey explained how Rally and Obedience work and shared great links to training videos and online classes. Deb shared amazing tips on how to teach dogs to be calm when greeting people. Nosework classmates Jan and Pam offered detailed directions on places for dogs to swim. Everyone has been kind and supportive as Murphette learns to be calm around people and other dogs and hopefully compete someday too.
For us, complete beginners, the Verde Valley Dog Agility Club has been a wonderful, welcoming place to learn about dog sports and meet great people who love their dogs. Thank you to the Jochim family for allowing the club to practice on their beautiful property. Thank you to all of the trainers and members of the club for providing this fun opportunity to learn, grow, and enjoy life with our dogs.
Life’s unexpected detours and the kindness of dogs and their people seem to have brought us to exactly where we should be. No guarantee needed.
“Dogs come into our lives to teach us about love. They depart to teach us about loss. A new dog never replaces an old dog. It merely expands the heart.”
-Author Unknown