b'Meanwhile,Nikitaswamlikeafish,andthenwouldrunupanddown the beach chasing pelicans andotherdogsandoccasionallynippingat Jaspers tail. Themonthspassed,andtimeonce again started to take its toll onJasper. He began to lose weight, andsometimeshestoodandstaredvacantly at the wall. He became morepronetoinfections,hisnapslongerand deeper. His tail no longer stoodstraight up. Yet, he still enjoyed treats,playingwithNikita,andgoingonwalks.He even continued to work asa therapy dog, visiting and bringingjoy to patients at a local hospital andmemory-caredaycenteruptotwoweeks before he passed away at the ageof 13. Nikita too had benefited from liv-ingwithanotherdog.Despitehishigh spirits and boundless energy, hetrained and become certified as a ther-apy dog, visiting patients at the hospi-tal and special needs kids in a schoolclassroom. Nikita continues to workas a therapy dog at Johns Hopkins AllChildrensHospitalandattheSt.Petersburg Museum of Fine Arts, cer-tified with my wife Jeanette as a pettherapyteambytheAllianceofTherapy Dogs. Now at the age of 11,he shows no signs of slowing down.But he does have to contend withanewlittlesister,anotherstandardPoodlenamedLily whojoinedourpackasaneight-week-oldpuppy.Theyarepals,aswereJasperandNikita, and when they walk togetherit is with their two tails up.Lilyisnowworkingtowardsbecomingacertifiedtherapydog.Trainingrequireslearningallofthebasicobediencecommands,intensesocializationwithmanypeople and other dogs, and learninghow to cope with distractions and sit-uations she might encounter in a busyhospital ward. It is a long and intenseprocess that she and Jeanette work onevery day.Uwww.TheNewBarker.com THE NEW BARKER 57'