Owners, others say dogs are blessing

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Altoona Mirror

By Mark Leberfinger


HOLLIDAYSBURG — Two women spied Little Boy sitting on his bench inside an Allegheny Street business Friday.

“How are you?” one woman called out.

Little Boy’s eyes lit up. He jumped off the bench and went to the front door.

His admirers waved. He stood up and pawed at the window.

Little Boy, a Maltese, also sits under the floral shop’s counter, sometimes gets treats from Arby’s and gives kisses to those he snuggles against. He is a major part of Phyllis Ann Pannebaker’s life.

It’s a bond — human and animal — that has continued unabated for millennia. Owners say their dogs show unconditional love and are part of the family. Dogs also are a blessing from God, an Altoona church leader says.

“Dogs understand our language and can communicate with us. They are part of our communities. They can even make movies. We have a close understanding with them,” said Cherie Graves, chairwoman of Responsible Dog Owners of the Western States.

Pannebaker is a longtime dog owner, but she says she gained a deeper appreciation for dogs during the last 15 years. It started with the adoption of a Pomeranian.

She says she had given the dog back because she couldn’t handle the dog constantly making loud wheezing noises, later determined to be caused by stress and abuse. She was talked into keeping the dog; she doesn’t regret her decision.

“I never realized patience until then,” Pannebaker said.

The noises eventually disappeared.

Pannebaker now has another Pomeranian, Little Girl.

Little Boy has his own fan club at Phyllis Ann’s Towne Square Florals.

“Especially little kids. They will just come to see the dog,” Pannebaker said.

Dave and Lisa Gehret of Hollidaysburg had to euthanize McDuff, a Scottish terrier, Sept. 11, 2001, after specialized treatment for Cushing’s disease that included trips to the University of Pennsylvania.

They said they could never get another dog. McDevon, another Scottish terrier, was flown in two weeks later from Idaho.

“It was because the house was so empty,” Dave Gehret said.

Since Devon’s arrival, the Gehrets also adopted Bubbe, a cairn terrier.

“No matter how your day went, your dog loves you,” Lisa Gehret said.

The Gehrets’ dogs show humanlike emotions, even when their owners go on vacation without them.

“They’re standoffish for a week. They act like, ‘We’re ticked. You left us for a week,’” Lisa Gehret said.

Dogs add to one’s quality of life, said activity director Kristi Lape of The Allegheny Lutheran Home at Hollidaysburg.

The Altoona Kennel Club brings a variety of dogs to the home for a show each year with the residents, Lape said. Residents get a chance to pet and interact with the dogs.

“As soon as the dogs come into the home, the residents’ faces light up,” Lape said.

Many residents have had pets but can’t keep them in the facility.

“This helps bring back memories, the fondness they had with their pets. They remember how their kids cared for the dogs,” Lape said.

One of the home’s volunteers, who is visually impaired, brings his dog with him two days per week.

“They understand they can’t pet the dog because it’s a working dog. They do ask questions about how the dog’s trained and the things it can do,” Lape said.

Some dog owners take their animals to have them blessed at religious services known as the “Blessing of the Animals.”

One of those services is a joint venture between St. Luke’s Episcopal Church and Our Lady of Mount Carmel Roman Catholic Church, St. Luke’s pastor the Rev. Christina Jillard said. About 120 owners bring their animals, mostly dogs, each year to be blessed.

The services come out of the tradition of St. Francis of Assisi, Jillard said.

“There are wonderful stories of St. Francis being so attuned with the animals that he was able to converse and communicate with them. He clearly had a real affinity for God’s creation,” she said.

Beyond St. Francis’ love for animals, there is a deeper theology of creation going back to the Genesis creation story in which God created and saw that it was “good.”

“The look of a dog who thinks you’re wonderful helps remind us that God did wonderful things for us,” Jillard said. “We are also reminded that we are to love God with all our heart, mind and soul and to love our neighbor as yourself. There is such a spirit of generosity of spirit for those who own companion animals that often overflows into how they love others.”