Seven years ago this summer Noah and I met for the first time. An animal rescue group in Dodge City hosted a weekly event where they brought animals available for adoption. I was looking for a dog to work with me as a therapist and asked someone if they had any dogs they thought would make a good therapy dog. The woman I was talking to said she was fostering a dog she thought would be great. A couple of weeks later she brought him to the event so we could meet. Now I’m a terrible dog trainer so I was blown away by Noah’s good behavior. He didn’t jump on me, pull on the leash, or act crazy in any way. We agreed I would take him home and off we went. It quickly became apparent that Noah was a great dog.

After a month or so I started taking him to the outpatient mental health office where I worked. Noah won the hearts of the staff. They began saying he was their therapy dog and anyone who was having a stressful day would love on him to relax. No one could break the ice with a nervous new client like Noah. Many of the children who came to the office didn’t know me but they sure knew him and he loved them the best. Noah could hear a little voice far down the hall in the waiting room. Off he’d go, in search of a tiny person to love.

There were adult clients who came to depend on Noah as well. I’ll never forget the day a woman in my office began talking about her abuse as a child. Noah came to her and sat, leaning on her leg, calm, loving, and accepting. His presence brought her back to the reality of being safe and cared for in a way I never could have. Noah works his miracles every day.

This year Noah entered a new phase to his life. In January he started limping. When it didn’t go away in a few days we took him to the vet. She said she didn’t know what the problem was but gave him some medication and told us to come back if he didn’t get better. Noah got a little better but after the meds ran out the limp came back. We went back to the vet for an xray but she said she didn’t see anything to worry about. Being 10 years old I thought it might just be some arthritis setting in so I started giving him a supplement. Unfortunately, the pain in his leg just kept getting worse. Back we went to the vet and this time she said she was worried it might be something serious. She suggested we take him to a vet who had a better xray machine. The new vet was quick to make the diagnosis. Bone cancer. Now Dodge is and always has been a cow town (more cows than people). Animals are cared for but it wouldn’t occur to many people to spend 1000s of dollars on a pet. The vet was compassionate but really didn’t offer any alternatives other than amputation and then wait and see. Noah’s surgery was scheduled for the following week and he came home after 24 hours.

As I drove Noah home all I could do was cry. My beautiful boy looked mutilated. He cared so much, did so much for others, but I didn’t know if I could even save his life. The first two weeks seemed like a year. Noah was depressed and I was scared. He wanted me by his side just to go out to the backyard. As the long days passed, Noah slowly regained some of his strength and confidence.  He really improved when we started going for walks around the neighborhood and he is getting back to his happy self.

Last week I was doing some yard work and Noah was laying in the cool grass. My next door neighbor came over asking if she could pet him. She said she felt so sorry for him when she saw him hopping around the yard. The woman took a deep breath and said she had just had her 5 year check up and it was good. After all the years of living next door she had never said anything to me about having cancer. As he had so many times before, Noah let someone feel safe enough to tell their story. Now the adventures of Noah continue, all be it on 3 legs.