By Madison Butkus
Hometown Weekly Reporter
Westwood residents were in for a furry treat this past Thursday, January 18th, as the Islington Branch of the Westwood Public Library (WPL) hosted a therapy dog for all to come and play with. This therapy dog welcomed everyone to the WPL with some kisses and lots of cool tricks.
Owner Lisa brought her black labrador retriever Goose who has been fully trained to become a therapy dog. Goose brought an abundance of smiles and laughs to all attendees who simply could not get enough of him.
At just four years old, Goose knew a lot of neat tricks that he was able to show off to everyone. He sat, gave his paw, rolled over, balanced a treat on his nose, sat ‘pretty’, and among other unique and interesting tricks. While all in attendance were in awe of his talents, the little ones especially were enthralled with Goose, constantly wanting to give bully rubs and pets.
Lisa informed all of us that Goose is very much food oriented to which many people agreed that they were in fact the same way. Once she pulled a treat out of her pouch, Goose locked eyes with it, completing any task that was asked of him. Lisa even offered some lucky attendees to give Goose a treat themselves, stating that they could ask him to do a trick of their choosing.
One little girl was given a treat to feed to Goose but ultimately got a little nervous about doing so. This prompted her to hold the treat in her hand for quite some time, but even so, Goose sat very patiently, eagerly awaiting his reward.
Bringing in a therapy dog to the WPL was a great way to bring awareness and better understanding of how therapy dogs work and how they can benefit so many people. It was easy to tell just how much comfort and joy Goose brought to those at the WPL and many hope he returns sometime soon.
