My photo is my current service dog, Sadie. She's also 9, and is always with me. If I go outside she has to go, too, to keep an eye on me. When I work in the shop, she lies on the lawn where she can watch the door. When I'm doing yardwork, she might go run around the pasture, but she keeps coming back to nuzzle me to remind me that she's still there. I wish she understood that the flower bed I'm working in isn't a dog bed.

Does your dog go out places with you? Therapy dog is the title of those who go to hospitals and care facilities to be petted. Sadie wears a service dog vest that has a patch that says DO NOT PET, but people are always asking if they can pet her - unless they just pet without asking. I sometimes use it as an educational moment and explain that petting and talking to her and making eye contact can distract her from her job. Those are the things the dog whisperer lists.

I can see that you love your dog as much as I do mine.

Jim