Collin’s Gratitude for Assistance Dogs is All-encompassing

2013 was a devastating year for Collin. Her first Can Do Canine, Cher, a Diabetes Assist Dog, died that June from lymphoma at only 5 years old. Two days later, Collin’s mom died, and the following month, both her aunt and her best friend died on the same day. However, in July, Collin received Giles, her second Can Do Canine. “Giles was great comfort,” says Collin.

Giles was also a Diabetes Assist Dog, and Collin remembers, “He would alert me. And so then I'd look at my meter, and it showed that it was going down fast. He was helpful with that.” Yet, Giles, Collin says, “was a double major.” He supplemented his alerting responsibility with various mobility skills. This became increasingly beneficial for Collin, who was experiencing more neuropathy—or lack of feeling—in her limbs as a result of her diabetes. She says that now, “I can’t walk real well and my balance is off. I believe I have Parkinson's or ‘Parkinsonism.’ I'm working on being diagnosed with all of that right now. So I drop a lot of things and I can't bend over [without the risk of falling].”

When Giles passed away in January 2024, Collin began the Can Do Canines application for a third time. This round, though, she requested a Mobility Assist Dog, explaining that her diabetes is better controlled with equipment monitoring, but her mobility has deteriorated. 

Her third black Lab, Gaines, joined her world in late 2024 and began offering his eager-to-please services immediately. Collin says, “It's helpful to have him take off my shoes and socks because I can't get down there. He takes off my jacket too.” Gaines is also proficient at retrieving items, getting juice for Collin, tugging a basket, and opening and closing drawers. 

One day, Collin fell in a closet, so she asked Gaines, who is always close at hand, to get help. When Gaines converged upon Collin’s husband, Bob, Bob was unsure of what all the ruckus was about. He remembered being taught to put his hands out with the command “Show me,” so once Bob did that, Gaines brought him to where Collin was waiting for assistance. Without Gaines, Collin says, “I could have been there quite a while.”

With an assistance dog, Collin says, “I can be a lot more independent. I depend on my husband for a lot, so he gets more time off when I have a dog.” She stresses, “These dogs are so important.” And she recognizes everyone who contributes to raising Can Do Canines dogs. “I’m just so grateful for all the different people. The puppy raisers that have to give the dog up: They are just saints; they’re everything. And the prisoners: I really appreciate what they do. The dog walkers, all the different volunteers. It makes such a difference!”

Speaking of differences, when asked if she noticed much difference among her three assistance dogs, Collin responded, “Oh, heavens, yes!” She remembers Cher sometimes being a “diva,” who loved to be pampered and prance around in shopping malls. Shopping and Giles were not a great mix, though. “He looked like Eyeore walking along beside me,” says Collin. One time, she asked his opinion about a bra in the dressing room. “‘So what do you think of this one, Giles?’ He got up, groaned, and he turned and put his head in the corner and laid down.” 

While she loved him dearly, “Giles was what I’d call a typical male,” says Collin, who often teased Bob for influencing their furry housemate. 

In Gaines, Collin sees a “darling” who likes to cuddle. “These dogs, they're so wonderful. They have such personalities and they're all different from each other. You know, it's just like your kids, that everyone's different from the other one and there's something to love about each of them.”

Since Collin and Bob spend their winters in Arizona, Gaines experienced an airplane ride with them in late 2024. “He couldn’t have been more perfect,” gushes Collin. Nearby people showered praise on him, and Collin recalls the immense pride she felt for him in that moment. “It's like I gave birth to him.”

With that pride comes the feeling that 2025 should be a good year!

 

Thank you to all those who made this partnership possible:

Whelping Home — The Kittock Family
Raisers — Ann Marie Andert
Special Thanks — Jackson Correctional Institution