Dutchess, Her Spice Cookies & A Beautiful Inspiration

Dutchess is a certified therapy dog with the Good Dog Foundation.  She has been working at the Anderson Center for Autism since August, 2009.  At Anderson, Dutchess assists clients in working on various goals, most notably speech and communication.  One of Dutchess’ clients in the fall of 2009 was a young man who had difficulty communicating verbally.  Working with Dutchess, the speech therapist and me, he would have to be prompted to vocalize his desire to feed, walk, or brush Dutchess.
When he spoke, it was typically in short phrases, undirected at any one person.  Over several months, and he made moderate progress towards his goals.  One day, to the surprise of the speech therapist and me, the man—unprompted—initiated a conversation with me.  He asked me all about Dutchess: “How old is she?  Where did you get her?  Do you have other dogs?”  This represented an amazing leap forward in the man’s verbalization, and in his ability to “step outside himself” and consider another’s perspective.  I was delighted that the bond that he had built with Dutchess had given him the security and confidence to make such progress, and I am convinced that she was uniquely gifted with the ability to help him do so.  I am proud of Dutchess for continuing to impact other Anderson clients—both children and adults—in similarly profound
ways.

Last summer, Dutchess began having some changes in her vision.  By August, she had been
diagnosed with pigmentary uveitis, and was under the care of ophthalmologist Dr. Cory Mosunic.  Skilled and compassionate, she kept Dutchess comfortable while slowing the progress of her
condition.  This allowed Dutchess to continue her work at Anderson, and to bring cheer to patients at the local hospital, even visiting on Christmas Eve.  By that time, her vision was essentially gone, but she was adapting extremely well.

Four days after her eighth birthday, surgical removal of Dutchess’ eyes became necessary.  Being without eyes did nothing to dampen Dutchess’ gregarious personality.  She was a model patient and a charming overnight guest at the hospital.  Just three weeks after the surgery, Dutchess was thrilled to return to the therapy dog work that she loves so much.  Students at Anderson didn’t judge or question her lack of eyes, and, as always, they received the same unmitigated love in
response.  In some ways, Dutchess’ blindness has enhanced her work with her Anderson clients.  Her lack of vision compels them to consider a situation from another’s perspective, which is often a challenge that they are working to address.  For example, before throwing a tennis ball for Dutchess to fetch, one must allow her to sniff the ball so that she can be familiar with the target of her search.  Interactions like this allow clients a unique opportunity to express cognitive empathy.  They and Dutchess continue to interact as they always have, relishing their time together.  Dutchess continues to bring joy to everyone that she encounters, even though she doesn’t see them
with her eyes. …and her lack of vision certainly does not impede her enjoyment of her Buckwheat Spice Cookies.

Dutchess’ Buckwheat Spice Cookies  

Dutchess loves these cookies.  They are satisfyingly crunchy and smell great while cooking!  Each ingredient has some health benefit, so I don’t feel like I’m giving her “junk food” when I offer
them to her.  I use all organic ingredients.

Wet ingredients:

½ cup    shredded carrot, apple, and/or zucchini

½ cup    pumpkin and/or butternut squash puree

1 tablespoon blackstrap molasses

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 tablespoons unsalted peanut butter

1    egg

Dry ingredients:

1 ½ cups buckwheat flour

1 tablespoon aluminum-free baking powder

5 teaspoons cinnamon

5 teaspoons allspice

5 teaspoons powdered ginger

1 tablespoon bone meal

2 tablespoons alfalfa powder

¼ cup  shredded coconut

¼ cup oat bran

¼ cup flaxseed meal

DIRECTIONS:

Blend all wet ingredients in a large bowl.  In a separate bowl, mix dry ingredients.  While mixing with a wooden spoon, add dry ingredients to wet ingredients.  Use hands to knead dough as it becomes too dense to stir.  Continue to knead until a stiff, well-blended dough is formed.  Add water or additional flour as needed to produce a pliable but dry dough.

Roll dough to ¼ inch on an oat bran-coated surface.  Cut into shapes with cookie cutter.  Place on parchment paper-covered cookie sheet.  Bake at 325°F for 10 minutes; reduce oven temperature to 225°F and continue to bake for 30-45 minutes longer, or until cookies are dry and hardened.
Cool and store in an airtight container.