Patsy Swendson and Kelsie

Kelsie opens hearts and lives and sometimes brings tears to those with the greatest needs.

Three-year-old Kelsie, half Lab and half Golden Retriever, was bred in Canada to be a guide dog for the blind. She was sent to San Antonio for training with Guide Dogs of Texas. After much training it was determined that Kelsie’s service would be better placed where she could be lead instead of leading. And as usual, things do work out for the best.

Kelsie has worked at the Fisher Houses at BAMC as well as the Center for the Intrepid, the Barracks, the Warrior Family Support Center and Operation Homefront. She is now a PTSD Support Dog bringing a calming influence in a trying time for soldiers suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and Traumatic Brain Injuries.

But her greatest achievement, in her short career as a Penny’s From Heaven Therapy dog, is being the catalyst for the first structured Animal Assisted Therapy (AAT) program of its kind in San Antonio.

Twice a week Kelsie enters the large rehabilitation gym at HealthSouth Rehabilitation Institute of San Antonio and is not only the topic of much conversation, but also sought after by therapists and patients alike. She has patients assigned to her every fifteen minutes throughout the morning. Physical therapists, occupational therapists and speech therapists gather around the sign-up sheet to have this very special therapist work with their patients for a specified amount of time to achieve a specific goal or expectation.

She is brushed by stroke victims, helps distract patients from pain as they struggle to tie a bandana around her neck, and she becomes the catalyst for patients remembering vocal skills, as they struggle to say her name or work on memory skills as they are asked to remember her age, weight and name. The zippers in her vest become challenges to those working on fine motor skills and/or manual dexterity. She lies on the table and quite simply is there for whoever might need her and for whatever purpose might help them on their journey towards healing.

Her favorite is double leash walking with patients struggling back from strokes. Together they negotiate cobblestone, steps, inclines, steps, and grass, as patients relearn skills that were taken away quite suddenly. Sometimes the steps are quite slow, but Kelsie watches the faces of the patients and walks as slowly as necessary to accommodate their needs.

She has found her niche. Mike, an accident victim, found great comfort, peace and hope for the future with Kelsie. “With a soft command from Patsy, this beautiful dog named Kelsie, hopped onto my bed. I started to cry and Kelsie eased her way up beside me and kissed away my tears. She laid her head on my chest and stared into my eyes as if to say, “Don’t cry and don’t worry, everything is going to be okay. And she was right. This was the start of my healing.”